1. 13 Months of Sunshine

2. Geography
• Location: Eastern Africa (Horn of Africa)
• Neighboring Countries: Kenya, Somalia, Sudan,
South Sudan, Djibouti and Eritrea
• Geographic coordinates: 8 00 N, 38 00 E
• Area: total: 1,127,127 sq km (comparative: slightly
less than twice the size of Texas)
• Climate: tropical monsoon with wide topographic-
induced variation
• Terrain: high plateau with central mountain range
divided by Great Rift Valley
• Natural resources: gold, platinum, copper, potash,
natural gas, hydropower

3. Demographic
• Population: 84.7 Million (2011 Census) – The second most populous nation in Africa
• Ethnic Groups: Highly diverse, containing over 80 different ethnic groups
• Languages: 90 different languages or dialectic are spoken throughout Ethiopia.
• The official language of the country is Amharic
• Religion:
• Christian: 63%
• Ethiopian Orthodox: 43.5%, Protestant: 18.6% and Catholic: 0.7 % of the
population
• Muslim: 33%
• Traditional: 3%
• Others: 1%
• Jewish: A small Ethiopian Jewish community also reside in the northern parts of
the country although almost all of them have emigrated to Israel

4. Antiquities
• The source of humanity: Ethiopia has
archaeological and anthropological significance.
Hominid fossils found in Ethiopia indicate that the
region may be the origin of humanity’s presence
on Earth, and the Nile River valley and delta are
the home of numerous archaeological sites
• The most significant discover was made in
1974 of fossil fragments called Lucy, also
known as "dinknesh," which means the
wondrous one, believed to have lived 3.2
millions years ago.
• Lucy recently returned back to Ethiopia (May
2013) after a six year tour of the United
States
• Several additional discovers of fossil
fragments has been discovered since then,
with some dating older than Lucy
We are all Ethiopians

5. • Recorded History: Unique among African countries, Ethiopia has a written history of
over 3,000 years dating back to Queen of Sheba and King Solomon
Ancient History
Christianity: Significant contribution to early Christianity as one of
the first nations to officially adopt the religion during the 4th Century.
The Bible was translated into Geez long before it was translated into
the English (around the 3rd century). Ethiopia is mentioned in the
Bible over 40 times
• Psalms 68:31 – “Princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall soon stretch out
her hands unto God.”
• Acts 8:27 – “And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch
of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge
of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship”
Islam: Significant contribution to early Islam as the first nation to
provide refuge for prosecuted Muslims fleeing Arabia. Prophet
Mohammed sent his followers to Ethiopia when he was alive, 1400
years ago. Ethiopia is mentioned in the Quran several times:
• When Prophet Mohammed saw the persecution to which his followers were
subjected to in Mecca, he told them to find safe haven in northern Ethiopia,
Abyssinia, where they would "find a king there who does not wrong anyone."
It was the first hijra (migration) in Islam history

6. The Arc of the Covenant
The Arc of the Covenant: The Ethiopian Orthodox Church claims to posses the Tablets of
Stone on which the Ten Commandments were inscribed. (Locally known as Tabot).
• The object is currently kept under guard in a treasury near the Church of Our Lady
Mary of Zion in Axum, Ethiopia
• The Arc arrived in Ethiopia nearly 3,000 years ago, and has been guarded by a
succession of virgin monks who, once anointed, are forbidden to set foot outside the
chapel grounds until they die.
• Replicas of the Arc are kept in every Ethiopian church, each with its own dedication
to a particular saint. This tradition is also practiced at the Ethiopian Orthodox
churches in the Denver metro area
Tabot Ceremony The Arc of the Covenant Sheba’s Palace, Axum

7. The Axumite Empire
The Axumite Empire: Dating back to the 2nd century BC, it was one of the world super
powers during its time, along with the Egyptian, Greek, Byzantine and Persian empires
• At the height of its power (4th to 7th centuries AD), the Axumite Empire controlled
most of North East Africa and the southern parts of the Arabian Peninsula.
• The achievements of this grand culture are recorded today in the ruins of its cities,
reservoirs, temples and, most remarkably, its towering black granite obelisks

8. Debre Damot Monastery
Debre Damot Monastery:
• Build during the 6th century AD on top of flat-topped
mountain in Adigrat of the Tigray region in Ethiopia.
• The monastery, accessible only by rope, is known for its
collection of ancient manuscripts and for having the
earliest existing church building in Ethiopia still in its
original style

9. The Zagwe Dynasty and King Lalibela
The Zagwe Dynasty (900 – 1200 AD): After the decline of the Axumite empire, lamenting
their lost grandeur, Ethiopia's rulers retreated with their Christian subjects to the lofty
escarpment of the central uplands creating a striving medieval dynasty with magnificent
architecture and monasteries that still stand.
Lalibela: King Lalibela who has spent time in Jerusalem as a youth is said to have
envisioned to created a new Jerusalem in Ethiopia after the capture of old Jerusalem by
Muslims in 1187. He built an entire city, mostly under ground, curved out of single rocks
connected by tunnels and reservoirs.
Magnificent Architectures: There are
twelve churches and chapels, including
various shrines. Four churches are
monolithic in the strict sense; the
remainder are excavated churches in
different degrees of separation from the
rock. The walls of the trenches and
courtyards contain cavities and chambers
sometimes filled with the mummies of
pious monks and pilgrims

10. Lalibela
“The 8th Wonder of the World”

11. The Kingdom of Fasiledes
Gonder – the 1600’s
• King Fasiledes was credited for restoring the official
status of the traditional Ethiopian Orthodox Church and
restoring ancient relationships with Egypt, Europe and
India.
• Established Gonder as the capital of Ethiopia
• Built over 44 well known churches and cathedrals
including St. Mary of Zion at Axum
• Credits for hundreds of stone castles, architectures,
and bridges across Ethiopia

12. 3,000 years of Independence
The Battle of Adwa: The first defeat of
European forces in Africa during their attempt to
colonize the continent. The Battle of Adwa was
fought on 1 March 1896 between the Ethiopian
Empire and the Kingdom of Italy near the town of
Adwa, Ethiopia, in Tigray. It was the climactic
battle of the First Italo-Ethiopian War, securing
Ethiopian sovereignty.
World War II: The second attempt by Italy to
colonize Ethiopia. Italy’s briefly occupied
Ethiopia, by mass murdering millions of
Ethiopians using Chemical weapons; initiating
one of the first battle grounds of World War II.
Ethiopian King Haile Selassie played a major role
in creating a coalition with the British army to
defeat the Italian forces

13. Haile Selassie I
Ras Teferri – The last Emperor
Haile Selsassie I: (Ras Teferri) a defining figure in Ethiopian, African and Caribbean history
• Heir to a dynasty that traced its origins by tradition from King Solomon and Empress of the
Axumite Kingdom (Queen of Sheba) 1916 – 1974
• Ruled Ethiopia from 1916 to 1974; gained international fame for his Advocacy for African
independence from colonization and race equality for the African diaspora
• Drive for pan-Africanism and African union; co-founded the African Union – AU
• Founding member of the League of Nation (United Nations - UN)
• Spoke out at the League of Nation against the use of chemical weapons and proved
seminal in promoting international multilateralism and collective security
• 200,000 – 800,000 Caribbeans considered him a messiah creating the Ras Tefferiansim
movement

14. Music
Saint Yared
Saint Yared: (April 25, 505 – May 20, 571) was a
legendary Ethiopian musician credited with
inventing the sacred music tradition of the
Ethiopian Orthodox Church and Ethiopia's system
of musical notation.
• Invented the Zema or the chant tradition of
Ethiopia, particularly the chants of the
Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, which
are still performed today.
• Regarded as a saint of the Ethiopian Orthodox
Church with a feast day of May 19.
Musical Instruments: Unique musical
instruments in various formats have been used
for thousands of years
Dances: Various forms of dances that are
authentic to Ethiopia are practices across the
nation

15. Cuisine and Coffee
Ethiopian Food: characteristically consists of
vegetable and often very spicy meat dishes,
usually in the form of Wat (also w'et or wot), a
thick stew, served atop Injera, a large sourdough
flatbread. Ethiopians eat exclusively with their
right hands, using pieces of injera to pick up bites
of entrées and side dishes. Utensils are rarely
used with Ethiopian cuisine
Coffee Ceremony: Ethiopia known to the birth
place of coffee. The coffee ceremony is one of
the most recognizable parts of Ethiopian culture.
Coffee is offered when visiting friends, during
festivities, or as a daily staple of life. If coffee is
politely declined then most likely tea (shai) will
be served

16. Unique Writing System and Numbers
Ge’ez Alphabets and Numbers
Ge'ez Alphabets: an ancient script used as a
syllable alphabet for several languages of
Ethiopia and Eritrea. In Amharic and Tigrinya
the script is often called fidäl (ፊፊፊ), which
means "script" or "alphabet".
• Earliest inscriptions dates back to 9th
century BC
• Written from left to right
• Computer software to write Ge’ez scripts
was invented by Ethiopian Scientist Dr.
Aberra Molla from Colorado
Numbers: Ge'ez uses a system of ones and
tens comparable to the Hebrew, Arabic abjad
and Greek numerals, but unlike these systems,
rather than giving numeric values to letters, it
has digits derived from the Coptic letter-
numbers. The Ethiopian numbers were
developed independently prior to 4th century
AD (Ayele Bekerie of Cornell University)

17. Time Counting
The Ethiopian Colander – 13 Months a Year
The Ethiopian calendar: also called the Ge'ez calendar, is an ancient colander which is still
used as the principal calendar used in Ethiopia and also serves as the liturgical calendar for
Christians in Eritrea.
• It is based on the older Alexandrian/Coptic calendar, derives from the Egyptian calendar
• The Calendar has twelve months of exactly 30 days each plus a thirteenth month of five or
six days, depending on the year (add a day for leap year)
• The current year according to the Ethiopian calendar is 2005, began on Sept 11, 2012
• In a recent debate, the calendar was acknowledged as historically accurate by His Holiness
Pope Benedict XVI in response to an open letter written by Dr. Aberra Molla

18. Philosophers and Thinkers
Ethiopian Philosophy: The character of Ethiopian philosophy is determined by the particular
conditions of evolution of the Ethiopian culture. Thus, Ethiopian philosophy arises from the
confluence of Greek and Patristic philosophy with African traditional modes of thought.
Because of the early isolation from its sources of spirituality – Byzantium and Alexandria –
Ethiopian philosophy has some of its philosophical heritage through Arabic versions.
Zera Yacob: "Seed of Jacob” (1399–1468) was King of Ethiopia from 1434 –
1469 (throne name Constantine I), and a member of the Solomonic Dynasty from
the area known as Tilq in what is now the region of Oromia
Walda Heywat: A disciple of Zera Yacob wrote a philosophical treatise,
systematizing his master’s thought. He accorded more attention to the practical
and educational problems, and he tried to connect Zera Yacob’s philosophy with
the kind of wisdom expressed in the earlier sapiential literature. Walda Heywat
recurs intensively to illustrations and parabola, and many times the source of his
examples is the Book of the Wise Philosophers

19. Africa and Ethiopia
Colonization and Liberation
• The colors of Pan-Africanism: Green Yellow Red - many African nations adopted the
Ethiopian Flag colors at time of their independence
• As one of the only two nations in Africa that has never been colonized (Ethiopia and Liberia),
Ethiopia played a major role in the liberation of Africa from colonization and the movement
for pan-African unity
• Co-founder of the Organization of African Union (Current head quarter located in Addis
Ababa, Ethiopia) and an advocate for liberation the League of Nation (UN)
• Ethiopia provided material, moral and military support through out the years of colonization
to help other African nations.
• E.g. Ethiopia issues Nelson Mandela a passport in 1962 enabling him to travel by
defying the Apartheid rulers who labeled him a terrorist
“Ethiopia has always held a special place
in my own imagination and the prospect
of visiting Ethiopia attracted me more
strongly than a trip to France, England
and America combined. I felt I would be
visiting my own genesis, unearthing the
roots of what made me an African.”
Nelson Mandela in his AutobiographyFlag of Ghana Flag of Mali

20. United States and Ethiopia
Friendship
Korean War: In June 1950, when the Korean War began, the U.N. built a coalition to
fight against communist North Korean and Chinese forces. Haile Selassie, then emperor
of Ethiopia, formed the Kagnew Battalions from his personal bodyguards. During the war,
three battalions served in Korea. Another arrived following the cessation of hostilities.
During the fighting, 122 Ethiopian troops were killed, 526 were wounded. The Ethiopian
troops never lost a single battle during this war.
"We went with Americans to the front line and fought together. From that, we helped a
great nation, Korea, to survive.“ Yilma Getachew – Korean War Veteran and Hero

21. Ethiopian Cultural Event – Denver, CO
July 21st, 2013
Ethiopian Evening at the Spring Institute
for Intercultural Learning
http://spring-institute.org/
Presented by: Nebiyu Asfaw
nebiyuasfaw@yahoo.com