Tigray Province
Tigray (, ) is a historical region and province of Ethiopia. It encompasses most of the territories of Tigrinya-speakers (and a few minority groups closely linked with them) in Ethiopia; Tigray is separated from the northern Tigrinya territories by the River Mereb, now serving as the state border to Eritrea.
Tigrayans
By the beginning of the 19th century Henry Salt (Egyptologist), who travelled in the interior of Abyssinia, divided the "Abyssinia" region, like James Bruce into three distinct and independent states. These three great divisions(based arbitrarily on Language) are Tigré, Amhara, and the province of Shoa. Henry considers Tigré as the more powerful state of the three; a circumstance arising from the natural strength of the country, the warlike disposition of its inhabitants, and its vicinity to the sea coast; an advantage that has secured to it the monopoly of all the musquets imported into the country. He divided the Tigré kingdom into several provinces as the centre where it was considered the seat of the state being referred as Tigré proper. Provinces of this kingdom includes Enderta, Agame, Wojjerat, Temben, Shiré and Baharanegash. Hamasien, a district of Baharanegash, is the furthest north and narrowest part of Tigré, and Henry places Bejas or Bojas as the people who live north of Tigré state. By the time Henry made his travel to Abyssinia the seat of the empire, Gondar, was ruled by Gugsa of Yejju, a Oromo commander who ruled from 1798 up to 1825 as "enderase" to the powerless emperors with Solomonic dynasty.