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{{Short description|Capital of Harari Region, Ethiopia}}
{{redirect|Harrar|the last name of German origin|Harrer (surname)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{for-multi|the city's administrative region|Harari Region|the capital of Zimbabwe|Harare|the south Asian fruit|Terminalia chebula}}
{{Infobox settlement
| official_name            = Harar
| other_name               = 
| settlement_type          = [[Capital city|Capital]] and [[List of cities with defensive walls|walled city]]
| native_name              = {{lang|har|ሀረር}} / {{script/Arabic|هَرَرْ}} ([[Harari language|Harari]])<br />{{nativename|am|ሐረር}}
| image_skyline            = {{multiple image
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| total_width = 270
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| image1 = City Gate, Harar Jugol (14464345823).jpg
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| image4 = Harar, casa di ras tafari, 01,0.jpg
| image5 = Harar, moschea jamia, minareto 02.jpg 
| image6 = Harar, chiesa selassie.jpg 
| image7 = A View of Harar, Ethiopia (2144242835) (cropped).jpg
}}
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| nickname                 = City of [[Wali|Saints]] (مدينة الأَوْلِيَا)
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| pushpin_map              = Ethiopia#Horn of Africa#Africa
| pushpin_map_caption      = Location within Ethiopia##Location within the Horn of Africa##Location within Africa
| pushpin_relief           = 
| subdivision_type         = Country
| subdivision_name         = [[Ethiopia]]
| subdivision_type1        = [[Regions of Ethiopia|Region]]
| subdivision_name1        = {{flagicon|Harari}} [[Harari Region|Harari]]
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| leader_title             = President
| leader_name              = Ordin Bedri
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| population_as_of         = 2007
| population_footnotes     = <ref name="census2007" />
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| population_total         = 99368
| population_density_km2   = auto
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| timezone                 = [[East Africa Time|EAT]]
| utc_offset               = +3
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| coordinates              = {{coord|9|18|40|N|42|7|40|E|region:ET-MH|display=inline}}
| elevation_footnotes      = <!--for references: use<ref> </ref> tags-->
| elevation_m              = 1885
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| footnotes                = {{Infobox UNESCO World Heritage Site
  |child = yes
  |Official_name = Harar Jugol, the Fortified Historic Town
  |ID = 1189
  |Year = 2006
  |Criteria = Cultural: ii, iii, iv, v
  |Area = 48 ha
}}
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| website                  = 
| image_caption            = From top, left to right: [[Badro Bari|Badro Gate]]; Sherif Museum; [[Jamia Mosque, Harar|Jamia Mosque]]; Chesa Selassie Church; city distant view
| population_est           = 153000
| pop_est_as_of            = 2021
| pop_est_footnotes        = <ref>{{Cite web |year=2021 |title=Population Projection Towns as of July 2021 |url=https://www.statsethiopia.gov.et/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Population-of-Towns-as-of-July-2021.pdf |access-date=31 May 2022 |website=Ethiopian Statistics Agency |archive-date=7 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220707171618/https://www.statsethiopia.gov.et/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Population-of-Towns-as-of-July-2021.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref>
}}
'''Harar'''{{efn|Formerly written as '''Harrar''';<ref>{{cite EB1911|wstitle=Harrar |volume=18 |page=16}}</ref> other variants include '''Hārer''' and '''Harer'''.}} ({{langx|am|ሐረር}}; [[Harari language|Harari]]: ሀረር / {{script/Arabic|هَرَرْ}};<ref>{{cite journal |last=Leslau |first=Wolf |title=An Analysis of the Harari Vocabulary |journal=Annales d'Ethiopie |year=1959 |volume=3 |page=275 |doi=10.3406/ethio.1959.1310}}</ref> {{langx|om|Adare Biyyo}};<ref name="HH">{{cite book|last=Wehib|first=Ahmed|url=https://www.everythingharar.com/files/History_of_Harar_and_Harari-HNL.pdf|title=History of Harar and Harari|date=October 2015|publisher=Harari people regional state, culture, heritage and tourism bureau|page=45}}</ref> {{langx|so|Xarar}}; {{langx|ar|هرر}}), known historically by the indigenous as '''Harar-Gey'''<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ahmed |first1=Yusuf |title=An Inquiry into Some Aspects of the Economy of Harar and the Records of the Household Economy of Harari Amirs (1825-1875) |publisher=Addis Ababa University |page=13}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Mordechai |first=Abir |title=Trade and Politics in the Ethiopian Region 183O–1855 |date=1964 |publisher=University of London |page=246 |doi=10.25501/SOAS.00034079 |url=https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/34079/1/11015888.pdf}}</ref> or simply '''Gey'''<ref>{{cite book |last=Baynes-Rock |first=Marcus |title=Among the Bone Eaters Encounters with Hyenas in Harar |date=24 August 2015 |publisher=Penn State University Press |isbn=9780271074047 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kSJ8CgAAQBAJ&dq=harar+gey&pg=PP26}}</ref> (Harari: ጌይ, ݘٛىيْ, ''Gēy'', {{Literal translation|the city}}), is a [[List of cities with defensive walls|walled city]] in eastern [[Ethiopia]]. It is also known in Arabic as '''the City of [[Wali|Saints]]''' ({{langx|ar|مدينة الأولياء|Madīnat al-ʾAwliyāʾ}}).

Harar is the capital city of the [[Harari Region]]. The ancient city is located on a hilltop in the eastern part of the country and is about {{convert|500|km}} from the Ethiopian capital [[Addis Ababa]] at an elevation of {{convert|1885|m}}.

For centuries, Harar has been a major commercial center, linked by the trade routes with the rest of Ethiopia, the entire [[Horn of Africa]], the [[Arabian Peninsula]], Asia, and through its ports, the outside world. Harar Jugol, the old walled city, was listed as a [[World Heritage Site]] in 2006 by [[UNESCO]] in recognition of its cultural heritage.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=19189&Cr=world&Cr1=heritage |title=Panda sanctuary, tequila area join UN World Heritage sites |publisher=Un.org |date=13 July 2006 |access-date=23 July 2013}}</ref> Because of Harar's long history of involvement during times of trade in the Arabian Peninsula, the [[Government of Ethiopia]] has made it a criminal offence to demolish or interfere with any historical sites or fixtures in the city. These include stone homes, museums and items discarded from war. According to UNESCO, it is "considered 'the fourth holiest city' of [[Islam]]" with 82 mosques, three of which date from the 10th century, and 102 shrines.<ref name="unesco1189">{{cite web |title=Harar Jugol, the Fortified Historic Town|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1189 |work=World Heritage List |publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre |quote=It is considered 'the fourth holy city' of Islam, having been founded by a holy missionary from the Arabic Peninsula. |access-date=6 August 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5176110.stm |title=Five new heritage sites in Africa |access-date=18 December 2006 |date=13 July 2006 |publisher=BBC |quote=Harar Jugol, seen as the fourth holiest city of Islam, includes 82 mosques, three of which date from the 10th Century, and 102 shrines.}}</ref>

Yahyá Naṣrallāh's ''Fatḥ Madīnat Harar'', an unpublished history of the city in the 13th century, records that the legendary saint [[Abadir Umar ar-Rida]] and several other religious leaders settled in the Harar plateau {{circa|1216}} (612 [[hijri year|AH]]).<ref name="Uhlig">Siegbert Uhlig, ''Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: He-N'', Volume 3, (Otto Harrassowitz Verlag: 2007), pp.111 & 319.</ref> Harar was later made the new capital of the [[Adal Sultanate]] in 1520 by the [[Sultan]] [[Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad]].<ref>Richard Pankhurst, ''History of Ethiopian Towns'' (Wiesbaden: Franz Steiner Verlag, 1982), p. 49.</ref> The city saw a political decline during the ensuing [[Emirate of Harar]], only regaining some significance in the [[Khedivate of Egypt]] period. During the [[Ethiopian Empire]], the city decayed while maintaining a certain cultural prestige.

==Etymology==
The etymology of the name "Harar" remains ambiguous; however, archaeologist Timothy Insoll suggests that it may be derived from [[Harla]], an ancient group that existed prior to the arrival of the [[Oromo people]] in the area.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Insoll |first1=Timothy |title=First Footsteps in the Archaeology of Harar, Ethiopia |date=2017 |publisher=Equinox Publishing Limited |pages=209–210 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VGEJvgEACAAJ}}</ref> Other possible etymologies include ones put forth by British explorer [[Richard Francis Burton]] who states Harar is an extract of the name of a plain located south of the town or a specific tree.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Burton |first1=Richard |title=First Footsteps in East Africa, Or, An Exploration of Harar Volume 2 |date=1894 |publisher=Tylston and Edwards |page=1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Mu0MAAAAIAAJ&dq=%22harar%22+is+not+an+uncommon+name+in+this+part+of+eastern+africa+:+according+to+some,+the+city+is+so+called+from+a+kind+of+tree&pg=RA1-PA1}}</ref>

Harar and its residents were also historically known as Hadharee by outsiders in the region. In the [[Arabic]] language, hadhariy serves as both the noun and the adjective that refers to an urban inhabitant and everything associated with a permanent settlement.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Osmond |first1=Thomas |title=Competing Muslim legacies along city/countryside dichotomies: another political history of Harar Town and its Oromo rural neighbours in Eastern Ethiopia |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=6 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/43302094}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Transactions of the Bombay Geographical Society ... Volume 6 |publisher=Bombay Geographical Society |page=401 |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Transactions_of_the_Bombay_Geographical/V5nT6UqJtA0C?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=adhari+harrar&pg=PA401&printsec=frontcover}}</ref>

==History==
===Origins===
When Harar was founded is unclear and various dates have been suggested, some state the city was founded by [[Quraysh]]i settlers in the late 7th century or a local creation in the 10th century.<ref>{{cite book |last=Walker |first=Bethany |title=The Oxford Handbook of Islamic Archaeology |date=6 October 2020 |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=425 |isbn=978-0-19-750787-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4oYEEAAAQBAJ&dq=these+range+from+it+being+founded+by+arabs+from+the+hadramaut&pg=PA425}}</ref><ref name="Insoll">{{cite book |last=Insoll |first=Timothy |title=The Archaeology of Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa |year=2003 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge |isbn=0-521-65171-9 |pages=77–8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=frC8SAu9QxQC |access-date=25 August 2021}}</ref> Islam had gained a foothold on the Harar plateau by the 10th–11th centuries CE via trade with [[Zeila]].<ref name="Insoll"/> By the 13th century, Islam had become the predominant religion in the region.<ref name="Insoll"/>

It is likely the original inhabitants of the region were the [[Harla people]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Gebissa|first=Ezekiel|author-link=Ezekiel Gebissa|title=Leaf of Allah: Khat & Agricultural Transformation in Harerge, Ethiopia 1875–1991|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ga91oPVFb5MC&pg=PA207|year=2004|publisher=Ohio State University Press|isbn=978-0-85255-480-7}}, page 36</ref> Harar was part of the [[Harla Kingdom]]'s domain in the sixth century.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Belayneh |first=Anteneh |title=Ethnomedicinal plants used to treat human ailments in the prehistoric place of Harla and Dengego valleys, eastern Ethiopia |journal=Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine |year=2014 |volume=10 |article-number=18 |doi=10.1186/1746-4269-10-18 |pmid=24499509 |pmc=3933041 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref name="journals.equinoxpub.com">{{cite journal |last=Insoll |first=Timothy |title=First Footsteps in the Archaeology of Harar, Ethiopia |journal=[[Journal of Islamic Archaeology]] |url=https://journals.equinoxpub.com/JIA/article/view/35273/32239 |access-date=18 June 2020 |archive-date=4 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200204183432/https://journals.equinoxpub.com/JIA/article/view/35273/32239 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In the Islamic period, the city was under an alliance called the confederated [[Zeila (historical region)|states of Zeila]].<ref name="HH" /> According to the 12th-century [[Jews|Jewish]] traveler [[Benjamin of Tudela]], the [[Zeila (historical region)|Zeila]] was the land of the [[Havilah]], confined by [[al-Habash]] in the west.<ref>{{cite book|last=Adler|first=Elkan Nathan|author-link=Elkan Nathan Adler|title=Jewish Travellers|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mflHAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA61|year=2014|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-134-28606-5|page=61}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=The St. James's Magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VzcFAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA84|year=1868|publisher=Houlston & Wright|page=84}}</ref> In the ninth century, Harar was under the Maḥzūmī dynasty's [[Sultanate of Showa|Sultanate of Shewa]].<ref>{{cite book|title=The Ethno-History of Halaba People|page=15|url=http://www.southtourismeth.org/pdf/Books-and-Study-lists/The-ethno-history-of-halaba-people.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180705150911/http://www.southtourismeth.org/pdf/Books-and-Study-lists/The-ethno-history-of-halaba-people.pdf|url-status=usurped|archive-date=5 July 2018|access-date=20 October 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Østebø|first=Terje|author-link=Terje Østebø|title=Localising Salafism: Religious Change Among Oromo Muslims in Bale, Ethiopia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BOn3ykfBN-0C&pg=PA56|year=2011|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-18478-7|page=56}}</ref><ref name="journals.equinoxpub.com"/>

According to the semi-legendary text ''Fatḥ Madīnat Harar'', the founder of the city was saint [[Abadir Umar ar-Rida]], who along with 405 other saints such as [[Yusuf bin Ahmad al-Kawneyn|Aw Barkhadle]], [[Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti|Isma'il al-Jabarti]] and Umardin bin Qutbaddan came from the [[Arabian Peninsula]] to settle in the Harar plateau and founded the city circa 612H (1216 CE). Abadir was supposedly met by the [[Argobba people|Argobba]], the [[Gaturi people|Gaturi]] and the [[Harla people]] who accepted his leadership.<ref>{{cite book|last=Braukämper|first=Ulrich|author-link=Ulrich Braukämper|title=Islamic History and Culture in Southern Ethiopia: Collected Essays|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HGnyk8Pg9NgC&pg=PA107|year=2002|publisher=LIT Verlag Münster|isbn=978-3-8258-5671-7}}, page 107</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=History of Harar |page=33 |url=https://www.everythingharar.com/files/History_of_Harar_and_Harari-HNL.pdf}}</ref> In 1234, Abadir returned to Mecca where he stayed until 1279. In the meantime Harar was ruled by several other saints, most of whom were killed fighting the Christians. Coming back from Mecca, Abadir continued to fight the Christians until his final victory over them in 1301.<ref name="Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: D-Ha">{{cite book |last1=Uhlig |first1=Siegbert |title=Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: D-Ha |date=2003 |pages=1015}}</ref> According to tradition, Abadir's brother Fakr ad-Din founded the [[Sultanate of Mogadishu]], while one of his descendants founded the [[Hadiya Sultanate]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Hassen|first=Mohammed|author-link=Mohammed Hassen|title=The Oromo and the Christian Kingdom of Ethiopia: 1300–1700|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fg1zCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA99|year=2015|publisher=Boydell & Brewer|isbn=978-1-84701-117-6|page=99}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Luling|first=Virginia|author-link=Virginia Luling|title=Somali Sultanate: The Geledi City-state Over 150 Years|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IqgEAAAACAAJ|year=2002|publisher=Transaction Publishers|isbn=978-0-7658-0914-8}}</ref>

The first mention of Harar comes from the 14th-century chronicles of [[Amda Seyon I]], according to this text, in 1332 Gēt (Harar) sent 3 governors to support [[Salih (imam)|Salih]] in his rebellion against the Emperor at the [[Battle of Das]]. This reference suggests that Harar had obtained some importance by the first half of the 14th century.<ref>{{cite book|last=Budge|first=E. A. Wallis|author-link=E. A. Wallis Budge|title=A History of Ethiopia: Volume I (Routledge Revivals): Nubia and Abyssinia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KWQtBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA297|year=2014|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-317-64915-1|page=297}}</ref> The region became the base for the [[Walashma dynasty|Walashma]] after their return from [[Yemen]] in 1415 with the foundation of the [[Adal Sultanate]]. The [[Walashma dynasty|Walashma]] rulers established their residence in nearby [[Dakkar]], which was likely in very close proximity to Harar.<ref name="Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: D-Ha"/>

Tradition states the [[Siltʼe people|Siltʼe]], [[Wolane people|Wolane]], [[Halaba people|Halaba]] and Harari people lived in Harar, while the former three moved to the Gurage region.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Crass|first=Joachim|title=The Qabena and the Wolane: Two peoples of the Gurage region and their respective histories according to their own oral traditions|journal=Annales d'Éthiopie|year=2001|volume=17|issue=1|page=180|url=http://www.persee.fr/doc/ethio_0066-2127_2001_num_17_1_997|access-date=15 February 2017}}</ref>

===Adal Sultanate era (Late Middle Ages)===
[[File:Harar,_porta_di_buda_03.jpg|right|200px|thumb|Harar city wall built during the Adal Sultanate in the 1500s]]
In 1520, the city became the capital of the [[Adal Sultanate]] under Sultan [[Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad]] after his victory over the religious faction led by [[Abun Adashe]]. At this point, the religious faction fighting against the Walashma came under the control of Imam [[Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi]] also known as "Gragn" or "Gurey", both meaning "the Left-handed". The town's clergy attempted to mediate between both sides, but the Imam was strengthened by a recent victory over an Ethiopian raid, and was able to defeat and killed the Sultan in 1525. Imam Ahmad then installed [[Umar Din]] as a puppet sultan and made Harar the center of his various campaigns which ravaged most of Christian Ethiopia.<ref name="Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: D-Ha"/>

After Imam Ahmad's defeat in 1543, his men were dispersed back to the region of Harar. The dead leader's widow, [[Bati del Wambara]], undertook to renew jihad against the Christians. She invaded the highlands in 1548, but repulsed by Ras Fanu'el. In 1551, [[Nur ibn Mujahid]] married Bati del Wambara and became the new ruler of Harar. In 1559 he departed on a jihad (holy war) to [[Fatagar]], during his absence, the Ethiopians under Ras Hamalmal breached the city and killed the last Walashma Sultan [[Barakat ibn Umar Din]]. However this victory was short-lived as Nur was able to defeat and kill [[Gelawdewos]] at the [[Battle of Fatagar]], and brought his head back to Harar in triumph.<ref name="EA">{{cite book |last1=Uhlig |first1=Siegbert |title=Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: D-Ha |date=2003 |pages=1016}}</ref>

The following years were very difficult for Harar, as the [[Oromo people|Oromo]] were able to intrude on [[Hararghe]] and defeated Nur's army at the [[Battle of Hazalo]]. This prompted Nur to construct a large wall around Harar, which served as a successful bulwark against the Oromo who devastated only the lands around Harar and forced Nur to fight them multiple times. Because of the influx of refugees into the town and the devastation of the region by the Oromo, Harar experienced two severe famines.<ref name="Zekaria">{{cite journal |last=Zekaria |first=Ahmed |title=Harari Coins: A Preliminary Survey |journal=Journal of Ethiopian Studies |year=1991 |volume=24 |pages=23–46 |jstor=41965992 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41965992 |access-date=28 August 2021}}</ref> The prices of food and livestock rose significantly: one ''sa'a'' (a unit equal to four [[handful]]s) of [[sorghum]] cost 12 ''[[ashrafi]]''s, and an equal amount of [[salt]] cost 15.<ref name="Zekaria" /> A cow cost over 300 ashrafis.<ref name="Zekaria"/> The second famine was followed by a plague which eventually killed Nur in 1568, three months after he conducted a campaign against the Oromo.<ref name="EA" />

After the death of [[Nur ibn Mujahid]], for the next following decade Harar would fall into a state of political instability, mainly due to the pressures of the Oromo. Nur was succeeded by [[Uthman the Abyssinian]], who soon came into conflict with the ''[[ulama]]'' as he did not strictly observe sharia among the nobility and had made a humiliating peace agreement with the pagan Oromo by granting them special privileges. A local official of Aussa named Jibril denounced what he considered Uthman's transgressions against Islamic law. The conflict came to a head when a local Muslim woman who had been taken by the pagan Oromos arrived as a refugee to Aussa. Uthman ordered Jibril to return the woman to the Oromos, Jibril refused, declaring that doing so would be contrary to God's law. Uthman dispatched an army against Jibril, who was defeated and killed. However, while Uthman was gone the clergymen of Harar elected [[Talha ibn Abbas]] as the new leader, he was then able to ambush and defeat Uthman, which led to much rejoicing in the city.<ref name="EA" />

However Tahla Abbas was again overthrown by some of his very fanatical subjects who still longed for a jihad against Ethiopia. He was replaced by [[Nasir ibn Uthman]], who was almost immediately succeeded by his son, [[Muhammad ibn Nasir]]. He led an unsuccessful fight against the Christians, he met Emperor [[Sarsa Dengel]] at the [[Battle of Webi River]] but was betrayed by his own officers, which led him to get captured and executed by the Emperor with other Harari officials. While he was gone, Harar was attacked by the Oromos, his brother, wazir Hamid ibn Nasir was not able to repulse him, and was wounded in the fight. As a result, a local official named [[Mansur ibn Muhammad]], recruited bands of Somali warriors and repel the Oromo attack, and then subsequently declared himself sultan. After repelling the Oromos, he then turned north against the governor of [[Asaita|Aussa]], but was attacked and killed by his own soldiers. [[Muhammad Gasa]], a descendant of [[Ahmad Gragn]], took advantage of the situation and moved the capital to [[Asaita|Aussa]], thus founding the [[Imamate of Aussa]], from then on Harar was ruled by a local wazir.<ref name="EA" />

The first wazir to govern Harar under the [[Imamate of Aussa]] was Muhammad Gasa's own brother, Muhammad Gasa II, who later became the Imam in Aussa in 1584. The next year, Harar was ruled by wazir Saddadin, who participated in the war between Muhammad Gasa II and his minister Abbas ibn Muhammad. After this, mentions of Harar in the historical record is sporadic, with the exception of the names of some of its rulers, the first being Sabraddin ibn Adam (1620–5), Sadiq (1632–46) and his son Abram, who only ruled for eleven months.<ref name="EA" />

===Harar Emirate (Dawud dynasty 17th century onwards)===
[[File:Emir Abdullahi.png|thumb|right|200px|[['Abd Allah II ibn 'Ali 'Abd ash-Shakur|Abdullahi]], the last emir of Harar]]
A certain Emir Ahmed, the son of Wazir Abram, had reigned for 10 days when [[`Ali ibn Da`ud]] assumed the throne of Harar, thus founding the [[Emirate of Harar]]. [[`Ali ibn Da`ud]] had risen through the ranks with previous occupations such as being a head of a district and the minister, had declared independence and founded a dynasty that would rule the city for the next two centuries. The reign of Ali saw significant problems with the neighboring Oromos, as on 1 September 1662 Emir Ali ibn Da'ud had to face a violent Illamo Oromo raid which, had reached as near as Asmadin gate and killed his son Sabr ad-Din ibn al-Amir 'Ali b. Da'ud.<ref>Richard Pankhurst, ''The Ethiopian Borderlands'' (Lawrenceville: Red Sea Press, 1997), pp. 375–377</ref> Ali's successor, Abdullah, significantly improved relations with the Oromos through an extensive marriage policy by marrying 5 of his sons to Oromo women. The Oromos by now had adopted agriculture and conducted trade with the inhabitants of Harar, allowing them to buy imported goods at the markets of the town. With this, the economic influence of Harar extended from [[Shewa]] to the west and [[Zeila]] to the east, with some overseas connections. The Emirate of Harar also began to mint its own currency, the earliest possible issues bearing a date that may be read as 615 AH (1218/19 CE); but the first coins were definitely issued by 1789 CE, and more were issued into the 19th century.<ref>[[Richard Pankhurst (academic)|Richard Pankhurst]], ''An Introduction to the Economic History of Ethiopia'' (London: Lalibela House, 1961), p. 267.</ref><ref name="EA2">{{cite book |last1=Uhlig |first1=Siegbert |title=Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: D-Ha |date=2003 |pages=1017}}</ref>

Harar began to develop into a major religious center in the region, serving as a source of Islamic proselytization to the surrounding Oromo tribes. In 1761 [[Ahmad I ibn Abi Bakr]] constructed the minaret of the grand mosque, and [[ʽAbd al-Shakur ibn Yusuf]] built a mosque in [[Bale Province, Ethiopia|Bale]]. Abd al-Shakur also reintroduced the register and the chancery in the town, which strengthen the influence of the clergy. The religious importance of Harar can be further seen in the migration of various sharifs from [[Mecca]] to the town around the same time.<ref name="EA2" />

After the death of Emir [[Ahmad II ibn Muhammad]] in 1821, a new conflict arose between the brothers [[ʽAbd ar-Rahman ibn Muhammad]] and [[ʽAbd al-Karim ibn Muhammad]], which gave the surrounding Oromo and Somali tribes an opportunity to interfere in Harari politics. In 1825, the Oromo imprisoned ʽAbd ar-Rahman in [[Fedis (historical region)|Fedis]], he then fled to the Somali tribe of [[Bursuuk|Bersub]]. In the end, ʽAbd ar-Rahman was deposed and forty villages are listed as having been destroyed by the Oromo to the north, west and south of Harar during the civil war. Harar became the home of numerous [[Somalis|Somali]] scholars who came to the city to study the most notable being [[Sheikh Madar]] founder of [[Hargeisa]].<ref name="First Footsteps in East Africa">{{cite book|last=Burton. F.|first=Richard|title= First Footsteps in East Africa |year=1856|pages=360}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X1dDDwAAQBAJ&q=sheikh+madar |title=Making Sense of Somali History: Volume 1 |isbn=9781909112797 |page=80 |last=Abdullahi |first=Abdurahman |date=18 September 2017 |publisher=Adonis and Abbey Publishers}}</ref> According to information gathered from the locals about the emirate in 1843, [[British people|British]] Capt. S.B. Hanes asserts Harar lies within a couple days of [[Al-Habash|Habash]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Transactions of the Bombay Geographical Society ... Volume 6 |date=1844 |publisher=Bombay Geographical Society |page=401 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V5nT6UqJtA0C&dq=adhari+harrar&pg=PA401}}</ref> Until the 1840s, the balance between Oromo and Somali influence led Harar to significantly expand economically, developing ties with [[Sharmarke Ali Saleh]] on the Somali coast. During this period slaves of [[Sidama]] and [[Gurage]] stock were important commodities exported to the coast.<ref>{{cite book |last=Toledano |first=Ehud |title=The Ottoman Slave Trade and Its Suppression |date=14 July 2014 |publisher=Princeton University Press |page=31 |isbn=9781400857234 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gOH_AwAAQBAJ&dq=gurage+sidama+harar+slaves&pg=PA31}}</ref> However, at the end of [[Abu Bakr II ibn ʽAbd al-Munan]]'s reign in 1852, the Oromo once again attacked Harar, possibly due to drought. Abu Bakr was forced to pay tribute to the Oromo, which led to an economic crisis and a devaluation in the Harari currency. During the reign of [[Ahmad III ibn Abu Bakr]], Harar was once more besieged by the Oromo for 18 months until Ahmad III agreed to let the Oromo merchants enter the town with their weapons. When Ahmad III died without an heir to his throne, the Oromo helped place [[Muhammad ibn 'Ali 'Abd ash-Shakur]] in power.<ref name="EA2" />

Around this time, Harar was visited by the famous British traveler [[Richard Francis Burton]], he describes Harar during his visit in 1855:<ref>{{cite book |last=Burton |first=Richard |title=First footsteps in East Africa |url=https://burtoniana.org/books/1856-First%20Footsteps%20in%20East%20Africa/1856-FirstFootstepsVer2.htm}}</ref>
{{blockquote|"The ancient metropolis of a once mighty race, the only permanent settlement in Eastern Africa, the reported seat of Moslem learning, a walled city of stone houses, possessing its independent chief, its peculiar population, its unknown language, and its own coinage, the emporium of the [[coffee]] trade, the head-quarters of slavery, the birth-place of the [[Khat|Chat]] plant"}}

Muhammad is said to have oppressed his own people by devaluing the city's currency while extracting a special ''mahalaq al-Oromo'' or Oromo tax.<ref>S. Waldron, [http://repository.forcedmigration.org/show_metadata.jsp?pid=fmo:2127 "The political economy of Harari-Oromo relationships (1554-1975)"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101031041832/http://repository.forcedmigration.org/show_metadata.jsp?pid=fmo:2127 |date=31 October 2010}}, p.&nbsp;12 (Forced migration Online website, accessed 3 July 2009)</ref> This tax was needed for Emir Muhammad to meet the demands of hospitality inherent in the status of ''ilman gosa''.<ref>Caulk, "Harar Town and Its Neighbours", p.&nbsp;379</ref> [[Richard Pankhurst (academic)|Richard Pankhurst]] also notes that Emir Muhammad forbade his subjects from eating [[rice]] or [[Phoenix dactylifera#Fruit food uses|dates]], "declaring that they were suitable only for rulers."<ref>{{cite book |last= Pankhurst|first= Richard K. P.|title= Economic History of Ethiopia|year= 1968|publisher= Haile Selassie I University|location= Addis Ababa|page=37}}</ref> However, Caulk points that Muhammad engaged in a new policy: instead of simply keeping the Oromo at bay, he "made systematic efforts to convert them to Islam and extend their involvement in commercial agriculture; he thereby attempted to assimilate more of the Oromo and re-establish the balance on which the town's survival depended." Until the 1830s, only the [[Babile Oromo]] and groups of mixed Oromo-Somali ethnicity had been converted to Islam to any degree.<ref>Caulk, "Harar Town and Its Neighbours", p.&nbsp;380</ref> Nonetheless, Muhammad lack the power to make much headway in this endeavor, and it was only after the Egyptian conquest that this policy made major strides.<ref>Caulk, "Harar Town and Its Neighbours", p.&nbsp;381</ref>

====Anglo-Egyptian occupation (19th century)====
[[File:Charles George Gordon by Freres.jpg|thumb|right|200px|British administrator [[Charles George Gordon|Charles Gordon]] who visited Harar during the Anglo-Egyptian occupation]]
Due to the oppressive emir in Harar the Harari opposition requested Egypt intervene to liberate the people in the region.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Jalata|first=Asafa|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZqrNDwAAQBAJ&dq=Harari+Oromo+egypt&pg=PA142|title=The Oromo Movement and Imperial Politics: Culture and Ideology in Oromia and Ethiopia|date=2020-02-28|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=978-1-7936-0338-8}}</ref> In October 1878, [[Muhammad Rauf Pasha]] led a well armed Egyptian force of 1,200 men into the interior of eastern Ethiopia and without encountering any opposition, seized Harar on 11 October 1875. A few days later, Emir Muhammad was murdered by an Egyptian [[bashi-bazouk]] while leading evening prayers, his relatives then fled to the countryside to seek refuge among the neighboring Oromos.<ref name="EA3">{{cite book |last1=Uhlig |first1=Siegbert |title=Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: D-Ha |date=2003 |pages=1019}}</ref>

The Egyptians spent much of their time establishing their authority over the surrounding Oromo to secure the caravan routes and attempt the agricultural exploitation of Harar's hinterlands. Rauf Pasha conducted brutal expeditions in the countryside from February to March 1876. Despite this, the Egyptians were never able to pacify the Oromos, and effective Egyptian control rarely reached further than 40 miles away from the city. To strengthen their tenuous control of Harar, the Khedive increased its garrison to 160 officials, 3,411 soldiers and 5,000 of their wives and children. This garrison represented a fifth of Harar's entire population, and the soldiers were usually quartered among the local populace. The imposition of substantial taxes in Harar incited protests from the Harari people against the Egyptian occupation, prompting British administrator [[Charles George Gordon]] to intervene in 1884 to remove Governor Rauf Pasha from his position.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hake |first1=Alfred |title=The Story of Chinese Gordon With Additions, Bringing Down the Narrative to the Present Time |date=1884 |publisher=Worthington |page=258 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5Lk4AQAAMAAJ&dq=raouf+pasha+tyrant+harrar&pg=PA258}}</ref> Researcher Alice Moore-Harell indicates that before Gordon's arrival, the atmosphere had grown strained, with certain Egyptian soldiers aligning themselves with the local populace and declining to follow the governor's directives.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Moore-Harell |first1=Alice |title=Gordon and the Sudan Prologue to the Mahdiyya 1877-1880 |date=23 October 2013 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-135-27013-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jZC0AQAAQBAJ&dq=At+the+beginning+of+1878+the+people+of+Harar+resisted+when+the+governor,+Muhammad+Ra%E2%80%99uf+Pasha,+demanded+an+advance+on+their+annual+quota+of+taxes,+and+despite+many+protests+refused+to+withdraw+his+order&pg=PT202}}</ref>

The Egyptian period witnessed the reconstruction and enlargement of the city's infrastructure. Under the governor Nadi Pasha, the height of the walls were increased. The old palace of the Emirs was demolished and erected in its place was a two-story governor's house which looked over the marketplace and dominated the entire settlement. The town's main mosque was also torn down and replaced with a somewhat larger structure. The Egyptians also built a much needed hospital near the south western gate under Ridwan Pasha. During the period of Egyptian rule, [[Arthur Rimbaud]] lived in the city as the local functionary of several different commercial companies based in [[Aden]]; he returned in 1888 to resume trading in coffee, [[musk]], and skins until a fatal disease forced him to return to France. A house said to have been his residence is now a museum.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Munro-Hay |first=Stuart |year=2002 |title=Ethiopia, the Unknown Land: A Cultural and Historical Guide |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |page=184 |isbn=978-1-86064-744-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NWNTfztz5KoC&pg=PA184}}</ref><ref name="EA3" />

The Egyptian occupation of Harar came to an end as a result of the [[Anglo-Egyptian War|British conquest of Egypt]] and the [[Mahdist War|Mahdist revolt]]. These developments produced a crisis in 1884 when the Egyptian government's payments to the troops ceased to arrive, the garrison was forced to raid the Oromos and Somalis for food. In accordance with an agreement with another power in the region namely France, the UK was forced to withdraw its Egyptian forces from Harar.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Blundell |first1=Herbert |title=A Journey through Abyssinia to the Nile |publisher=Blackwell Publishing |page=101 |url=https://everythingharar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/1900Expedition.pdf}}</ref> The Egyptian troops duly moved out of the city, taking some valuables with them, but leaving most of their local families behind. The Emirate was thus restored under [['Abd Allah II ibn 'Ali 'Abd ash-Shakur|Emir Abdullahi]] in 1885, however Emir Abdullahi's rule was short lived for in 1887 [[Menelik II]] would defeat him at the [[Battle of Chelenqo]] and thus conquer the walled city.<ref name="EA3" />

===Abyssinian rule===
In 1887, the army of [[Menelik II]] would conquer Harar after defeating Emir Abdullahi's troops at [[Chelenqo]], then appointed his nephew [[Ras Makonnen]] as governor of the region. According to Jules Borelli, after Menelik's departure many of the Shewan troops quartered in the city were said to have looted the silos in which the inhabitants had stored their grain. Some of those robbed appealed to Makonnen, who promised restitution, but Borelli believes they never received any. Makonnen had ordered the primary mosque of Harar torn down and replaced it with an Orthodox Church designed by an Italian architect.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jonas · |first1=Raymond |title=The Battle of Adwa African Victory in the Age of Empire |date=29 November 2011 |publisher=Harvard University Press |page=76 |isbn=978-0-674-06279-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9p_8XB-OeMMC&dq=makonnen+had+the+main+mosque+torn+down&pg=PA76}}</ref> The French traveler Charles Michel notes that "the first years of the Abyssinian occupation were far from prosperous" as "the Abyssinian chiefs took for themselves what could have any value", while "the soldiers, several thousand in number, chased the [[Harari people|Hararis]] from their dwellings to install themselves in their place, and devastated everything around them." Traders were driven away and markets becoming impossible in towns were held instead in the remote countryside.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Borelli |first1=Jules |title=Éthiopie méridionale journal de mon voyage aux pays Amhara, Oromo et Sidama, septembre 1885 à novembre 1888 |year=1890 |publisher=Quantin, Librairies-imprimeries réunies |pages=238–239 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3AkaAQAAMAAJ&dq=harrar+le+roi+avait+etabli+son+camp+pres+de+la+ville&pg=PA238}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Pankhurst |first=Richard |year=1982 |title=History of Ethiopian towns from the mid 19th century to 1935 |page=255 |publisher=Steiner}}</ref>

Harar lost some of its commercial importance with the creation of the French-built [[Addis Ababa–Djibouti Railway]], initially intended to run via the city but diverted north of the mountains between Harar and the [[Awash River]] to save money. As a result of this, [[Dire Dawa]] was founded in 1902 as ''New Harar''. The British planned to revitalise the historic Harar-Berbera trade route by connecting the two cities via rail as a means to bolster trade. However, the initiative was vetoed by parliament on the grounds that it would harm the [[Entente Cordiale]] between France and Britain.<ref>{{cite report|title=Berbera-Harrar Railway Survey Vol. 1 |url= http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C1915675}}</ref>

Unlike with most other subjugated lands in the south, Harar's pre-conquest government employed literacy as a tool of governance. Therefore, Ras Makonnen did not attempt to destroy them, but choose to inherit the long established administrative structures and official archives. The retention of historically developed administrative structure was an attempt to govern the province as inexpensively as possible. Nevertheless, with the arrival of settlers from [[Shewa]] into the region social tensions ensured, especially when Harar came to be regarded as the support base for [[Lij Iyasu]]. By the 1920s, the previously dominate position held by Hararis was beginning to be replaced by Christian immigrants, who extended their land holdings in the city by granting the Hararis large and unpayable loans. To stem the tide of land confiscations, a group of Harari elites established a group called the ''firmac''. The goal of the ''firmac'' was to protect Harari property and maintain ethnic unity by discouraging un-Islamic practices. They also opened the first Islamic school in Harar that taught modern subjects.<ref name="EA4">{{cite book |last1=Uhlig |first1=Siegbert |title=Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: D-Ha |date=2003 |pages=1020}}</ref>

====Italian occupation and aftermath (1936–1948)====
[[File:Coat of arms of Harrar Governorate.png|thumb|right|200px|Harar province coat of arms during Italian rule]]
Harar was captured by the [[29th Infantry Division "Piemonte"]] on 8 May 1936 under Marshall [[Rodolfo Graziani]] during the [[Second Italo-Ethiopian War]]. The Italian invasion of Ethiopia was generally welcomed by Harar, who had grown to resent the Christian Amhara rule, the Italian policy of pitting different ethnic and religious groups had resonated with the Hararis. Under the Italians, mosques were built, the use of Arabic was encouraged, Hararis and other Muslim collaborators were hired by the Italian administration and previously confiscated land was returned to their original owners and descendants. Harar would serve as the capital of [[Harar Governorate]], one of the Italian governors of Harar was [[Enrico Cerulli]] (1939–1940).<ref name="EA4" />

During the [[East African campaign (World War II)|East African Campaign]], Italian rule would almost immediately disintegrate and Harar was captured by the 1st battalion of the [[Nigeria Regiment]], advancing from [[Jijiga]] by way of the [[Marda Pass]] on 29 March 1941. The freedom granted to Harar by the Italians was not quickly forgotten, especially after Emperor [[Haile Selassie]] attempted to restore the political and economic power of the [[Shewa]]n elites. When the [[Somali Youth League]] (SYL) began agitating Harari members, they started their own branch known as ''Kulubi''. The Ethiopian government immediately cracked down on this movement, arresting suspected members, confiscating property and imposing travel restrictions. This had a significant effect as for the first time in history, Hararis began migrating out of the city in large numbers, mainly to [[Dire Dawa]] and [[Addis Ababa]], but also eventually abroad to [[Europe]] and [[North America]], creating a large Harari diaspora.<ref name="EA4" />

====Present (1948–)====
[[File:The Harari Cultural House (Gey Gar) ጌይ ጋር.jpg|thumb|The Harari Cultural House (Gey Gar)]]
Following the aftermath of [[World War II]], the city saw the construction of a high school and a military academy. With the rise of the [[Derg]] in the 1970s, Harari disatsifcation remained high, Derg officials appropriating Harari property and forcibly conscripting Harari youth into the army saw further migration abroad, specifically to [[Canada]] and the [[United States]].<ref name="EA4" />

After the rise of the [[Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front]] (EPRDF) in the early 1990s, Hararis were encouraged to use their language in official capacities. Considerable effort was taken to develop Harari as an official educational and administrative language. This saw a general cultural revival in Harar, with also stressed the importance of Islam. The complex social interactions of Sufi rituals at Harar's numerous shrines both refied local Islamic identity and attracted large numbers of Muslim Ethiopian tourists. By 1994, two political parties were vying over power in Harar, one being the [[Harari National League]] (HNL) and the Harari Democratic Unity Party. After a tense competition which occasionally descended into violence, the HNL was able to seize power.<ref name="EA4" />

Tensions persist between the Harari people and the neighboring Oromo community, as the Oromo have taken possession of certain agricultural lands belonging to the Harari in the area surrounding Harar.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gebissa |first1=Ezekiel |title=Hararis in Harar Must be Restored and Protected: A Rejoinder to Abdullah Sherif |date=12 March 2024 |publisher=ethiopia-insight |url=https://www.ethiopia-insight.com/2024/03/12/hararis-in-harar-must-be-restored-and-protected-a-rejoinder-to-abdullah-sherifs-hararis-in-harar-are-being-erased-and-dispossessed/}}</ref> In 2018, Tom Gardner reported that the [[Qeerroo]] Oromo nationalists took control of the city, demanding millions of [[Ethiopian birr]] as a condition for restoring water supplies to the residents of Harar.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gardner |first1=Tom |title=The Abiy Project God, Power and War in the New Ethiopia |date=27 June 2024 |publisher=Hurst |page=147 |isbn=978-1-80526-144-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dVnbEAAAQBAJ&dq=In+the+eastern+city+of+Harar,+residents+went+without+drinking+water+for+nearly+a+month+after+Qeerroos+in+the+surrounding+hinterland+shut+the+supply+down+and+demanded+a+ransom+of+10+million+birr&pg=PT158}}</ref> A significant upheaval has emerged due to the increasing encroachment of [[Oromia]], which is demanding a greater influence over the government of Harar.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ylönen |first1=Aleksi |title=The Horn of Africa Since 2018 Continuities, Transformations, and Prospects |date=15 April 2025 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |page=135 |isbn=978-1-040-34308-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZwdPEQAAQBAJ}}</ref>

==Culture==
According to [[Richard Francis Burton|Sir Richard Burton]] Harar is the birthplace of the [[khat]] plant.<ref name="LANGUAGE RELATIONSHIPS: FAMILIES, GRAFTS, PRISONS">{{cite journal |last=Libermn |first=Mark |title=Language Relationships: Families, Grafts, Prisons |journal=Basic Reference |volume=28 |pages=217–229 |publisher=University Pennsylvania Academics |location=Pittsburgh, USA |year=2003 |url=http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/000217.html |access-date=27 April 2012}}</ref> The original domesticated coffee plant is also said to have been from Harar.<ref name="Coffee: A dark history">{{cite book|last=Wild|first=Antony|author-link=Antony Wild|title=Coffee: A Dark History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z7-zAAAAIAAJ|year=2004|publisher=Fourth Estate|isbn=978-1-84115-649-1}}</ref>

==Climate==
The climate of Harar is classified as [[subtropical highland climate]] (''Cwb'') in [[Köppen climate classification|Köppen-Geiger climate classification system]].

Throughout the year, afternoon temperatures are warm to very warm, whilst mornings are cool to mild. Rain falls between March and October with a peak in August, whilst November to February is usually dry.

{{Weather box|width=auto
|metric first=y
|single line=y 
|location =  Harar, elevation {{convert|1856|m|ft|abbr=on}}
|Jan high C = 25.4
|Feb high C = 26.5
|Mar high C = 26.9
|Apr high C = 25.8
|May high C = 25.6
|Jun high C = 24.7
|Jul high C = 24.0
|Aug high C = 24.0
|Sep high C = 24.6
|Oct high C = 25.6
|Nov high C = 25.5
|Dec high C = 24.7
| year high C = 
|Jan low C = 12.3
|Feb low C = 12.7
|Mar low C = 13.8
|Apr low C = 13.9
|May low C = 13.7
|Jun low C = 13.7
|Jul low C = 13.4
|Aug low C = 13.3
|Sep low C = 13.1
|Oct low C = 12.4
|Nov low C = 12.1
|Dec low C = 12.1
| year low C = 
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation mm = 15.4
|Feb precipitation mm = 13.8
|Mar precipitation mm = 66.8
|Apr precipitation mm = 119.7
|May precipitation mm = 108.6
|Jun precipitation mm = 62.8
|Jul precipitation mm = 119.1
|Aug precipitation mm = 122.1
|Sep precipitation mm = 119.7
|Oct precipitation mm = 53.1
|Nov precipitation mm = 16.8
|Dec precipitation mm = 11.8
|year precipitation mm = 
| Jan humidity = 54
| Feb humidity = 54
| Mar humidity = 64
| Apr humidity = 56
| May humidity = 60
| Jun humidity = 65
| Jul humidity = 75
| Aug humidity = 67
| Sep humidity = 66
| Oct humidity = 54
| Nov humidity = 49
| Dec humidity = 52
| year humidity =
|source 1 = Ethiopian Meteorological Institute<ref>{{cite web
| title = Climate of Major Cities
| url = https://www.ethiomet.gov.et/climate-of-major-cities/
| publisher = [[National Metrology Institute of Ethiopia]]
| access-date = May 9, 2025}}</ref>
| source 2 = FAO (humidity)<ref name=FAO>{{cite web
| url = https://www.fao.org/land-water/databases-and-software/climwat-for-cropwat/en/
| title = CLIMWAT climatic database
| publisher= Food and Agriculture Organization of United Nations
| access-date = 23 June 2024}}</ref>
}}

==Demographics==
[[File:An old map of Harar featuring the Somali Gadabuursi Dir clan.jpg|thumb|An old map of Harar featuring the [[Gadabuursi]], Geri, [[Issa (clan)|Issa]], Karanle [[Hawiye]] and Berteri [[Jidwaaq]] Somali communities.]]
Based on the 2007 national census conducted by the [[Central Statistical Agency (Ethiopia)|Central Statistical Agency]] of Ethiopia (CSA), Harar city had a total urban population of 99,368, of whom 49,727 were men and 49,641 women.<ref name="census2007" />{{Rp|7}} The six largest ethnic groups reported in Harar were the [[Amhara people|Amhara]] (40.55%), the [[Oromo language|Oromo]] (28.14%), the [[Harari people|Harari]] (11.83%), the [[Gurage people|Gurage]] (2.94%), the [[Somali people|Somali]] (6.82%), and the [[Tigrayans]] (2.76%); all other ethnic groups together comprised less than 2% of the population.<ref name="census2007" />{{Rp|23}} [[Amharic language|Amharic]] was spoken as a first language by 49.2% of city inhabitants, [[Afaan Oromo|Oromo]] by 23.7%, [[Harari language|Harari]] by 12.2%, and [[Somali language|Somali]] by 6.6%.<ref name="census2007" />{{Rp|25}} The plurality of urban inhabitants professed [[Islam in Ethiopia|Islam]], with 48.54% of the population having reported they practiced that belief, while 44.56% of the population said they were [[Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity|Christian]], and 6.14% were [[P'ent'ay|Protestant]].<ref name="census2007">{{Cite web|url=https://www.statsethiopia.gov.et/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Harari_Statistical.pdf|title=Population and Housing Census 2007 – Harari Statistical|website=[[Central Statistical Agency]]|access-date=19 November 2021|archive-date=9 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209133243/https://www.statsethiopia.gov.et/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Harari_Statistical.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>{{Rp|28}}<ref>{{cite web |url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-3/harar-COM_30316|title=Harar |website=BRILL}}</ref>

===Ethnicity===
[[File:First footsteps in East Africa, or, An exploration of Harar (1904) (14586268478).jpg|thumb|right|H. H. [[Ahmad III ibn Abu Bakr|Ahmad Bin Abi Bakr]], Emir of Harar.]]
Barker Haines reported in 1840 that the majority of the population of Harar were [[Harari people|Hararis]] however a few [[Oromo people|Oromo]], [[Afar people|Afar]], [[Somali people|Somali]] and [[Arab]]ian traders of [[Yemen]] were also present.<ref>{{cite book |last=Mordechai |first=Abir |title=Trade and Politics in the Ethiopian Region 1830–1855 |date=1964 |publisher=University of London |page=247 |doi=10.25501/SOAS.00034079 |url=https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/34079/1/11015888.pdf}}</ref> In 1855 [[Richard Francis Burton]] described Harar as having an approximately 8,000 inhabitants; 3,000 Somali Bedouins (referring to seasonal nomads who "come and go"), 2,500 Hararis, and 2,500 [[Somali people|Somalis]].<ref>{{cite journal |title=Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bombay |journal=Asiatic Society of Bombay |year=1885 |volume=16 |page=121 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dkw_AQAAMAAJ&q=burton+8,000+souls&pg=PA121}}</ref> Burton further reported a large Oromo presence leading to the town.<ref>{{cite book |last=Burton |first=Richard |title=First Footsteps in East Africa |publisher=Tylston and Edwards |year=1894 |page=[https://archive.org/details/firstfootstepsi01burtgoog/page/n42 19] |url=https://archive.org/details/firstfootstepsi01burtgoog|quote=Up to the city gates the country is peopled by the Gallas.}}</ref> During his visit in the [[Khedivate of Egypt]] occupation of the [[Emirate of Harar]], researcher Paultischke describes Harar as having roughly 40,000 inhabitants with 25,000 of these being Hararis, 6,000 Oromo, 5,000 Somalis, as well as a minority of Europeans and Asians.<ref>{{cite web|title=local history of Ethiopia|url=http://nai.uu.se/library/resources/thematicresources/local_history_of_ethiopia/h/ORTHARAR05.pdf|website=Nordic Africa Institute|access-date=9 October 2017|archive-date=10 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010055050/http://nai.uu.se/library/resources/thematicresources/local_history_of_ethiopia/h/ORTHARAR05.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> Paultischke further noted that there were 3000 Abyssinians, who, according to historian Abdurahman Garad, referred to the [[Argobba people|Argobba]] traders of [[Ifat (historical region)|Ifat]], per the emirate's documents.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Garad |first1=Abdurahman |title=Harar Wirtschaftsgeschichte eines Emirats im Horn von Afrika (1825-75) |publisher=P. Lang |page=157 |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Harar/Z_gwAAAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=Harar:+Wirtschaftsgeschichte+des+Emirats+im+Horn+von+Afrika+(1825-75)&dq=Harar:+Wirtschaftsgeschichte+des+Emirats+im+Horn+von+Afrika+(1825-75)&printsec=frontcover}}</ref> 

After the [[Battle of Chelenqo|conquest of the Emirate of Harar]] by the [[Ethiopian Empire]], an influx of [[Amhara people|Amhara]] settled in Harar and its surroundings.<ref>{{cite book |title=Plural Medical Systems In The Horn Of Africa: The Legacy Of Sheikh Hippocrates |date=28 October 2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9781136143380 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TtnGBQAAQBAJ&q=amhara+settlers+harar&pg=PT113}}</ref> In 1887, [[French people|French]] explorer Jules Borelli reported half the population fled the city following the [[Menelik II's conquests|Abyssinian conquest]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Borelli |first1=Jules |title=Éthiopie méridionale journal de mon voyage aux pays Amhara, Oromo et Sidama, septembre 1885 à novembre 1888 |year=1890 |publisher=Quantin, Librairies-imprimeries réunies |pages=238–239 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3AkaAQAAMAAJ&dq=harrar+le+roi+avait+etabli+son+camp+pres+de+la+ville&pg=PA238}}</ref> According to [[British people|British]] diplomat [[Christopher Addison, 1st Viscount Addison|Christopher Addison]], the city in the early 1900s, consisted of [[Indian people|Indians]], Somalis, Oromo, Abyssinians and the Harari who made up the majority.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Addison |first1=Christopher |title=With the Abyssinians in Somaliland |publisher=Hodder and Stoughton |page=37 |url=https://archive.org/details/withabyssinians00jenngoog/page/n110/mode/2up?q=predominates}}</ref> The Somali population of the town was decimated following the overthrow of [[Lij Iyasu]] by Abyssinian militias.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ficquet |first=Éloi |title=The Life and Times of Lïj Iyasu of Ethiopia: New Insights |year=2014 |publisher=LIT Verlag Münster |page=158 |isbn=9783643904768 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rMj7AgAAQBAJ&q=the+massacre+of+harer&pg=PA159}}</ref> The indigenous Harari natives who once were majority within the walled city are under 15%, due to [[ethnic cleansing]] by the [[Haile Selassie]] regime.<ref>{{cite web |last=Adunga |first=Ayanlem |title=Harari |url=http://www.ethiodemographyandhealth.org/Harari.pdf |website=Ethiopian Demography and Health}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Wehib|first=Ahmed|title=History of Harar and Harari|date=October 2015|publisher=Harari people regional state, culture, heritage and tourism bureau|page=141|url=https://www.everythingharar.com/files/History_of_Harar_and_Harari-HNL.pdf|access-date=26 November 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Matshanda |first=Namhla |title=Centres in the Periphery: Negotiating Territoriality and Identification in Harar and Jijiga from 1942 |year=2014 |publisher=The University of Edinburgh |page=199 |s2cid=157882043 |url=https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/e51e/aa84c13ba093ddf2bc242117aa9d8179dd71.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200131094220/https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/e51e/aa84c13ba093ddf2bc242117aa9d8179dd71.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=31 January 2020}}</ref> As a result of the repression by the Ethiopian regime, in the late 1970s Hararis residing in [[Addis Ababa]] outnumbered those in Harar.<ref>{{cite web |last=Shetler |first=Jan |title=Building a "City of Peace" through Intercommunal Association Muslim-Christian Relations in Harar, Ethiopia, 1887–2009 |url=https://www.manchester.edu/docs/default-source/academics/by-major/philosophy-and-religious-studies/journal/volume-4-issue-1-fall-2010/building-a-city-of-peace-through-intercommunal-association.pdf?sfvrsn=62628962_2 |website=Manchester University |access-date=11 July 2020 |archive-date=3 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200703102450/https://www.manchester.edu/docs/default-source/academics/by-major/philosophy-and-religious-studies/journal/volume-4-issue-1-fall-2010/building-a-city-of-peace-through-intercommunal-association.pdf?sfvrsn=62628962_2 |url-status=dead}}</ref> According to Feener, the Harari have not recovered from the 1948 state-led crackdown on their population.<ref>{{cite book |last=Feener |first=Michael |title=Islam in World Cultures: Comparative Perspectives |year=2004 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |page=230 |isbn=9781576075166 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zsjuQaGLRUkC&q=forever+altered+harari+demographic&pg=PA230}}</ref>

The Somali tribes surrounding Harar are mainly from the [[Gadabuursi]] and [[Issa (clan)|Issa]] subclans of the [[Dir (clan)|Dir]] and the [[Karanle]] subclan of the [[Hawiye]]. They represent the most native Somali clans in the region.<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives/bright/reclus/universalgeograp10recl.pdf|title=The universal geography : earth and its inhabitants}}</ref> The [[Darod]] clans of the Geri and [[Jidwaaq]] also inhabit areas near Harar. The [[Gadabuursi]] and Geri Somali strike immediately north and north eastwards of the town. [[Richard Francis Burton]] (1856) describes the [[Gadabuursi]] and Geri Somali clans as extending to within sight of Harar.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/firstfootstepsi00burtgoog|title=First Footsteps in East Africa|last=Burton|first=Richard|publisher=Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans|year=1856|edition=1st|quote=and thence strikes south-westwards among the Gudabirsi and Girhi Somal, who extend within sight of Harar.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P5AZyEhMtbkC&q=gadabuursi+harar&pg=PA100|title=Saints and Somalis: Popular Islam in a Clan-based Society|pages=100|isbn=9781569021033|last=Lewis|first=I. M.|year=1998|publisher=The Red Sea Press}}</ref> The [[Issa (clan)|Issa]] and Karanle [[Hawiye]] strike north and north westwards whilst the [[Jidwaaq]] strike eastwards.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5eErBgAAQBAJ&q=gada+bursi+babile&pg=PA140|title=Plural Medical Systems In The Horn Of Africa: The Legacy Of Sheikh Hippocrates|last=Slikkerveer|date=28 October 2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781136143304|pages=140}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XVgrDwAAQBAJ&q=burton+gadabursi+harar&pg=PT64|title=A Modern History of the Somali: Nation and State in the Horn of Africa|isbn=9780821445730|last=Lewis|first=I. M.|date=17 March 2003|publisher=Ohio University Press}}</ref>

I.M. Lewis (1998) states:
<blockquote>"Including the land round Harar and Dire Dawa inhabited by the Somalis of the 'Iise and Gadabuursi clans."<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P5AZyEhMtbkC&q=dire+dawa+gadabursi&pg=PA100|title= Saints and Somalis: Popular Islam in a Clan-based Society|year=2000|page=11|isbn= 9781569021033|format=PDF|df=dmy-all|quote=Including the land round Harar and Dire Dawa inhabited by the Somalis of the 'Iise and Gadabuursi clans.|last= Lewis|first= I. M.|publisher= The Red Sea Press}}</ref></blockquote>

==City layout==
[[File:Harar, casa di rimbaud, veduta 02.jpg|thumb|View of Harar Jugol, the Fortified Historic Town (a [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]]).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Harar Jugol, the Fortified Historic Town |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1189rev |access-date=3 December 2022 |website=UNESCO World Heritage Convention}}</ref>]]
The old walled city of Harar is divided into 5 quarters: [[Argobba Bari]], Assum Bari, [[Badro Bari]], Suqutat Bari, and [[Asmadin Bari]].<ref name="Insoll"/><ref>Bianchini, Roberto, Kadigia Ali Mohamad, and Francesco Maimone. "The geography of the ancient walled city of Harar: Urban structure, cultural heritage, and population diversity."  In ''Proceedings of the 16th international conference of Ethiopian studies'', vol. 2, pp. 991-1000. Trondheim: Society of Ethiopian Studies, 2009.</ref> These quarters are then further divided into neighborhoods called ''toya'', which are often named after a Muslim shrine or a prominent tree serving as a local landmark.<ref name="Insoll"/> According to S.R. Waldron, there were 59 such neighborhoods around 1975.<ref name="Hecht"/>

In the late 1960s, it was still possible to walk around the outside of the city walls on foot; doing so took about an hour.<ref name="Hecht"/> By the early 1980s, though, this was no longer possible because the city had begun to expand out from the walled city, with some buildings being built directly attached to the outside of the wall.<ref name="Hecht"/>

===Walls and gates of Harar===
[[File:Harar, porta assumiy 01.jpg|thumb|Suqutat Bari gate]] 
The Old City of Harar with an approximate area of {{convert|60|ha}}<ref>{{cite book |last=Shigeta |first=Masayoshi |title=Environment, Livelihood and Local Praxis in Asia and Africa |year=2005 |publisher=Center for African Area Studies, Kyoto University |page=61 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Jvu1AAAAIAAJ&q=today+,+approximately+21,000+people+live+in+the+60+hectares+of+the+old+city+that+is+encompassed+by}}</ref> is surrounded by ramparts on the northern and eastern sides and part of the southern side. There are five ancient city gates, These are, clockwise from the north of the citadel:

* Assum Bari (located in the north)
* [[Argobba Bari]] (located in the east)
* Suqutat Bari (located in the south east)
* [[Badro Bari]] (located in the south)
* [[Asmadin Bari]] (located in the west)

Other gates such as the unofficial modern sixth ''"Harar gate"'' was built after the Abyssinian invasion in the 19th century.<ref>{{cite book |last=Raymond |first=André |title=The City in the Islamic World Part 1 |year=2008 |publisher=BRILL |page=629 |isbn=978-9004162402 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nY2DqJNPmioC&dq=harar+gate&pg=PA629}}</ref>

==Houses==
[[File:Harar, casa tradizionale, porta intagliata 01.jpg|thumb|Exterior of a Harari house]]
Known as ''gey gar'' ("city house", plural: ''gey garach''), Harari houses form a distinct archetype that differs from other Muslim regions and from other parts of Ethiopia.<ref name="Abubaker">{{cite book |last=Abubaker |first=Abdulmalik |title=The Relevancy of Harari Values in Self Regulation |year=2016 |publisher=University of Alabama |pages=46–58 |url=https://ir.ua.edu/bitstream/handle/123456789/3201/file_1.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y}}</ref> The traditional Harari house design is still widely in use today, with only minor changes, and Hararis who have moved to other cities try to adhere to a similar style.<ref name="Hecht">{{cite journal |last=Hecht |first=Elisabeth-Dorothea |title=The City of Harar and the Traditional Harar House |journal=Journal of Ethiopian Studies |year=1982 |volume=15 |pages=57–78 |jstor=41965897 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41965897 |access-date=25 August 2021}}</ref> Hararis take great pride in their houses, and they form an important part of Harari culture.<ref name="Abubaker"/>

A walled compound (''abāt'') consists of several residences, which share the same walls but are not interconnected.<ref name="Hecht"/> They are arranged around a courtyard, with most of the windows facing the courtyard instead of the street.<ref name="Hecht"/> Doors to individual residences almost always point east or west; north- or south-facing doors are rare.<ref name="Abubaker"/> According to [[Kabir (teacher)|Kabir]] Abdulmuheimen Abdulnassir, farmers and merchants often have east-facing doors so that they can rise early for work.<ref name="Abubaker"/> The several families who live in the same compound share one or two [[kitchen]]s, which are disconnected from the residences.<ref name="Hecht"/> The walls that surround the compounds are joined so that they are basically continuous.<ref name="Hecht"/> The outer gate facing the street is usually wooden but sometimes iron, and they are either painted or whitewashed.<ref name="Hecht"/> The walls form an [[architrave]] around them.<ref name="Hecht"/>

Sometimes several compounds are joined into a "block" of compounds, all surrounded by the same wall and then having their own walls around them.<ref name="Hecht"/> These "blocks" are set up so that a visitor passes the first compound before reaching the second, etc.<ref name="Hecht"/>

Building materials are local stone, while a mixture of pounded stones and clay are used as both [[Mortar (masonry)|mortar]] and [[plaster]] to cover the walls before they are whitewashed.<ref name="Hecht"/> This is the case in newer houses as well as older ones.<ref name="Hecht"/>

[[File:Inside an Adari house (25313093086).jpg|thumb|Interior of a Harari house]]
The [[floor plan]] of a typical Harari house is rectangular.<ref name="Hecht"/> The main room is the large [[living room]] called the ''gidīr gār'' or the ''gār ēqäd''.<ref name="Hecht"/> The gidīr gār has several raised platforms, called ''nädäba''s, which function as seats or beds.<ref name="Hecht"/> A typical house will have five nädäbas.<ref name="Hecht"/> At the back of the gidir gar, across from the front door, are two nädäbas: the "small" one, or ''tīt nädäba'', and then behind it the "big" one, or ''gidīr nädäba'', which is somewhat higher up.<ref name="Hecht"/> These are the two largest nädäbas.<ref name="Abubaker"/> Shoes may be worn as far as the tīt nädäba, but then they must be removed.<ref name="Hecht"/> The tīt nädäba is where younger people or people with less seniority sit.<ref name="Abubaker"/> Children also sleep on this nädäba.<ref name="Abubaker"/> Historically, at the emir's court, it served as the seat for plaintiffs or defendants.<ref name="Abubaker"/> The gidīr nädäba seats elders and people who are considered more senior.<ref name="Abubaker"/> Historically, at the emir's court, dignitaries were seated here.<ref name="Abubaker"/> When a person dies, their body is kept on the gidīr nädäba before being buried as a sign of respect.<ref name="Abubaker"/> A basin is dug in the gidīr nädäba and filled with water and used to wash the body, and then the basin is filled in again.<ref name="Abubaker"/>

The ''amīr nädäba'', or nädäba of honor, is reserved for the master of the house and for honored guests; it can be on either the left or the right depending on the house.<ref name="Hecht"/> It is positioned so that the head of the family can see whoever enters the home and act accordingly.<ref name="Abubaker"/> The "hidden" nädäba, or the ''sutri nädäba'', can also be on either side but is always behind a protruding pillar or ''maxazu''.<ref name="Hecht"/> Historically, this is known as the "[[malassay]] nädäba" because the guards of the emir would sit here during meetings or court cases.<ref name="Abubaker"/> The sutri nädäba is used for sleeping.<ref name="Hecht"/> It is also used as a seat where the husband rests when he comes home.<ref name="Abubaker"/> Finally, there is the ''gäbti äḥer näbäda'', or the one behind the entrance door.<ref name="Hecht"/> Like the amīr and sutri nädäbas, this one can be on either the left or the right.<ref name="Hecht"/> At the back corners there are sometimes built-in cupboards or wardrobes called ''näbäda dēra''s.<ref name="Hecht"/> Cash<ref name="Abubaker"/> and important documents are kept in a chest in the näbäda dēra.<ref name="Hecht"/> The upper part of the näbäda dēra is used to store clothes belonging to the master of the house.<ref name="Abubaker"/>

[[File:Interior, Traditional Harari Home (2775764645).jpg|thumb|Wall niches in a Harari home]]
The gidīr gār has built-in niches called ''ṭāqēt''s which are used to store and display personal possessions.<ref name="Hecht"/><ref name="Insoll"/> They are fairly high up and there are typically 11 of them: five on the main wall opposite the door, and the rest on the other walls.<ref name="Hecht"/> The two rectangular niches in the middle of the main wall (called ''ēqäd ṭāqēt'') are typically used to store books, especially the [[Qur'an]].<ref name="Hecht"/> Their rectangular shape is supposed to be evocative of death and the grave.<ref name="Hecht"/> In addition to the 11 main niches, there are sometimes also niches in the nädäbas, which are used to hold shoes or an [[incense burner]].<ref name="Hecht"/>

[[File:Bride chamber (24712553173).jpg|thumb|Stairway to the qala on the left, with the kirtät in the background]]
On either side of the entrance there is an open doorway leading to the ''kirtät'', which is a side room with a low ceiling and its own nädäba.<ref name="Hecht"/> The wall between the kirtät and the gidīr gār sometimes has a window screen with decorative woodcarving.<ref name="Hecht"/> Women usually stay in the kirtät when men have a [[bärça]] (a meeting to chew [[khat]] and meditate).<ref name="Hecht"/> In the past, the kirtät was also where a young bride would live in seclusion for 8 months after her wedding.<ref name="Hecht"/> In that case the entryway to the kirtät, which does not otherwise have a door, would be covered with a [[bamboo]] screen and a curtain.<ref name="Hecht"/>

A second side room with a low ceiling, the ''dēra'', is connected to the kirtät by a small door.<ref name="Hecht"/> It is used to store items which are not susceptible to attack by [[rat]]s.<ref name="Hecht"/> Next to the door, the wall of the dēra has a special niche where the ''aflāla''s are kept.<ref name="Hecht"/> These are black pottery containers with long necks and covered by elongated basketry lids called ''aflāla uffa''s.<ref name="Hecht"/> They are used to store the family's [[jewelry]] and other valuables, as well as the [[umbilical cord]]s of the family's children.<ref name="Hecht"/> According to Fethia Ahmed, curator of the Harari cultural museum, the lids being turned upside down indicates that the husband has died and that there is a widow living in the house.<ref name="Abubaker"/>

The dēra is a private space, where a husband and wife may speak without their children listening.<ref name="Abubaker"/> It is also used by children between the ages of 3 and 7 to eat during Ramadan out of public view, before they begin to fast all day long at age 7.<ref name="Abubaker"/> The dēra is built with porous stone without cement to allow for better ventilation.<ref name="Abubaker"/>

The ceiling above the gidīr gār rises to the full height of the house.<ref name="Hecht"/> Above the side rooms, though, there is an upper level called the ''qala''.<ref name="Hecht"/> Originally, the qala was used mainly for storage and sometimes as a sleeping area, and it was not separated from the gidīr gār in any way.<ref name="Hecht"/> Since the late 19th century, though, there is usually a wooden screen separating the two, and the qala has basically become a distinct second floor, often with several rooms, although without nädäbas or other installations.<ref name="Hecht"/> The staircase to the qala usually consists of six to nine steps.<ref name="Hecht"/> In newer houses it has a carved wood [[banister]] but in older houses it did not.<ref name="Hecht"/>

House ceilings are traditionally made of thin tree trunks which have had their bark stripped off.<ref name="Hecht"/> Today the ceiling is whitewashed along with the rest of the house.<ref name="Hecht"/> One beam, located above the edge of the tīt nädäba, is called the ''ḥāmil''; today it is used to hang a neon lamp from, but in the past people would hang an [[ostrich egg]] from it because it was believed that doing so would protect the house from lightning.<ref name="Hecht"/> Nowadays, the ceilings are made of varnished wooden planks, with the ''ḥāmil'' distinguished by its larger size and distinct shape.<ref name="Hecht"/>

Floors are traditionally made of red earth (called ''qēḥ afär''), and the parts of nädäbas that aren't covered by rugs or mats are also painted red.<ref name="Hecht"/> Today they are often tiled, usually with at least some red present.<ref name="Hecht"/> The red is supposed to be reminiscent of the blood shed at the [[Battle of Chelenqo]].<ref name="Hecht"/>

Some houses will have an adjoining ''tīt gār'' or "small house", which has a separate entrance and a nädäba of its own.<ref name="Hecht"/> The tīt gār is often unconnected to the main house.<ref name="Hecht"/> It is used by younger family members, or sometimes rented to tenants.<ref name="Hecht"/> Since the 20th century, some houses add another level above the tīt gār and connect it to the qala as well as giving it a separate entrance via a staircase on the outside of the house.<ref name="Hecht"/>

Each compound typically contained a separate room for a farmhand or servant, without nädäbas or side rooms.<ref name="Hecht"/> There would also be stables for cows and donkeys.<ref name="Hecht"/> There are also typically one or two "kitchen houses", unconnected to the houses, typically located on either sides of the courtyard.<ref name="Hecht"/> These kitchens have no windows, with smoke escaping through the door, so eventually the walls end up covered in soot.<ref name="Hecht"/> Shelves made from tree trunks are used to store kitchen utensils.<ref name="Hecht"/>

In the past, Harari houses would have little to no furniture.<ref name="Hecht"/> Since the 20th century, simple Western-style wooden chairs have proliferated, as well as metal bedsteads with kapok mattresses which are set up on the sutri nädäba.<ref name="Hecht"/>

[[Richard Francis Burton]] described the emir's home as the only building whose exterior was whitewashed, implying that most buildings were undecorated at the time of his visit in the 1800s.<ref name="Hecht"/> Most houses were similarly described as neither painted nor whitewashed as late as 1935.<ref name="Hecht"/> Today, though, Hararis typically whitewash their houses with a [[limestone]] mixture (called ''näçih afär'') at least once and ideally twice a year, once before [[Ramadan]] and once again before the [[Aräfa]] festival.<ref name="Hecht"/> Household items and baskets are thoroughly cleaned at the same time.<ref name="Hecht"/> Today, instead of whitewashing, walls are sometimes painted using [[oil paint]]s.<ref name="Hecht"/> This can be any color, although green is the most popular.<ref name="Hecht"/>

[[File:Harar, casa tradizionale (anisa) 00.jpg|thumb|Hall in a traditional Harari house]]
[[Interior decorating]] of homes is typically done by women.<ref name="Hecht"/> They cover the nädäbas with rugs, mats, and pillows, and decorate the walls with Harari basketry (which is also typically made by women).<ref name="Hecht"/> Enamel plates and bowls are also hung on the walls today.<ref name="Hecht"/> Decorative baskets are generally hung up symmetrically and in pairs.<ref name="Hecht"/> Each household has its own style of decoration, and women guests often comment on how they like how the host's house is decorated.<ref name="Hecht"/> There is a stereotype that younger women are more fastidious at decorating their homes than older women, and that younger couples reapply the red earth to the floors once a week while older ones only do it a few times a year.<ref name="Hecht"/>

The largest type of decorative baskets are the kind that are used to serve bread and sweets at women's gatherings.<ref name="Hecht"/> These have tall conical lids that are hung above and overlapping them.<ref name="Hecht"/> They are hung in one or two rows on the wall behind the gidīr nädäba and below the niches, and they are typically in alternating pairs.<ref name="Hecht"/> Between the ''ēqäd ṭāqēt''s, the two rectangular niches in the center used for storing books, there is a vertical line of small basketry plates called ''sāgāri''s along with their lids.<ref name="Hecht"/> These are used to serve coffee beans at wedding or funeral feasts.<ref name="Hecht"/> They are typically in a group of 3, with 2 of them sharing a pattern and design.<ref name="Hecht"/> Next to the amīr nädäba and the dēra, the wall is decorated with other basketry plates in pairs.<ref name="Hecht"/> These are about the size of a breakfast plate and traditionally are used to serve bread.<ref name="Hecht"/> Two of them are called "the baskets for the [[mother-in-law]]", or the ''ḥamāt mot'', and these are presented by the family of a bride to the in-laws at a wedding.<ref name="Hecht"/>

Emigrants from Harar often try to stick to the traditional Harari home layout when possible, even in buildings with different architectural styles.<ref name="Hecht"/> There will be some sort of gidīr gār indicated, with rugs and pillows forming an informal nädäba, and the walls will be decorated with traditional Harari basketry.<ref name="Hecht"/>

==Attractions==
[[File:Harar, moschea jamia, interno 06.jpg|thumb|The [[Great Mosque of Harar]]]]
[[File:Harar,_casa_di_rimbaud,_04.jpg|thumb|[[Arthur Rimbaud]]'s house and museum]]
Besides the stone wall surrounding the city, the old town is home to 110 [[mosque]]s and many more [[shrine]]s, centered on [[Ferez Magala]] [[town square|square]]. Notable buildings include [[Medhane Alem Cathedral]], the house of [[Arthur Rimbaud]], the 16th-century Jami Mosque and historic Great Five Gates of Harar. [[Harrar Bira Stadium]] is the home stadium for the [[Harrar Beer Bottling FC]]. One can also visit the [[market (place)|market]].

A long-standing tradition of feeding meat to [[spotted hyena]]s also evolved during the 1960s into an impressive night show for [[tourist]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/2079781.stm |title=The hyena man of Harar |work=BBC News |date=1 July 2002 |access-date=23 July 2013}}</ref> (See [[spotted hyenas in Harar]].)

Other places of interest include the highest [[amba (geology)|amba]] overlooking the city, the [[Kondudo]] or "W" mountain, which hosts an ancient population of feral [[horse]]s. A 2008 scientific mission has unleashed efforts for their conservation, as the animals are greatly endangered.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.ena.gov.et/EnglishNews/2008/Jan/09Jan08/47466.htm |title=Wild horses exist in Ethiopia, but face danger of extinction: Exploratory Team |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090715103628/http://www.ena.gov.et/EnglishNews/2008/Jan/09Jan08/47466.htm |archive-date=15 July 2009}}</ref>

The Harar Brewery was established in 1984. Its beers can be sampled at the brewery social club adjacent to the brewery in Harar.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.norway.org.et/News_and_events/etiopia/brewery/ |title=Embassy staff visits Harar Brewery |publisher=Norway.org.et |access-date=23 July 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120319174351/http://www.norway.org.et/News_and_events/etiopia/brewery/ |archive-date=19 March 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=EthioNetworks.com |url=http://www.ethiopianrestaurant.com/harrar_brewery.html |title=Harrar Brewery, Ethiopia |publisher=Ethiopianrestaurant.com |access-date=23 July 2013}}</ref>

Intercity bus service is provided by the [[Selam Bus Line Share Company]].

===Authenticity===
Harar Jugol is a rare example of a relatively well preserved historic town that has retained its traditions, urban fabric, and rich Harari Muslim cultural heritage to the present time. It is one of the holy towns of Islam in Africa, and the capital of a minority region within Christian Ethiopia. The historic city is physically limited and well defined by its 16th-century surrounding wall and the setting has been retained along the eastern and south-eastern sides of the property. However, inappropriate interventions, such as plastering the houses, changing doors from wood to metal, the introduction of non-traditional materials and visual impacts such as TV antennas have been gradually affecting the authenticity of the historic fabric.
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==Sister cities==
{| class="wikitable" "text-align:left;font-size:100%;"|
|-
! style="background:#39e; color:white; height:18px; width:160px;"| Country
! ! style="background:#39e; color:white; width:150px;"| Town
|- style="color:black; background:white;"
|! !| {{flagicon|FRA}} [[France]]
|! !| [[File:Emblem of the French Republic.svg|21px]] [[Charleville-Mézières]]
|-
|! !| {{flagicon|USA}} [[United States]]
|! !| [[File:Great Seal of the United States (obverse).svg|25px]] [[Clarkston, Georgia|Clarkston]]
|-
|! !| {{flagicon|DJI}} [[Djibouti]]
|! !| [[File:Emblem of Djibouti.svg|25px]] [[Arta, Djibouti|Arta]]
|-
|! !| {{flagicon|TUR}} [[Turkey]]
|! !| [[File:Emblem of Turkey.svg|25px]] [[Şanlıurfa]]
|}

==Notable residents==
{{Main|List of emirs of Harar}}
*[['Abd Allah II ibn 'Ali 'Abd ash-Shakur]], last emir of Harar
*[[Abadir Umar ar-Rida]], legendary Muslim saint and founder of Harar
*[[Mahfuz]], Imam and General of the [[Adal Sultanate]]
*[[Bati del Wambara]], wife of Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi
*[[Nur ibn Mujahid]], Emir of Harar
*[[Abdullah al-Harari]], leader of [[al-Ahbash]]
*[[Malik Ambar]], Leader of [[Ahmadnagar Sultanate]]
*[[`Ali ibn Da`ud]], Founder of [[Emirate of Harar]]
*Ambassador Mohammed Abdurahman, First Harari Lawyer, Grandson of Hajji Abdullahi Sadiq
*Hajji [[Abdullahi Sadiq|Abdullahi Ali Sadiq]], businessman and Governor of Ogaden 1889–1914
*[[Arthur Rimbaud]], the French poet, settled as a merchant in Harar between 1880 and 1891
*[[Abdullah Tahir]], governor of [[Jigjiga]]
*[[Haile Selassie]], Emperor of Ethiopia
*[[Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi]], Leader of Adal Sultanate
*[[Sheikh Madar|Sheikh Madar Shirwa]], Somali Sheikh who founded [[Hargeisa]]
*[[Amha Selassie]], Emperor of the [[Ethiopian Empire]] (Designate)
*[[Mohammed Hassen]], Oromo historian
*[[Mohammed Ahmed (businessperson)|Mohammed Ahmed]], former CEO of [[Ethiopian Airlines]]

==See also==
{{portal|Africa}}
* [[Harari language]]
* [[Harari people]]
* [[East Hararghe Zone|East Hararghe]]
* [[West Hararghe Zone|West Hararghe]]
*[[Dire Dawa]]
*[[Harar Brewery]]
*[[Coffee production in Ethiopia#Harar|Coffee production in Harar]]
*[[Hargeisa]], a city in Somaliland also called "Little Harar"
*[[Islam in Ethiopia]]
**[[Holiest sites in Islam#Harar|Harar's significance in Islam]]
*[[Silt'e people]], an ethnic claiming to originate from Harar
*[[List of World Heritage Sites in Ethiopia]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

== References ==
{{reflist|20em}}

==Further reading==
*Fritz Stuber, "Harar in Äthiopien – Hoffnungslosigkeit und Chancen der Stadterhaltung" (Harar in Ethiopia – The Hopelessness and Challenge of Urban Preservation), in: ''Die alte Stadt. Vierteljahreszeitschrift für Stadtgeschichte, Stadtsoziologie, Denkmalpflege und Stadtentwicklung'' ([[W. Kohlhammer]] Stuttgart Berlin Köln), Vol. 28, No. 4, 2001, {{ISSN|0170-9364}}, pp.&nbsp;324–343, 14 ill.
*David Vô Vân, Mohammed Jami Guleid, ''Harar, a cultural guide'', Shama Books, Addis Abeba, 2007, 99 pages
* {{cite book |location= Leiden |publisher= Koninklijke Brill |title=The City in the Islamic World |editor-first= Salma K. |editor-last= Jayyusi |display-editors=etal |isbn=9789004162402 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nY2DqJNPmioC |year=2008 |chapter= Harar: the Fourth Holy City of Islam |pages= 625–642}}

==External links==
{{Wikivoyage}}
{{commons category|Harar}}
*[https://www.harar.city/ Harar City]
*[https://www.everythingharar.com/ Everything Harar]
*[http://digilander.libero.it/capurromrc/!03harar.html Fascist plan to destroy and rebuild Harar along ideological guidelines (1936)]

{{World Heritage Sites in Ethiopia}}
{{Cities of Ethiopia}}
{{Authority control}}
{{coord|9|18|40|N|42|07|40|E|region:ET-HA_type:city(122000)|display=title}}

[[Category:Harari Region| ]]
[[Category:Holy cities]]
[[Category:Cities of the Adal Sultanate]]
[[Category:Populated places in the Harari Region]]
[[Category:World Heritage Sites in Ethiopia]]
[[Category:Cities and towns in Ethiopia]]