# Arkiko

Arkiko (Arabic: حرقيقو, Afar and Saho: Hirg-Higo, alternately Archigo, Arqiqo, Ercoco, Hirgigo, Hargigo or Harkiko) historically known as Dokono is a town in the Northern Red Sea region of Eritrea. Situated on the Red Sea, it lies on the mainland across from the city of Massawa.

## Etymology

Arkiki or known by the locals Saho tribe; the clans of Dasamo, as Hirg-Higo. The clan of Dasamo are the inhabitant of this area, it is also known by the name Docono, from either the Saho or Afar word for "elephant". The meaning of Higo is legend of legends in Saho language. Richard Pankhurst explains this etymology to the importance of the ivory trade to Hirg-Higo or known as Arkiko.

## History

Arkiko and the nearby island port of Massawa handled most of northern Ethiopia's foreign trade at this time. According to the Portuguese, exports in the early 16th century consisted of gold and ivory, as well as honey, wax, and slaves. Despite their economic interdependence, politically the two ports were often divided. In the 1520s, Arkiko was under the control of the Christian Bahr Negash, whereas Massawa belonged to the Muslim ruler of Dahlak.
Arkiko, as a mainland port with easy access from the interior, was under Christian Abyssinian control for many centuries. Francisco Álvares, who visited the town in 1520, recorded that the port's two thousand inhabitants, upon learning that their visitors were Christians like them, rushed down to the water's edge and with "great delight", all jumped into the sea attempting to drag the vessel ashore. As for Massawa, Álvares recalled that the port, which enjoyed local autonomy, was situated on an offshore island and unlike Arkiko was entirely inhabited by Muslims.
Later, in 1557, both ports fell under the control of the Ottoman Empire, which established a fort at Arkiko and stationed a garrison there. In the late 1579, Emperor Sarsa Dengel, unwilling to accept the Turkish presence, led an Ethiopian force to the coast, aiming to secure access to the sea. According to Ottoman records, the force—composed of Christians and local Muslims referred to as "Arabs"—captured Arkiko, destroyed its fort, and looted the settlement. They then advanced to Massawa, where they reportedly killed forty of the hundred-strong Ottoman garrison.
In 1589, Emperor Sarsa Dengel launched another bold assault on Arkiko to counter Turkish expansion but failed to capture the fort. Despite this, the Jesuits in the region remained hopeful for Portuguese intervention to expel the Turks from the coast, with Francesco Lopes writing in 1591, "We await a fleet which will drive out the Turks and restore Massawa to the Emperor." Meanwhile, the Ottomans, unable to advance further into northern Ethiopia, began losing interest in the region. While maintaining a small garrison at Massawa, they handed control of Arkiko to a local Balaw chieftain from Samhar, granting him the title of naib, or "deputy"—a position that would persist among his successors for over two centuries.
The Scottish traveller James Bruce, in the late 18th century, wrote that Arkiko had "about 400 houses", Bruce also noted that the Ottoman fort had decayed to no more than "a small clay hut", and had only one swivel-gun which was not mounted, but lay on the ground, and was "fired always with great trepidation and some danger".
Arkiko had owed its importance due to its intermediary position between the island port of Massawa and the mainland, but this was destroyed when the Egyptians, in the 1870s, constructed a causeway linking island and mainland, which caused Arkiko to rapidly declined. The place was described by the Guida dell'Africa Orientale Italiana in 1938 as no more than a "large village", albeit one with a 370-metre-long landing- stage and some warehouses.
This town was the site of a terrible massacre by the Dergue military junta of Ethiopia in 1975, during the Eritrean War of Independence. Also located in this town is Eritrea's largest power generation facility. This facility was partially destroyed during the Eritrean-Ethiopian War, but has now been fully repaired.

## Climate and habitat

The region is reputedly one of the hottest inhabited places on earth, with temperatures soaring well above 40°C (104°F) for much of the year, combined with an average annual rainfall of less than two centimetres (an inch).
Formerly covering significant portions of the Eritrean coast, original mangrove forest was destroyed by overgrazing by camels or cutting for firewood or the building of homes and boats.

## Economy

Today, Arkiko is the site of the artificial planting on mangrove trees with the help of low-cost slow-release fertilizer packs of nitrogen, phosphorus and iron, allowing the plant growth in areas previously uninhabited by trees. It is supported by the Eritrean Ministry of Fisheries, in the hope to restore mangrove coastline boosting the numbers of livestock, fish and seafood.