Hambaricho Mountain

About

Hambaricho, (Amharic), at an elevation of 3058 meters above sea level, is one of the highest mountains in southern Ethiopia. It is located in the Central Ethiopian Regional State in Kambata (Amharic) Zone. Durame, the capital city of Kambata Zone, is located at the foothills of the Hambaricho Mountain. The mountain has a lot of historical, cultural, and spiritual significance to the local Kambata community. It is believed that the first seven tribes of the Kambata lived on Mount Hambaricho from ancient times, and the Kambatas still refer to these groups as "Hambaricho Lamala" (the seven kin-groups of Kambata) as the original/founding groups of the Kambata. As can be learned from historical sources based on oral traditions, people radiated from this historical center of Mount Hambaricho and began to settle around the mountain. The Hambaricho Mountain and its ranges served as the administrative center and seat for successive Kambata kings from 16th century until the last decade of 19th century when the last Kambata Woma (king), Woma Dilbato Degoye, and his advisors were captured and executed during the invasion and military occupation of Kambata by the armies of Menelik II from 1890 to 1893. The conquest ended the Kambata monarchy. The rule of the Woma was replaced by the rule of the Balabat, the local nobility until it lost importance after the Ethiopi

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Photography via Wikimedia Commons.