Metemma (also known as
Metemma Yohannes) is a town in northwestern
Ethiopia, on the border with
Sudan. Located in the
Semien Gondar Zone of the
Amhara Region, Metemma has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation of 685 meters above sea level. Across the border is the corresponding Sudanese village of
Gallabat. According to the British diplomat
Hormuzd Rassam, who travelled through Metemma in November 1865 on his diplomatic mission to Emperor
Tewodros II, "Metemma" comes from the
Arabic for "the place of cutting, or termination -- indicating the end of the
Muslim provinces", although at the time the settlement was better known as Suk ul-Gallabat ("The market of Gallabat").