Abstract

Historically, Harar as a trade center linked the high land of Ethiopia with the rest of the world. While merchants were taking out from and bringing in products and services to Harar they were taxed by various institutions. The Amirs of Harar, the Oromo and the Somali chiefs were tax collectors. The Egyptians, occupying Harar for ten years, introduced new taxes. Menelik pledged the Harar customs revenue authority as a guarantee of interest and repayment for the money he borrowed from Italian government. The Hararis, the Oromo People and other merchants who came to Harar were tax payers. The taxes were multifaceted. To find out this, literatures and accounts written by different historians and travelers are reviewed. Various tax related documents are examined. Taxes from Islamic view point and manifestation of civilization are also discussed.

Key words: Amirs, Egyptian rulers, Harari and Oromo people, Menelik, Oromo and Somali chiefs, taxes, Zakah