Local History of Ethiopia Key - Kiku sub-district © Bernhard Lindahl (2005)

HDU20 Key (K'ey, Qey) 10°08'/39°21' 1999 m 10/39 [Gz q]

west of Molale
HEE77 Key (K'ey, Kai) 11°32'/39°06' 2942 m 11/39 [Gz WO]
key (qäyi) afer (A) red earth
HBR82 Key Afer (Key Afar, Key After) cf Kayafer 05/36 [MS Ca n]
05°20'/36°50' a village at some distance from Jinka
1990s /this Key Afer?:/ There is the Abebe Hotel.
HCC11 Key Afer (K'ey A., Qey A., K'eyafa) 05/36 [Gz q]
05°31'/36°44' 1615 m
HEM41 Key Afer (K'ey A., Qey A.) 12°08'/39°28' 2297 m 12/39 [Gz q]
south-west of Alamata
HD... Key Afer sub-district (Kei Afer .. Key Afar ..) 09/39 [+ Ad 20]
(centre in 1964 = Mahibere Bekur)
key amba (A) red mountain
HEM 51 Key Amba 12°13'/39°28' 12/39 [Gz Ad]
(centre in 1964 of Del sub-district? Del not in Gz)
HEM50 Key Amba Abo (K'ey A.A.) (church) 12°13'/39°24' 12/39 [Gz]
south-west of Alamata
HDM75 Key Gedel (K'ey G., Qey G.) 09°44'/39°48' 2221 m 09/39 [Gz q]
south of Debre Sina
HEE17 Key Gedel (K'ey G., Qey G.) 10°59'/39°33' 2960 m 10/39 [Gz q]
HEE75 Key Werka, (K'ey W., Qey W.) 11/38 [Gz q]
11°30'/38°57' 2410 m

keya: keye (qäye) (A), (qee'ee) (O) place outside the compound
or village where animals are grazed; neighbourhood
H.... Keya sub-district, cf Kaya 10/39 [Ad]
(centre in 1964 = Gedid)
H.... Keya Gebriel sub-district (-1997-) 10/39? [n]
HD... Keya Kolako (in Menz & .. awraja) 09/39? [Ad]
The primary school in 1968 had 271 boys and 26 girls in grades 1-5,
with 3 teachers.
HCC11 Keyafa (K'eyafa), see Key Afer
HDM42 Keyafer Mikael (K'eyafer M.) (church) 09°28'/39°35' 09/39 [Gz]
south of Debre Birhan, cf Key Afer
?? Keycha Sisa (visiting postman under Jimma) ../.. [Po]
?? Keyit (visiting postman under Debre Birhan) ../.. [Po]
JDJ43 Keykey 09°26'/41°55' 2152 m 09/41 [Gz]
mountain south of Dire Dawa
HEE34c Keyu (Keyou) 11/38 [+ Mi]
A small village about 90 km west of Dessie, on the right bank of the Berki stream.
Oil shale occurs in the neighbourhood.
[Mineral 1966]

JDJ.. Kezira (in Dire Dawa awraja) 09/41 [Ad]

The junior secondary school in 1968 had 59 male and 45 female
students in grade 7, with no regularly employed teacher at that time?
HFF90 Kezkeziya (K'ezk'eziya, Qezqeziya) 14/39 [Gz q]
14°27'/39°22' 2557 m, north of Adigrat

KCP84 Khair Debin (Chair D., Cair D.) 08°01'/46°08' 739 m 08/46 [WO Gz]
JDE59 Khansaha Au Yahiye (area) 08/44 [WO]
JDE79 Khansaha Harbodle (area) 08/44 [WO]
HFF80 Kharsaba, see Kerseber
khor, ravine or watercourse

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?? Khor el Otrub
(A pass probably on the Sudan side but mentioned in connection with the
British bombing of Metemma in July 1940 and the fighting at Gallabat Fort.)
JDG08 Khora, see Kora
HDD91 Khorke, G. (hill) 09/37 [WO]
HCA76 Kiafe (Chiafe) 06°07'/35°21' 1810 m 06/35 [n Gz]
HFF60 Kiat (Qi'at) (with rock-hewn church Maryam) 14/39 [x Ad]
(centre in 1964 of Azeba sub-district)
"A 2½ h de Bahera ou à 4 h de Nebelèt. Très belle basilique hypogée, avec 3 coupoles
dans la nef centrale, un écran de presbyterium, des bonnes peintures, des portes axoumites
en bois sculpté, un arc triomphal exceptionnel par son arc double à croix sculptée."
[Sauter 1976 p 162]
text Ruth Plant in Ethiopia Observer, early 1973 no 1 p 47-48 with plan and drawing

HDD83 Kiba (K'iba, Qiba) 08°54'/37°50' 2488 m 08/37 [Gz q]

Kiba, south-west of Ambo
HCL34 Kibena (Chevena, Chevenna) 06/38 [LM WO Gu Gz]
06°36'/38°49' 2551/2662 m
1930s On 18 January 1937 three military columns supported by fifty airplanes attacked Ras
Desta's forces at Arbagoma-Chevenna /=Arbegona-Kibena/.
[Sbacchi 1997 p 175]

kibet: kibat (qibat) (A) grease, ointment, lotion;

also one branch of theological theory in Ethiopia
HCS77 Kibet 07°55'/38°13' 2313 m 07/38 [Gz]
HCS80 Kibet (Kibät) (centre -1957-2000- of Silti wereda) 08/38 [Ad x]
"Close to the village of Kibet, south of Butajira, is the so-called Silti stele. From Kibet, it's
a 9 km drive, followed by a seven-minute walk south-east of the road up a hill. A few
minutes south of thestone is the village of Bazoso, where the 'head' of the stone can be
found. -- Its engravings appear to depict female sexual features.
[Lonely planet 2000 p 216]
Kibet : Hare Shetan
At 1 km off the main road, 2.8 km from Kibet, "is the strange crater lake of Hare Shetan,
which means 'Place of the Devil' in the local Silti language. The lake is known for its
extraordinary colour - like a fluorescent, cloudy emerald, which according to the locals
changes colour from green to yellow and white depending on the season. The place -- is a
five-minute walk from the road to the rim of the crater."
[Lonely planet 2000 p 216]

kibi: kibe (qibe) (A) butter; kibbi (A) encirclement

e g army camp; (T) circle, sphere, ball
HCA36 Kibi (Chibi) 05°42'/35°19' 1655 m 05/35 [Gz WO]
Coordinates would give map code HCA35
GDF96 Kibi Chala (K. Ch'ala) 09°01'/34°56' 2035 m 09/34 [Gz]
HFF82 Kibidaha (Chibidaha) (pass) 14°18'/39°36' 14/39 [+ Gu Gz]
HCS48 Kibil 07°38'/38°18' 07/38 [MS]

HBP71 Kibish (Kidish) 05°25'/35°34' 420 m 05/35 [WO Gz n]

Gz: 05°14'/35°50' 609 m
(populated place & wells)
Coordinates would give map code HBN98 which is
very near the Sudan border on the War Office map.
Settlement from where a 75 km unmaintained track leads to the headquarters of the Omo
National Park. There is a good airstrip, and there is open thornbush in the surroundings.

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[Camerapix 1995]
?? Kibish 05/35? [Mi]
A river running to lake Turkana. There is indicated
0.5-1.5 grams of gold per cubic metre within a limited area.
[Mineral 1966]
HEM51 Kibkib (K'ibk'ib, Qibqib) 12°18'/39°31' 2380 m 12/39 [Gz q)

HEC98 Kibran (Kebran, Chebran, Chevraan) 11/37 [Gz Ch Gu WO]

(island with church/monastery Gebriel)
Kibran 11°39'/37°22' 1784 m, see under Zege & text at Kebran
Island longest in direction south-east to north-west, with volcanic rocks
piled on top of each other.
"Very near the southern tip of this heart-shaped lake /Tana/ are the islands of Kebran and
Entons. -- Kebran owns many manuscripts, especially old ones. Many originate from
other churches, including Entons, and were brought there for safekeeping during the
Moslem invasion in the sixteenth century."
[Welcome to Ethiopia, AA circa 1965 p 198-199]
1930s Major Cheesman visited there in March 1933: "We rowed over in the tankwa in two and a
half hours. The course was strewn with rock and reefs, some just above water and some
just under the surface. It was a journey that would call for exceptional care on the part of
the pilot of a sailing boat or motor vessel to avoid being holed. -- We passed between the
mainland and a big reef island named Aba Garima, half a mile long by half a mile broad. -
- The next island passed is Entons, about three-quarters of a mile from Kebran -- now
completely deserted."
"The tankwa landing-place at Kebran is on the south side, and the path from it rose
steeply among high trees. The island is formed of piled volcanic rocks and has a narrow
shore of shingle almost ground to sand by the action of the waves."
"On the top of the cone, about 100 feet above the lake, we came to the church, dedicated
to Saint Gabriel. The Memhir, a monk eighty-seven years old and a celibate, greeted me
civilly, rising painfully from his chair and explaining that he was old, tired, and worn-out.
I begged him to be seated again. Except for an occasional visit from travelling monks, one
of whom was there at the time of my arrival, he lived alone on the island with his
servants, two slave boys whom he had protected and educated, and his young nephew,
who was staying with him, These three seemed to look after him and the church, though it
is probable that the younger monks came over from the mainland and assisted with the
services."
"The old man said that he was born on Entons, had been on Kebran forty-five years and
had never left the island. If his body was feeble his mind was clear. He told me that
Kebran was founded in the reign of Amda Seyon (1314-1344), and Abuna Za Yohannes
built the church. It had been repaired by David, and Adyam Sagad (probably Iyasu I,
1682-1706) rebuilt it with the help of European workmen. He sent the boys to bring a
book called The History of Gabriel. -- It recorded that two foreign masons were
employed, in addition to Abyssinian masons, in the building of the church, and mentioned
the provinces from which timber, stone, and lime were supplied. The red rock of which
the pillars are built came from Dunkaz; it is shaped in square blocks. Lime came from
Densa. --"
"The Memhir said that Kebran Gabriel had been struck by lightning in the reign of Iyoas.
He also told me of a picture of St. Gabriel kept in the Holy of Holies, which was painted
with the tears of a monk who was a very holy man. If the picture is put in water it remains
unaffected, as water will not touch it."
"In the Kidist or second division of the church we were shown the open coffins, with
bones exposed, of several previous Memhirs. The coffins were tree-trunks hollowed out
with an adze. The coffin of the Emperor Takla Haimanot I, who is called 'The Accursed'
because he caused his father Iyasu I to be murdered and usurped the throne, used to lie in
the Kidist, but had to be removed to the Kidist Kidisan, where only priests can see them.

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It was found necessary to move them, because superstitious people used to take bits of
bone and pieces of cloth from the King's coffin and use them as charms."
"On the south side of the church, in the floor of the Kidist, is the tomb of Abuna Za
Yohannes, covered by a stone slab. A memorial in stone is let into the wall beside it, with
a simple design of the top of a Bishop's staff. The south window of the Kidist Kidisan is
openwork of wrought iron in squares of a similar design to that on the stone, and both are
doubtless the work of Europeans."
"There are at Kebran twelve pillars of dark-red worked stone, ornamented at the top and
with arches between. The pillars are at least 25 feet high and are built in a circle
surrounding the Kidist Kidisan; they are narrow, square, and graceful and make an
impressive bit of architecture. The Memhir said that the number twelve was chosen to
represent the Twelve Apostles. Some of the arches are giving way and look very
dangerous, and the building is in need of immediate repair."
"In the churchyard is a separate thatched belfry, the supports being rough branches of
trees. Here we saw three kinds of bell, one a rough-cast metal bell with a bold inscription
in Giz embossed round it, -- There were also two stone bells made of pairs of narrow
slabs of rock -- slung by creeper-stems to wooden frames. A round pebble lies on the top
of the stone and is used as a striker, and when sounded the bell gives out two notes as
each stone is struck in turn."
"A third kind of bell is composed of three wooden clappers, merely shaped timber boards.
The middle board is the largest and is tongue-shaped and about 4 feet high by 2 feet wide.
Two slightly smaller clappers are loosely bound by ropes of creeper-stems to the front and
back of the middle board through two holes, one on each side. The middle board has a
stout handle, and a man can make a clapping noise by shaking the whole concern."
"Many paintings on linen adorn the walls in the church, and they are of good colour and
tone. One is of St. George and the Dragon, and there is also one of Iyasu I lying in
Heaven with Christ standing over him, and his riflemen all round him. There are said to
be large stacks of books in the library at Kebran, but there was so much to see that I had
no time to examine them. They were taken there for safety by other churches on the
mainland during the various Muhammadan invasions and have never been returned."
"We re-embarked and poled the tankwa round the island westward to see the Church of
Mado Mariam, built on a little promontory at the north-west corner. We found a small,
poor building in which services are only held on occasions such as the Feast of Mariam,
when a monk is brought over from Zegi, as a priest is not allowed to officiate unless he
happens to be a monk as well."
Cheesman citing Budge: Tekle Haymanot I (reigning 1706-1708) was murdered by
conspirators and was buried on Kebran.
[R E Cheesman, Lake Tana & the Blue Nile, London 1936 p 151-155]
picts J Leroy, Ethiopian painting, (French ed. 1964) London 1967 pl I painting from
Kibran Gebriel of the Entry into Jerusalem, pl XXIII archangels painted on door
of the holy-of-holies, pl XXIV painting of Virgin and Mikael also from Gebriel;
Merian Monatsheft: Äthiopien, Hamburg Oktober 1966 p 35 archangels as above;
G Hancock et al, Under Ethiopian skies, London 1983 (1987) p 90 bell
at Kibran Gebriel monastery church;
Äthiopien (topurist guide) 1999 p 165 metal and stone bells

kibr, kibir (A) honour, glory; mengist (A) kingdom, government

HCE56 Kibre Mengist (Kebre Mengist, Adola) 05/39 [Ad Gz MS WO]
(Kabra Mangest) (with gold mining) 05/39 [x]
05°53'/39°00' 1680/2170 m or 05°53'/38°59' 1758 m
at about 90 km north-west of Negele.
Coordinates would give map code HCE55.
Centre -1956-1980- of Jemjem awraja
and 1964 of Darimu sub-district.
Within a radius of 10 km there are at km

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--- Jemjem (Giam Giam) (surrounding wide area) 2322 m

5E Dubicha Mika (D. Tika) (mountain)
3NW Hoku (Hocu) (area)
9NW Orobassaie (area?) c2700 m
9NE Afrara (forest and village) 1857 m
The town is the centre of a gold-bearing area in Sidamo.
geol Muscovite schists are extensively developed north of Kibre Mengist, and immediately
south of the same town are associated with high-grade andalusite and sillimanite schists.
[Mohr, Geology 1961 p 24]
There are beryllium minerals associated with pegmatites. At some kilometres from Kibre
Mengist at the road to Negele there are graphitic schists and graphitic quartzites.
The serpentinitic mountain of Dubicha Gudda and Dubicha Mika rise as ridges over the
Kibre Mengist plain and are mostly /by 1965/ devoid of forest. The ore at Dubicha Mika,
about 5 km east of Kibre Mengist, contains on an average 1.2% of nickel.
Graphite deposits have been indicated near Kibre Mengist. The graphite is embedded in
quartz and occurs in very fine flakes.
Minerals with traces of tungsten have been found near Kibre Mengist.
"In past years, the area was exploited by many labourers, mostly by panning. During the
period 1936-1940 some exploration was started, but it is not known if any of this work
was completed and there exist no data on the results. There is no record of gold having
been recovered from the sand and gravel in the streams by the inhabitants of this part of
Sidamo. The inhabitants are Gujis, whose activity has always been limited to cattle-
raising."
An Italian source credits COMINA as being the discoverer of gold in the area. The
company carried out some small-scale exploitation of the gold, but there is no data on
production figures.
[Mineral 1966 p 357-358]
1930s When the Swedish and Norwegian Red Cross ambulances fled southwards
in 1936 they also passed this area.
"A little before Adola the route was steep downwards. The path lowered about 800 m, but
nevertheless we were at an altitude of about 3,000 m. Nights were cold and moist, and the
sleeping bags could not keep out the cold.
Adola was only a collection of straw huts. The local chief was named Musse Sawa and
was found to be a Greek. It had taken us seven days to arrive here from Yirga Alem, and
we were satified with our progress."
"On the day when we arrived at Adola the town was the object of two air attacks, but they
did not cause any major damage. But it was noticeable that we were closer to the war
front."
"It had been agreed that we should wait at Adola until we had a message from Ras Desta,
but no message came. While we waited Kvittinger opened medical care, and the two first
patients who arrived were two female slaves of the Greek, and they had syphilis -- /So
many wanted medicine/ that we had to say stop. Then came those who had rheumatism,
which was a common ailment in the cold and moist mountain climate."
"On the third day we had bombs for breakfast. Two planes flew over us at a height of
1,000 m and turned a couple of times around the place with trees where our camp was.
They obviously did not see us and instead dropped the bombs over Adola, and then their
machine-guns were heard. We knew that Musse Sawa had obtained a machine-gun with
which to defend the town, but he did not fire a single shot. He probably did not dare use
it."
"While we were in the town to see the bomb craters a message arrived from Ras Desta.
We should come as soon as possible." However, the author cited here, Kaare Gulbransen,
got such high fever that it was decided after six days to transport him back to Agere
Selam. Kvittingen accompanied as far as Boka and then went back towards Adola.
[K Gulbransen, Jag sökte äventyret, (Norway 1956)Sthlm 1957 p 234-236]
Residenza dei Giamgiam Orientali, post, telegraph, infirmary. [Guida 1938]

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1940s British forces coming from the south passed in April 1941.
"I remember a long, wooded valley with a few recently-built villas, the beginning of a
new Italian settlement named Adola. It was rumoured that Italian mining engineers had
discovered gold in the vicinity, and that various minerals abounded in the neighbouring
mountain ranges."
[MacDonald 1957 p 196]
"After 1941, a gold-mine at Adola in Sidamo became a steady booster of the royal coffers.
In 1944, for instance, the official revenue figure from Adola came to nearly a fifth of total
government revenue. Appropriately enough the name was changed to Kebra Mangest
(Glory of the State). In the public vocabulary, however, 'Adola' remained, signifying
terror both in the forcible recruitment of labour and in the conditions of penal servitude
that prevailed in the labour camp."
[Bahru Zewde 1991 p 200]
/1943:/ "We dropped down through attractive, park-like country and some dry forest to
Adola, the source of most of Ethiopia's gold. Here we spent a night or two so as to attend
the market, where I met for the first time crowds of Jam-jams, wearing their distinctive
leather tam-o'-shanters."
[D Buxton, Travels in Ethiopia, London (1949)1957 p 91]
/tam-o'-shanter = a tight-fitting Scottish cap or braided bonnet/
1946 In May/June 1946 a one-month tour of Ethiopia was made by four Swedish experts from
the bank, mining and construction sectors. One project that was discussed was a railway
from Addis Abeba to Adola.
[V Halldin Norberg 1977 p 201]
Swedish geologists worked for a while at Adola about 1946-1952. This group of five
(Dahlström, Tenne, Bexell, Eriksson, Bernström) kept their prospecting for gold rather
secret and they had no second contract period.
The hospital had one doctor and 40 beds in 1949.
1950s The Swedish traveller Sid Roland Rommerud visited Debre Zeyt, probably in 1951 or
1952. He was told by the Swedish pilot Håkan Svedberg that "our most enjoyable long
flights are the gold transports. We fly gold sand from river beds in the south-east /Adola
or Kibre Mengist not mentioned by name/ every fortnight. The gold is weighed using
Maria Theresa coins, behind closed doors with armed guards, and the representative of
the bank also has a pistol. As a rule we transport about 200 kilograms of pure gold each
time."
[S R Rommerud, Östafrikansk safari, Sthlm 1952 p 83-84]
"Adola is the only gold field now being worked on a production basis, and this largely
with convict labour. Some US$ 300,000 was spent on mining machinery for the Adola
operation, in an effort to double the output obtainable by traditional hand digging
methods, but obstructionism in high places, lack of spare parts for the machinery at
Adola, and dissent among the foreign staff assigned to the operation have combined to
bring the whole plan to nought. There was no evidence, five years after the installation of
modern equipment and the 'mechanization' of the operation, that gold production in
Ethiopia was any greater than it had ever been. In the period 1945-50 this was about
50,000 crude troy ounces per year. If anything, it appears that production has fallen to half
or less than half of its former level, judging by the records on gold entering the Ethiopian
Treasury. Certainly there were no gold exports from Ethiopia in 1953-55, whereas in the
period 1945-50 such exports averaged more than 60 per cent of total production."
[E W Luther, Ethiopia today, (Oxford Univ. Press) London etc 1958 p 135-136]
Around 1957 there was no telephone line to Kibre Mengist but a radio station
for telegraph connection.
Sub-province Governor of Jemjem awraja in 1959 was Fitawrari Inqu Silassie W.Y.
1960s The Ethiopian government built a 500 m wide and 1100 m long landing strip about 8 km
south-east of Shakiso. This airfield can be used throughout the year. In Shakiso there is
also /in the 1960s/ a hospital with 80 beds and housing for engineers, physicians, and
other employees.

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"The gravels in gold placers are composed of sterile quartz, quartz mineralized with gold,
quartzites, amphibolites, and, rarely, of granites which are usually decomposed to clay
and sand. The amount of gold is entirely proportionate to the amount of amphibolite in the
gravel of the placer."
"The gold originates from the quartz inclusions occurring in amphibolites and talc-
chlorite-tremolite schists. Systematic geological mapping and prospecting for gold has
been carried out in order to determine the geological structures with respect of the
distribution of gold."
Gold production in the Kibre Mengist field from manual labour in 1955-1965 varied from
400 to 2,000 kg annually. There were renewed efforts at surveying in 1959 and at
prospecting in 1960-1961. The area in which traces of gold occur covers about 10,000
square kilometres.
[Mineral 1966 p 160 & others]
"Even in the 1960s much secrecy still obscures details of mining -- One foreigner, a
former overseer at Adola, informed the author that in the 1940s the labourers were paid
Eth$ 2 for each Maria Theresa ounce of gold which they washed -- The majority of
Ethiopians prefer not to discuss Adola and indeed know little about it. -- Gold is flown
from Adola partly by civil aircraft and partly by military flights. This, and the fact that the
flights are not scheduled, forbids calculation of the total weight of gold transported."
[Greenfield 1965 p 327-328]
A new road between Kibre Mengist and Shakiso was built around 1960.
An agreement to import machines from Rudnap in Yugoslavia for mining work at Kibre
Mengist was signed in July 1961. The value of the transaction was about half a million
Eth. dollars.
[News]
In 1962 there was an all weather road from the north and
a dry weather road southwards to Negele.
Postal hand stamp had spelling KEBRE MENGIST around 1963.
The telephone line to Kibre Mengist was in operation by 1964.
The 120 km road from Negele to Kibre Mengist was improved from 1966
by the Highway Authority and the work was fully completed by August 1968.
It was decided in 1966 that the Ministry of Interior would design
a master plan for Kibre Mengist, without engaging external consultants.
Serravalle G. & Franzetti C. Pte. Ltd. Co. /with what connection to the
gold mining?/ in 1966 had a sharehold capital of Eth$ 70,000.
Population 6,595 as counted in 1967.
By 1967 there were 28 telephone numbers. Those on personal names were
11 of Ethiopian Christian type, 4 of Moslem type and Fraval Giovanni seemingly
the only European.
Ras Biru primary school in 1968 had 657 boys and 402 girls,
with 17 male teachers and one female.
A church school had 68 boys and 24 girls in grades 1-2,
with 2 male teachers.
Ras Biru W. Gebriel junior secondary school in 1968 had
132 male and 54 female students in grades 7-8, with 6 teachers (Ethiopian).
Kibre Mengist had the southernmost centre of community development
in Ethiopia.
1970s There was a Norwegian mission station of NLM. Newly arriving there in 1970
were Urpo Sakari Kyyhkynen (b 1939) with agricultural education
and nurse Terttu Kyyhkynen (b 1941).
New arrivals to NLM in 1972 were builder Kyösti Kalevi Jokimies (b 1940)
and nurse Anneli Orvokki Jokimies (b 1943).
Money paid for students' work in Finland in January 1974 was used through the Finnish
mission for building students' housing at some places in Ethiopia, among them Kibre
Mengist.

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[Tenaestelin (Sthlm) 1974 no 1 p 29]

Spelling used by the post was KIBRE MENGIST around 1974.
At the end of March 1974 there was a strike of about 3000 workers
at the goldmines. [News]
1980s Population about 14,400 in 1984.
1990s A letter to the BBC in London was mailed from Kibre Mengist on 25 July 1992
by Hernan Ruiz Sandoval, P.O.Box 38, Kibre Mengist.
The Hispanic name of the sender seems to indicate that a few Cuban civilians
remained in Ethiopia after Cuba's military withdrawal in 1989.
(Military personnel and civilian cooperantes of the Cuban assistance programs
had their mail collected and distributed by Cuban offices, so Cuban letters
sent from Ethiopian post offices are very rare.)
[Philatelic source]
Population about 20,100 in 1994.
A couple of buses leave Negele for Kibre Mengist daily in the morning and the ride takes
three to four hours, "gently rising from the thorny, termite sculpted landscapes around
Negele to the dense forest and pine plantations of the southern highlands. Kibre Mengist
is not the most intrinsically prepossessing place - the first serious faranji hysteria I had hit
since Dodola, though not anywhere as bad - but the forested surrounds offer some
compensation. If you are staying over, the Natsaanatti Hotel next to the bank has very
acceptable rooms with private shower and toilet -- while the Tigist Firee Hotel opposite
the Agip Garage is the most attractive of the dollar-a-night jobs. The best place to eat, the
Betasab Restaurant, is hidden away in the back streets."
[Bradt 1995(1998)]
2000s Population about 24,800 in 2001.
text H.L. Holloway, Alluvial goldfield in Ethiopia: the Kebra Mengist Field,
south of Addis Ababa, in Mining Magazine, February 1958.
map Adola goldfields industrial map 1:1,000,000 surveyed and drawn by J Astrup 1949.
pict Liberation Silver Jubilee, A.A. 1966 at p 215 about mining

?? Kibret Ale ../.. [Mi]

Mountain in the central Afar depression. Sulphur is reported to occur there,
but until 1965 it had not been prospected.
[Mineral 1966]
?? Kibret Amba (Kebrat Amba) ../.. [x]
After Menilek's opponent Bezzabbeh had been defeated in 1865, the Menilek side found a
store of arms at Kibret Amba, with some 1,000 guns and three cannon.
HEK37 Kibtiya (K'ibtiya, Qibtiya) 12°06'/38°13' 2557 m 12/38 [Gz q]

kicho (O) kind of grain plant similar to barley;

kicho meret (kicho märet) (A) dry and stony land;
kichu (O) 1. Costus afer, plant similar to a horse tail,
shoot on a plant; 2. mat; 3. fat meat; 4. pour a liquid
HCP58 Kicho (Chiccio) 07°42'/36°29' 2143 m, cf Kecho 07/36 [+ WO Gz]
HDF91 Kicki (Chicchi) 09/39 [+ Gu]
HES47 Kid Mihrat, see Gina Kid Mihrat
HEC11 Kidamaja (K'idamaja, Qidamaja) 11/36 [Gz q]
11°00'/36°41' 2043 m, west of Injibara
HDT57 Kidame (K'idame, Qidame) 10°28'/39°04' 2170 m 10/39 [Gz q]

kidame gebeya (qidame gäbäya) (A) Saturday market

GDF92 Kidame Gebeya, see Gidami
HCS70 Kidame Gebeya (K'idame G., Qidame G.) 07/37 [Gz q]
07°56'/37°31' 2423 m, at upper Omo river
HDA17 Kidame Gebeya (Qidame G., Ghedamie Ghebea) 08/35 [Gz WO]

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HDA17 (Chidami, Cadami) 08°18'/35°28' 1609/1995 m 08/35 [+ Gu]

Coordinates would give map code HDA15
HDE62 Kidame Gebeya (market near Kaka) 08/38 [x]
HDE63 Kidame Gebeya (market near Reku) 08/38 [x]
HDH18 Kidame Gebeya (K'idame G., Qidame G.) 09/36 [Gz q]
09°10'/36°28' 1826 m, north-west of Nekemte
?? Kidame Gebeya (village south of Chomen) 09/37 [x]
HDL45 Kidame Gebeya (K'idame G., Qidame G.) 09/38 [AA Gz q]
09°25'/38°56' 2611 m
kidamo: terara (A) mountain
HEC84 Kidamo Terara (Kidamo Tarara) (hill) 11/36 [+ Ch]

kidan (A,T) 1. covenant; 2. lid, cover, thatch of a roof;

3. (T) testament; 4. (T) clothes, dress, alliance
HEC85 Kidan (Chidan) 11/37 [+ WO]
HDJ26 Kidane Gebeya (K'idane G., Qidane G.) 09/37 [Gz q]
09°18'/37°12' 2328 m, south-east of Haretu

kidane mihiret (A) covenant of mercy

HCL67 Kidane Mihret (Chidane Meheret) 06°57'/39°06' 06/39 [+ Gz]
(religious centre)
HDB66 Kidane Mihret (Ghidani Meret) (church) 08/36 [+ WO]
HDD67 Kidane Mihret (Ghidani Meret) (church) 08/38 [+ WO]
HDL08 Kidane Mihret (Chidanemeret) (church) 09/39 [LM WO]
HDM61 Kidane Mihret (Chidanemeret) (church) 09/39 [+ WO]
HDM61 Kidane Mihret, see under Debre Birhan
HEC98 Kidane Mihret (Kidana Mihret) (monastery) 11/37 [+ Br]
HEJ21 Kidane Mihret (Chidani Meret) 12°01'/36°38' 12/36 [+ WO Gz]
(with mission)
HEJ34 Kidane Mihret (Kidane Mehret) 12/37 [+ Ch]
A narrow peninsula on the western shore of lake Tana. Major Cheesman was there
in 1933: "The church had been sacked by the Dervishes and was deserted, and the point
where once it stood held nothing but tumbled rock-cubes and trees. We went by a small
nameless rock island half a mile out in the lake, and also the tree-clad and deserted Bata
/Bahita/ Island."
[Cheesman 1936]
HEJ35 Kidane Mihret (Chidane M.) (small island) 12/37 [+ Gu]
HEJ85 Kidane Mihret (Kidana Mihret) 12/37 [+ WO]
HEJ85 Kidane Mihret (church), see under Chilga
HEL85 Kidane Mihret (Chidane Mer.) 12/38 [LM WO]
HER99 Kidane Mihret (Chidane Meret) (church) 13/37 [+ WO]
HES04 Kidane Mihret (Chidane Meret) (area) 12/37 [+ WO]
HES68c Kidane Mihret (Chidane Meret) (village) 13/38 [+ Gu]
HEU71 Kidane Mihret ? (Chidana Micrat) (mountain) 13/39 [+ Gz]
13°18'/39°28' 2166 m
interpretation of the name is a guess only
HFE66c Kidane Mihret (Chidane Meret) (mountain) 14/38 [+ Gu]
HFE66c Kidane Mihret, 2524 m, see under Adwa

kidi (O) kinds of tree, Celtis africana, C. kraussiana,

(Som) Balanites glabra; kidi (qidi) (T) model
GCU22 Kidi (Chidi) 07°30'/34°32' 480 m 07/34 [+ WO Gz]
HCN98 Kidi 08°05'/35°32' 1830 m, near Gore 08/35 [Gz]
HBP71 Kidish, see Kibish

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kidist, kiddist (qiddist) (A) 1. female saint; 2. in an

Orthodox church the middle space, where communion is
administered to the worshippers
HEL34 Kidist Abre (K'idist A., Qidist A.) 12/38 [Gz q]
12°07'/38°50' 2059 m, west of Lalibela
HEK11 Kidist Hanna (Chiddist Hanna) (church) 11/37 [Ch Gu]
A church on Fogera plain near lake Tana, built on an artificial mound to raise it above the
water-level, with a few tall trees. Major Cheesman passed nearby in April 1933 without
visiting the church.
[Cheesman 1936]

kido (qido) (Kefa) cultivated taro, arum, Colocasia antiquorum

HCA16 Kido (Chido) 05°34'/35°25' 796 m 05/35 [+ WO Gz]
HCD10 Kidole (Chidole) 05°35'/37°31' 1626 m 05/37 [+ WO Gz]
see under Gidole

kidus, kiddus (qiddus) (A,T) holy, male saint

HDD98 Kidus Gebriel (Gabriele, S.) (church) 08/38 [+ WO]
kidus giyorgis, Saint George
HEK11 Kidus Giyorgis (Cuddus Ghiorghis) (church) 11/37 [Ch Gu]
HES12c Kidus Giyorgis (Cuddus Ghiorghis) 12/37 [+ Gu]
HES12c Kidus Giyorgis (church) c3150 m
HFD05 Kidus Giyorgis (Cuddus Gheorghis,Cuddua Ghiorghis) 13/38 [+ WO Gu]
(church) 13°36'/38°02' 1264 m
HDD76 Kidus Mikael (Michele, S.) (church) 08/38 [+ WO]
HEC35 Kidus Mikael (Ghedes Micael) 11°14'/37°05' 2118 m 11/36 [+ Gu Gz]
HEC99 Kidus Mikael (Kudus Mikhael), see Fisa
HEJ47 Kidus Mikael (Chiddus Micael) (church) 12/37 [+ WO]
HEK07c Kidus Mikael (Cuddus Micael) (church) 11/38 [+ Gu]
HEK26c Kidus Mikael (Cheddus Micael) (church) 12/38 [+ Gu]
HER88 Kidus Mikael (Micael, St.) (church) 13/37 [+ WO]
HFC08 Kidus Mikael (St. Micael) (monastery) 13/37 [LM WO]
see under Mesfinto
HFD14 Kidus Mikael (Chedas Micael) (mosque) 13/37 [LM WO Gz]
13°40'/37°54'
HES81 Kidus Minkiyel (Gheddus Minchiel) (hill) 13/37 [+ WO Gz]
13°29'/37°40'
HES79 Kidus Yared, see Yared
?? Kidus Yohannes (Cuddus Iohannes) ../.. [+ Gu]
(church) 2242 m

JDK18 Kidyeley (Chidielei) (area) 09/43 [+ WO]

HDK16c Kiebisierba (centre in 1964 of Bicho sub-district) 09/38 [Ad]
HD... Kiejo (Kejo?) 09/36 [Ad]
(centre in 1964 of Gobu Seyo sub-district)
Kielem, see Kelem
HEU92 Kien (Ki'en) 13°30'/39°37' 2397 m, near Kwiha 13/39 [Gz]
?? Kienen (Kienan) (mountain) 11/36 [18]
HDS93 Kiero 10°46'/37°50' 3316 m 10/37 [WO Gz]
Kieta, see Keta
?? Kiflan 07/36 [18]
HCR61 Kiftan (near Agaro?) 07/36 [Wa]
HFF02 Kihen (K'ihen, Qihen) 13°38'/39°33' 2112 m 13/39 [Gz q]
(with church Mikael) north of Kwiha
kike: kikke (qiiqqee) (O) 1. cramp of a muscle;

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2. narrow /eye of a needle/

HDL64 Kike (K'ik'e, Qiqe) 09°40'/38°51' 2563 m 09/38 [AA Gz q]
see under Debre Libanos
HBS88 Kikilla, see Chichilla
HCS99 Kikora (K'ik'ora, Qiqora) 08°04'/38°24' 2085 m 08/38 [Gz q]
near Butajira
H.... Kiku (Kieku) 08/36? [+ Ad]
(centre in 1964 of Jimma Arjo sub-district)
HDD12c Kiku sub-district (Kieku ..) 08/37 [+ Ad]
(centre in 1964 = Soyema)

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