Mecha (formerly known as Merawi) 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 ...

. The name, Mecha, is taken from the name for a subdivision of the province of

Gojjam Gojjam ( ''gōjjām'', originally ጐዛም ''gʷazzam'', later ጐዣም ''gʷažžām'', ጎዣም ''gōžžām'') is a historical provincial kingdom in northwestern Ethiopia, with its capital city at Debre Markos. During the 18th century, G ...

. Part of the

Mirab Gojjam Zone West Gojjam ( Amharic: ምዕራብ ጎጃም) or Mirab Gojjam is a Zone in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. It is named after the former province of Gojjam. West Gojjam is bordered on the south by the Abay River which separates it from the Orom ...

, Mecha is bordered on the south by Sekela, on the southwest by the

Agew Awi Zone Agew Awi () is a zone in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. It is named for the Awi sub-group of the Agaw people, some of whom live in this Zone. Agew Awi Zone is bordered on the west by Benishangul-Gumuz Region, on the north by North Gondar Zone ...

, on the west by the

Lesser Abay River The Gilgel Abay (Amharic: ግልገል አባይ, Gǝlgäl Abbay), or Lesser Abay, is a river of central Ethiopia. Rising in the mountains of Gojjam, it flows northward to empty into south-western Lake Tana in a bird's-foot delta. Tributaries of ...

which separates it from

Debub Achefer Debub Achefer or South Acheref, is a woreda in Amhara Region, Ethiopia. It is named for the historic district of Achefer, which was first mentioned in the 16th century. Part of the Mirab Gojjam Zone, Achefer is bordered on the south and west by th ...

and

Semien Achefer Semien Achefer (also known as North Achefer or Liben) is a woreda in Amhara Region, Ethiopia. It is named for the historic district of Achefer, which was first mentioned in the 16th century. Part of the Mirab Gojjam Zone, Achefer is bordered on th ...

, on the northeast by

Bahir Dar Zuria Bahir Dar Zuria ( "Greater Bahir Dar Area") is a woreda in Amhara Region, Ethiopia. Part of the Mirab Gojjam Zone, this woreda is bordered on the south by Yilmana Densa, on the southwest by Mecha, on the northwest by the Gilgel Abay River which s ...

, and on the east by

Yilmana Densa Yilmana Densa ( Amharic: ይልማና ዴንሳ "Yilma and Densa" formerly known as Adet) is one of the woredas in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Mirab Gojjam Zone, Yilmana Densa is bordered on the south by Kuarit, on the southwest ...

. Towns in Mecha include Merawi and Wetet Abay. Bodies of water in this woreda include Tingiti, which is located in a volcanic crater near the Lesser Abay; R.E. Cheesman believed he was the first European to see this body of water when he was shown it in November 1932.

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), this woreda has a total population of 292,080, an increase of 36.55% over the 1994 census, of whom 147,611 are men and 144,469 women; 22,677 or 7.76% are urban inhabitants. With an area of 1,481.64 square kilometers, Mecha has a population density of 197.13, which is greater than the Zone average of 158.25 persons per square kilometer. A total of 66,107 households were counted in this woreda, resulting in an average of 4.42 persons to a household, and 64,206 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 98.91% reporting that as their religion. The 1994 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 244,943 in 49,098 households, of whom 123,646 were men and 121,297 were women; 12,278 or 5.01% of its population were urban dwellers. The largest ethnic group reported in Merawi was the

Amhara Amhara may refer to: * Amhara people, an ethnic group of Ethiopia * Amharic, a language spoken by the Amhara people * Bete Amhara, a lordship and later province of medieval Ethiopia * Amhara Province, a historical region of Ethiopia * Amhara Region ...

(99.91%).

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 ...

was spoken as a first language by 99.96%. The majority of the inhabitants practiced

, with 98.84% reporting that as their religion, while 1.09% 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 ...

.''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 (accessed 9 April 2009)

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Merawi (Woreda) Districts of Amhara Region