Tigray Region

Tigray is in the north of Ethiopia.

It is near Eritrea and Sudan. Many people live in the high hills.

Most people are farmers. They work on the land to grow food.

This is a very old place. Long ago, a great kingdom lived here.

It has many old stone monuments. You can see them today.

Tigray is a region in northern Ethiopia.

It sits near Eritrea to the north. Sudan is to the west. The Amhara and Afar regions are nearby. The capital city is Mekelle.

Tigray is a very old place. Some say it is the cradle of Ethiopian culture. A long time ago, the Aksumite Kingdom lived here. It was a great trading empire.

The Aksumites made gold coins.

They also built tall stone pillars called stelae. You can still see these today in the city of Axum.

Many people in Tigray are farmers. They work on the land to grow food.

Most people live in the high, green hills. The lowlands are much emptier.

The region has many old churches. Some are even built into rocks.

People there speak a language called Tigrinya. It is a place with a very long history.

Tigray is a large region in northern Ethiopia.

It sits near the country of Eritrea to the north. To the west, it borders Sudan. The Amhara and Afar regions are also nearby. The largest city and capital is Mekelle.

Tigray is the fifth-largest region in Ethiopia by area. It is also the fourth-most populous state. Many people live in the high, green hills. These highlands have a high population density. The lowlands cover 48% of the area. These low parts of the land are much less crowded.

Most people in Tigray work as farmers. About 80% of the people do this work. Farming helps provide much of the region's wealth. The people there speak a language called Tigrinya. This language is similar to what is spoken in southern Eritrea. Religion is also very important to life there. About 95.6% of Tigrayans are Orthodox Christian. About 4% of the people are Muslim. Historically, Islam used this region as a doorway into Africa.

Tigray has a very long and deep history. Some people call it the cradle of Ethiopian civilization. A kingdom called D‘mt lived here a long time ago. This kingdom was around 3,000 years old. They used iron tools and grew millet. They even used irrigation to help their crops grow. Later, the Aksumite Kingdom rose to power. This was a great trading empire.

At its peak, the empire reached into many lands. It even included parts of Yemen and Saudi Arabia. One famous leader was King Ezana. He helped the empire convert to Christianity.

The Aksumites left many amazing things behind. They built tall stone pillars called stelae. You can see these in the city of Axum.

They also made their own gold coins.

Some religious buildings are very special too. There are churches carved right into the rocks.

These buildings show how people lived long ago. The history of the region is full of many different kingdoms and leaders.

In recent years, Tigray has faced very hard times. A war began in November 2020. This conflict was between the TPLF and the Ethiopian government. Eritrea also supported the federal government during this time. The war caused many people to leave their homes. It was a very sad and difficult period. Many people lost their lives during the fighting. As of 2023, the region is run by an interim administration. This group helps manage the land and the people today.

The Tigray Region is a major administrative division located in northern Ethiopia.

It is officially known as the Tigray National Regional State. This region serves as the homeland for the Tigrayan, Irob, and Kunama peoples. Geographically, Tigray is positioned as the northernmost state in Ethiopia. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north and Sudan to the west. To the east lies the Afar Region, while the Amhara Region borders it to the south. The capital city and largest urban center is Mekelle.

Tigray is a large and diverse territory in terms of size and population. It is the fifth-largest regional state in Ethiopia by total area. However, it is the fourth-most populous state among the 11 regions. The population density varies greatly depending on the local landscape. The highlands feature the highest population density, particularly in central and eastern Tigray. In contrast, the lowlands are much less crowded. These lowlands actually make up 48% of the total area of the region. Before the recent Tigray war, the population was estimated at 7,070,260 people.

The economy and culture of Tigray are deeply connected to the land and faith. Approximately 80% of the population works as farmers. This agricultural work contributed 46% to the regional gross domestic product in 2009. The official language is Tigrinya, which is similar to languages spoken in southern Eritrea. Religion plays a massive role in daily life for the residents. About 95.6% of Tigrayans are Orthodox Christian. Muslims make up approximately 4% of the population. Historically, the region served as a doorway for Islam into Africa.

The history of Tigray is often viewed as the cradle of Ethiopian civilization. Ancient civilizations like the kingdom of Dʿmt existed here as far back as the 3rd millennium BC. Dʿmt was a 3,000-year-old kingdom that likely sat near present-day Yeha. These people used iron tools and grew crops like millet. They also developed early irrigation schemes to manage water. Historians debate the origins of this civilization. Some believe it was indigenous, while others suggest it was a mixture of local and Sabaean peoples.

Following the fall of Dʿmt, the Aksumite Kingdom rose to prominence around the 1st century AD. Aksum was a powerful trading empire rooted in the Tigray region. At its height, the empire controlled parts of Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Sudan, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia. The city of Axum served as the empire's capital. The Aksumites were famous for many achievements. They minted their own currency, including gold coins.

They also built massive stone pillars known as stelae or obelisks.

Under King Ezana in the 4th century, the state converted to Christianity. This made Aksum the first state to put the image of a cross on its coins.

Throughout the Middle Ages, the region saw various political structures and titles. The lands were sometimes divided by the Mereb River into different provinces. One province was ruled by a Bahre Negash, or Ruler of the Sea. Another was ruled by a Tigray Mekonen, or Lord of Tigray. During the Zemene Mesafint, or "Era of the Princes," these titles lost much of their power. Local lords used titles like Ras or Dejazmach instead. In the 19th century, Yohannes IV ascended to the imperial throne. He was a member of the lords of Tembien and Enderta. After his death in 1889, the center of Ethiopian power shifted south toward Shewa.

In the 20th century, Tigray experienced significant political shifts and uprisings. In 1943, a rebellion known as the Woyane occurred in southern and eastern Tigray. Local assemblies called gerreb formed to organize the people. These assemblies sent representatives to a central congress called a shengo. Later, the region was impacted by the Ethiopian Revolution in 1974. This led to the rise of the Derg, a military committee led by Mengistu Haile Mariam. The Derg dismantled the imperial government and nationalized many industries. This period was marked by heavy mismanagement and violent rule.

Recent history has been shaped by a devastating conflict known as the Tigray War. This war began in early November 2020 between the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Ethiopian federal government. Eritrea supported the federal government during this struggle. The conflict caused massive instability and displaced millions of people. The human cost was very high, with around 600,000 civilian deaths reported. Additionally, as many as 70,000 combatants were killed, and up to 18,000 were injured. As of 2023, the region is managed by the Interim Regional Administration of Tigray.