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Manufahi Municipality facts for kids

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Manufahi
Landscape between Dili and Same
Landscape between Dili and Same
Official map
Official map
Map of East Timor highlighting the Municipality
   Manufahi in     East Timor
OpenStreetMap
Country  East Timor
Capital Same
Administrative posts
  • Alas
  • Fatuberlio
  • Same
  • Turiscai
Area
 • Total 1,332.5 km2 (514.5 sq mi)
Area rank 6th
Population
 (2015 census)
 • Total 53,691
 • Rank 11th
 • Density 40.2934/km2 (104.360/sq mi)
 • Density rank 11th
Households (2015 census)
 • Total 9,023
 • Rank 11th
Time zone UTC+09:00 (TLT)
ISO 3166 code TL-MF
HDI (2017) 0.618
medium · 3rd

Manufahi is one of the municipalities of East Timor. It is known in Portuguese as Município Manufahi and in Tetum as Munisípiu Manufahi. As of 2015, about 53,691 people live here. The municipality covers an area of 1,323 square kilometers. The main town and capital of Manufahi is Same.

What's in a Name? The Story of Manufahi

The name Manufahi comes from the Tetum words Maun Fahe, which means 'divided brothers'. This name comes from an old legend. The legend tells about a big fight between two related tribes or a group of siblings. Eventually, they decided to live peacefully under one ruler.

During the time when Portuguese ruled East Timor, this area was called Same, after its main town. The name Manufahi was chosen later, based on the 'divided brothers' legend. However, it was misspelled. The misspelled name in Tetum actually means 'pig chicken'.

There are efforts to fix the name. Interestingly, another legend from the suco (a type of village) of Daisula [de] tells a fun story. It says a rooster once flew from a mountain and landed on a pig's back. The rooster and pig then traveled to many places together before returning home.

Where is Manufahi? Geography and Borders

Manufahi is located in the central highlands of East Timor. It stretches all the way down to the south coast, touching the Timor Sea.

It shares borders with other important areas. To the east, it borders Manatuto. To the west, you'll find Ainaro. And to the north, it borders Aileu.

A Look Back: Manufahi's History

When East Timor was a Portuguese colony, the area now known as Manufahi was called Same. This was because Same was its main city.

Manufahi was a very important place during the Great Rebellion of 1910–12. This was a major uprising against Portuguese rule.

Later, during the time when Indonesia occupied East Timor, some changes were made to the administrative areas. The area known as Hato-Udo was moved from Manufahi to Ainaro. At the same time, the area of Turiscai, which used to be part of Ainaro, was moved to Manufahi.

How Manufahi is Organized: Administrative Posts

Manufahi is divided into smaller parts called administrative posts. These used to be called sub-districts. They help manage the different areas within the municipality.

The administrative posts of Manufahi are:

  • Alas
  • Fatuberlio
  • Same
  • Turiscai

People and Languages: Demographics

In Manufahi, people speak the national official languages of Tetum and Portuguese. Besides these, many people also speak Mambai. Mambai is a Malayo-Polynesian language that is also spoken in other parts of East Timor.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Distrito de Manufahi para niños

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