Wollo Province
Wollo is a historical region and province in the northeastern part of Ethiopia, with its capital city at Dessie. The name "Wello" represents the Kereyo Oromo clan.
The province formerly and historically was called Bete-Amhara. Its name was changed to Wollo following the invasion of Ethiopia in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries by nomadic oromo people.
Peasant rebellions rocked the province, which included the Woyane rebellion in 1943, and revolts of the Yejju in 1948 and 1970.
At the beginning of TPLF's rule of Ethiopia, Raya and Welkait were taken away from the Welo and Begemder provinces respectively and given to Tigray. Therefore, until the 1995 administrative reorganization, Raya was part of Welo province. Raya was then split into two parts once ethnic federalism was established in Ethiopia. One of the two parts with an Amhara majority went to the new Amhara Region, the other which had a majority of was given to Tigray Region ,.
With the adoption of the 1995 constitution & the establishment of ethnic federalism system in Ethiopia, parts of the expanded Wollo province, which were mostly inhabited by Afar people were given to the new Afar Region. The new Amhara Region absorbed the remainder of the province in the Ethiopian Highlands and kept the name Wollo for its two new zones.
