Welkait

Welkait (Amharic/Tigrinya: ወልቃይት) is a woreda in the Western Zone This woreda is bordered to the north by Humera and to the south by Tsegede. It is bordered on the east by the Semien Mi'irabawi Zone, Tigray Region, and on the south by the North Gondar Zone, Amhara Region. the woredas of Tahtay Adiyabo and Asgede Tsimbla lie to the north-east, on the other side of the Tekezé River, and Tselemti to the east. The administrative center of Welkait is Addi Remets; other towns in the woreda include Mai'gaba and Awura. The toponym Welkait appears only in relatively recent sources. The archaeological evidence (presence of Muslim cemeteries), as well as local traditions, suggest that Welkait, thinly populated by non-Semitic speakers (likely the Shanqella or Agaw), was once under the Muslim domination of the Balaw or the Funj people. Under the reign of Baeda Maryam I, tradition speaks of Ras Degana of Shire, accompanied by Bolay, Tesfay (Qasta Agam), Shakkor, Zena Gabriel, and others who settled the region and divided Welkait among themselves, founding lineages and settlements. In the mid 16th century, Welkait was under the domain of a powerful Muslim queen known as Ga'ewa. In the 17th century, Welkait appears as a separate province, said to have previously been part of Begemder but later separated from it. From the 17th to 18th centuries, the powerful governor of Welkait, and a good friend of Emperor Iyasu I, Dejazmach Ayana Egziy is well-known in the historical record. He was allegedly a descendant of Ras Degana of Shire, the first Christian settler of the region.