"Ummata Fannaana Ummata Qashtii Dire Dhawaa" (The Artistic and Jolly People of Dire Dawa)

  Written by Afendi Muteki

Part One
 
Once up on a time, the people of Dire Dawa were assembled in the city's main hall to listen to the speech of a member of the central committee the Dergue (the military government that ruled Ethiopia from 1974-1991) who came to visit the city. As most of the people were the speakers of Afaan Oromoo, the Dergue official picked certain boy from among the people and made him a translator (the official delivered the speech in Amharic).

 
The official started his speech. And when he said "Yetekeberkewna yetewededkew Ye Dire Dawa Hizb" (meaning "the beloved and the respected people of Dire Dawa"), the boy translated it "Yaa Ummata Fannaana Yaa Ummata Qastii Dire Dhawaa". Hearing the boy's translation, the people of Dire Dawa burst into laugh.

********

The above incident might happened; or it might not happened. But if it were a real account, I am sure that many people who heard it would laugh again and again. I also laughed when I heard it first. But if you see the translation of the boy in depth, you would find that his saying perfectly describes the people of Dire Dawa. If you say ''why?'', I will reason out it as follows.

"Fannaan" is to mean "an artist" in Arabic language. But in its usage in Dire Dawa and other East Ethiopian towns, it refers mostly to the youth that dress well and always appear smart and clean. A fashion follower may also be called ''fannaan''. In a wider sense, "fannan" is to mean a sociable, humorous and funny person. If we follow this wider sense, the people of Dire Dawa are 100% "fannaan".

''Qashtii'' has no exact meaning in any language. It came out from the creative mind of the youth of Dire Dawa; and its real meaning can be found only in their dictionary. But in the usage prevalent around Dire Dawa, it can be a variant of "fannaan". However, "qashtii" has extra applications; we express many things in it which "fannan" can't describe. For example, a man that performs his work efficiently can be called "qashtii". We may look at a plane or a train passing at a high speed and say "It's qashtii". A bus that arrives on time is also "qashtii" (here it is to mean ''the one that arrives when people wanted it''). A new car model, a paper money note printed recently, a luxurious and gallant villa and any other beautiful thing can be called "qashtii".

Given the above meanings of "fannaan" and "qashtii", can we pass a judgment on the boys saying about the people of Dire Dawa? Exactly! The boy did no wrong. The people of Dire Dawa are always "fannaan" and "qashxii". They are giants of creativity, modernity, modesty and sociability. However, the statement of the boy is more applicable to the city itself.

Dire Dawa is only 110 years old. But it excels all Ethiopians cities in the role it has played for the modernity of the nation save Addis Ababa and Harar. It is the centre of trade, banking, manufacturing, transport, technology and art. Through its mystique threads, it has connected the natives of the three continents (Africa, Asia and Europe) at one place. In short, modern civilization entered Ethiopia through it.
I could have said many words about Dire Dawa. But that is not the theme of this article. Here, I will focus mainly on four things: I will tell you the foundation of the city; introduce you to Dire Dawa's main boroughs and their naming; describe in short the Dire Dawa youth language usage and their creative skill; give you some notes on the customs related to the railway transportation.

********

The elderly people say that the current site of Dire Dawa and its surrounding was inhabited by three pastoralist communities. They were the Nole Oromo, the Issa Somali and the Gurgura Somali people. On the site where the Nole Oromo were living, there was an oasis which the whole people of the area were frequenting for its good and safe drinking water. The oasis was called by the Oromos “Dhawa” and accordingly, the site where it was found was named “Diree Dhawaa” (meaning “where the oasis was found”).

When the rail road connecting Addis Ababa with Djibouti was planned to be constructed, it was thought to reach the city of Harar on the first phase and to run from Harar to Addis in the second phase. But when the plan was implemented, the French engineers who were in charge of constructing the railway learned that it was difficult to cross the highlands nearby Harar and insert the railway to the old city. Therefore, they decided to undertake the construction in the lowlands situated north of Harar.

In the first phase of the construction, the railway reached a place where the aforementioned oasis was found and stopped there. No sooner than the company that owned the railway built its main terminal in area, people started to settle there. With the fortune of the incoming and outgoing commodities, trade bloomed in the area and caused the small settlement to turn to a new urban centre. Many European, Arabian and Indian traders came to the area and introduced new transactions and building styles. Within a decade, a town rivalling the centuries old Harar as the main commercial centre appeared in east Ethiopia. Dajazmach Yilma Mekonnen, a son of the late Ras Mekonnen and the governor general of Harerghe then, proposed naming the new town “Addis Harar” (the New Harar). But people gave it low attention and continued to call the town “Dire Dhawa”, the ancient name of the place.

*****  *****  *****

Dire Dawa was born in the way I described in the above section. The exact place of the ancient oasis called “Dhawa” is unknown. Let historians dig out all sources and tell us in the future. Hoping good luck for them, I turn now on narrating other tales of the beautiful Dire Dawa.

Train and railway are inseparable from Dire Dawa. And we can’t neglect the role played by the Franco-Ethiopian Railway Line (Now called “Djibouto-Ethiopian Railway Line) in the growth of the city. An important thing that justifies this notion is the name of Dire Dawa’s earliest borough called “La Gare” which is to mean “rail station” in French. In the early years of the city, “La Gare” was its leading commercial and financial centre. Many historical figures like the Syrian-born Merchant and advisrer of Lij Eyasu called Hasib Yidilbi and the leading Ethiopian scholar of early 20^th century called Gebre-Hiwot Baykedagne resided in the borough.

As the road and air transportations were getting more preferences, the importance of rail transport started to drop and so was the importance of “La Gare” in the city's commercial and cultural lifes. In recent years, when the rail transportation is interrupted for rehabilitation purposes, “La Gare” has becoming the frigid zone of Dire Dawa. However, its historical significance will never be forgotten. When the rehabilitation project is completed, “La Gare” may resurrect again as an important commercial centre of the city.

*****  *****  *****

It is clear that some boroughs of Dire Dawa held their ancient names. Some other boroughs hold the names born with expansion of trade in the city. Some few boroughs however, are called in the names that amplify the creativity of the youth of the city. Let me forward few examples from each category.

“Laga Harre” (meaning “the donkey’s river” in Afaan Oromo”) is clearly a name of ancient times. It is a name of a seasonal river crossing the city in its eastern half. From the tradition of the area, we may suggest that it was the name given to the shallowest section of the river where people bring their donkeys and make them drink from the flowing water (the people of the area don’t bring a donkey to deep rivers because they believe that the animal can’t survive it sinks down). On the other hand, the elders of the city say that “Laga Harre” was a river where the people of Dire Dawa were getting the water they drink. This might be a reason why Ali Birra once sung

“Diree Dhawaa dhugaa bishaan Laga Harree

Jaalala akkanaa takkaatuu hin agarre”.

It can be translated as

“Dire Dawa drinks from the water of Laga Harre

I have never seen this kind of love”

“Kazira” is Dire Dawa’s most beautiful and attractive borough. It is a borough about which people talk widely. Lyrics wrote many poems for it. Singers as well sing in many occasions about it. The origin of the name “Kazira” is vague. I couldn’t get enough information with regard to this. But the name suggests an Arabic root. I guess that it is a corrupted form of an Arabic word “Khadira” (meaning “green” or “green quarter”). I say this because the borough called so represents the greenest part of Dire Dawa. The famous green shades of the city about which many singers composed their marvellous hits are situated in the borough.

Yes indeed! Even though “La Gare” is a borough credited for bearing the city, it is the famous green shades of “Kazira” that make many people to miss it. If there were no shades that are standing on the wide streets of Dire Dawa, I am sure that nobody would have missed Dire Dawa this much. The interesting shades were rooted in the ground with an amazing geometrical symmetry.

Some 50 years ago, “Kazira” was a borough where foreigners were living. Greeks, Arabs and Italians occupied it. Later on, British citizens also became the main residents of “Kazira”. According to the information I obtained from different sources, the origin of the current beautiful shades of “Kazira” is the plantation activity those foreigners had undertaken in order to get shelter from the head killing sun that rises over the arid region of the horn. And the old tradition pioneered by them continued to this date. In the hot and dry afternoons, many people are seen sitting under the shades of the trees of “Kazira” streets. However, the service of “Kazira” trees isn’t bound only in Dire Dawa. It extends to another regions and extra services. Here are two notable accounts of my observation.

The residents of Addis Ababa (Finfinne) usually pass their weeding picnics and honeymoon at Sodere or Langano. The people of Harerghe on its part used to prefer two places for their honeymoon and other recreational activities. One was Harar Maya Lake which died few years ago. Yes indeed, the lake for which Ali Shabbo, Mahdi Jappon, Halo Dawe and others sung marvellously have disappeared for unknown reason and the people of Harerghe lost one of its famous honeymoon destination.

However, the second important honeymoon destination and recreation area is still surviving. This is “Kazira” with its ever green and cooling shades that float over the symmetrical trees of Dire Dawa. Addis Ababa. In Harerghe, a bride that passed his picnic at “Kazira” with his best men and friends will be referred by the public has having a good time in the beautiful city. I still have a fresh memory of the wedding of a man called Najib Abdalla Ali who passed his picnic at “Kazira” accompanied by 16 cars, a record for West Harerghe towns at the time (Najib was from Badessa town, 35 kms east of Gelemso-my home town).

When the heat is strengthened in the Horn of Africa and Arabia, many citizens of Djibouti, Somaliland and Yemen usually take a refuge in Dire Dawa which is relatively cooler than their home areas. The shades of “Kazira” trees are the place where these foreigners pass their daylights.

*****  *****  *****

There are many boroughs in Dire Dawa whose names start in the Oromo prefix “ganda” (meaning “borough” or “village”). “Ganda Gara”, “Ganda Qore”, "Ganda Miskin” and “Ganda Tush Tush” are only few examples.

“Ganda Gara” is to mean “a village of the hill”. The name exactly matches the borough because it is found near a hill. “Ganda Qore” meant “a village of the sticky tree”. These two names are common in Oromo nomenclature. Many places in Oromia are called so. “Ganda Miskin” and “Ganda Tush Tush came out of the creative mind of Dire Dawa youth. But their exact origin is unclear for me. If can guess, “Ganda Miskin” , which is to mean “the poor’s quarter”, might had been occupied once by beggars that came to the city from nearby rural areas and other places. The origin of the name “Ganda Tush Tush” is out of my guessing capacity. The youth of Dire Dawa may tell us how it was created. But for notification purposes, I can tell you that “Tush Tush” refers to used and thrown house wares and deformed factory products.

*****  *****  *****

Dire Dawa’s main commercial and financial district is called “Magala”. The word “Magala” is to mean “Market” in Oromo, Harari and Somali languages. This financial district was very small when it was made the city’s main trading centre by Italians. Now, it occupies about one third of the whole city. It is the only quarter of the city that never sleeps in the 24 hours. As Addis Ababa’s Markato has many sub quarters (like “Satin Tera”, “Bomb Tera”, “Dubai Tera”, “Sidamo Tera” etc..) Dire Dawa’s Magala also has many sub quarters; “Taiwan”, “Alaybade”, “Qafira”, “Konel”, “Chat Tera” are few of them. Some other sub quarters have names holding the prefix “magala”. You may take “Magala Sogida”, “Magala Cabxuu”, and “Magaala Guddoo” as examples.

“Magala Sogida” is to mean “salt market”. The name indicates the main commodity sold in this sub quarter. “Magala Guddoo”, literally “the big market”, is a market where many kinds of traders and different commodities can be found. The name “Magala Cabxuu” is clearly a creativity of the youth of Dire Dawa. Even though it can be translated as “the market where broken items are sold”, the naming of the sub-quarter is only known to Dire Dawa youth. I hope they would tell us about its origin in detail.

*****  *****  *****

Afendi Muteki

March 24/2013

Harar