Sharkha (also transliterated as Sharka, Sharha, Xarha, Xerha, Xarkhah) was a province of the Ethiopian Empire in the southern part of its realm. Its inhabitants were predominantly Muslim, and similar in customs, economic conditions, and ethnic affiliations to its neighboring provinces of Hadiya and Arababni.[1]
According to the research of Ulrich Braukämper, the written sources allow one to determine only "that it was bordered by Hadiya, Dawaro, and Bale." Interviews with local Oromo and Hadiya, however, revealed they identified Sharka with "Širk in eastern Arsiland, to which the traditions of many Alaba and East Gurage refer to as their former dwelling areas."[2]