Irgalem

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Irgalem
Abosto, Dalle
Irgalem
Location within Ethiopia
Coordinates: 6°45′N 38°25′E / 6.750°N 38.417°E / 6.750; 38.417Coordinates: 6°45′N 38°25′E / 6.750°N 38.417°E / 6.750; 38.417
Country Ethiopia
Region Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples'
Zone Sidama
Elevation 1,776 m (5,827 ft)
Population (2005)
 • Total 43,815
Time zone EAT (UTC+3)

Irgalem (also spelled Yrgalam, Yrgalem[1] and Yrga Alem; alternate names include Abosto, Dalle) is a town in southern Ethiopia. Located 260 kilometers south of Addis Ababa and 40 kilometers south of Awasa in the Sidama Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region (or kilil), the town has a latitude and longitude of 6°45′N 38°25′E / 6.750°N 38.417°E / 6.750; 38.417 and an elevation of 1776 meters. It is the largest settlement in Dale woreda.

Postal service is provided by a main branch; electricity and telephone service are also available.[2]

History

Irgalem was occupied by the Italians 1 December 1936 during their campaign against the remaining Ethiopian Army of Sidamo under Ras Desta Damtew.[3] The town was capital of Sidamo Province until after the 1975 takeover by the Derge regime, when it was moved to Awassa.

Around 1957 there was no telephone landline connecting Irgalem; telecommunications were provided by a radio station. The next year, the town was one of 27 places in Ethiopia ranked as First Class Township. Installation of the landline between Irgalem and Addis Ababa was completed in late 1960. By that time a branch of the Ethiopian Electric Light and Power Authority had started operation at Irgalem.[4]

The Mekane Yesus Church held its Eighth General Assembly at Irgalem in 1973. The Assembly passed a resolution requesting land reform in Ethiopia - a reform which was in fact put into action a couple of years later, as a result of the Ethiopian Revolution.[4]

Demographics

Based on figures from the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia published in 2005, Iragalem has an estimated total population of 43,815 of whom 21,840 are men and 21,975 women.[5] The 1994 national census reported this town had a total population of 24,183 of whom 12,092 were men and 12,091 were women.

Notes

  1. ↑ National Geographic Society (1965). National Geographic Globe (Map). 1 : 31,363,200. Washington, D.C..
  2. ↑ "Detailed statistics on infrastructure", Southern Nations, Nationalities and People's Region, Bureau of Finance and Economic Development website (accessed 27 September 2009)
  3. ↑ Anthony Mockler, Haile Selassie's War (New York: Olive Branch, 2003), p. 172.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Local History in Ethiopia" The Nordic Africa Institute website (accessed 24 May 2012)
  5. ↑ CSA 2005 National Statistics, Table B.4. Archived 23 November 2006 at the Wayback Machine
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