Debre Berhan
Ethiopia
Debre Berhan takes its name — "Mountain of Light" in Amharic — from a celestial light said to have descended from the sky here in 1446, an event that prompted Emperor Zara Yaqob to found the city and build a palace and church. The emperor spent roughly fourteen years here, writing religious and philosophical works and making the city a centre of learning. Set in the Ethiopian highlands north of Addis Ababa, it serves today as the administrative capital of North Shewa Zone.
- Population146,900
- Nearest water from center4.6 km
- Nearest mountain from center22.0 km