Dakkar ( Harari: ደክከር ''Däkkär'' , Somali: ''Doggor''), also known as Dakar, or Deker, was a historical
Muslim
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
town located in present-day eastern
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...
. It served as the first capital of the
Adal Sultanate
The Adal Sultanate, also known as the Adal Empire or Barr Saʿad dīn (alt. spelling ''Adel Sultanate'', ''Adal Sultanate'') (), was a medieval Sunni Muslim empire which was located in the Horn of Africa. It was founded by Sabr ad-Din III on th ...
after its founding in the early 15th century by Sabr ad-Din III.
The writer of the sixteenth century chronicle ''"Futuh al-Habasha"'' Arab Faqīh suggests it was in close proximity with
Harar
Harar (; Harari language, Harari: ሀረር / ; ; ; ), known historically by the indigenous as Harar-Gey or simply Gey (Harari: ጌይ, ݘٛىيْ, ''Gēy'', ), is a List of cities with defensive walls, walled city in eastern Ethiopia. It is al ...
.
Enrico Cerulli
Enrico Cerulli (15 February 1898 – 19 August 1988)Enrico Cerulli ''Worldcat''. Retrieved 27 Oct 20 ...
, Bahru Zewde and other historians identify Dakkar as being located one km southeast of
Harar
Harar (; Harari language, Harari: ሀረር / ; ; ; ), known historically by the indigenous as Harar-Gey or simply Gey (Harari: ጌይ, ݘٛىيْ, ''Gēy'', ), is a List of cities with defensive walls, walled city in eastern Ethiopia. It is al ...
G. W. B. Huntingford
George Wynn Brereton Huntingford (19 November 1901 – 19 February 1978) was an English linguist, anthropologist and historian. He lectured in East African languages and cultures at SOAS, University of London from 1950 until 1966.Chinaksen near
Jigjiga
Jijiga (, , ''Jijiga'') is the capital city of Somali Region, Ethiopia. It became the capital of the Somali Region in 1995 after it was moved from Gode. Located in the Fafan Zone with 75 km (37 mi) west of the border with Somali ...
.
History
The exact location of the town remains unknown and several locations have been suggested, but it is generally agreed that the town was somewhere in the Harar plateau. The city was established in the early 15th century by Sabr ad-Din III after he returned from his exile in
Yemen
Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...
. The town sat along the trade route to
Zeila
Zeila (, ), also known as Zaila or Zayla, is a historical port town in the western Awdal region of Somaliland.
In the Middle Ages, the Jewish traveller Benjamin of Tudela identified Zeila with the Biblical location of Havilah. Most modern schola ...
and served as the royal seat of the Walashma sultans. However, in 1471 Emir Laday Usman marched to Dakkar and seized power. But Usman did not dismiss the Sultan from office, and instead gave him a ceremonial position while retaining the real power for himself. Adal now came under the leadership of the powerful regional aristocracy who governed from the palace of a nominal Sultan.
In 1478, the Ethiopian Emperor
Eskender
Eskender (, "Alexander"; 15 July 1471 – 7 May 1494) was Emperor of Ethiopia and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. His throne name was Kwestantinos II (Ge’ez: ቈስታንቲኖስ, "Constantine"). He was the son of Emperor Baeda Maryam I by ...
invaded Adal and marched towards Dakkar where he burnt the town to the ground. All of its mosques and buildings were looted and destroyed by the Abyssinians which caused great damage to the town. The city was also sacked during emperor
Lebna Dengel
Dawit II (; – 2 September 1540), also known by the macaronic name Wanag Segad (ወናግ ሰገድ, ''to whom the lions bow''), better known by his birth name Lebna Dengel (, ''essence of the virgin''), was Emperor of Ethiopia from 150 ...
's raids on
Adal
Adal may refer to:
*A short form for Germanic names in ''aþala-'' (Old High German ''adal-''), "nobility, pedigree"; see Othalan
** Adál Maldonado (1948–2020), Puerto Rican artist
** Adal Ramones (born 1969), Mexican television show host
** A ...
Mahfuz
Mahfuz (or Mohammed) ( Harari: መሕፉዝ, , Portuguese: Mafudi, Somali: Maxfuud; died July 1517) was a Garad, Emir of Harar and Governor of Zeila in the Adal Sultanate. Although he was originally only emir of a small region he would rise to ...
, Adal would fall into a succession crisis and Sultan
Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad
Abū Bakr ibn Muḥammad (), (reigned 1525–1526), was a Sultan of the Adal Sultanate in the Horn of Africa. The historian Richard Pankhurst credits Abu Bakr with founding the city of Harar, which he made his military headquarters in 1520. He wa ...
would rise to power. Sultan Abu Bakr then relocated the capital of Adal to
Harar
Harar (; Harari language, Harari: ሀረር / ; ; ; ), known historically by the indigenous as Harar-Gey or simply Gey (Harari: ጌይ, ݘٛىيْ, ''Gēy'', ), is a List of cities with defensive walls, walled city in eastern Ethiopia. It is al ...
in 1520. Dakkar was reportedly surrounded by ramparts by the late sixteenth century. According to Harari records during the Oromo invasions, Dakkar was destroyed alongside other states such as
Gidaya
Gidaya (Harari language, Harari: ጊዳየ ''Gidayä''; Somali language, Somali: Gidaaya), also known as Gedaya or Jidaya was a historical Muslim state located around present-day eastern Ethiopia. The state was positioned on the Harar plateau and ...
Historian Mohammed Hassen states the sedentary demographic included the Semitic-speaking Harari and
Harla people
The Harla, also known as Harala, Haralla were an ethnic group that once inhabited Ethiopia, Somalia, and Djibouti. They spoke the Harla language, which belonged to either the Cushitic languages, Cushitic or Ethiopian Semitic languages, Semitic br ...
, while the nomadic demographic consisted of the Somali and other groups.
Antoine d'Abbadie
Antoine Thomson d'Abbadie d'Arrast (3 January 1810 – 19 March 1897) was a French-Basques, Basque explorer, geographer, ethnologist, linguist and astronomer of Irish birth, renowned for his expeditions in EthiopiaAlthough referred to as Ethiop ...
notes that the Barento Oromo had occupied Dakkar from the Bursuuk which they had integrated in their mythology.
See also
*
Harar
Harar (; Harari language, Harari: ሀረር / ; ; ; ), known historically by the indigenous as Harar-Gey or simply Gey (Harari: ጌይ, ݘٛىيْ, ''Gēy'', ), is a List of cities with defensive walls, walled city in eastern Ethiopia. It is al ...
*
Zeila
Zeila (, ), also known as Zaila or Zayla, is a historical port town in the western Awdal region of Somaliland.
In the Middle Ages, the Jewish traveller Benjamin of Tudela identified Zeila with the Biblical location of Havilah. Most modern schola ...
*
Adal Sultanate
The Adal Sultanate, also known as the Adal Empire or Barr Saʿad dīn (alt. spelling ''Adel Sultanate'', ''Adal Sultanate'') (), was a medieval Sunni Muslim empire which was located in the Horn of Africa. It was founded by Sabr ad-Din III on th ...