Assab

Assab عصب ዓሰብ
City
Church of St. Michael, Assab
Assab Location within Eritrea Show map of Eritrea Assab Location within the Horn of Africa Show map of Horn of Africa Assab Location within Africa Show map of Africa
Coordinates: 13°00′28″N 42°44′28″E / 13.00778°N 42.74111°E / 13.00778; 42.74111
Country	Eritrea
Region	Southern Red Sea
District	Southern Denkalya
Elevation	16 m (52 ft)
Population  (2005)
• Total	20,222
Climate	BWh

Assab or Aseb (Tigrinya: ዓሰብ, Arabic: عصب) is a port city in the Southern Red Sea Region of Eritrea. It is situated on the west coast of the Red Sea. Languages spoken in Assab are predominantly Afar,Amarigna Tigrinya, and Arabic.^[1] After the Italian government took control of the port in 1882, it laid the foundations for the formation of the colony of Italian Eritrea, which became the independent country of Eritrea following its independence from Ethiopia in the 1990s.^[2]