Obock
Obock
Hayyú | ||
|---|---|---|
Town | ||
Country  Djibouti | ||
| Region | Obock Region | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 2 km2 (0.8 sq mi) | |
| Elevation | 13 m (43 ft) | |
| Population (2009) | ||
| • Total | 11,706 | |
Obock (also Obok,
Arabic: أبخ, Afar: Hayyú) is a small port town in Djibouti. It is located on the northern shore of the Gulf of Tadjoura, where it opens out into the Gulf of Aden. The town is home to an airstrip and has ferries to Djibouti City. The French form Obock derives from Arabic "Oboh", which is a deformation of Oboki, a name given to a local wadi
.
History
The fishing village was originally built on the
Ifat Sultanate and then the Adal Sultanate. The Sultans of Raheita emerged from the Adal Sultanate. Although nominally part of the Ottoman Empire since 1554, between 1821 and 1841, Muhammad Ali, Pasha of Egypt, came to control Yemen and modern-day Eritrea, and claims on Ethiopia as far as Harar.[1] In 1884, the commander of the patrol sloop L’Inferent, a French ship, confirmed the Egyptian presence in the area around Obock, and the commander of the patrol sloop Le Vaudreuil reported that the Egyptians were occupying the interior between Obock and Tadjoura.[2]
In actuality, however, Egypt had little authority over the interior and their period of rule on the coast was brief, lasting only a few years before the Egyptian garrison was withdrawn from the area in 1862,
French Somaliland
During the
coaling station for steamships, which would become especially important upon the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. (Up to that time French ships had to buy coal at the British port of Aden
across the gulf, an unwise dependency in case of war.)
The site was not the subject of any occupation, just visited by the ships of the
Djibouti on the south side of the Gulf of Tadjoura, and the colonial administration moved there in 1894. The population of Obock subsequently declined.[5]
Free French was André Bayardelle. A local battalion from French Somaliland participated in the Liberation of Paris
in 1944. In 1963, Obock's circle was created by division of that of Tadjourah region.
Djibouti
A
Demographics
As of 2009, the population of Obock has been estimated to be 11,706. The town inhabitants belong to various mainly
Somali
, are predominant.
Postage stamps
During its time as a French colony, Obock issued its own
postage stamps; for more detail see Postage stamps and postal history of Obock
.
Overview
Obock is connected to other environs by RN-14 National Highway. A ferry ride from Djibouti City to Obock takes three hours; the distance is 237 km (147 mi).
Climate and geography
Obock has a dry climate. It is classified as hot and
BSh). Obock is 13 m above sea level on the plateau of Gazelles ("Dala-h Húgub in Afar") in desert terrain. The sky is always clear and bright throughout the year.[13]
| Climate data for Obock | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 28.9 (84.0) |
29.0 (84.2) |
30.8 (87.4) |
32.8 (91.0) |
35.4 (95.7) |
38.6 (101.5) |
41.0 (105.8) |
39.9 (103.8) |
37.0 (98.6) |
33.8 (92.8) |
31.0 (87.8) |
29.5 (85.1) |
34.0 (93.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 22.3 (72.1) |
23.3 (73.9) |
24.6 (76.3) |
26.0 (78.8) |
28.2 (82.8) |
30.7 (87.3) |
30.8 (87.4) |
30.1 (86.2) |
30.0 (86.0) |
26.4 (79.5) |
24.2 (75.6) |
22.7 (72.9) |
26.6 (79.9) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 4 (0.2) |
6 (0.2) |
16 (0.6) |
4 (0.2) |
7 (0.3) |
0 (0) |
5 (0.2) |
6 (0.2) |
3 (0.1) |
5 (0.2) |
14 (0.6) |
10 (0.4) |
80 (3.2) |
| Source 1: Climate-Data.org, altitude: 13m[13] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: Levoyageur[14] | |||||||||||||
The submarine coastal spring waters have an interesting geothermal potential (with a deep temperature of approximatively 200 °C).[15]
Notable residents
- Hasna Mohamed Dato, Politician
- Abdallah Mohamed Kamil, Politician
- Henry de Monfreid, Adventurer, writer
References
- ^ "French Somali coast Timeline". Archived from the original on 2013-06-09. Retrieved 2013-04-19.
- ^ E. H. M. Clifford, "The British Somaliland-Ethiopia Boundary", Geographical Journal, 87 (1936), p. 289.
- ^ Raph Uwechue, Africa year book and who's who, (Africa Journal Ltd.: 1977), p. 209.
- ^ Scott's monthly stamp journal. 1 January 1982. p. 5. Retrieved 29 May 2011.
- ^ "Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 19 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 593.
- ^ Thompson & Adloff 1968, p. 16.
- ^ Rovighi 1995, p. 109.
- ^ Imbert-Vier 2008, p. 172.
- ^ Kevin Shillington, Encyclopedia of African history, (CRC Press: 2005), p.360.
- ISBN 0-19-829645-2
- ^ Panda, Ankit (February 29, 2016). "Confirmed: Construction Begins on China's First Overseas Military Base in Djibouti". The Diplomat. Archived from the original on May 14, 2017. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
- ^ "Defense Ministry's regular press conference on Feb.25". Ministry of National Defense of the People's Republic of China. February 15, 2016. Archived from the original on May 18, 2017.
- ^ a b "Climate: Dikhil - Climate graph, Temperature graph, Climate table". Climate-Data.org. Retrieved 30 September 2013.
- ^ "DJIBOUTI - OBOCK : Climate, weather, temperatures". Levoyageur. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
- .
Works cited
- Imbert-Vier, Simon (2008). Frontières et limites à Djibouti durant la période coloniale (1884–1977) (PhD thesis). Université de Provence–Aix-Marseille I.
- Rovighi (1995). Le operazioni in Africa orientale (giugno 1940 – novembre 1941). Volume II: Documenti. Rome: Stato Maggiore dell'Esercito.
- Thompson, Virginia McLean; Adloff, Richard (1968). Djibouti and the Horn of Africa. Stanford University Press.
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