Zikuala is one of the 105 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...

s in 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....

 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...

. Located at the northern point of the Wag Hemra Zone

Wag Hemra Zone

Wag Hemra is a Zone in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Its name is a combination of the former province of Wag, and the dominant local ethnic group, the Kamyr Agaw. Wag Hemra is bordered on the south by Semien Wollo, on the southwest by Debub Gondar, on the west by Semen Gondar, on the north and...

, Zikuala is bordered on the south by Dehana

Dehana

Dehana is one of the 105 woredas in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. It is named for one of the five clans of the Agaw. Part of the Wag Hemra Zone, Dehana is bordered on the south by the Semien Wollo Zone, on the southwest by the Debub Gondar Zone, on the northwest by the Semien Gondar Zone, on...

, on the west and north by the Debub Gondar Zone

Debub Gondar Zone

Debub Gondar is a Zone in the Ethiopian Amhara Region. This zone is named for the city of Gondar, which was the capital of Ethiopia until the mid-19th century, and has often been used as a name for the local province....

, and on the east by the Tekezé River

Tekezé River

The Tekezé River, also known as the Takkaze River, is a major river of Ethiopia, and forms a section the westernmost border of Ethiopia and Eritrea for part of its course. The river is also known as the Setit in Eritrea, western Ethiopia, and eastern Sudan. According to materials published by the...

 which separates it from Soqota

Soqota (woreda)

Soqota is one of the 105 woredas in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Located on the eastern escarpment of the Ethiopian highlands in the Wag Hemra Zone, Soqota is bordered on the south by the Semien Wollo Zone, on the southwest by Dehana, on the northwest by the Tekezé River which separates it from...

. The major town in Zikuala is Siyalewa.

The highest peak in Zikuala is also the highest peak in Ethiopia: Mount Ras Dashen

Ras Dashen

Ras Dashen is the highest mountain in Ethiopia. Part of Semien Mountains National Park, it reaches an elevation of 4,550 metres...

. Other peaks include Mount Hay

Mount Hay (Ethiopia)

Mount Hay is a mountain in northwestern Ethiopia, inside the Amhara Region. It is located in the Semien Mountains National Park, close to Ethiopia's highest peak, Ras Dashen. Mount Hay has an elevation of 4173 meters above sea level....

. They are members of the Semien Mountains

Semien Mountains

The Semien Mountains lie in northern Ethiopia, north east of Gondar. They are a World Heritage Site and include the Semien Mountains National Park. The mountains consist of plateaux separated by valleys and rising to pinnacles...

, which cover most of this woreda; part of the Semien Mountains National Park is also located in northern Zikuala. Rivers include the Balagas

Balagas River

Balagas River is a river of northern Ethiopia. A tributary of the Tekezé, its own tributaries include the Balessa and Dorana rivers....

 and the Mesheha.

Demographics

Based on the 2007 national census conducted by 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...

 of Ethiopia (CSA), this woreda has a total population of 44,013, of whom 22,497 are men and 21,516 women; 3,398 or 7.72% are urban inhabitants. With an area of 1,726.12 square kilometers, Zikuala has a population density of 25.50, which is less than the Zone average of 47.15 persons per square kilometer. A total of 10,428 households were counted in this woreda, resulting in an average of 4.22 persons to a household, and 10,105 housing units.

The 1994 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 48,860 in 11,516 households, of whom 25,435 were men and 23,425 were women; 681 or 1.39% of its population were urban dwellers. The two largest ethnic groups reported in Zikuala were the Agaw

Agaw

The Agaw are an ethnic group in Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea.-History:The Agaw are perhaps first mentioned in the 3rd c. AD Aksumite inscription recorded by Cosmas Indicopleustes in the 6th century...

/Kamyr (88.96%), and the Amhara

Amhara people

Amhara are a highland people inhabiting the Northwestern highlands of Ethiopia. Numbering about 19.8 million people, they comprise 26% of the country's population, according to the 2007 national census...

 (10.94%); all other ethnic groups made up 0.1% of the population. Kamyr was spoken as a first language by 79.76%, and 20.15% spoke Amharic

Amharic language

Amharic is a Semitic language spoken in Ethiopia. It is the second most-spoken Semitic language in the world, after Arabic, and the official working language of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. Thus, it has official status and is used nationwide. Amharic is also the official or working...

; the remaining 0.09% spoke all other primary languages reported. The majority of the inhabitants practiced Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, with 99.91% reporting that as their religion.