Lake Hayq
Encyclopedia
Lake Hayq or Lake Haik is a freshwater lake
of Ethiopia
. It is located north of Dessie
, in the Debub Wollo Zone
of the Amhara Region
(or kilil). The town of Hayq
is to the west of the lake.
Lake Hayq is 6.7 km long and 6 km wide, with a surface area of 23 km². It has a maximum depth of 88 m and is at an elevation of 2,030 meters above sea level. It is one of two lakes in Tehuledere
woreda
.
, founded in the middle of the 13th century by Iyasus Mo'a
, is located.
A former student of Iyasus Mo'a, Tekle Haymanot
went on to found the monastery of Debra Asbos (renamed in the 15th century to Debre Libanos
) in Shewa
. Tekle Haymanot was one of five bright young religious stodents who became the "five lights of Christianity" for the south of Ethiopia. Iyasus Mo'a also played a role in Yekuno Amlak's overthrow of the Zagwe dynasty
, and helped restore the Solomonic dynasty
. Upon Yekuno Amlak's ascension to the throne, Istifanos Church became Istifanos Monastery
.
The church was established around the 8th century during the Axumite era and was the first one in what was then the Amhara province. The events surrounding its establishment, however, are not clear. Some legends suggest that there was an Aksumite palace in Ambasselle opposite the modern Istifanos monastery, located on the opposite side of the Lake Hayq. Imam
Ahmad Gragn looted and burned this church in November, 1531. The ruins of the church are still visible, and the legend states that the kings and princes who lived in that palace established the church.
The first known European to view the lake was Francisco Álvares
, who passed near it 21 September 1520; he mentions the lake had hippopotamus
es and catfish
, and the land around it were planted in lemons, oranges and citrons. Just prior to his accession in 1606, Susenyos I
made his way to the lake Hayk area, where he expelled a group of Oromo
who had infiltrated into the vicinity of Istifanos Monastery.
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
of Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
. It is located north of Dessie
Dessie
Dessie is a city and a woreda in north-central Ethiopia. Located on the Addis Ababa - Asmara highway in the Debub Wollo Zone of the Amhara Region, this city has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation between 2,470 and 2,550 meters above sea level.Dessie has postal service , and telephone...
, in the Debub Wollo Zone
Debub Wollo Zone
Debub Wollo is one of 10 Zones in the Ethiopian Amhara Region. It acquired its name from the former province of Wollo.Debub Wollo is bordered on the south by Semien Shewa and the Oromia Region, on the west by Mirab Gojjam, on the northwest by Debub Gondar, on the north by Semien Wollo and on the...
of the Amhara Region
Amhara Region
Amhara is one of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia, containing the homeland of the Amhara people. Previously known as Region 3, its capital is Bahir Dar....
(or kilil). The town of Hayq
Hayq, Ethiopia
Hayq is a town in northern Ethiopia. The town is named after Lake Hayq, which lies two kilometers east of the town and is the home of Istifanos Monastery, an important landmark in Ethiopian Church history...
is to the west of the lake.
Lake Hayq is 6.7 km long and 6 km wide, with a surface area of 23 km². It has a maximum depth of 88 m and is at an elevation of 2,030 meters above sea level. It is one of two lakes in Tehuledere
Tehuledere
Tehuledere is one of the 105 woredas in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. This woreda is named for one of the "Houses" or subgroups of the Wollo Oromo, who was located there...
woreda
Woreda
Woreda is an administrative division of Ethiopia , equivalent to a district . Woredas are composed of a number of Kebele, or neighborhood associations, which are the smallest unit of local government in Ethiopia...
.
History
According to a local legend, the lake was created to avenge a pregnant woman was wronged by a princess. God was greatly angered by this injustice, and in his wrath turned all of the land surrounding the woman (except the ground she was sitting on) into water forming a lake, destroying the princess along with her friends and family in the process. Where the pregnant woman was sitting became an island (now a peninsula) where Istifanos MonasteryIstifanos Monastery
Istifanos Monastery is in Ethiopia, located in Lake Hayq. The monastery was built around an 8th century church of Aksumite origins by Emperor Yekuno Amlak to fulfill a promise he made to Iyasus Mo'a.- History :The monastery is responsible for producing five people, known as...
, founded in the middle of the 13th century by Iyasus Mo'a
Iyasus Mo'a
Iyasus Mo'a is a saint of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church; his feast day is 26 Hedar . In life he was an Ethiopian monk and abbot of Istifanos Monastery in Lake Hayq of Amba Sel.He was born in Dehana, which may have been the woreda in the Wag Hemra Zone, although G.W.B...
, is located.
A former student of Iyasus Mo'a, Tekle Haymanot
Tekle Haymanot
Tekle Haymanot or Takla Haymanot was an Ethiopian monk who founded a major monastery in his native province of Shewa...
went on to found the monastery of Debra Asbos (renamed in the 15th century to Debre Libanos
Debre Libanos
Debre Libanos is a monastery in Ethiopia, lying northwest of Addis Ababa in the Oromia Region. Founded in the thirteenth century by Saint Tekle Haymanot, the monastery's chief abbot, called the Ichege, was the second most powerful official in the Ethiopian Church after the Abuna.The monastery...
) in Shewa
Shewa
Shewa is a historical region of Ethiopia, formerly an autonomous kingdom within the Ethiopian Empire...
. Tekle Haymanot was one of five bright young religious stodents who became the "five lights of Christianity" for the south of Ethiopia. Iyasus Mo'a also played a role in Yekuno Amlak's overthrow of the Zagwe dynasty
Zagwe dynasty
The Zagwe dynasty was an historical kingdom in present-day Ethiopia. It ruled large parts of the territory from approximately 1137 to 1270, when the last Zagwe King Za-Ilmaknun was killed in battle by the forces of Yekuno Amlak...
, and helped restore the Solomonic dynasty
Solomonic dynasty
The Solomonic dynasty is the Imperial House of Abyssinia. Its members claim lineal descent from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, the latter of whom tradition asserts gave birth to the first King Menelik I after her Biblically described visit to Solomon in Jerusalem .-Overview:The dynasty, a...
. Upon Yekuno Amlak's ascension to the throne, Istifanos Church became Istifanos Monastery
Istifanos Monastery
Istifanos Monastery is in Ethiopia, located in Lake Hayq. The monastery was built around an 8th century church of Aksumite origins by Emperor Yekuno Amlak to fulfill a promise he made to Iyasus Mo'a.- History :The monastery is responsible for producing five people, known as...
.
The church was established around the 8th century during the Axumite era and was the first one in what was then the Amhara province. The events surrounding its establishment, however, are not clear. Some legends suggest that there was an Aksumite palace in Ambasselle opposite the modern Istifanos monastery, located on the opposite side of the Lake Hayq. Imam
Imam
An imam is an Islamic leadership position, often the worship leader of a mosque and the Muslim community. Similar to spiritual leaders, the imam is the one who leads Islamic worship services. More often, the community turns to the mosque imam if they have a religious question...
Ahmad Gragn looted and burned this church in November, 1531. The ruins of the church are still visible, and the legend states that the kings and princes who lived in that palace established the church.
The first known European to view the lake was Francisco Álvares
Francisco Álvares
Francisco Álvares was a Portuguese missionary and explorer. In 1515 he traveled to Ethiopia as part of the Portuguese embassy to emperor Lebna Dengel accompanied by returning Ethiopian ambassador Matheus. The embassy arrived only in 1520 to Ethiopia where he joined long sought Portuguese envoy...
, who passed near it 21 September 1520; he mentions the lake had hippopotamus
Hippopotamus
The hippopotamus , or hippo, from the ancient Greek for "river horse" , is a large, mostly herbivorous mammal in sub-Saharan Africa, and one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae After the elephant and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the third largest land mammal and the heaviest...
es and catfish
Catfish
Catfishes are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the heaviest and longest, the Mekong giant catfish from Southeast Asia and the second longest, the wels catfish of Eurasia, to detritivores...
, and the land around it were planted in lemons, oranges and citrons. Just prior to his accession in 1606, Susenyos I
Susenyos of Ethiopia
Susenyos was of Ethiopia...
made his way to the lake Hayk area, where he expelled a group of Oromo
Oromo people
The Oromo are an ethnic group found in Ethiopia, northern Kenya, .and parts of Somalia. With 30 million members, they constitute the single largest ethnic group in Ethiopia and approximately 34.49% of the population according to the 2007 census...
who had infiltrated into the vicinity of Istifanos Monastery.