The twelve sacred hills of Imerina are hills of historical significance to the Merina people of Madagascar. Located throughout Imerina, the central area of the highlands of Madagascar, the sites were often ancient capitals, the birthplaces of key public figures, or the tomb sites of esteemed political or spiritual leaders. The first set of sacred sites was designated by early 17th-century king Andrianjaka. The notion was re-sanctified under late 18th-century king Andrianampoinimerina, who replaced several of the earlier sites with new ones. More than 12 sites were thus designated as sacred over time, although the notion of twelve sacred hills was perpetuated because of the significance of the number 12 in Malagasy cosmology. Today, little concrete evidence of the former importance of many of these sites remains, but the significant archeological and cultural heritage of several of the sites has been preserved. The historic significance of the sites is best represented by the Rova of Antananarivo at Analamanga, the ancient fortified city at Alasora, the houses and tombs of the andriana (noble class) at Antsahadinta and the ancient fortifications and palaces at Ambohimanga, protected as a UNESCOWorld Heritage Site since 2001.
According to popular legend, King Andrianjaka (1610–1630) declared twelve hills in Imerina (the central region of the Highlands of Madagascar) to be sacred due to their historical, political or spiritual significance to the Merina people. King Andrianampoinimerina (1787–1810) designated twelve hills in his turn, including several of those first identified by Andrianjaka. Most of these hills served as locations of the capitals of rival kingdoms conquered by Andrianampoinimerina and united under his rule, and many are also the seat of power of historic kings and queens of the Merina dynasty.
Key sites
Twelve is a sacred number in Merina cosmology and it is commonly said that Andrianampoinimerina had twelve wives and installed one on each of the twelve sacred hills throughout his kingdom.[1] In reality, he had more than twelve wives, and there are more than twelve hills surrounding Antananarivo that claim sacred status.[2] As such, precisely which hills should constitute the list of twelve sacred sites named by Andrianampoinimerina remains a point of some contention,[3] but diverse sources have commonly indicated the following sites:
Hill of Alasora
Alasora, 2013
Alasora[1][2][4][5][6] 1348 m, latitude 18°57'46.08"S, longitude 47° 34'09.74"E.(15km northeast of Antananarivo) Alasora is one of the oldest villages in Imerina, believed to have been founded by Prince Ramasimparihy in 1490. Ruling from Imerimanjaka, vazimba Queen Rangita (1500–1520) and her brother Andrianamponga gave the site its current name. Under Rangita's daughter, Queen Rafohy (1520–1540), the capital of the region was moved from Imerimanjaka to Alasora. Some of the monumental features of the site were added upon the orders of her son, King Andriamanelo (1540–1575), including the hadivory and hadifetsy (defensive trenches around the town), as well as the vavahady, a town gate protected by a large rolled stone disc acting as a barrier and shaded by aviavy (fig trees), symbolic of royalty. This town model was subsequently adopted throughout Imerina. Andriamanelo's tomb is located here.[7]
Hill of Ambohidrabiby
Tomb of Ralambo in Ambohitrabiby
Ambohidrabiby (or Ambohitrabiby)[1][2][4][5][6] (20km north of Antananarivo): Site of the capital of King Ralambo (1575–1610), who is buried here, along with his Vazimba grandfather (or father-in-law) Rabiby, a renowned astrologer for whom the hill is named.
Hill of Ambohidratrimo
Ambohidratrimo, 1901
Ambohidratrimo[1][4][5][6] 1352 m, latitude 18°49'25.52"S, longitude 47°26'48.70"E. (17km the north of Antananarivo). Named for King Ratrimo who, in the mid-12th century, was according to oral history the first king to have established rule over the territory. After several unsuccessful attempts to capture the hill by force, Andrianampoinimerina finally managed to successfully incorporate the territory into his kingdom by marriage with his first wife, Rambolamasoandro, princess of Ambohidratrimo and eventual mother of his son and successor Radama I.[8]
Analamanga[1][2][4][5][6] ("Blue forest"), Latitude 18°55'24.86"S, longitude 47°31'56.06"E. (Antananarivo center): Site of the Rova of Antananarivo, Analamanga is the highest hill within the capital city of Antananarivo, upon which the original town was built by King Andrianjaka (1610–1630). The modern region of Analamanga also takes its name from the hill.
Hill of Antsahadinta
Antsahadinta[2][3][4][6] ("Valley of the leeches"), 1390 m, latitude 19°00'72.18"S, longitude 47°27'45.00"E. Founded and built by king Andriamangarira (1725-1775), grandson of Andriamasinavalona, king of Imerina (1675-1710). Seat of power in western Imerina and the site of numerous well-preserved wooden aristocratic houses, one of the first 12 public schools built by James Cameron and other LMS missionaries under Radama I, and several important royal tombs dating back over 700 years. Among all the royal hills of Imerina, the cultural and archeological heritage contained in this site is second only to Ambohimanga.[10]
Hill of Ikaloy
Ikaloy[1][2][4][5][6] 1435 m, latitude 18°35'43.72"S, longitude 47°38'99.76"E. Birthplace of King Andrianampoinimerina. Among the remains of the historic town are a traditional vavahady stone alongside the original stone town gate, numerous ancient unmarked stone tombs and a well-preserved original wooden aristocratic house.[11]
Hill of Ilafy
Ilafy[1][2][3][4][5][6] Latitude 18°51'16.63"S, longitude 47°33'54.43"E. (10km from Antananarivo): The site of the capital of the kingdom of Andrianjafy (1770–1787), as well as a modest wooden vacation palace constructed by Radama II (1861–1863). Ilafy is also the site of the first arms manufacture in Madagascar, established by Jean Laborde in 1833.[12] The original tomb of King Radama II is located here, and his body was interred in this tomb in 1863 but was later transferred to the tomb of Radama I on the compound of the Rova of Antananarivo in 1897.
There are numerous other sites less commonly included among the twelve sacred hills. Chief among these are:
Ambohijoky[2][6] (12km south of Antananarivo): Kingdom of origin of Queen Rabodo, 15th wife of Andrianampoinimerina. At 1519 meters, it is the highest of the twelve sacred hills of Imerina.[14]
↑ Ambohijoky. Madatana.com Accessed November 5, 2010.(in French)
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The Merina Kingdom, or Kingdom of Madagascar, officially the Kingdom of Imerina, was a pre-colonial state off the coast of Southeast Africa that, by the 18th century, dominated most of what is now Madagascar. It spread outward from Imerina, the Central Highlands region primarily inhabited by the Merina ethnic group with a spiritual capital at Ambohimanga and a political capital 24 km (15 mi) west at Antananarivo, currently the seat of government for the modern state of Madagascar. The Merina kings and queens who ruled over greater Madagascar in the 19th century were the descendants of a long line of hereditary Merina royalty originating with Andriamanelo, who is traditionally credited with founding Imerina in 1540.
Andriamanelo was king of Alasora in the central highlands region of Madagascar. He is generally considered by historians to be the founder of the Kingdom of Imerina and originator of the Merina royal line that, by the 19th century, had extended its rule over virtually all of Madagascar. The son of a Vazimba mother and a man of the newly arrived Hova people originating in southeast Madagascar, Andriamanelo ultimately led a series of military campaigns against the Vazimba, beginning a several-decade process to drive them from the Highlands. The conflict that defined his reign also produced many lasting innovations, including the development of fortified villages in the highlands and the use of iron weapons. Oral tradition furthermore credits Andriamanelo with establishing a ruling class of nobles (andriana) and defining the rules of succession. Numerous cultural traditions, including the ritual of circumcision, the wedding custom of vodiondry and the art of Malagasy astrology (sikidy) are likewise associated with this king.
Ralambo was the ruler of the Kingdom of Imerina in the central Highlands region of Madagascar from 1575 to 1612. Ruling from Ambohidrabiby, Ralambo expanded the realm of his father, Andriamanelo, and was the first to assign the name of Imerina to the region. Oral history has preserved numerous legends about this king, including several dramatic military victories, contributing to his heroic and near-mythical status among the kings of ancient Imerina. The circumstances surrounding his birth, which occurred on the highly auspicious date of the first of the year, are said to be supernatural in nature and further add to the mystique of this sovereign.
Andrianjaka reigned over the Kingdom of Imerina in the central highlands region of Madagascar from around 1612 to 1630. Despite being the younger of King Ralambo's two sons, Andrianjaka succeeded to the throne on the basis of his strength of character and skill as a military tactician. The most celebrated accomplishment of his reign was the capture of the hill of Analamanga from a Vazimba king. There he established the fortified compound (rova) that would form the heart of his new capital city of Antananarivo. Upon his orders, the first structures within this fortified compound were constructed: several traditional royal houses were built, and plans for a series of royal tombs were designed. These buildings took on an enduring political and spiritual significance, ensuring their preservation until being destroyed by fire in 1995. Andrianjaka obtained a sizable cache of firearms and gunpowder, materials that helped to establish and preserve his dominance and expand his rule over greater Imerina.
The architecture of Madagascar is unique in Africa, bearing strong resemblance to the construction norms and methods of Southern Borneo from which the earliest inhabitants of Madagascar are believed to have immigrated. Throughout Madagascar, the Kalimantan region of Borneo and Oceania, most traditional houses follow a rectangular rather than round form, and feature a steeply sloped, peaked roof supported by a central pillar.
Queen Rafohy was a Vazimba queen who ruled at Alasora in the central Highlands of Madagascar from 1530 until her death in 1540. Her name means "The Short One." She succeeded upon the death of Vazimba Queen Rangita, who by different accounts was either her mother or her adoptive sister. This confusion in the oral tradition extends to the two women's very identities - according to different accounts, Rafohy may have been the mother of Rangita, and Rangita may have been the mother of the famed king Andriamanelo.
A rova is a fortified royal complex built in the central highlands of Madagascar by Merina of the Andriana (noble) class. The first rova was established at Alasora by king Andriamanelo around 1540 to protect his residence throughout a war with the neighboring Vazimba. Rovas are organized according to traditional symbolic notions of space and enclose the royal residences, the tomb of the founder, and a town square marked with a stone. They are protected with walls, trenches and stone gateways and are planted with fig trees symbolic of royalty.
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