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Ambohimanga
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Ambohimanga

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Ambohimanga is a hill and traditional fortified royal settlement (rova) in Madagascar, located approximately northeast of the capital city of Antananarivo. It is situated in the commune of Ambohimanga Rova.

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Place details

Locality
Ambohimanga Rova
Region
Analamanga
Country
Madagasikara / Madagascar
Population
0

via OpenStreetMap · GeoNames

Air quality

25US AQIGood
PM2.5
3.3 µg/m³
PM10
4.0 µg/m³
As of 2026-08-11 06:00 · Open-Meteo

Key facts

UNESCO World Heritage Site.image
View of Ambohimanga sacred hill Madagascar.JPG
UNESCO World Heritage Site.image_upright
1.2
UNESCO World Heritage Site.caption
View of Ambohimanga
UNESCO World Heritage Site.official_name
Royal Hill of Ambohimanga
UNESCO World Heritage Site.location
Madagascar
UNESCO World Heritage Site.criteria
(iii), (iv), (vi)
UNESCO World Heritage Site.ID
950
UNESCO World Heritage Site.year
2001
UNESCO World Heritage Site.locmapin
Madagascar

via Wikipedia infobox

~53 min read

Encyclopedic overview

20 sections
Contents
  • Etymology
  • History
  • Layout
  • Symbolism
  • Fortifications
  • Natural features
  • Villages
  • Compounds
  • Bevato compound
  • Mahandrihono compound
  • Mahandrihono palace
  • Royal pavilions
  • Royal tombs
  • Other features
  • Nanjakana compound
  • Conservation and management
  • See also
  • Notes
  • References
  • External links

Ambohimanga is a hill and traditional fortified royal settlement (rova) in Madagascar, located approximately northeast of the capital city of Antananarivo. It is situated in the commune of Ambohimanga Rova.

The hill and the rova that stands on top are considered the most significant symbol of the cultural identity of the Merina people and the most important and best-preserved monument of the precolonial Merina Kingdom. The walled historic village includes residences and burial sites of several key monarchs. The site, one of the twelve sacred hills of Imerina, is associated with strong feelings of national identity and has maintained its spiritual and sacred character both in ritual practice and the popular imagination for at least four hundred years. It remains a place of worship to which pilgrims come from Madagascar and elsewhere.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Ambohimanga” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (9)

On the map

2 mapped locations