Mekelle
መቐለ ሰሜናዊት ኮኾብ Mak'allè, Mekele, mäqälle, mek’elē | |
---|---|
Nickname: The Northern Star(ሰሜናዊት ኮኾብ) | |
Coordinates: 13°29′49″N 39°28′37″E / 13.49694°N 39.47694°E | |
Country | Ethiopia |
Region | Tigray |
Zone | Mekelle Special Zone |
Government | |
• Mayor | (vacant as of 30 March 2021[update][1]) |
Elevation | 2,254 m (7,395 ft) |
Population (2023)[2] | |
• Total | 525,475 |
• Estimate (2023)[3] | 545,635 |
Time zone | UTC+3 (EAT) |
Area code | (+251) 14 |
Climate | Hot semi-arid |
Mekelle (Tigrinya: መቐለ), or Mek'ele, is a special zone and capital of the Tigray Region of Ethiopia. Mekelle was formerly the capital of Enderta awraja in Tigray.[4] It is located around 780 kilometres (480 mi) north of the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, with an elevation of 2,254 metres (7,395 ft) above sea level. Administratively, Mekelle is considered a Special Zone, which is divided into seven sub-cities. It is the economic, cultural, and political hub of northern Ethiopia.
Mekelle has grown rapidly since 1991 with a population of 61,000 in 1984, 97,000 inhabitants in 1994 (96.5% being Tigrinya-speakers), and 170,000 in 2006 (i.e. 4% of the population of Tigray). Mekelle is the second-largest city in Ethiopia after Addis Ababa, with a population of around 545,000.[5] It is 4 times larger than Adigrat, the second-largest regional center. The majority of the population of Mekelle depends on government employment, commerce, and small-scale enterprises. In 2007, Mekelle had new engineering, cement, and textile factories, producing for the local and foreign markets. Mekelle University developed out of the pre-1991 Arid Agricultural College, and about a dozen other governmental and private colleges were created.[4]
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