Ermera (, ) is one of the

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

(formerly districts) of

East Timor East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-weste ...

, located in the west-central part of the country. It has a population of 117,064 (Census 2010) and an area of 756.5 km².

Etymology

The word ''Ermera'' means 'red water' in the local Mambai language. It is said that the ancestors of today's inhabitants of the municipality originated from three mountains, namely Cailitlau, Lalimlau, and Hituria, and that the name ''Ermera'' refers to the red waters flowing from those mountains.

Geography

Ermera is one of only two land-locked municipalities in East Timor, the other being Aileu. It borders

Liquiçá Liquiçá (Tetum: ''Likisá'') is a coastal city in East Timor, 32 km to the west of Dili, the national capital. Liquiçá is the capital of Liquiçá District. The city has a population of 5,005 inhabitants. History A part of the colo ...

to the north,

Dili Dili (Portuguese/Tetum: ''Díli'') is the capital, largest city of East Timor and the second largest city in Timor islands after Kupang (Indonesia). It lies on the northern coast of the island of Timor, in a small area of flat land hemmed in ...

to the northeast, Alieu to the east,

Ainaro Ainaro is a town in East Timor, the capital of the Ainaro suco, the Ainaro administrative post and the Ainaro Municipality, and is located in the southwest part of the country. The town of Ainaro is located 78 km south of Dili, the nat ...

to the southeast, and

Bobonaro Bobonaro is a town in Bobonaro Subdistrict, Bobonaro District, East Timor., United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency The district capital is not in Bobonaro, but is in Maliana Maliana is a city in East Timor, 149 kilome ...

to the west. The boundaries of the municipality are identical to those of the district of the same name in

Portuguese Timor Portuguese Timor ( pt, Timor Português) was a colonial possession of Portugal that existed between 1702 and 1975. During most of this period, Portugal shared the island of Timor with the Dutch East Indies. The first Europeans to arrive in the ...

. Its capital is Gleno, which is located 30 km to the southwest of the national capital,

. The city of

Ermera Ermera (''Vila Ermera'') is a city in East Timor and a former capital of the East Timorese community, Ermera. ''Ermera'' in Mambai means "red water." It has a population of 8,907. Its geographical coordinates are , and it lies above sea ...

, also known as ''Vila Ermera'', lies 58 km from the capital along the same road. In Marobo (

Atsabe Administrative Post Atsabe, officially Atsabe Administrative Post (, ), is an administrative post in Ermera municipality, East Timor. Its seat or administrative centre An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a cou ...

) are the remains of a hot springs bath from colonial times. The pool is still in use.

Administrative posts

The municipality's administrative posts (formerly sub-districts) are: *

* Ermera Administrative Post *

Hatulia Administrative Post Hatulia, officially Hatulia Administrative Post (, ), is an administrative post in Ermera municipality, East Timor. Its seat or administrative centre An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a c ...

* Hatulia B Administrative Post * Letefoho Administrative Post *

Railaco Administrative Post Railaco, officially Railaco Administrative Post (, ), is an administrative post (and was formerly a subdistrict) in Ermera municipality, East Timor East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Tim ...

The administrative posts are divided into 52 sucos ("villages") in total.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * *

External links

* – official site (in Tetum with some content in English) * – information page on Ministry of State Administration site {{Authority control Municipalities of East Timor