The
Zagwe dynasty (ዛጉዬ) was a historical kingdom in present-day
Ethiopia. It ruled large parts of the territory from approximately 900 to 1270, when the last Zagwe
King Za-Ilmaknun was killed in battle by the forces of
Yekuno Amlak. The name of the
dynasty is thought to come from the
Ge'ez phrase
Ze-Agaw, meaning "Dynasty of the Agaw" in reference to the
Agaw people that constituted its ruling class. Zagwe's best-known King was
Gebre Mesqel Lalibela, who is credited with having constructed the rock-hewn churches of
Lalibela.