Degol Woyane

The tabia stretches down west of Melfa, along the westernmost ridge of Dogu'a Tembien. The highest peak is T'afa (2580 m a.s.l.) and the lowest place Addi Welo (1990 m a.s.l.).

From the higher to the lower locations, the following geological formations are present:{{cite book |last1=Sembroni |first1=A. |last2=Molin |first2=P. |last3=Dramis |first3=F. |title=Regional geology of the Dogu'a Tembien massif. In: Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District |date=2019 |publisher=SpringerNature |isbn=978-3-030-04954-6 |url=https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783030049546}}

• Lower basalt
• Amba Aradam Formation
• Adigrat Sandstone

{{See also|Soil in Dogu'a Tembien}}

As there are no permanent rivers, the presence of springs is of utmost importance for the local people. The following are the springs in the tabia:{{cite book | title=What do we hear from the farmers in Dogu'a Tembien? [in Tigrinya] |date=2016 |location=Hagere Selam, Ethiopia |pages=100 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/311151542}}

• May Dara in Zala
• Addi Welo

The population lives essentially from crop farming, supplemented with off-season work in nearby towns. The land is dominated by farmlands which are clearly demarcated and are cropped every year. Hence the agricultural system is a permanent upland farming system.{{cite book |last1=Naudts |first1=J |title=Les Hautes Terres de Tembien, Tigré, Ethiopie; Résistance et limites d'une ancienne civilisation agraire; Conséquences sur la dégradation des terres [MSc dissertation]. CNEARC, Montpellier, France |date=2002}}

The tabia centre Zala holds a few administrative offices and some small shops. The main other populated places in the tabia are:{{cite book |last1=Jacob |first1=M. and colleagues |title=Geo-trekking map of Dogu'a Tembien (1:50,000). In: Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District |date=2019 |publisher=SpringerNature |isbn=978-3-030-04954-6 |url=https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783030049546}}

Most inhabitants are Orthodox Christians. The following rock churches are located in the tabia:

The almost inaccessible Dabba Selama monastery ({{coord|13|41.67|N|39|6.03|E }}) is assumed to be the first monastery established in Ethiopia, by Saint Frumentius. The intrepid visitor will climb down, then scramble over narrow ledges along precipices, and finally climb an overhanging cliff. The mesa also comprises a church hewn in Adigrat Sandstone, in shape of a small basilica. The carvers attempted to establish four bays as well as with a recess. The pillars are rounded (which is uncommon) and expand at either end, supporting arches that appear as triangles. Women are not allowed to do the ascent, nor to visit monastery or church. Independently from the difficult access to the monastery, the surrounding sandstone geomorphology is unique.{{cite journal |last1=Plant |first1=R. |last2=Buxton |first2=D. |title=Rock-hewn churches of the Tigre province. |journal=Ethiopia Observer |date=1970 |volume=12 |issue=3 |pages=267}}{{cite book |last1=Gerster |first1=G. |title=Kirchen im Fels – Entdeckungen in Äthiopien |date=1972 |publisher=Atlantis Verlag |location=Zürich}}

The Amani'el church in May Baha ({{coord|13|40|N|39|5.4|E }}) has also been carved in Adigrat Sandstone. Behind a pronaos (1960s), the rock church has cruciform columns, flat beams and a flat ceiling, a single arch, and a flat rear wall without apse. Windows give light to the church itself. Emperor Yohannes IV was baptised in this church.{{cite book |title=Description of trekking routes in Dogu'a Tembien. In: Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District |series=GeoGuide |date=2019 |publisher=SpringerNature |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-04955-3 |isbn=978-3-030-04954-6 |s2cid=199294303 |url=https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783030049546}}

The history of the tabia is strongly confounded with the history of Tembien.

Almost all children of the tabia are schooled,{{cite book |title=Socio-demographic profile, food insecurity and food-aid based response. In: Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District |series=GeoGuide |date=2019 |publisher=SpringerNature |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-04955-3 |isbn=978-3-030-04954-6 |s2cid=199294303 |url=https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783030049546}} though in some schools there is lack of classrooms, directly related to the large intake in primary schools over the last decades.{{Citation |last=Hartjen |first=Clayton A. |title=Denial of Education |date=2012 |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-2179-5_8 |work=The Global Victimization of Children: Problems and Solutions |pages=271–321 |editor-last=Hartjen |editor-first=Clayton A. |access-date=2023-10-12 |place=Boston, MA |publisher=Springer US |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-1-4614-2179-5_8 |isbn=978-1-4614-2179-5 |last2=Priyadarsini |first2=S. |editor2-last=Priyadarsini |editor2-first=S.}} Schools in the tabia include Atse Yohannes school in Zala.

A rural access road links Zala to the main asphalt road in Hagere Selam. It is also connected through a disused road to Werkamba in the West.

Its mountainous nature, monastery and rock church make the tabia fit for tourism.{{cite book |title= Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District |series=GeoGuide |date=2019 |publisher=SpringerNature |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-04955-3 |isbn=978-3-030-04954-6 |s2cid=199294303 |url=https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783030049546}}

• Daba Selama monastery
• May Baha rock church
• Grand-canyon-like landscapes

The high variability of geological formations and the rugged topography invites for geological and geographic tourism or "geotourism".{{cite book |last1=Miruts Hagos and colleagues |title=Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains |chapter=Geosites, Geoheritage, Human-Environment Interactions, and Sustainable Geotourism in Dogu'a Tembien |series=GeoGuide |date=2019 |pages=3–27 |publisher=SpringerNature |isbn=978-3-030-04954-6 |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-04955-3_1 |s2cid=199095921 }} Geosites in the tabia include:

Birdwatching (for the species, see the main Dogu'a Tembien page) can be done particularly in exclosures and forests. The following bird-watching sites have been inventoried{{cite book |last1=Aerts |first1=R. |last2=Lerouge |first2=F. |last3=November |first3=E. |title=Birds of forests and open woodlands in the highlands of Dogu'a Tembien. In: Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District |date=2019 |publisher=SpringerNature |isbn=978-3-030-04954-6 |url=https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9783030049546}} in the tabia and mapped.

• Zala slope forest
• May Baha church forest
• May Mirara forest

Trekking routes have been established in this tabia.{{cite book |date=2019 |publisher=Springer-Nature |pages=557–675 |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-04955-3_38 |series=GeoGuide |last1=Nyssen |first1=Jan |title=Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains |chapter=Description of Trekking Routes in Dogu'a Tembien |isbn=978-3-030-04954-6 |s2cid=199271514 }} The tracks are not marked on the ground but can be followed using downloaded .GPX files.{{Cite web|url=https://www.openstreetmap.org/traces/tag/nyssen-jacob-frankl|title=Public GPS Traces tagged with nyssen-jacob-frankl}}

• Route 4, from Hagere Selam, through Ferrey and Dabba Selama to Kola Tembien
• Route 5, from Hagere Selam, through May Baha to Kola Tembien
• Route 25, from Zala, along the ridge through Geramba to Kola Tembien

All treks require good physical condition and will take (at least) a full day.

In the main villages, there are traditional beer houses (Inda Siwa), often in unique settings, which are a good place for resting and chatting with the local people. Most renown in the tabia are

• Tinsue Brhane at Zala
• Letebrhan Gerese'a at Zala

The facilities are very basic.{{cite book |chapter=Logistics for the Trekker in a Rural Mountain District of Northern Ethiopia|date=2019 |publisher=Springer-Nature |pages=537–556 |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-04955-3_37 |title=Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains |series=GeoGuide |last1=Nyssen |first1=Jan |isbn=978-3-030-04954-6 |s2cid=199198251 }} One may be invited to spend the night in a rural homestead or ask permission to pitch a tent. Hotels are available in Hagere Selam, Werqamba, Abiy Addi and Mekelle.

For more details on environment, agriculture, rural sociology, hydrology, ecology, culture, etc., see the overall page on the Dogu'a Tembien district.

File:Tsaliet gorge near Dabba Selama monastery.jpg|Gorge of Tsaliet River, near Dabba Selama monastery.

File:Access to Dabba Selama.jpg|Accessing Daba Selama monastery requires a perillous climb.

File:Imba Kernale 1936.png|The May Baha and Dabba Selama area, as seen from an Italian spy flight in 1936.

{{reflist}}

{{Geographic location

|Centre = Degol Woyane

|North = Addeha

|East = Mahbere Sillasie
Melfa

|South = Aregen

|West = Werqamba
Geramba

}}

{{ Tabias (municipalities) of Dogu’a Tembien }}

Category:Dogu'a Tembien

Category:Populated places in the Tigray Region