The Dahlak Archipelago is an Eritrean island group located in the Red Sea, measuring around 643 square km (248 square miles) and lying roughly 58 kilometers (31 nautical miles, 36 miles) east of Massawa, the regional capital city.
The Dahlak Archipelago is an Eritrean island group located in the Red Sea, measuring around 643 square km (248 square miles) and lying roughly 58 kilometers (31 nautical miles, 36 miles) east of Massawa, the regional capital city.
Massawa or Mitsiwa (/məˈsɑːwə/ mə-SAH-wə) is a port city in the Northern Red Sea region of Eritrea, located on the Red Sea at the northern end of the Gulf of Zula beside the Dahlak Archipelago. It has been a historically important port for many centuries. Massawa has been ruled or occupied by a succession of polities during its history, including the Dahlak Sultanate, the Ottoman Empire, the Khedivate of Egypt and the Kingdom of Italy.
Massawa was the capital of the Italian Colony of Eritrea until the seat of the colonial government was moved to Asmara in 1897.
Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. Its capital and largest city is Asmara. The country is bordered by Ethiopia to the south, Sudan to the west, and Djibouti to the southeast. The northeastern and eastern parts of Eritrea have an extensive coastline along the Red Sea. The country has a total area of approximately 117,600 km (45,406 sq mi), and includes the Dahlak Archipelago and several of the Hanish Islands.
Hominid remains found in Eritrea have been dated to 1 million years old and anthropological research indicates that the area may contain significant records related to human evolution. The Kingdom of Aksum, covering much of modern-day Eritrea and northern Ethiopia, was established during the first or second century AD. It adopted Christianity around the middle of the fourth century. Beginning in the 12th century, the Ethiopian Zagwe and Solomonid dynasties held fluctuating control over the entire plateau and the Red Sea coast. Eritrea's central highlands, known as Mereb Melash ("Beyond the Mereb"), were the northern frontier region of the Ethiopian kingdoms and were ruled by a governor titled the Bahr Negus ("King of the Sea").