Great College

Geography of Ethiopia and the

Horn

GeES 1011
 CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Geography: Definition, Scope and Themes
Meaning of Geography
 It is difficult to forward a definition acceptable to all
geographers at all times and places because of the
dynamic nature of the discipline and the changes in
its scope and method of study.
 However, the following may be accepted as a
working definition.
 Geography is the scientific study of the Earth that
describes and analyses spatial and temporal variations
of physical, biological and human phenomena, and
their interrelationships and dynamism over the
surface of the Earth.
 The Scope, Approaches and Themes of Geography
Scopes of Geography
 the scope of Geography is the surface of the Earth, which is
the very thin zone that is the interface of the atmosphere,
lithosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere, which provides the
habitable zone in which humans are able to live.
Approaches of Geography
 Geography can be approached by considering two continuums:
a human-physical continuum and a topical regional continuum.
 The topical (systematic) fields of Geography view particular
categories of physical or human phenomena as distributed over
the Earth while
 regional geography is concerned with the associations within
regions of all or some of the elements and their
interrelationships.
 Themes of Geography
• Geography has five basic themes namely location,
place, human-environment interaction, movement,
and region.
• Location is defined as a particular place or position.
Most studies of geography begin with the mention of
this theme of geography. Location can be of two
types: absolute location and relative location. In the
former case, the location of a place is defined by its
latitude and longitude or its exact address.
• Place refers to the physical and human aspects of a
location. This theme of geography is associated with
toponym (the name of a place), site (the description
of the features of the place), and situation (the
environmental conditions of the place).
 Human-Environment Interaction
human-environment interaction involves three
distinct aspects, dependency, adaptation, and
modification.
• Dependency refers to the ways in which humans are
dependent on nature for a living.
• Adaptation relates to how humans modify
themselves, their lifestyles and their behavior to live
in a new environment with new challenges.
• Modification allowed humans to “conquer” the world
for their comfortable living.
• Movement
 Movement entails to the translocation of human
beings, their goods, and their ideas from one end of
the planet to another.
 The physical movement of people allowed the human
race to inhabit all the continents and islands of the
world.
 Another aspect of movement is the transport of goods
from one place on the Earth to another.
 The third dimension of movement is the flow of ideas
that allows the unification of the human civilization
and promotes its growth and prosperity.
• Region
 A region is a geographic area having distinctive
characteristics that distinguishes itself from adjacent
unit(s) of space.
 It could be a formal region that is characterized by
homogeneity in terms of a certain phenomenon (soil,
temperature, rainfall, or other cultural elements like
language, religion, and economy).
 It can also be a functional or nodal region
characterized by functional interrelationships in a
spatial system defined by the linkages binding
particular phenomena.
1.2. Location, Shape and Size of Ethiopia
and the Horn
 The Horn of Africa, a region of eastern Africa, is a
narrow tip that protrudes into the northern Indian
Ocean, separating it from the Gulf of Aden.
 It is the easternmost extension of African land defined
as the region that is home to the countries of Djibouti,
Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia, whose cultures have
been linked throughout their long history.
 Although the countries of the region share many
common features, there is also great diversity among
them, rendering each country unique in many respects.
 In terms of size, Ethiopia is the largest of all the Horn
of African countries, while Djibouti is the smallest.
 The Horn contains such diverse areas as the highlands
of the Ethiopian Plateau, the Ogaden desert, and the
Eritrean and Somali coasts.
 Its coasts are washed by the Red Sea, the Gulf of
Aden, and the Indian Ocean, and it has long been in
contact with the Arabian Peninsula and southwestern
Asia.
1.2.1. Location of Ethiopia
• The location of a country or a place on a map or a
globe is expressed in two different ways.
• These are astronomical and relative locations
Astronomical location, also known as absolute or
mathematical location, states location of places using
the lines of latitudes and longitudes.
• Astronomically, Ethiopia is a landlocked country
located between 3oN (Moyale) and 15oN (Bademe -
the northernmost tip of Tigray) latitudes and 33oE
(Akobo) to 48oE (the tip of Ogaden in the east)
longitudes. The east west distance (150) is longer than
the north-south distance (120).
• The latitudinal and longitudinal extensions are
important in two ways.
• First, as a result of its latitudinal extension the
country experiences tropical climate and
• secondly due to its longitudinal extension there is a
difference of one hour between the most easterly and
most westerly points of the country.
• It is only for convenience that the 3 hours-time zone
is used In all parts of the country Ethiopia time zone -
GMT+3
 Relative location expresses the location of countries
or places with reference to the location of other
countries (vicinal), landmasses or water bodies.
Vicinal location in relation to physical features
 Sudan to the west and • In the Horn of Africa
northwest • Southwest of the Arabian
 South Sudan to southwest Peninsula
 Djibouti to the east • South of Europe
 Somalia to the east and • Northwest of the Indian
southeast Ocean
 Eritrea to the north and • In the Nile Basin
northeast
 Kenya to the south
• The implications of the location of Ethiopia are
described as follows:
a) Climate:
• The fact that Ethiopia is located between 30N and
150N (between the Equator and Tropic of Cancer)
implies that the country has a tropical climate, though
modified by its altitude.
• The location of Ethiopia relative to the Indian Ocean,
the Atlantic Ocean and the African and Asian
landmass has also various bearings on the climate of
Ethiopia
b) Socio-cultural:
• Ethiopia is one of the earliest recipients of the major
world religions namely Christianity, Islam and
Judaism due to its proximity to the Middle East,
which was the origin of these religions.
• The linguistic and other cultural relationships, which
Ethiopia shares with its neighbours, reflect the
influence of location.
c) Political:
 The political history of Ethiopia has been considerably
influenced by: Geopolitical considerations of superpowers.
 Adjacency to the Red Sea (a major global trade route).
 The Middle East geopolitical paradigms.
• As a result, Ethiopia has been exposed for external invasions
in a number of times; though the country resisted foreign
intervention and remains free of external domination.
•

Figure 1.1.Ethiopia’s location in relation to its neighboring countries

Source: Africa Map Library
 1.2.2. Size of Ethiopia Ethiopia
• With a total area of approximately 1,106,000 square
kilometers is the 8th largest country in Africa and
25th in the World.
• It extends about 1,639 kilometers East-West, and
1,577 kilometers North-South.
• About 0.7% of the country is covered by water
bodies. The size of Ethiopia also affects both the
natural and human environment of the country
Table 1.2: Advantages and disadvantages of Ethiopia’s large size

Advantages Disadvantages

• Possess diverse agro  Demands greater capital to

ecological zones construct infrastructural
facilities
• Variety of natural resources
 Requires large army to
• Own extensive arable land protect its territory
• Have larger population size  Difficult for effective
• Home for diverse cultures administration
• Greater depth in defense  Difficult for socio-economic
external invasion integration
1.2.3. The shape of Ethiopia and its Implication

Countries of the World have different kinds of shape that can

be divided into five main categories:
 compact,
 fragmented,
 elongated,
 perforated, and
 protruded.
 These shapes have implications on defense,
administration and economic integration within a country.
 Whether some kind of shape is advantageous to a country
or not, however, depends on many other factors.
• Compact shape countries: The distance from the
geographic centre of the state to any of the borders does
not vary greatly. It is easier for defence, socioeconomic
and cultural integration.
• Fragmented shape countries: They are divided from
their other parts by either water, land or other countries.
• Elongated shape countries: They are geographically
long and relatively narrow like Chile.
• Perforated shape countries: A country that completely
surrounds another country like the Republic of South
Africa.
• Protrude shape countries: Countries that have one
portion that is much more elongated than the rest of the
country like Myanmar and Eritrea.
• There are various ways of measuring shape of
countries.
• These measures are known as the indices of
compactness.
• These indices measure the deviation of the
shape of a country from a circular shape,
which is the most compact shape.
• Since there is no country with absolutely
circular shape, those approximating a circular
shape are said to be more compact.
• There are four most commonly used measures
of compactness.
1.Area-Boundary ratio: The ratio of area of country to its
boundary length: The higher the A/B ratio, the greater the degree
of compactness.
Eg. Area of Ethiopia =1106000KM2
boundary length =5260km

indices of compactness=A/B=110600/5260=210.27
2. Boundary-Circumference ratio The ratio of boundary
length of a country to the circumference of a circle
having the same area as the country itself:. It measures
how far the boundary of a country approximates the
circumference of a circle of its own size. Therefore, the
nearer the ratio to 1 the more compact the country is.
3.Area-Circumference ratio. The ratio of the area of the country
to the circumference of the smallest inscribing circle: It compares
the area of the country with the circumference of a circle that
passes touching the extreme points on the boundary of the
country. The higher the A/C ratio, the greater the degree of
compactness.
4.Area Area (A/A’) ratio.
The ratio of the actual area of a country to the smallest possible
inscribing circle: The area of the inscribing circle is the area of
the smallest possible circle whose circumference passes through
the extreme points on the boundary. Half length of the longest
distance between two extreme points gives radius of the
inscribing circle. The nearer the ratio to 1, the more compact the
country is.
Eg.
Table Ethiopia's shape compared to its neighbor

Country Area(km) Boundary(km) A/B Ratio B/C ratio A/C ratio

Ethiopia 1,106,000 5,260 210.27 1.26 264.47
Djibouti 22,000 820 26.83 1.56 41.83
Eritrea 117,400 2,420 48.51 1.99 96.83
Kenya 582,644 3,600 161.85 1.33 215.28
Somalia 637,657 5,100 125.03 1.80 225.22
Source: Bekure (1982, 1983)
• 1.3. Basic Skills of Map Reading
• What is a Map?
• A map is a two-dimensional scaled representation of part or
whole of the Earth surface on a flat body such as piece of
paper, black board, wood or cloth.
• Map reading encompasses a systematic identification of
natural features and manmade features.
• Natural features include mountains, plateaus, hills, valleys,
river, ocean, rocks, plain etc.
• On the other hand, manmade features include roads, railway,
buildings, dam etc.
• Although many disciplines use maps, they have a special
significance for Geographers as primary tools for displaying
and analyzing spatial distributions, patterns and relations.
• Since these features cannot easily be observed and interpreted
in real landscapes, maps are essential to Geographers
Importance of maps
 Provide the basis for making geographical details of regions
represented i.e. the geographical facts of an area such as relief,
drainage, settlement etc.
 Maps are powerful tools for making spatial analysis of
geographical facts of areas represented.
 Maps are useful for giving location of geographical features by
varied methods of grid reference, place naming etc.
 Maps are used on various disciplines like land use
planning,military science, aviation, tourism, marine science,
population studies, epidemiology, geology, economics, history,
archaeology, agriculture etc.
 Map makes storage of the geographical data of areas
represented.
 Maps are potentially used to asses’ reliable measurements of
the geographical features. The measurements can be of area
size, distance etc.
 Types of Map
• There are many types of maps according to their
purpose and functions. For the purpose of this course,
topographical and statistical maps are considered.
• a. Topographical maps: Topographic maps depict one
or more natural and cultural features of an area. They
could be small, medium or large scale depending on the
size of the area represented. Contents of topographical
maps depend on purpose of a map, scale of a map, date
of compilation, and nature of the land represented.
• b. Special purpose/statistical maps: These are maps,
which show distribution of different aspects such as
temperature, rainfall, settlement, vegetation etc.
Marginal Information on Maps (Elements of Maps)
• Marginal information is shown on a map to enable the
reading and interpretation of the geographical
information of an area represented.
This includes:
a. Title: It is the heading of the given map which tells
what the map is all about.
b. Key (legend): It is the list of all convectional symbols
and signs shown on the map with their interpretation.
c. Scale: It is the ratio between the distance on the map
and the actual ground distance. Scales enable the map user
to interpret the ground measurement like road distance,
areal sizes, gradient etc.
It can be expressed as representative fraction,
statements/verbal scale, and linear (graphic) scale.
d. North arrow: It is indicated with the north direction on a map;
used to know the other important directions of the mapped area
like east, west, south, and west.
e. Margin: Is the frame of the map. It is important for showing
the end of the mapped area.
f. Date of compilation: It is a date of map publication. This
enables map users to realize whether the map is updated or
outdated.
1.3.1. Basic Principles of Map Reading
• In developing map reading abilities and skills, certain
basic principles must be applied by the map-reader to
translate map symbols into landscape images.
• Map Readers must have ideas about the symbol and
also the real World (landscapes).
• Every map symbol must be visualized by the reader
to read a map.
• The first symbols introduced should be those, which
refer to landscape 10 features of which the reader
already has some images.
• Map symbols should be introduced as needed.
• Secondly, knowledge of directions is an important
principle in reading maps.
• One of the basic functions of maps is to help us to
orient ourselves and to locate places on the earth.
• Unless a reader knows the basic directions, he or she
may not use a map effectively.
• Before locating features using a map, north (the north
arrow) should be determined and the readers should
have practice in finding this direction.
• Next they should learn to read direction on a specific
map and the location of the features shown on the
map in relation to one another.
• Maps are covered in a series of lines that make up a
grid.
• The lines have numbers accompanying them that
allow you to accurately pinpoint your location on a
map.
• Once you have located where you are, the grid system
makes it simple to give an accurate description of
your location.
• This description, which will be a series of numbers, is
known as a grid reference.
 Grid References
• Before you begin to look at grid references it is
important to be aware that all the numbers going
across the face of the map, for example, left to right,
are called easting (heading eastward), and similarly,
all the numbers going up the face of the map from
bottom to top are called northings (heading in a
northward direction). There are two main types of
grid reference:
4-Figure Reference
• When giving a 4-figure grid reference you should
always give the easting's number first and the
northings number second.
• For example, the number 2 in the diagram opposite is
19 across and 45 up and therefore the 4-figure grid
reference is 1945.
• The numbered squares on the diagram above would
have the following4-figure grid references:
1 = 18 45, 2 = 19 45
3 = 18 44, 4 = 19 44
 6-figure map references
• Having worked out the basic 4-figure grid reference
the 6 figure or digit can easily be understood.
• A single square given in 4-figure reference is further
divided up into tenths.
• Using the example, the grey box is in the square
1844.
• More accurately it is 7 tenths across and 8 tenths up
within the grid square 1844 and therefore has the 6-
figure map reference 187448.
• The shapes on the diagram would have the following
6-figure grid references:
• The gray square = 187448, The red circle = 18544