# Dewele

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Town between Ethiopia–Djibouti border

Town in Somali, Ethiopia

Dewele ደወል Town Dewele Location in Ethiopia Coordinates: 11°2′N 42°37′E / 11.033°N 42.617°E / 11.033; 42.617 Country Ethiopia Region Somali Zone Sitti Zone Elevation 898 m (2,946 ft) Population (2005) • Total 3,357

**Dewele** (Amharic: ደወል) is a town in [Ethiopia](/source/Ethiopia), near to the Ethiopia and [Djibouti](/source/Djibouti) border. Located in the [Sitti Zone](/source/Shinile_Zone) in the [Somali Region](/source/Somali_Region) the town has a longitude and latitude of [11°2′N 42°37′E / 11.033°N 42.617°E / 11.033; 42.617](https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=Dewele&params=11_2_N_42_37_E_) with an elevation of 898 meters above sea level.

Dewele is served by a [station](/source/Railway_stations_in_Ethiopia) on the [Addis Ababa - Djibouti Railway](/source/Addis_Ababa_-_Djibouti_Railway) as well as on the [Ethio-Djibouti Railways](/source/Ethio-Djibouti_Railways). It serves as an official crossing point between Djibouti and Ethiopia, with a [customs](/source/Customs_(tax)) post. In the mid-1960s, [gypsum](/source/Gypsum) was excavated near the town, then transported to a factory in [Dire Dawa](/source/Dire_Dawa) to be used in the manufacture cement and plaster of Paris.[1]

## Overview

Nearby towns and villages include [Ali Sabieh](/source/Ali_Sabieh) (18 kilometres or 11 miles), [Guelile](/source/Guelile) (7 kilometres or 4 miles), [Dikhil](/source/Dikhil) (64 kilometres or 40 miles), [Djibouti City](/source/Djibouti_City) (112 kilometres or 70 miles) in [Djibouti](/source/Djibouti), and [Aysha](/source/Aysha%2C_Ethiopia) (39 kilometres or 24 miles), [Hadhagaala](/source/Adigala) (54 kilometres or 34 miles) and [Dire Dawa](/source/Dire_Dawa) (210 kilometres or 130 miles) in [Ethiopia](/source/Ethiopia).

## History

Dewele was the first point inside the boundaries of Ethiopia to receive train service by the Ethio-Djibouti Railways. The first train ran between [Djibouti City](/source/Djibouti_City) and Dewele on 22 July 1901, requiring 5½ hours to make the trip with four halts for water.[2]

In 1907, the Englishmen Bentley and Wells drove a [Siddeley](/source/Siddeley-Deasy) automobile from the [Red Sea](/source/Red_Sea) coast to [Addis Ababa](/source/Addis_Ababa). They feigned to go to [Jaldessa](/source/Jaldessa) but headed for Dewele instead, to mislead potential *[shifta](/source/Shifta)* or bandits.[1]

During the [Djibouti Civil War](/source/Djibouti_Civil_War), Ethiopians who were living in that country and worked in various sectors were forced by the Djiboutian Armed Force to leave that country with whatever they could quickly gather. By February 2001, many had taken refuge in and around Dewele.[1]

## Climate

Dewele has a [hot desert climate](/source/Hot_desert_climate) (*BWh*) in [Köppen-Geiger system](/source/K%C3%B6ppen-Geiger_climate_classification_system).

Climate data for Dewele Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 25.0 (77.0) 25.7 (78.3) 28.9 (84.0) 30.0 (86.0) 34.1 (93.4) 36.9 (98.4) 36.2 (97.2) 35.3 (95.5) 34.0 (93.2) 30.2 (86.4) 25.9 (78.6) 25.5 (77.9) 30.6 (87.2) Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 15.0 (59.0) 17.5 (63.5) 19.2 (66.6) 21.6 (70.9) 23.8 (74.8) 26.3 (79.3) 24.3 (75.7) 24.0 (75.2) 24.7 (76.5) 20.6 (69.1) 18.0 (64.4) 16.0 (60.8) 20.9 (69.6) Average rainfall mm (inches) 15 (0.6) 11 (0.4) 15 (0.6) 23 (0.9) 11 (0.4) 6 (0.2) 26 (1.0) 43 (1.7) 33 (1.3) 9 (0.4) 11 (0.4) 5 (0.2) 208 (8.1) Source: Climate-Data.org[3]

## Demographics

Ethnic groups of Dewele

1. [Somali](/source/Somali_people) (42.2%)

1. [Oromo](/source/Oromo_language) (27.4%)

1. [Amhara](/source/Amhara_people) (20.9%)

1. [Gurage](/source/Gurage_languages) (6.52%)

1. Other (2.94%)

Based on figures from the [Central Statistical Agency](/source/Central_Statistical_Agency_(Ethiopia)) in 2005, Dewele has an estimated total population of 3,357, of whom 1,710 were males and 1,647 were females.[4] The 1997 census reported Dewele had a total population of 2,253 of whom 1,130 were men and 1,123 women. The four largest ethnic groups reported in this town were the [Somali](/source/Somali_people) (42.21%), the [Oromo](/source/Oromo_people) (27.43%), the [Amhara](/source/Amhara_people) (20.9%), and the [Gurage](/source/Gurage_people) (6.52%); all other ethnic groups made up 2.94% of the population.[5] It is one of four towns in [Ayesha](/source/Ayesha_(woreda)) [woreda](/source/Woreda). The town's inhabitants belong to various mainly [Afro-Asiatic](/source/Afro-Asiatic)-speaking ethnic groups, with the [Gadabursi](/source/Gadabuursi) [Somali](/source/Somali_people) predominant.

## See also

- [Railway stations in Djibouti](/source/Railway_stations_in_Djibouti)

- [Railway stations in Ethiopia](/source/Railway_stations_in_Ethiopia)

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-NAI-web_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-NAI-web_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-NAI-web_1-2) ["Local History in Ethiopia"](http://130.238.24.99/library/resources/dossiers/local_history_of_ethiopia/d/ORTDEM.pdf)[*[permanent dead link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Link_rot)*] The Nordic Africa Institute website (accessed 23 July 1009)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Richard Pankhurst, *Economic History of Ethiopia* (Addis Ababa: Haile Selassie I University, 1968), p. 315. For some reason Pankhurst calls this settlement "Douanle".

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Climate-Data.org_3-0)** ["Climate: Dewele - Climate graph, Temperature graph, Climate table"](https://en.climate-data.org/location/32191/). Climate-Data.org. Retrieved 25 September 2016.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** [CSA 2005 National Statistics](http://www.csa.gov.et/text_files/2005_national_statistics.htm) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20061123121716/http://www.csa.gov.et/text_files/2005_national_statistics.htm) November 23, 2006, at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine), Table B.4

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** [*1994 Population and Housing Census of Ethiopia: Results for Somali Region, Vol. 1*](http://www.csa.gov.et/surveys/Population%20and%20Housing%20Census%201994/survey0/data/docs%5Creport%5CStatistical_Report%5Ck05%5Ck05.pdf) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20081119230720/http://www.csa.gov.et/surveys/Population%20and%20Housing%20Census%201994/survey0/data/docs%5Creport%5CStatistical_Report%5Ck05%5Ck05.pdf) November 19, 2008, at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine) Tables 2.4, 2.14 (accessed 10 January 2009). The results of the 1994 census in the Somali Region were not satisfactory, so the census was repeated in 1997.

[11°02′05″N 42°37′53″E / 11.03472°N 42.63139°E / 11.03472; 42.63139](https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=Dewele&params=11_02_05_N_42_37_53_E_region:ET_type:city)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Dewele](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dewele) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dewele?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.