Ethiopian Atlas
Regional state

Somali

Jijiga, capital of the Somali Region
Jijiga, capital of the Somali Region · photo: Abdirahman Isak Aden, CC BY-SA 3.0 (source)

Somali is a regional state of Ethiopia, covering 311,105 km² — 27.5% of the national territory, 2nd of the 12 regional states by area. Its administrative centre is Jigjiga. Its projected 2022 population is 6,355,003 — about 20 people per km². It comprises 11 zones and 100 woredas (districts).

The Somali Region is Ethiopia's easternmost and second-largest state, a land of arid plains, seasonal rivers and pastoral economies stretching toward the Horn. The Shebelle and Genale rivers cross it toward the Indian Ocean basin, and its capital Jijiga sits in the highland fringe east of Harar.

Sources: Britannica — Ogaden

Where Somali sits in Ethiopia

311,105
km²
27.5%
of national territory
11
zones
100
woredas
6,355,003
people (2022 proj.)
20
per km²
2nd
by area of 12 states
Administrative centreJigjiga
P-codeET05
Boundary valid from2025-01-01

Zones

AfderDaawaDooloErerFafanJararKoraheLibanNogobShabelleSiti

View Somali on the map →

Every figure on this page is computed from the OCHA COD-AB Ethiopia dataset (April 2026 release, CC BY 3.0 IGO). Richer geographic and historical profiles, with cited sources, arrive in Phase 2.