- Senafe
Infobox Settlement
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pushpin_label_position =bottom
pushpin_mapsize = 300
pushpin_map_caption =Location in Eritrea
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_type1 = Region
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subdivision_name1 =Debub
subdivision_type2 = District
subdivision_name2 =Senafe District
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latd=14|latm=42|lats=|latNS=N
longd=39|longm=25|longs=|longEW=E
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footnotes =Senafe ( _ti. ሰንዓፈ) is a
market town in southernEritrea , on the edge of theEthiopian highlands . The surrounding area is inhabited by theSaho people .Senafe is known for the ruins of
Metera (also known as "Balaw Kalaw"), themonolithic church ofEnda-Tradqan , themonastery of Debre Libanos (built in thesixth century and known for its mummies) and for the local stone outcrops.History
The original name for Saanafè was Hakir. Local tradition states that the name was changed by a man named Abdullah from
Sanaa inYemen ; he settled in the Awdie district of Hakir, and upon marrying a local woman he was quoted as saying "Sana-fen" which means in Arabic "where is Sanaa" he was relating to his hometown; thus the town was named Sanafe; his descendants form a tribe and are also known as Saanafè.An early record of Sanafe is on the
Egyptus Novello map , published in 1454. This map shows Sanafe at the edge ofTigray , connected to two routes, one leading west toAxum , the other south toLake Ashangi . [Richard Pankhurst, "The Ethiopian Borderlands" (Larenceville: Red Sea, 1997), p. 92]Senafe is mentioned in an 1794-5 land grant (1787 E.C.) from the
Ethiopia n Emperor Tekle Giyorgis to RasWolde Selassie . [Richard Pankhurst, "History of Ethiopian Towns: From the Middle Ages to the Early Nineteenth Century" (Wiesbaden: Franz Steiner Verlag, 1982), vol. 1 p. 231.] During Italian rule, the town grew notably: when A.J. Shepherd visited Senafe in 1869/1869, he described it as having only "some twelve or fourteen bee-hive shaped buildings ... and as many diminutive barns"; in 1891 Alamanni estimated its population as 1,500, and the Italian "Guido" of 1938 stated the population had increased to 2,000. [Richard Pankhurst, "Economic History of Ethiopia" (Addis Ababa: Haile Sellasie I University, 1968), p. 693.] The modern town suffered extensive destruction during theEritrean War of Independence and theEritrean-Ethiopian War , although people are gradually returning from its surroundingrefugee camp s.Notes
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