Gondar Zuria (

Amharic Amharic is an Ethio-Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amhara people, and also serves as a lingua franca for all other metropolitan populati ...

: ጎንደር ዙሪያ, lit. "Greater Gondar Area") is a

woreda Districts of Ethiopia, also called woredas (; ''woreda''), are the third level of the administrative divisions of Ethiopia – after ''List of zones of Ethiopia, zones'' and the ''Regions of Ethiopia, regional states''. These districts are f ...

Amhara Region The Amhara Region (), officially the Amhara National Regional State (), is a Regions of Ethiopia, regional state in northern Ethiopia and the homeland of the Amhara people, Amhara, Awi people, Awi, Xamir people, Xamir, Argobba people, Argobba, a ...

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 ...

. Part of the

Semien Gondar Zone North Gondar (Amharic: ሰሜን ጎንደር; or Semien Gondar) is a zone in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. This zone is named for the city of Gondar, the capital of Ethiopia until the mid-19th century. Geography North Gondar is bordered on the ...

, ''Gondar Zuria'' is bordered on the south by the

Debub Gondar Zone South Gondar or Debub Gondar (Amharic: ደቡብ ጎንደር), is one of Zones in Amhara Region, Ethiopia. This zone is named for the city of Gondar, which was the capital of Ethiopia until the mid-19th century, and has often been used as a na ...

, on the southwest by

Lake Tana Lake Tana (; previously transcribed Tsana) is the largest lake in Ethiopia and a source of the Blue Nile. Located in Amhara Region in the north-western Ethiopian Highlands, the lake is approximately long and wide, with a maximum depth of , and ...

, on the west by Dembiya, on the north by

Lay Armachiho Lay Armachiho () is a woreda in Amhara Region, Ethiopia. This woreda is named after "Armachiho", a province in northwestern Ethiopia along the border with Sudan and south of the Tekezé River. Part of the Semien Gondar Zone, Lay Armachiho is bord ...

, on the northeast by

Wegera Wegera or Wogera (Amharic: ወገራ), is a woreda in Amhara Region, Ethiopia. Wegera is named for the former province Wegera, which was located roughly in the same location, and was later made part of the province of Semien. Part of the Semien ...

, and on the southeast by

Mirab Belessa Mirab Belessa or West Belessa is one of the woredas in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. It is named after the former province of Belessa, which lay in the same area. Part of the Semien Gondar Zone, Mirab Belessa is bordered on the south by Debub Gond ...

. Towns in Gondar Zuria include Azazo, Degoma,

Emfraz Enfraz or Infraz (), also called ''Guba'e'' (), or ''Guzara'' () is a historic town and district in northern Ethiopia. Located in the mountainous area overlooking the northeast shore of Lake Tana in the North Gondar Zone of the Amhara Region, it ...

, Maksenit and Teda. The city and woreda of

Gondar Gondar, also spelled Gonder (Amharic: ጎንደር, ''Gonder'' or ''Gondär''; formerly , ''Gʷandar'' or ''Gʷender''), is a city and woreda in Ethiopia. Located in the North Gondar Zone of the Amhara Region, Gondar is north of Lake Tana on ...

is surrounded by Gondar Zuria in the northern part of this woreda. Notable landmarks in this woreda include Guzara Castle, a former Imperial residence said to have been built by Emperor

Sarsa Dengel Sarsa Dengel ( ; 1550 – 4 October 1597), also known as Sarsa the Great, was Emperor of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. His throne name was throne name Malak Sagad I (መለክ ሰገድ ). He is considered one of the greatest w ...

. In May 1771, the

three battles of Sarbakusa The three battles of Sarbakusa were three military engagements in Ethiopia during the Zemene Mesafint that took place in May 1771. They pitted Wand Bewossen and Fasil of Damot against the forces of Emperor Tekle Haymanot II and Ras Mikael Seh ...

were fought south of Teda within the modern borders of this woreda between Ras

Mikael Sehul Mikael Sehul (born Blatta Mikael; 1692 – 1784) was a nobleman who ruled Ethiopia for a period of 25 years as regent of a series of emperors. He was also a Ras or governor of Tigray 1748–71 and again from 1772 until his death. He was a major ...

and the triumvirate of Fasil, Goshu of Amhara, and

Wand Bewossen Dejazmach Wand Bewossen (died 10 December 1777) was a prominent figure in Ethiopian history. He was governor of Lasta and later Begemeder. He was on the losing side in the Battle of Nefas Mewcha (1769), but one of the victorious generals in the ...

Begemder Begemder (; also known as Gondar or Gonder) was a province in northwest Ethiopia. The alternative names come from its capital during the 20th century, Gondar. Etymology A plausible source for the name ''Bega'' is that the word means "dry" in t ...

. Ras Mikael was defeated, and his influence over the

Emperors The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/ grand empress dowager), or a woman who rule ...

came to an end.

Demographics

Based on the 2007 national census conducted by the

Central Statistical Agency The Central Statistical Agency, also known as the Ethiopian Statistical Service (ESS; Amharic: የኢትዮጵያ ስታቲስቲክስ አገልግሎት), is an Ethiopian government agency designated to provide all surveys and censuses for that ...

of Ethiopia (CSA), the woreda had a total population of 191,394, a decrease of 0.49% from the 1994 census, of whom 97,388 were men and 94,006 women; 18,377 or 9.60% were urban inhabitants. With an area of 1,108.53 square kilometers, Gondar Zuriya has a population density of 172.66, which is greater than the Zone average of 63.76 persons per square kilometer. A total of 42,753 households were counted in this woreda, resulting in an average of 4.48 persons to a household, and 41,182 housing units. The majority of the inhabitants practiced

Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church () is the largest of the Oriental Orthodox Churches. One of the few Christian churches in Africa originating before European colonization of the continent, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church dates bac ...

, with 94.8% reporting that as their religion, while 5.2% of the population said they were

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 ...

. The 1994 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 192,337 in 35,547 households, of whom 98,075 were men and 94,262 women; 15,703 or 8.16% of its population were urban dwellers at the time. The two largest ethnic groups reported in Gondar Zuria were the Amhara (91.23%), and the

Qemant The Qemant (also known as western Agaws) are a small Cushitic ethnic group in northwestern Ethiopia, specifically in Gondar, Amhara Region. The Qemant people traditionally practiced an early Pagan-Hebraic religion; however, most members of the Qe ...

(8.26%); all other ethnic groups made up 0.51% of the population. A notable minority in this woreda are the Weyto, who are thought to be the earliest surviving ethnic group to settle around Lake Tana; they number 295 or 0.15% of the population.

was spoken as a first language by 99.78%; the remaining 0.22% spoke all other primary languages reported. 92.45% practiced Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, and 7.37% of the population said they were Muslim.''1994 Population and Housing Census of Ethiopia: Results for Amhara Region'', Vol. 1, part 1
, Tables 2.1, 2.7, 2.10, 2.13, 2.17, Annex II.2 (Retrieved 9 April 2009)

Notes

{{Districts of the Amhara Region Districts of Amhara Region