Seylac

Seylac

also called  Zeila,  

      town and port, extreme northwest Somalia, on the Gulf of Aden; Seylac also falls under the jurisdiction of the Republic of Somaliland (Somaliland) (a self-declared independent state without international recognition that falls within the recognized borders of Somalia). From the 9th century to the end of the 19th, it was the most important Arab settlement on the Somali coast, serving as the centre for trade between the Christian kingdom of Ethiopia and Muslim Arabia. The trade then consisted of ivory, slaves, skins, and incense from Ethiopia and the interior, which were exchanged for cloth and metal goods from Arabia. Seylac was also an important port in the medieval kingdom of Adal. In the 19th century the town was coveted by the European colonial powers, but the completion of the railway to Addis Ababa from the port of Djibouti (about 20 miles [32 km] north of Seylac) eclipsed the value of its traditional trade routes inland. Today it is a small port equipped for handling sailing and motorized Arab dhows. Pop. (latest est.) 1,226.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Somalia — Somalian, adj., n. /soh mah lee euh, mahl yeuh/, n. an independent republic on the E coast of Africa, formed from the former British Somaliland and the former Italian Somaliland. 9,940,232; 246,198 sq. mi. (637,653 sq. km). Cap.: Mogadishu.… …   Universalium

  • eastern Africa, history of — Introduction       history of the area from ancient times through the 20th century. East Africa The coast until 1856       The earliest written accounts of the East African coast occur in the Periplus Maris Erythraei apparently written by a Greek …   Universalium

  • Somaliland — /soh mah lee land , seuh /, n. a coastal region in E Africa, including Djibouti, Somalia, and the Ogaden part of Ethiopia. * * * I Historical name for the region of eastern Africa between the Equator and the Gulf of Aden that includes Somalia,… …   Universalium

  • Guban — ▪ plain, Somalia       coastal plain, northwestern Somalia, running parallel to the Gulf of Aden for about 150 miles (240 km) between Seylac (Zeila) in the west and Berbera in the east. The Guban (“burned”) plain narrows gradually from 35 miles… …   Universalium

  • Île Barbe — Église romane Notre Dame Géographie Pays …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Ethiopia — /ee thee oh pee euh/, n. 1. Formerly, Abyssinia. a republic in E Africa: formerly a monarchy. 58,732,577; 409,266 sq. mi. (1,060,000 sq. km). Present boundaries include Eritrea. Cap.: Addis Ababa. 2. Also called Abyssinia. an ancient region in NE …   Universalium

  • eastern Africa — ▪ region, Africa Introduction       part of sub Saharan Africa comprising two traditionally recognized regions: East Africa, made up of Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda; and the Horn of Africa, made up of Somalia, Djibouti, Eritrea, and Ethiopia.… …   Universalium

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”