Diversity and Multiculturalism (CESt-3035)

CHAPTER FIVE
DIVERSITY AND MULTICULTURALISM IN ETHIOPIA
Introduction
The name "Ethiopia" derives from the Greek ethio, meaning "burned" and pia, meaning "face":
the land of burned-faced peoples. Aeschylus described Ethiopia as a "land far off, a nation of
black men." Ethiopia is the tenth largest country in Africa, covering 439,580 square miles
(1,138,512 square kilometers) and is the major constituent of the landmass known as the Horn of
Africa. It is bordered on the north and northeast by Eritrea, on the east by Djibouti and Somalia,
on the south by Kenya, and on the west by Sudan and southwest by South-Sudan.
The central plateau, known as the highlands, is surrounded on three sides by desert with a
significantly lower elevation. The plateau is between six thousand and ten thousand feet above
sea level, with the highest peak being Ras Dashen, the fourth-tallest mountain in Africa.
The Great Rift Valley (known for discoveries of early hominids such as Lucy, whose bones
reside in the Ethiopian National Museum) bisects the central plateau. The valley extends
southwest through the country and includes the Danakil Depression, a desert containing the
lowest dry point on the earth. In the highlands is Lake Tana, the source of the Blue Nile, which
supplies the great majority of water to the Nile River Valley in Egypt.
The urban population is estimated to be 11 percent of the total population. The rural lowland
population is composed of many nomadic and semi-nomadic peoples. The nomadic peoples
seasonally graze livestock, while the semi-nomadic peoples are subsistence farmers. The rural
highlands economy is based on agriculture and livestock rising.
In the recent year, the population was approximately 90 million, with over eighty different ethnic
groups. The Oromo, Amhara, and Tigreans account for more than 75 percent of the population,
or 35 percent, 30 percent, and 10 percent respectively. Smaller ethnic groups include the Somali,
Gurage, Afar, Awi, Wolyita, Sidama, Gamo, Gofa, Hadiya, etc. There are a huge difference in
cultural practice and religious beliefs among these ethnic groups.
5.1. Ethnic Diversity in Ethiopia
Ethnic Diversity is an existence of different/multiple ethnic groups in a given community. It
means differences in ethnic descent among individuals or groups or that reflects the presence of
plural ethnic groups in a specific society. Ethiopia has been described as “a museum of peoples”
whose population is characterized by a “complex pattern of ethnic, linguistic and religious

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groups”. It has more than 80 ethnic groups. There are different markers of ethnic identity used in
defining what we mean by ‘ethnic group’ in Ethiopia. Some of these include language, culture,
history, and geographical boundary. The 1995 constitution defines ethnic group (nation,
nationality or people) as “a group of people who have or share large measure of common culture
or similar customs, mutual intelligibility of language, belief in a common or related identities, a
common psychological make-up, and who inhabit an identifiable, predominantly contiguous
territory”. Nevertheless, language is the major, but not the only factor in defining ethnic group or
ethnic identity in Ethiopia. Although language is the major marker of ethnic identity, it is
necessary to note that sharing the same language does not imply that one belongs to the same
ethnic group. To belong to an ethnic group individuals also need to have a shared sense of
belonging, based on some of the above mentioned objective or subjective characteristics. Out of
the more than 80 ethnic groups some of them are:
Oromo, Amhara, Somali, Tigray, Sidama, Gurage, Wolayita, Hadiya, Afar, Gamo, Gedeo,
Silte, Kefficho, Agew/Awi, Kembata, Dawro, Goffa, Bench, Ari, Konso, Alaba, Berta, Yem,
Gumuz, Kore, Me’enite, Nuer, Argoba, Tembaro, Malie, Anuak, Konta, Basketo, Shekecho,
Burji, Debase/Gewada, Mareko, Qebena, Shinasha, Dasenech, Hamar, Oida, Mao, Gidole,
Sheko, Dizi, Donga, Irob, Harari, Derashe, Surma, Bena, Nyangatom, Mejenger, Tsemay
Mossiye, Zeyese, Mere, Werji, Chara, Messengo, Mashola, Nao, Komo, Mursi, Kusumie, Bodi,
Arborie, Gedicho, Brayle, Kunama, Guagu, Fedashe, Zelmam, Bacha, Qechem, Koyego, Upo,
Gebato, Murle, Karo, Dime, She, and Qewama.
Highly contested and more elaborated provision regarding the rights of Nation, Nationalities
and Peoples, and hence ethnic group as long as they fulfill the criteria of “Nation, Nationalities
and Peoples” is available on the Article 39 of the FDRE Constitution ‘’Rights of Nations
Nationalities and Peoples‟ stipulates as the following.
 Every Nation, Nationality and People in Ethiopia has unconditional right to self-
determination, including the right to secession.
 Every Nation, Nationality and People in Ethiopia has the right to speak, to write and to
develop its own language; to express, to develop and to promote its culture; and to
preserve its history.

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 Every Nation, Nationality and People in Ethiopia has the right to a full measure of self-
government which includes right to establish institutions of government in the territory
that in inhabits and equitable representation in State and Federal governments.
 The right to self-determination, including secession, of every Nation, Nationality and
People shall come into effect. It is for this reason that minority governance in this
context requires a right-based bottom up approach and participatory democratization
process, in which the needs of each ethnic group is accommodated depending on
practical context on the ground. As a result the current federal setup is successful in
accommodating diverse ethnic groups and developing the sense of “unity in diversity”
and “nested/multiple identity.’’
5.2 Language Diversity and Social Dynamics in Ethiopia
Ethiopia has a diverse mix of ethnic and linguistic backgrounds; in fact among the top countries
in the world in endemic linguistic diversity. There are eighty-six known indigenous languages in
Ethiopia: eighty-two spoken and four extinct (Argoba, Gafat, Gee’z and Zay). Amharic has been
the dominant and official language for the last 150 years as a result of the historical process of
political system. While all languages enjoy equal state recognition in the 1995 Constitution of
Ethiopia, Amharic is recognized as the official working language of the Federal Government.
The various regions of Ethiopia are free to determine their own working languages, with
Oromiffa, Somali and Tigrinya and others recognized as official working languages in their own
respective regions. English is the most widely spoken foreign language and the language in
which secondary school and university classes are taught. Remnants of the Italian occupation
during World War II exist in the cities, such as the use of ciao to say "good-bye."
The vast majority of the languages spoken in the country can be classified within three families
of the Afro-Asiatic super language family: the Semitic, Cushitic, and Omotic. The fourth group
of language categorize under another independent family called as Nilo-Saharan super language
family. Among these language family, Cushitic languages are spoken widely in the most parts of
the country and the horn.
I. The Semetic Language Speakers
Semitic-language speakers predominantly live in the central highlands and northern parts of the
country. The principal Semetic language in the north is Tigregna, in the north western and center
of the country is Ahamaric. The other speakers are found in south and south eastern parts of the

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country such as Guragigna, Silitigna, Harari. In addition to these, Argoba, Gafat, Zay, Gee’z are
a language belongs to the Semetic category.
II. The Cushitic Language Speakers
Cushitic-language speakers live in the highlands and lowlands of the south-central region as well
as in the north-central area. The largest ethnic group to use this language family in Ethiopia is
Oromo. The others tongues in this groups are Affarigna, Agewigna, Halaba, Erbore, Awigna,
Konso, Derashe, Burji, Bussa, Dobasse, Dasenech, Kusumie, Gedeo, Hdiyya, Kembata,
sidamigna, Somaligna, etc.
III. The Omotic Language Speaker
Omotic-language speakers live predominantly in the south. It spoken between the lakes of
southern riftvally and around the Omo river. This language are compromise considerably fewer
speakers than the Semetic and the Cushitic. It only spoken in Ethiopia that the speakers are
Wolayita, Gamo, Gofa, Kafficho, Konta, Gimira, Ari, Shaku, Maji, Bench, Dizzi, Malie, Oyda,
Zayise, Hammer, Gidicho, mao, Kore, etc.
IV. The Nilo-Saharan Languages
The Nilo-Saharan super language family accounts for about 2 percent of the population, and
these languages are spoken near the Sudanese border. These tongues include Nuer, Anuak,
Nyangatom, Majangir, Surma, Me'en and Mursi who are concentrated in the southwestern parts
of the country.
5.3 Religious Belief and Social Practices
There has been religious freedom for centuries in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church is
the oldest sub-Saharan African church, and the first mosque in Africa was built in the Tigray
province. Christianity and Islam have coexisted peacefully for hundreds of years, and the
Christian kings of Ethiopia gave Muhammad refuge during his persecution in southern Arabia,
causing the Prophet to declare Ethiopia exempt from Muslim holy wars. It is not uncommon for
Christians and Muslims to visit each other's house of worship to seek health or prosperity.
The dominant religion has been Orthodox Christianity since King 'Ēzānā of Axum adopted
Christianity in 333. It was the official religion during the reign of the monarchy and is currently
the unofficial religion. Because of the spread of Islam in Africa, Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity
was severed from the Christian world. This has led to many unique characteristics of the church,
which is considered the most Judaic formal Christian church.

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The Ethiopian Orthodox Church is the only established church that has rejected the doctrine
which states that the Old Testament lost its binding force after the coming of Jesus. The Old
Testament focus of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church includes dietary laws similar to the kosher
tradition, circumcision after the eighth day of birth, and a Saturday Sabbath.
Judaism historically was a major religion, although the vast majority of Ethiopian Jews (called
Beta Israel) reside in Israel today. The Beta Israel were politically powerful at certain times.
Ethiopian Jews often were persecuted during the last few hundred years; that resulted in massive
secret airlifts in 1984 and 1991 by the Israeli military.
Islam has been a significant religion in Ethiopia since the eighth century. Islam was introduced to
Ethiopia in 615 AD and spread to the east and south east of the country mainly Harar, Oromia
and Somali regions.
Polytheistic religions are found in the lowlands, which also have received Protestant
missionaries. These Evangelical churches are fast growing, but Orthodox Christianity and Islam
claim the adherence of 85 to 90 percent of the population.
Paganism or indigenous religious beliefs are widely practiced in Gambella, Southern nation
nationalities and people’s region and Oromia region. It has broadly defined as any religion which
is not Christian, Jewish, and Muslim. The term also uses to refer any religion outside of the three
religions. In the strictest sense, paganism refers to the authentic recognition of ancient Greece
and Romans as well as surrounding areas. It originated from Neolithic (Stone Age) era. The term
pagan is derived from the Latin word which means a country dweller. The pagan usually has a
belief in many gods (polytheistic) but only one is chosen as the one to worship which represent
the chief god and supreme god head.
Land Tenure and Property
The economy is based on agriculture, in which 85 percent of the population participates.
Ecological problems such as periodic drought, soil degradation, deforestation, and a high
population density negatively affect the agricultural industry. Most agricultural producers are
subsistence farmers living in the highlands, while the population in the lowland peripheries is
nomadic and engages in livestock rising. Gold, marble, limestone, and small amounts of
tantalum are mined.
The monarchy and the Orthodox Church traditionally controlled and owned most of the land.
Until the overthrow of the monarchy in 1974, there was a complex land tenure system; for

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example, there were different types of tenure. Two major types of traditional land ownership that
are no longer in existence were rist (a type of communal land ownership that was hereditary) and
gult (ownership acquired from the monarch or provincial ruler). The land tenure of the imperial
regimes in Ethiopia was classified as:
 Rist: Communal land
 Gult: Grant land
 Gebar: freehold, or sometimes referred to as private
 Samon : Church owned land
 Maderia or Mengist : State controlled land
Unfortunately, there is no comprehensive and commonly accepted definition of these different
types of land tenure. Therefore, these ambiguous traditional terms (rist, gult, and gebbar) could
have different meaning in different localities.
1. Rist Tenure
The rist system was a kind of corporate ownership system based on descent that granted usufruct
rights – the right to appropriate the return from the land. In the rist system, all male and female
descendants of an individual founder or occupier were entitled to a share of land. The allocated
usufruct rights did not refer to a specific plot of land, and, since it was often difficult for rights
claimants to trace the pedigree to an ancestral landholder, harshly competitive bargaining over
access to land occurred.
Claims to land were usually accepted or rejected by the representative of the Rist Corporation
who consulted other members of the kinship group. The number and sizes of families varied over
time, and in many localities redistribution of land within the kinship group occurred regularly.
Rist rules aimed at maintaining continuity in the possession of land to both individually operated
and clan lands that is why rist rights holders usually lacked the right to sell their share outside the
family, mortgage, bequeath or transfer it as a gift as the land belonged to the descent group, not
the individual.
Rist is burdened with some ambiguity in the literature. It is usually conceptualized as a genuine
Abyssinian collective land tenure system. Therefore, it refers to rist as a variant of communal
land tenure in Ethiopia. Even though the rist system provided for general tenure security, it
granted only very insecure property rights to a particular plot of land. It continuously endangered

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the security of an individual’s effective rights to use a specific plot of land and encouraged
fragmentation and successive reduction in individual plot size.
2. Gult Tenure
Superimposed on the rist system was a type of fief right that required the rist holding peasants
(or those who held other types of traditional land rights) to pay tribute and taxes in cash, kind, or
labor to landlords– this was called the gult right. In the northern part of Ethiopia, these gult
holders were largely an aristocratic group, whereas in the southern periphery, it was civil and
military servants of the imperial regime who had received gult rights as compensation for their
services. Gult rights were also vested to organizations, in particular the Orthodox Church. Even
though most scholars consider gult to be a right to land, it has also been characterized as a right
to the manpower of the peasants living on the land.
Gult was usually linked to an office, and while the gult lords had a number of duties towards the
crown such as administration, maintenance of security in the region, and military services, they
also had the right to oversee other administrative personnel in the granted area. Gult rights were
not inheritable or not necessarily hereditary and since formal land ownership was vested in the
state, the gult right could be withdrawn by the crown at any time, although this did not happen
frequently. However, many local gult holders (local nobles) were at the same time rist holders.
3. Rist-gult Tenure
Besides these gult rights, there existed a system of heritable rist gult rights that vested the gult
lord with the right to independently exact taxes in cash, kind, and labor for the landlords own
burse, which is a system that increased the independence of landlords from the imperial power.
Initially, only granted to the royal family and provincial nobles, the granting of heritable rist gult
rights became the rule in the regions of the newly conquered Southern Ethiopia.
[Link] or Private Property Rights
There is some confusion in the literature regarding the meaning of the terms gebbar and the
existence of private property rights during the imperial rule. Prior to an administrative reform in
1941, the term gebbar - which existed in the center but was then transferred to the conquered
South was characterized tribute-paying peasants who were controlled by gult lords or local elites
(balabbat), and suffered from burdensome tributes and services to be delivered to these
authorities. There are two processes that led to the emergence of private property in Ethiopia.

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 First, a tax reform in 1941 defined the land for which tax had been paid to the
government as the property of the taxpayer.
 Second, after the return of Emperor Haile Selassie from exile in 1942, land tenure (what
is referred to as ‘freehold’) was granted to selected individuals such as soldiers and
civilian victims of the Italian occupation.
As a consequence, taxpaying gebbars became the legal owners of their land. The term gebbar
was henceforth used to refer to private property during the Ethiopian Empire. All land, for
which no tax had been paid to the government (or put differently - land for which land lords hat
pocketed tax payments made by farmers, instead of forwarding it to the government), was
converted into government land thereby depriving pastoralists of their communal rights. This tax
reform limited the influence of the local landlords and abolished all gult and rist gult rights,
including those of the Orthodox Church.
The farmers therefore were no longer required to pay tribute to the local overlords, but directly to
the representatives of the Ethiopian crown. The tax reform increased tenure security, in particular
for rist rights holders in the North who had paid land tax and at the same time improved the
situation of a class of taxpaying peasants in the South.
Overall, these reforms, even though poorly implemented, meant the juridical recognition of some
kind of private property rights for individual rights holders, including ownership rights.
However, many peasants had, under the tribute system imposed on them, lost their land or had
lived on the land of the new class of taxpaying gebbar owners. In addition, many landlords had
registered formally as taxpayers and thereby deprived those farmers of their land rights. These
farmers then became tenants who practiced sharecropping.
Sharecropping demanded from the tenant to deliver a large share of up to half of the produce to
the landlords to maintain the right to use the land for subsistence production. The tenant was also
subject to arbitrary demands for gifts and labor services. Some authors state that sharecropping
relations differed between the Norths as the contracts had been of less exploitative character than
in the South.

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Broadly speaking, the Ethiopian land tenure system during the emperors’ rule was dominated by
drastic power imbalances between landlords and peasantry. Land policy was used in as an
instrument of “divide-and-rule” at the disposal of the emperors (and the nobility). The Emperor
reserved the sovereign right over all land with the authority to grant and withdraw land rights at
all levels, and this right was exercised to keep a retinue of war lords, governors, and nobles
personally obliged to the emperor.
The EPRDF instituted a policy of public land use. In rural areas, peasants have land use rights,
and every five years there is a reallotment of land among farmers to adapt to the changing social
structures of their communities. There are several reasons for the nonexistence of individual land
ownership in rural areas. If private ownership were legislated, the government believes that rural
class divisions would increase as a result of a large number of peasants selling their land.
Agriculture is the major commercial activity. The chief staple crops include a variety of grains,
such as teff, wheat, barley, corn, sorghum, and millet; coffee; pulses; and oilseed. Grains are the
primary staples of the diet and are thus the most important field crops. Pulses are a principal
source of protein in the diet. Oilseed consumption is widespread because the Ethiopian Orthodox
Church prohibits the usage of animal fats on many days during the year.
In the past discriminatory allocation of land in favour of collective farming and absence of users’
right discouraged small farmers from investing in livestock and land improvement. Equally
important was the discouragement of private land acquisition, which prevented the emergence of
private livestock farming. At present land scarcity in the highlands is leading to development of
the less productive alpine and semiarid pastoral areas.
5.4 Social Stratification
Traditionally, labor has been divided by gender, with authority given to the senior male in a
household. Men are responsible for plowing, harvesting, the trading of goods, the slaughtering of
animals, herding, the building of houses, and the cutting of wood. Women are responsible for the
domestic sphere and help the men with some activities on the farm. Women are in charge of
cooking, brewing beer, cutting hops, buying and selling spices, making butter, collecting and
carrying wood, and carrying water. Men do the most physically taxing activities outside the
house, while women are in charge of the domestic sphere. Young children, especially on farms,
get involved in household labor at an early age. Girls usually have a greater amount of work to
do than boys.

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The gender division in urban areas is less pronounced than it is in the countryside. Many women
work outside of the home, and there tends to be a greater awareness of gender inequality.
Women in urban areas are still responsible, with or without a career, for the domestic space.
Employment at a baseline level is fairly equivalent, but men tend to be promoted much faster and
more often.
Gender inequality is still prevalent. Men often spend their free time socializing outside the home,
while women take care of the household. If a man participates in domestic activities such as
cooking and child rearing, he may become a social outcast.
The education of boys is stressed more than that of girls, who are supposed to help with
household work. Girls are restricted from leaving the home and engaging in social activities with
friends much more than boys are.
The basic family structure is much larger than the typical Western nuclear unit. The oldest male
is usually the head of the household and is in charge of decision making. Men, usually having the
primary income, control the family economically and distribute money. Women are in charge of
domestic life and have significantly more contact with the children. The father is seen as an
authority figure.
Children are raised by the extended family and community. It is the primary duty of the mother
to care for the children as part of her domestic duties. If the mother is not available, the
responsibility falls to the older female children as well as the grandmothers. In urban society,
where both parents often work, babysitters are employed and the father takes a more active role
in child care. If a child is born out of wedlock, whoever the women claims is the father is
required by law to support the child economically. If parents get divorced, a child five years old
or older is asked with whom he or she wants to live.
Children are also socially required to care for their parents, and so there are often three to four
generations in a household. With the advent of urban living, however, this pattern is changing,
and children often live far from their families and have a much harder time supporting them.
Urbanites have a responsibility to send money to their families in rural areas and often try their
best to relocate their families to the cities.
5.5. Cultural and Historical heritages in Ethiopia
Historical heritage are things that reflect the life style of the people in the past. The historical
and cultural heritages in Ethiopia reflect the glory of ancient civilizations of the Ethiopian people

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indicating that Ethiopian possessed the highest socio-cultural development at one time in history.
Moreover, historical and cultural heritages are major source of tourism industry which generates
the income in foreign currency that develops the economy. It is also an important source of
historical heritage. Ethiopia was a place in the world where ancient civilizations flourished. This
was during the pre-Axumite, Aksumite and post- Aksumite states, which left behind their traces
at different places in the form of stelea, palaces, churches, inscriptions and writing system.
i. The history of Aksum
The Aksumite state developed in the northern part of the country. Its center was the present town
of Aksum, which became a center for one of the ancient civilizations that rose in the northeast
Africa. Until very recently it was believed that the Aksumite civilization was derived from that
of South Arabia. However, based on some available evidences, scholars rejected this opinion and
argued that civilizations in the region were largely the results of internal developments, i.e. the
growth of agriculture and the beginning of a sedentary way of life. So Aksum itself inherited its
civilization from the state that flourished in the region before it rather than creating a new culture
of its own or inheriting it from south Arabia. However it should be recognized that there were
close contacts between states in the Horn and South Arabia across the Red Sea.
The Aksumite state was based on a well-organized society. Aksumite society constituted
different social groups which were divided occupational base. The great majority of the
population consisted of the peasantry, while the rest included artisans, merchants and slaves. The
artisans were responsible for the production of agricultural implements and tools, while the
slaves were working on the land of the landed patricians.
With the growth of their power and prosperity, the Aksumites monopolized the Red Sea trade.
The center of this international was the ancient port of Adulis, which rendered shipping services.
Beside the Egyptians, who had already developed a direct trade with Aksum, merchants from
India and China came to trade in Adulis. According the Periplus, the export items of Adulis
consisted mainly of ivory, tortoise-shell, rhinoceros horn, hippopotamus hides, gold, and live
animals like apes, baboons, and giraffes. Import items came mainly from Egypt, the
Mediterranean region, Arabia, Serbia, and India. The items include textile, robes, dyed cloaks of
many colors, glassware, brass, cooper sheets, dirking vessels, wine, olive oil, silver and gold
plates for the king, clay utensils and iron tools like spears, axes, adzes and swords. To promote
the trade, Aksumite kings used coins of gold, silver, cooper and bronze.

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As a result of both internal and external trade, the Aksumite state became prosperous. The
wealth, particularly, obtained from the export trade strengthened the power of the Aksumite
kings, who extend their hegemony over the territories on both sides of the Red Sea. This
prosperity enables Aksumite kings to build large palaces and churches. Above all, the
outstanding achievements of the Aksumite state was the building of monumental stelae is 33
meters long and which was weighed 500 tons, is the biggest piece of stone ever cut by humanity
anywhere in the world but today it lies broken on the ground. The second largest obelisk, 25
meters high (it was taken to the Rome in 1937 during the Italian fascist occupation and returned
to Ethiopia very recently). Near it stands the third largest, which is a smaller but nevertheless
most impressive 24-metre-high obelisk, is the pride of Ethiopia.
ii. The Rock-hewn church of Lalibela
Lalibela, a medieval settlement in the Lasta area of Wollo, lies at the centre of an extensive
complex of rock churches. Some can be reached by one or two hours' drive; others are a full
day's journey. Lalibela has 11 remarkable rock-hewn monolithic churches, believed to have been
built by King Lalibela in the late 12th or early 13th Century. These notable structures are carved,
inside and out, into the solid rock, and are considered to be among the wonders of the world.
Each building is architecturally unique but each reflects beautifully executed craftsmanship, and
several are decorated with fascinating paintings. These astonishing edifices remain places of
living worship to this day.
iii. Fasil Ghebbi
Fasil Ghebbi, Gondar Region, is the remains of a fortress-city that was the residence of the
Ethiopian emperor Fasilides and his successors. The founder of Gondar was Emperor Fasiladas
who, tiring of the pattern of migration that had characterized the lifestyle of so many of his
forefathers, moved his capital here in 1636 AD. By the late 1640s he had built a great castle here,
which stands today in a grassy compound surrounded by other fortresses of later construction.
With its huge towers and looming battlemented walls, it seems like a piece of medieval Europe
transposed to Ethiopia.
In addition to this castle, Fasiladas is said to have been responsible for the building of a number
of other structures. Perhaps the oldest of these is the Enqulal Gemb, or Egg Castle, so named on
account of its egg-shaped domed roof. Other buildings include the royal archive and the stable.
Beyond the confines of the city to the north-west by the Qaha River there is another fine building

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sometimes associated by Fasiladas- a bathing palace. The building is a two-storeyed

battlemented structure situated within and on one side of a rectangular pool of water which was
supplied by a canal from the nearby river. The bathing pavilion itself stands on pier arches, and
contains several rooms which are reached by a stone bridge, part of which could be raised for
defense. Besides such secular buildings, Fasiladas is reputed to have erected no fewer than
seven churches, as well as seven bridges.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the fortress-city of Fasil Ghebbi was the residence of the
Ethiopian emperor Fasilides and his successors. Surrounded by a 900-m-long wall, the city
contains palaces, churches, monasteries and unique public and private buildings marked by
Hindu and Arab influences, subsequently transformed by the Baroque style brought to Gondar by
the Jesuit missionaries.
Fasil Ghebbi is located in the Amhara National Regional State, in North Gondar Administrative
Zone of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. The serial property consists of eight
components. Within the Fasil Ghebbi palace compound are: the Castle of Emperor Fasilidas, the
Castle of Emperor Iyasu, the Library of Tzadich Yohannes; the Chancellery of Tzadich
Yohannes; the Castle of Emperor David, the Palace of Mentwab and Banqueting Hall of the
Emperor Bekaffa. The remaining seven components are located in and around the city of
Gondar: the Debre Berhan Selassie (Monastery and church); the Bath of Fasilidas; Kiddush
Yohannes; Qusquam (Monastery and Church); Thermal Area; the Sosinios (also known as
Maryam Ghemb); the Gorgora (Monastery and Church) and the Palace of Guzara.
Between the thirteenth and seventeenth centuries, Ethiopian rulers moved their royal camps
frequently. King Fasil (Fasilidas) settled in Gondar and established it as a permanent capital in
1636. Before its decline in the late eighteenth century, the royal court had developed from a
camp into a fortified compound called Fasil Ghebbi, consisting of six major building complexes
and other ancillary buildings, surrounded by a wall 900 metres long, with twelve entrances and
three bridges.
The fortress city functioned as the centre of the Ethiopian government until 1864. It has some
twenty palaces, royal buildings, highly decorated churches, monasteries and unique public and
private buildings, transformed by the Baroque style brought to Gondar by the Jesuit missionaries.
The main castle has huge towers and looming battlemented walls, resembling a piece of
medieval Europe transposed to Ethiopia.

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Beyond the confines of the city to the north-west by the Qaha River, there is a two-storey
pavilion of a bathing palace associated to Emperor Fasilidas. The building is a two-storey
battlemented structure situated within and on one side of a rectangular pool of water which was
supplied by a canal from the nearby river. The bathing pavilion itself stands on pier arches, and
contains several rooms reached by a stone bridge, part of which could be raised for defense.
Subsequent rulers, such as Iyasu the Great, continued building, improving the techniques and
architectural style and expanded to the hills north-west of the city centre, in the area known as
Qusquam.
Fasil Ghebbi and the other remains in Gondar city demonstrate a remarkable interface between
internal and external cultures, with cultural elements related to Ethiopian Orthodox Church,
Ethiopian Jews and Muslims. This relationship is expressed not only through the architecture of
the sites but also through the handicrafts, painting, literature and music that flourished in the
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
After its decline in the 19th century, the city of Gondar continued to be an important commercial
and transport hub for northwest Ethiopia. Some of the monuments still retain their original
spiritual function and the surrounding landscape has significant cultural importance for the local
inhabitants.
The characteristics of the style of “the Gondarian Period” appeared from the beginning of the
17th century in the capital, Gondar, and significantly influenced the development of Ethiopian
architecture for over 200 years.
Fasil Ghebbi, Qusquam and other sites bear an exceptional testimony of the modern era of
Ethiopian civilization on the highlands, north of Lake Tana, from the 16th to 18th centuries. The
maps for all the components of the serial property have yet to be prepared and boundaries for the
property and buffer zones remain to be delineated. However, several of the component sites,
including Fasil Ghebbi, are walled and these provide natural boundaries. These enclosed sites
retain all the important attributes that substantiate the Outstanding Universal Value of the
property.
Although there are general decay conditions, related to both natural and cultural factors,
including lack of maintenance and inadequate past interventions, the components of the property
still maintain the necessary conditions of integrity.
A sustained programme for conservation and maintenance is still needed to improve conditions

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at the overall property and prevent further erosion of the integrity of the property. Additionally,
means to address the existing conflicts to balance the conservation of the historic value of the
property with the need to improve the traditional liturgical functions have yet to be implemented.
Definition and enforcement of regulatory measures for the management of the buffer zones are
also needed to preserve the settings of the component parts of the property.
Most of the monuments have preserved their authenticity and remain in an overall good state of
conservation. But, inappropriate conservation interventions, carried out between 1930 and 1936,
using cement and reinforced concrete caused damage to the original materials and impacted the
authenticity of the intervened components. The situation was partially reversed with the
restoration works carried out by UNESCO in the 1970s, which replaced the cement and concrete
work with the original mixes of lime mortar as well as with subsequent major conservation
programmes implemented since 1990. Currently conservation activities at the property seek to
reverse the prior impacts so as to maintain the authenticity of the property and focus on the use
of original techniques and materials. To prevent future impacts, on the authenticity of the
component parts of the property, guidelines and interventions for historic buildings need to be
defined and enforced through a sustained conservation and maintenance action plan.
iv. Harar Jugol (City wall)
The city of Harar Called Gey ("the City") by its inhabitants is an ancient (1520) and holy city
emerged as the center of Islamic culture and religion in the Horn of Africa. Always an important
trading centre, the city is famous for its ancient buildings, its great city walls and as a centre of
learning Muslim scholarship (the town has 99 mosques). The city is well known for its superb
handicrafts that include woven textiles, basket ware, silverware and handsomely bound books,
Harar has been a place of pilgrimage from all over the world for many years.
Harar, formerly written Harrar and known to its inhabitants as Gey, is a walled city in eastern
Ethiopia. It was formerly the capital of Harergey and now the capital of the modern Harari ethno-
political division (or kilil) of Ethiopia. The city is located on a hilltop in the eastern extension of
the Ethiopian Highlands, about five hundred kilometers from Addis Ababa at an elevation of
1,885 meters. Based on figures from the Central Statistical Agency in 2005, Harar has an
estimated total population of 122,000, of whom 60,000 were males and 62,000 were females.
According to the census of 1994, on which this estimate is based, the city has a population of
76,378.

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For centuries, Harar has been a major commercial centre, linked by the trade routes with the rest
of Ethiopia, the entire Horn of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and, through its ports, the outside
world. Harar Jugol, the old walled city, was included in the World Heritage List in 2006 by
UNESCO in recognition of its cultural heritage. It is sometimes known in Arabic as "the City of
Saints" ("Madinat al-Awilya"). According to UNESCO, it is "considered 'the fourth holy city' of
Islam" with 82 mosques, three of which date from the 10th century and 102 shrines.
According to the Fath Madinat Harar, an unpublished history of the city in the 13th century, the
cleric Abadir Umar Ar-Rida, along with several other religious leaders, came from the Arabian
Peninsula to settle in Harar circa 612H (1216 AD). Sheikh Ar-Rida is regarded as the saint of
Harar, as well as the common ancestor of the Somali Sheekhaal clan. Harar was later made the
new capital of the Adal Sultanate in 1520 by the Sultan Abu Bakr Ibn Muhammad. The city saw
a political decline during the ensuing Emirate of Harar, only regaining some significance in the
Khedivate of Egypt period. During ancient Christian highland kingdoms rule, the city decayed
while maintaining a certain cultural prestige. Especially, the sixteenth century was the city's
Golden Age. The local culture flourished, and many poets lived and wrote there. It also became
known for coffee, weaving, basketry and bookbinding. Today, it is the seat of the Harari ethno-
political division.
From Harar, Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi, also known as "Gurey" and "Gragn" (both meaning
"the Left-handed"), launched a war of conquest in the sixteenth century that extended the polity's
territory and threatened the existence of the neighboring Christian Ethiopian Empire. His
successor, Emir Nur ibn Mujahid, built a protective wall around the city. Four meters in height
high with five gates, this structure, called Jugol, is still intact and is a symbol of the town to the
inhabitants.
Following the death of Emir Nur, Harar began a steady decline in wealth and power. A later ruler,
Imam Muhammed Jasa, a kinsman of Ahmad Gragn, yielded to the pressures of increasing
Oromo raids and in 1577 abandoned the city, relocating to Aussa and making his brother ruler of
Harar. The new base not only failed to provide more security from the Oromos, it attracted the
hostile attention of the neighboring Afars who raided caravans travelling between Harar and the
coast. The Imams of Aussa declined over the next century while Harar regained its independence
under `Ali ibn Da`ud, the founder of a dynasty that ruled the city from 1647 until 1875, when it
was conquered by Egypt.

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During the period of Egyptian rule (1875-1884), Arthur Rimbaud lived in the city as the local
factor of several different commercial companies based in Aden; he returned in 1888 to resume
trading in coffee, musk and skins until illness forced him to return to France. A house said to
have been his residence is now a museum.
In 1885, Harar regained its independence, but this lasted only two years until 6 January 1887
when the Battle of Chelenqo led to Harar's incorporation into the Emperor Menelik II of
Ethiopia's growing Empire based in Shewa.
Harar lost some of its commercial importance with the creation of the Addis Ababa - Djibouti
Railway, initially intended to run via the city but diverted north of the mountains between Harar
and the Awash River to save money. As a result of this, Dire Dawa was founded in 1902 as New
Harar.
v. Jimma, Aba Jifar Palace
The Kingdom of Jimma was one of the kingdoms in the Gibe region of Ethiopia that emerged in
the 19th century. Jimma was considered the most powerful militarily of the Gibe kingdoms. The
Kingdom of Jimma had its own administration, which was centered at the royal palace.
The Kingdom of Jimma Aba Jifar – the strongest Oromo state The kingdom of Jimma Aba Jifar
was established around 1830. It was the largest and most powerful of the five kingdoms of Gibe.
The five kingdoms were Jimma, Ennarya, Gera, Guma, and Gomma. After Aba Jifar I, ruled for
25 years the next very strong ruler, Aba Jifer II came to power. Aba Jifer II ruled from 1878 to
1932. Jimma was the center market, which used to attract many merchants from the surroundings
areas and its location on trade route resulted in advancement economy and military. The Silver
Maria Theressa Dollar and bars of salt were the main circulation of currency in Jimma.
The palace of Aba Jifar II at Jiren: This impressive palace that is about 8 kms from the center of
Jimma city was built by the cost of 400 kg of Gold and 65000 Maria Theressa Dollars towards
the end of 1860’s. The palace stands with colorful architectural beauty. In the compound of the
palace still stand other four buildings: the public mosque, the mosque of Abba Jifar, residential
palace of Aba Jifar, residential palace of Aba Jobir and Aba Dula (the grandson of Aba Jifar).
The Museum: The museum displays most of historical materials of King Abba Jifar, his
kingdom and cultural objects of local Oromo People. The first set of collection in this museum is
the personal household furniture of the king that includes beds of Abba Jifar, armchairs, utensils,
religious manuscripts and others.

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vi. Konso Cultural Landscape

Konso Cultural Landscape is a 55km2 arid properties of stone walled terraces and fortified
settlements in the Konso highlands of Ethiopia. It constitutes a spectacular example of a living
cultural tradition stretching back 21 generations (more than 400 years) adapted to its dry hostile
environment. The landscape demonstrates the shared values, social cohesion and engineering
knowledge of its communities. The site also features anthropomorphic wooden statues - grouped
to represent respected members of their communities and particularly heroic events - which are
an exceptional living testimony to funerary traditions that are on the verge of disappearing. Stone
steles in the towns express a complex system of marking the passing of generations of leaders.
The Konso Cultural Landscape is characterized by extensive dry stone terraces bearing witness
to the persistent human struggle to use and harness the hard, dry and rocky environment. The
terraces retain the soil from erosion, collect a maximum of water, discharge the excess, and
create terraced fields that are used for agriculture. The terraces are the main features of the
Konso landscape and the hills are contoured with the dry stone walls, which at places reach up to
5 meters in height.
The walled towns and settlements (paletas) of the Konso Cultural Landscape are located on high
plains or hill summits selected for their strategic and defensive advantage. These towns are
circled by between one and six rounds of dry stone defensive walls, built of locally available
rock. The cultural spaces inside the walled towns, called moras, retain an important and central
role in the life of the Konso. Some walled towns have as many as 17 moras. The tradition of
erecting generation marking stones called daga-hela, quarried, transported and erected through a
ritual process, makes the Konso one of the last megalithic people.
The traditional forests are used as burial places for ritual leaders and for medicinal purposes.
Wooden anthropomorphic statues (waka), carved out of a hard wood and mimicking the
deceased, are erected as grave markers. Water reservoirs (harda) located in or near these forests,
are communally built and are, like the terraces, maintained by very specific communal social and
cultural practices.

The Konso Cultural Landscape integrates spectacularly executed dry stone terrace works, which
are still actively used by the Konso people, who created them. They bear testimony to the
enormous efforts required to use the otherwise hostile environment in an area that covers over

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230 square km, an effort which stands as an example of major human achievement. The
association between these stone terraces and the fortified towns in their midst are features of an
exceptional cultural landscape, which also bears testimony to a living tradition of stele erection.
The Konso erect stone steles to commemorate and mark the transfer of responsibility from the
older generation to the younger. Konso are among the last stele-erecting people and thus their
continuous practice presents an exceptional testimony to an ongoing cultural tradition.
The relation of the stone terraces and the fortified towns of Konso Cultural Landscape, and its
highly organized social system, illustrates an outstanding example of a traditional human
settlement and land-use, based on common values that have resulted in the creation of the Konso
cultural and socio-economic fabric. The dry stone terraces show a sophisticated adaptive strategy
to the environment and the labor needed to construct these terraces necessitated a strong
cohesion and unified bond among the clans. This interaction with the environment is based on
indigenous engineering knowledge and requires traditional work divisions, which are still
utilized to consistently perform maintenance and conservation works.
The boundaries of the Konso Cultural Landscape coincide with natural features, like rivers or
edges of densely terraced landscape, and are demarcated by the cultural and socio-economic
history of the Konso people. All components relevant to the understanding of the traditional
system have been included, such as the key tangible attributes of terraces, walled settlements,
sacred forests, shrines and burial sites. The clear distinctive character of the landscape is
vulnerable to dispersal of the fortified settlements, in case houses are built outside the town
walls.
The Konso Cultural Landscape still largely retains its original form and design. The materials
used for the construction of the terraces and the town walls are original and their conservation
continues following traditional practices, executed by the community members. The terraces
continue in their original arrangements, use and function. The walled towns are still inhabited by
the communities and remain organized following the traditional system. The traditionally
protected forests are still protected and used for ritual and burial and the water reservoirs remain
in use and are periodically conserved. Associated traditions, which continue shaping the
landscape, such as the ritual erection of generation and man-hood stones and generation trees
continues to be actively practiced. The same applies for the use of the moras and the erection of
wakas on the graves. The communities nurture the traditional code of respect to the culture and

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adherence to the age group (hela) and the ward (kanta), which is responsible for the protection
and conservation of the attributes and continues the traditional guardianship.

5.6 Common Ethiopian culture

Clothing Style
The Ethiopian traditional costume is made up of woven cotton cloth called shemma. In most
areas of the country, the people especially women's traditional clothes are often called as Gagabi
or Netela. It is basically cotton cloth, about 90 cm wide, woven in long strips which are then
sewn together. Sometimes shiny threads are woven into the fabric for an elegant effect. It takes
about two to three weeks to make enough cloth for one dress. The bottom of the garment or shirt
may be ornamented with patterns.
Men wear pants and a knee-length shirt with a white collar, and perhaps a sweater. They also
frequently wear knee-high socks, while women might not wear socks at all. Men as well as
women wear shawls, the netela. The shawls are worn in a different style for different occasions.
When going to church, women cover their hair with them and pull the upper ends of the shawl
about their shoulders reproducing a cross (meskelya), with the shiny threads appearing at the
edge. During funerals, the shawl is worn so the shiny threads appear at the bottom (madegdeg).
Women's dresses are called habesha kemis, and are often made from the shemma cloth. The
dresses are usually white with some color above the lower hem. Bracelets and necklaces of silver
or gold are worn on arms and feet to complete the look. A variety of designer dinner dresses
combining traditional fabric with modern style are now worn by some ladies in the cities.
These traditional clothes are still worn on a day-to-day-basis in the countryside. In cities and
towns, western clothes are popular. However, on special occasions such as New Year
(Enkutatash), Christmas (Genna) or weddings, some wear traditional clothes.
Often, a woman will cover her head with a shash, a cloth that is tied at the neck. Shemma and
kuta, gauze-like white fabrics, are often used. This is common among both Muslim and Christian
women. Elderly women will wear a shash on a day-to-day basis, while other women only wear a
shash also called a netela while attending church.
Etiquette
Etiquette means the rules of correct or polite behavior in society or among the member of a
particular social group. Greeting takes the form of multiple kisses on both cheeks and a plethora

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of exchanged pleasantries. Any hint of superiority is treated with contempt. Age is a factor in
social behavior, and the elderly are treated with the utmost respect. When an elderly person or
guest enters a room, it is customary to stand until that person is seated. Dining etiquette is also
important. One must always wash the hands before a meal, since all food is eaten with the hands
from a communal dish. It is customary for the guest to initiate eating. During a meal, it is proper
form to pull injera only from the space directly in front of oneself. Depleted portions are replaced
quickly. During meals, participation in conversation is considered polite; complete attention to
the meal is thought to be impolite.
Holiday
The majority of celebrations are religious in nature. The major Christian holidays include
Christmas on 7 January, Epiphany (celebrating the baptism of Jesus) on 19 January, Good Friday
and Easter (in late April), and Meskel (the finding of the true cross) on 17 September. Muslim
holidays include Ramadan, Id Al Adha (Arafa) on 15 March, and the birthday of Muhammad on
14 June. During all religious holidays, adherents go to their respective places of worship.
The other holiday celebrations are the national holiday known as secular holiday. The major state
holidays are New Year's Day on 11 September, Victory Day of Adwa on 2 March, Ethiopian
Patriots Victory Day on 6 April, Labor Day on 1 May, and the Downfall of the Derge, 28 May.
Music and Art
The music of Ethiopia is extremely diverse, with each of the country's ethnic groups being
associated with unique sounds. Some forms of traditional music are strongly influenced by folk
music from elsewhere in the Horn of Africa, especially Somalia.
Christian music is believed to have been established by Saint Yared in the sixth century and is
sung in Ge'ez, the liturgical language. Both Orthodox and Protestant music is popular and is sung
in Amharic, Tigrean, Oromo and others. In northeastern Ethiopia, in Wollo, a Muslim musical
form called manzuma developed. Sung in Amharic, manzuma has spread to Harar and Jimma,
where it is now sung in the Oromo language.
The traditional dances are accompanied by the kabaro, a drum made from wood and animal skin,
and the masinqo, a single-stringed violin with an A-shaped bridge that is played with small bow.
Foreign influences exist in the form of Afro-pop, reggae, and hip-hop.

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Traditional string instruments include the masenqo (also known as masinko), a one-string bowed
lute; the krar (also known as kirar), a six-string lyre; and The washint is a bamboo flute that is
common almost used in most part of the country.
Inheritance
Inheritance laws follow a fairly regular pattern. Before an elder passes away he or she orally
states his or her wishes for the disposal of possessions. Children and living spouses are typically
the inheritors, but if an individual dies without a will, property is allotted by the court system to
the closest living relatives and friends. Land, although not officially owned by individuals, is
inheritable. Men are more privileged than females and usually receive the most prized properties
and equipment, while women tend to inherit items associated with the domestic sphere.
Kin Groups
Descent is traced through both the mother's and father's families, but the male line is more valued
than the female. It is customary for a child to take the father's first name as his or her last name.
In rural areas, villages are often composed of kin groups that offer support during difficult times.
The kin group in which one participates tends to be in the male line. Elders are respected,
especially men, and are regarded as the source of a lineage. In general, an elder or groups of
elders are responsible for settling disputes within a kin group or clan.
Marriage
Traditional marriage customs vary by ethnic group, although many customs are transethnic.
Arranged marriages are the norm, although this practice is becoming much less common,
especially in urban areas. The presentation of a dowry from the male's family to the female's
family is common. The amount is not fixed and varies with the wealth of the families. The dowry
may include livestock, money, or other socially valued items.
The proposal usually involves elders, who travel from the groom's house to the parents of the
bride to ask for the marriage. The elders are traditionally the individuals who decide when and
where the ceremony takes place. Both the bride's and groom's families prepare food and drink for
the ceremony by brewing wine and beer and cooking food. A great deal of food is prepared for
the occasion, especially meat dishes.
Christians often wed in Orthodox churches, and a variety of wedding types exist. In the takelil
type, the bride and groom participate in a special ceremony and agree never to divorce. This type

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of commitment has become rare in recent years. Wedding garb in the cities is very western: suits
and tuxedos for the men and a white wedding gown for the bride.
Traditional Housing Style
Traditional houses are round dwellings with cylindrical walls made of wattle and daub. The roofs
are conical and made of thatch, and the center pole has sacred significance in most ethnic groups,
including the Oromo, Gurage, Amhara, and Tigreans and others. Variations on this design occur.
The walls of many houses are made of stone and are two-storied, while in parts of Tigre, houses
are traditionally rectangular.
Local food items
Injera, a spongy unleavened bread made from teff grain, is the staple of every meal. All food is
eaten with the hands, and pieces of injera are ripped into bite-sized pieces and used to dip and
grab stews (wat) made of vegetables such as carrots and cabbage, spinach, potatoes, and lentils.
The most common spice is berberey, which has a red pepper base.
The food taboos (bread) and kita are the others ones. The flesh of animals with uncloven hoofs
and those that do not chew their cud are avoided as unclean. It is nearly impossible to get pork.
Animals used for food must be slaughtered with the head while the throat is cut "In the name of
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost" if the slaughterer is Christian or "In the name of Allah
the Merciful" if the slaughterer is Muslim.
The coffee ceremony is a common ritual. The server starts a fire and roasts green coffee beans
while burning frankincense. Once roasted, the coffee beans are ground with a mortar and pestle,
and the powder is placed in a traditional black pot called a jebena. Water is then added. The
jebena is removed from the fire, and coffee is served after brewing for the proper length of time.
Often, kolo (cooked whole-grain barley) is served with the coffee.
Meat, specifically beef, chicken, and lamb, is eaten with injera on special occasions. Beef is
sometimes eaten raw or slightly cooked in a dish called kitfo. Traditionally, this was a staple of
the diet, but in the modern era, many of the elite have shunned it in favor of cooked beef.
During Christian fasting periods, no animal products can be eaten and no food or drink can be
consumed from midnight until 3 P.M. This is the standard way of fasting during the week, and
on Saturday and Sunday no animal products may be consumed, although there is no time
restriction on the fast.

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Honey wine, called tej, is a drink reserved for special occasions. Tej is a mixture of honey and
water flavored with gesho plant twigs and leaves and is traditionally drunk in tube-shaped flasks.
High-quality tej has become a commodity of the upper class, which has the resources to brew
and purchase it. The other one is tela, which is also prepared from gesho plant by mixing with
the product of different cereals.

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