Irgalem, SNNPR

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Irgalem (also spelled Yrgalam and Yrga Alem) is a town in southern Ethiopia. Located 260 kilometers south of Addis Ababa and 40 kilometers south of Awasa in the Sidama Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region (or kilil), the town has a latitude and longitude of [6°45′N 38°25′E] and an elevation of 1776 meters.

Based on figures from the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia published in 2005, Iragalem has an estimated total population of 43,815 of whom 21,840 were males and 21,975 females.[CSA 2005 National Statistics], Table B.4. According to the 1994 national census, the town had a population of 24,183.

Yrgalem was used by Viceroy Rodolfo Graziani as his base in 1936 when he fought the resistance of Ras Desta Damtew to Italian rule. It was later the capital of the Sidamo Province until that province was abolished with the adoption of the 1995 Constitution.

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