Browse / Ethiopia / Sidama / Hawassa

Hawassa

Sidamacity

Photograph of Hawassa
Featured view

Hawassa

Total population

160,000

Elevation1708 m
Land area50 km²
Coordinates7.05°, 38.48°

Demographic figures from Ethiopian Statistical Service. Overview below cites Wikipedia and may reference a different year.

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City facts

Elevation
1708 m
Area
50 km²

Facts from Wikidata (CC0).

Overview

Hawassa, known historically as Adare, is a city in Ethiopia, on the shores of Lake Hawassa in the Great Rift Valley. It is 273 km (170 mi) south of Addis Ababa via Bishoftu, 130 km (81 mi) east of Sodo, and 75 km (47 mi) north of Dilla. The town serves as the capital of the Sidama Region. It lies on the Trans-African Highway 4 Cairo-Cape Town and has a latitude and longitude of 7°3′N 38°28′E and an elevation of 1,708 meters (5,604 ft) above sea level. Its name comes from a Sidama word meaning "wide body of water".

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History & geography

History

In 1957, with Ras Mengesha Seyoum at the head of the Sidamo Governorate General, Emperor Haile Selassie became greatly interested in establishing a new town in the area where the city is now located. The area appealed to the emperor on many levels. It was located on the important Addis Abeba– Moyale (Kenya) highway; its flat, expansive topography was conducive to city building; and the nearby tourist attractions of Lake Hawassa and the Dume hill (later named Tabor) provided a dramatic backdrop to the area. In 1958, upon the order of the emperor, a seasonal palace for him was built along Lake Awasa in an area called Kutuwa. The building of the palace intensified interest in the area among many people, most notably the empress herself proceeded to lay claim to extensive hectares of land in the name of the emperor. As the town grew, more than three thousand people who were living in the area were displaced. Dubale (2010) also notes that a political dispute accompanied the displacement of the Sidama from the Hawassa area. Governor Ras Mengesha Seyoum (r.1955–1960) enthusiastically supported the urbanization of the area, regardless of its impact on the Sidama who had been living there, while succeeding Governor Ras Andargachew Mesay (r. 1960–1965) was much more concerned with the impact of this displacement on the Sidama people. Ras Andargachew Mesay refused to endorse the implementation of a large mechanized farming project in and around the Hawassa area by the Ministry of National Development unless he was guaranteed alternative land for the thousands of Sidama households. Their houses were simply bulldozed without any prior notification and compensation. However, despite his efforts to delay or block the displacement of the Sidama by the emerging city plan and the…

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Excerpted from the corresponding Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA).

Geography

Latitude
7.0481
Longitude
38.4786
Water area
—
View on OpenStreetMap

Coordinates & boundaries from the US Census TIGER/Line shapefiles.

Climate

Air quality

Walkability

Amenities nearby

Wildlife & biodiversity

Observations (last 5 yrs, 10 mi)
14,035
Distinct species (top 10)
10

Most-observed species

  • Red-eyed Dove
    Streptopelia semitorquata (Rüppell, 1837) · Aves
    262
  • Silvery-cheeked Hornbill
    Bycanistes brevis Friedmann, 1929 · Aves
    241
  • Hamerkop
    Scopus umbretta Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
    237
  • Hadada Ibis
    Bostrychia hagedash (Latham, 1790) · Aves
    225
  • Marabou Stork
    Leptoptilos crumenifer (R.P.Lesson, 1831) · Aves
    220
  • Egyptian Goose
    Alopochen aegyptiaca (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
    219
  • Hooded Vulture
    Necrosyrtes monachus (Temminck, 1823) · Aves
    214
  • African Jacana
    Actophilornis africanus (J.F.Gmelin, 1789) · Aves
    199

Citizen-science & research observations from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF).

Earthquake history

Quakes ≥ 2.5 (25 yrs, 62 mi)
6
Largest magnitude
5.3
Largest event
2017-01-27

Most recent

Events from the USGS Earthquake Catalog (global) (FDSN Event Web Service).

Photos

Sights & places nearby

Notable people from here

People born within ~10 km, from Wikidata (CC0). Click any name for their Wikipedia article.

Nearby places in Sidama

Browse all places in Sidama →

Geography & sun

Avg solar (kWh/m²/day)
5.99
Annual solar (kWh/m²)
2,187

Elevation, sunrise/sunset and daylight from Open-Meteo. Solar climatology from NASA POWER.

Nearby airports

Public attention

Wikipedia views (last 30 days)
1,891
Avg daily Wikipedia views
63
Attention level
Quiet

Pageview totals from the Wikimedia Pageviews API.

Books about this place

Recent natural events nearby

Ground air-quality sensors

Recently spotted species

Research-grade observations from iNaturalist (within ~15 mi).

Events

Sources

  • • Wikipedia
  • • Wikidata
  • • USGS Earthquake Catalog (global feed)
  • • GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility)
  • • iNaturalist
  • • Open-Meteo / sunrise-sunset.org
  • • Wikipedia Pageviews API