Atsbi is a town in northern 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...

. Located in the Misraqawi (Eastern) Zone

Misraqawi Zone

Misraqawi is a Zone in the Ethiopian Region of Tigray. Misraqawi is bordered on the east by the Afar Region, on the south by Debubawi , on the west by Mehakelegnaw and on the north by Eritrea. Its highest point is Mount Asimba...

 of the Tigray Region

Tigray Region

Tigray Region is the northernmost of the nine ethnic regions of Ethiopia containing the homeland of the Tigray people. It was formerly known as Region 1...

, about 50 kilometers northeast of Qwiha

Qwiha

Qwiha is a town located in northern Ethiopia. The name comes from the local word for willows, which are abundant in the area. Located in the Debubawi Zone of the Tigray Region, it lies 9 kilometers east of Mek'ele straddling the highway that leads to Addis Ababa...

, this town has a latitude and longitude of 13°52′N 39°44′E with an elevation of 2630 meters above sea level. It is the administrative center of Atsbi Wenberta

Atsbi Wenberta

Atsbi Wenberta is one of the 36 woredas in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia. Located in the Misraqawi Zone at the eastern edge of the Ethiopian highlands, Atsbi Wenberta is bordered on the south by the Debubawi Zone, on the southwest by Wukro, and on the northwest by Saesi Tsaedaemba, and on the...

 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...

.

Overview

Mordechai Abir notes that, along with Ficho, Atsbi was an important center of trade in the blocks of salt

Salt

In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...

 called amoleh, which was used as late as the 20th century as currency

Currency

In economics, currency refers to a generally accepted medium of exchange. These are usually the coins and banknotes of a particular government, which comprise the physical aspects of a nation's money supply...

. Both settlements lay on the borders of the former provinces of Agame

Agame

The Agame is a former province in northern Ethiopia, now part of the Tigray Region. Its inhabitants include the Irob people, a region where tradition states the legendary Makeda was born and raised...

 and Enderta

Enderta

Enderta may refer to:* Enderta province, a historic subdivision of Ethiopia* Enderta, a woreda within the Tigray Region of Ethiopia...

 at the edge of the Ethiopian highlands

Ethiopian Highlands

The Ethiopian Highlands are a rugged mass of mountains in Ethiopia, Eritrea , and northern Somalia in the Horn of Africa...

. Here caravans brought thousands of amolahs from the salt deposits in the Afar Depression

Afar Depression

The Afar Triangle is a geological depression that is caused by the Afar Triple Junction which is part of the Great Rift Valley. It overlaps Eritrea, Djibouti and the entire Afar Region of Ethiopia. The Afar Triangle includes the Danakil Depression and the lowest point in Africa, Lake Asal...

, which were then sold to traders for about 100 to one Maria Theresa Thaler

Maria Theresa thaler

The Maria Theresa thaler is a silver bullion-coin that has been used in world trade continuously. Maria Theresa Thalers were first minted in 1741, using the then Reichsthaler standard of 9 thalers to the Vienna mark. In 1750 the thaler was debased to 10 thalers to the Vienna Mark...

; these merchants then transported the blocks west to Adwa

Adwa

Adwa is a market town in northern Ethiopia, and best known as the community closest to the decisive Battle of Adowa fought in 1896 with Italian troops. Notably, Ethiopian soldiers won the battle, thus being the only African nation to thwart European colonialism...

, Axum

Axum

Axum or Aksum is a city in northern Ethiopia which was the original capital of the eponymous kingdom of Axum. Population 56,500 . Axum was a naval and trading power that ruled the region from ca. 400 BC into the 10th century...

 and Gondar

Gondar

Gondar or Gonder is a city in Ethiopia, which was once the old imperial capital and capital of the historic Begemder Province. As a result, the old province of Begemder is sometimes referred to as Gondar...

, and south to Gojjam

Gojjam

Gojjam was a kingdom in the north-western part of Ethiopia, with its capital city at Debre Marqos. This region is distinctive for lying entirely within the bend of the Abbay River from its outflow from Lake Tana to the Sudan...

 and beyond as far as Ennarea and the Kingdom of Kaffa

Kingdom of Kaffa

The Kingdom of Kaffa was an early modern state located in what is now Ethiopia, with its capital at Bonga. The Gojeb River formed its northern border, beyond which lay the Gibe kingdoms; to the east the territory of the Konta and Kullo peoples lay between Kaffa and the Omo River; to the south...

 where they sold them at a profit.

The Italians

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 occupied Atsbi on 12 November 1941, after clashing with the troops of Dejazmach Kassa Sebhat. The refugee camp at Atsbi, along with the one at Korem

Korem

Korem is a town in northern Ethiopia. Located on the eastern edge of the Ethiopian highlands in the Debubawi Zone of the Tigray Region, this town has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation of 2539 meters above sea level.Based on figures from the Central Statistical Agency in 2005, Korem...

, were shown on BBC television on 23 and 24 October 1984 as an example of the devastation of the 1984 - 1985 famine

1984 - 1985 famine in Ethiopia

A widespread famine affected the inhabitants of today's Eritrea and Ethiopia from 1983 to 1985. In northern Ethiopia, famine led to more than 400,000 deaths; over half this mortality can be attributed to human rights abuses that caused the famine to come earlier, strike harder, and extend further...

.

Demographics

Based on figures from the Central Statistical Agency

Central Statistical Agency (Ethiopia)

The Central Statistical Agency is an agency of the government of Ethiopia designated to provide all surveys and censuses for that country used to monitor economic and social growth, as well as to act as an official training center in that field. It is part of the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance and...

in 2005, this town has an estimated total population of 5,857 of whom 2,663 are men and 3,194 are women. The 1994 census reported it had a total population of 3,381 of whom 1,418 were men and 1,963 were women.