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The Afar Regional State (Afar: Qafar; Amharic: አፋር ክልል?) is one of the nine regional states (kililoch) of Ethiopia, and is the homeland of the Afar people. Formerly known as Region 2, its new capital as of 2007 is the recently constructed city of Semera, which lies on the paved Awash–Asseb highway.

The Afar Depression, also known as the Danakil Depression, is part of the Great Rift Valley of Ethiopia, and is located in the north of the region. It has the lowest point in Ethiopia and one of the lowest in Africa. The southern part of the region consists of the valley of the Awash River, which empties into a string of lakes along the Ethiopian-Djibouti border. Other notable landmarks include the Awash and Yangudi Rassa National Parks.


Based on the 2007 Census conducted by the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia (CSA), the Afar Regional State has a total population of 1,390,273, consisting of 775,117 men and 615,156 women; urban inhabitants number 185,135 or 13.32% of the population, a further 409,123 or 29.43% were pastoralists. With an estimated area of 96,707 square kilometers, this region has an estimated density of 14.38 people per square kilometer. For the entire region 247,255 households were counted, which results in an average for the Region of 5.6 persons to a household, with urban households having on average 4 and rural households 6 people. Ethnic groups include Afar (90.03%), Amhara (5.22%), Argobba (1.55%) Tigrinnya people (1.15%), Oromo (0.61%), Welayta (0.59%), and Hadiya (0.18%). 95.3% of the population is Muslim and 4.7% is Christian (3.9% Orthodox Christian, 0.7% P'ent'ay, and 0.1% Catholics).


Afar is predominantly (89.96%) spoken in the region and is the working language of the state. Other languages with a significant number of speakers in the state include Amharic (6.83%), Tigrinnya (1.06%), Argobba (0.79%), Wolaitigna (0.43%), and Oromifa (0.4%).


Afar Depression, Erta-Ale active volcanic movement, Awash National Park, Yangudi Rassa National Park, Hadar and Aramis area, are the major tourist attraction area of the region. The Hot springs, Afar culture and cultural games are other attraction areas.

In 2005, a giant rift was formed in just a few days. The rift opened when the Dabbahu Volcano, situated in the north of the region, erupted. The crack forming is thought to be part of the process in which the Arabian Plate and African plates are moving apart. This new crack, 500 metres (1,640 ft) long, and 60 metres (197 ft) deep, opened when the lava from the erupting volcano flew underground and cooled into a 60 kilometres (37 mi) long, 8 metres (26 ft) wide dike within days.


The Afar Depression, a plate tectonic triple junction is found in the Afar Regional State. This geologic feature is one of earth's great active volcanic areas. Due to this volcanic activity the floor of the depression is composed of lava, mostly basalt. The continuous process of volcanism results in the occurrence of major minerals including potash, sulfur, salt, bentonite, and gypsum. In addition to these minerals, there are also promising geothermal energy sources and hot springs in different areas of the region. Most of the region's mineral potential are found in Dallol, Berhale and Afxera woredas of Zone Two. Elidar, Dubti and Millee in Zone one and Gewane in Zone Three also have some mineral possibilities.




Fossil finds


On March 24, 2006 it was reported that a "significantly complete" cranium had been found at Gawis in the Gona area. The cranium appears as an intermediate form between Homo erectus and Homo sapiens.

On October 1, 2009, scientists reported that they had found a skeleton, dating around 4.4 million years ago. Named Ardi, it is a form of the species Ardipithecus ramidus. It is a distant cousin of the Australopithecus afarensis, Lucy's species.

In June 2010, the oldest direct evidence of stone tool manufacture was found in the Afar region and attributed to Australopithecus afarensis.



   Addis Ababa, Ethiopia