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Arkiko (, Afar language and Saho language: Hirg-Higo, alternately Archigo, Arqiqo, Ercoco, Hirgigo, Hargigo or Harkiko) historically known as Dokono is a town in the Northern Red Sea region of Eritrea. Situated on the Red Sea, it lies on the mainland across from the city of Massawa.
Arkiko, as a mainland port with easy access from the interior, was under Christian Habesha peoples control for many centuries. Francisco Álvares, who visited the town in 1520, recorded that the port's two thousand inhabitants, upon learning that their visitors were Christians like them, rushed down to the water's edge and with "great delight", all jumped into the sea attempting to drag the vessel ashore. As for Massawa, Álvares recalled that the port, which enjoyed local autonomy, was situated on an offshore island and unlike Arkiko was entirely inhabited by Muslims.Richard Pankhurst, The Ethiopian Borderlands (Asmara: Red Sea Press, 1997), p. 105
Later, in 1557, both ports fell under the control of the Ottoman Empire, which established a fort at Arkiko and stationed a garrison there. In the late 1579, Emperor Sarsa Dengel, unwilling to accept the Turkish presence, led an Ethiopian force to the coast, aiming to secure access to the sea. According to Ottoman records, the force—composed of Christians and local Muslims referred to as "Arabs"—captured Arkiko, destroyed its fort, and looted the settlement. They then advanced to Massawa, where they reportedly killed forty of the hundred-strong Ottoman garrison.
In 1589, Emperor Sarsa Dengel launched another bold assault on Arkiko to counter Turkish expansion but failed to capture the fort. Despite this, the Jesuits in the region remained hopeful for Portuguese intervention to expel the Turks from the coast, with Francesco Lopes writing in 1591, "We await a fleet which will drive out the Turks and restore Massawa to the Emperor." Meanwhile, the Ottomans, unable to advance further into northern Ethiopia, began losing interest in the region. While maintaining a small garrison at Massawa, they handed control of Arkiko to a local Balaw chieftain from Samhar, granting him the title of naib, or "deputy"—a position that would persist among his successors for over two centuries. The Ottoman Empire recognised their power their influence and control over the Samhar region, the Balaw played a major role in local history. During the Egyptian occupation, a member of the Na'ib family was made the Sirdar of the troops in Massawa. The Balaw of Samhar also helped spread Islam in Eritrea. They were granted land in the highlands by the Ras of Tigray Province, which became centres for Islamic teaching. Their agents traveled widely, collecting tribute and trade dues.
The Scottish traveller James Bruce, in the late 18th century, wrote that Arkiko had "about 400 houses", Bruce also noted that the Ottoman fort had decayed to no more than "a small clay hut", and had only one swivel-gun which was not mounted, but lay on the ground, and was "fired always with great trepidation and some danger".
Arkiko had owed its importance due to its intermediary position between the island port of Massawa and the mainland, but this was destroyed when the Egyptians, in the 1870s, constructed a causeway linking island and mainland, which caused Arkiko to rapidly decline. The place was described by the Guida dell'Africa Orientale Italiana in 1938 as no more than a "large village", albeit one with a 370-metre-long landing- stage and some warehouses.
This town was the site of a terrible massacre by the military junta of Ethiopia in 1975, during the Eritrean War of Independence. Also located in this town is Eritrea's largest power generation facility. This facility was partially destroyed during the Eritrean-Ethiopian War, but has now been fully repaired.
Formerly covering significant portions of the Eritrean coast, original mangrove forest was destroyed by overgrazing by camels or cutting for firewood or the building of homes and boats.
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