Awash River

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The Awash (sometimes spelled Hawash) is a major river of Ethiopia. Its headwaters is south of Mount Warqe, to the west of Addis Ababa, from whence the Awash flows to the south and around Addis Ababa in an easterly then northeasterly direction, joined on its left bank by its chief affluent, the Germama (or Kasam), and passing the Awash National Park before entering the Danakil depression, and eventually emptying in Lake Abbe (or Abhe Bad) on the border with Djibouti, some 100 kilometers (60 or 70 miles) from the head of the Gulf of Tadjoura.

According to the Statistical Abstract of Ethiopia for 1967/68, the Awash River is 1200 kilometers long. In its middle portion, the Awash is a copious stream nearly 60 meters (200 feet) wide and 1.2 meters (4 feet) deep in the dry season, and during the floods rising 15 to 20 meters (50 or 60 feet) above low-water mark, thus inundating the plains for many miles along both its banks.

Other tributaries of the Awash include the Mila'e, Berkanna, Kabenna and Durkham Rivers.

The Awash has been historically important, serving as a de facto border between the predominantly Christian peoples to the north, and the predominantly Muslim peoples to the south into the late 16th century. The Middle Awash has also been the site of numerous pre-human hominid remains.

In 1960, the Koka Dam was completed across the Awash River at a point about 75 kilometers from Addis Ababa, and with its opening became a major source of hydroelectric power in the area. The resulting freshwater lake, Lake Gelila, has an area of about 180 square kilometers. Both lake and dam are threatened by increasing sedimentation.

Awash River

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