Danakil
(transboundary/brand name in Djibouti, Eritrea)

(most common name):
• Afar
local/other name (Djibouti, Eritrea):
• Adal
• Adali
• Dancalian (English)
• Keriyu
• Raya

The Danakil can be found in the steppe and semi-desert areas of the Afar Region of Ethiopia, along the southern Red Sea coast of southeastern Eritrea, and in northern Djibouti. This area is known as the Danakil Desert and is situated in a larger area known as the Afar Triangle.

The ‘Danakil’ name refers to the Danakil Depression (which is in the Afar Triangle and, by the way, has some of the hottest year-round average temperatures on Earth).

Mason (Encyclopedia 2016) gives an estimated count of 4,000–5,000 in Ethiopia for 2008.

The Raya Azebó is a larger variety of the Danakil selected for draught.

In the DAD-IS database for 2024:
• Ethiopia has not listed the Danakil since 2021, but does list the Afar with no population count.
• Eritrea still reports a 1992 count of 680,590.
• Djibouti reports a 2023 count of 600.

This page was last updated on: 2024-09-10

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