Ethiopia Facts

Ethiopia Facts and History

Africa

Ethiopia – Old Abyssinia

Unfortunately, Ethiopia had become a kind of epitome of poverty, hunger and oppression in Africa. The civil war for independence from Eritrea lasted almost 30 years and only ended in 1993 with the secession from Eritrea, but then continued in border disputes and another war from 1998-2000. Not least because of this situation, Ethiopia was hit harder than other African countries by major droughts in 1984 and 2001.

But with the election of Abiy Ahmad as Prime Minister of the country on April 2, 2018, there was a surprising change of course and the country really flourished. He had released thousands of political prisoners and brought numerous women into his cabinet. On October 28, 2018, Zewde even became a woman president of the country with Zahle-Work.

However, the President has – comparable to the German Federal President – more representative tasks.

The largest religious group in Ethiopia are still the Christians with a total of approx. 64%. Christianity had already played a decisive role in the early history of the country: the second oldest Christian state on earth was established here in the 4th century.

In addition to the typical African wild animals, there are also animal species in Ethiopia that are unique to this country, such as the Ethiopian highland hare.

Name of the country Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
Form of government Parliamentary republic
Geographical location Northeast Africa
National anthem “March on, dear mother Ethiopia!”
Population approx. 115 million (Credit: Countryaah: Ethiopia Population)
Ethnicities Oromo, Amharer, Tigrer and others
Religions About 44% belong to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church,34% are Muslims and 19% are Protestants and about 1% are Catholics.

The rest are followers of traditional African religions.

Languages Amharic is the official language.About 80 other languages are also spoken.
Capital Addis Ababa
Surface 1,133,380 km²
Highest mountain Ras Dashan Terara with an altitude of 4,620 m
Longest river Blue Nile with a length of 1,600 km
Largest lake Lake Turkana with an area of approx. 6,405 km²
International license plate E
National currency Birr
Time difference to CET + 2 h
International phone code 00251
Mains voltage, frequency 220 volts and 50 hertz
Internet TLD (Top Level Domain) .et

Ethiopia: history

Before the year 1000

Some of the oldest prehistoric finds on earth to date come from Ethiopia. The best known is “Lucy”, an Australopithecus afarensis from about 3.5 million years ago.

According to Abbreviationfinder website, the ancient empire of Aksum, founded by the Semites, existed from around 150 BC. BC to 750 AD and included Abyssinia, which is in what is now Ethiopia, as well as the historical regions of Nubia, Sudan and parts of Libya.

In the 4th century the Christianization of the region began by Syrian and Egyptian missionaries. Christianity finally became the state religion under King Ezana. In the period that followed, the Aksum Empire gained dominance over southern Arabia. In the 7th century, Ethiopian Christianity was completely isolated from the European Church by the expansion of Islam into North Africa.

In the 19th century

The British invaded the country in the mid-19th century and looted the Imperial Treasury in 1868.

From the end of the 19th century, the Italian colonial power tried to expand from Eritrea to Ethiopia. After the invasion of the Italian troops in 1896, the Ethiopian armed forces achieved a decisive victory, but had to cede Eritrea as a colony. The empire, which had remained independent, then conquered the south of what is now the state territory under Emperor Menelik II and enslaved the Oromo population living there.

From the 20th century to the present

In 1927, Ethiopia was granted entry into the League of Nations. In 1935, the Italian army marched under Mussolini, which from then on belonged to Italian East Africa. In 1941 the Italians were driven out by the British.

The 1973 drought and the oil crisis triggered severe inflation in Ethiopia, which resulted in mass student demonstrations and strikes. Emperor Haile Selassi (1892-1975) ruled from 1916 to 1930 and then again from (1941-1974). When parts of the Ethiopian army revolted in 1974, the emperor was overthrown and murdered on August 27th.

A Provisional Military Administrative Council, led by Major Mengistu Haile Mariam, took power. In 1975 the socialist People’s Republic of Ethiopia was founded. The armed resistance of the student movement, which had been pushed underground, was largely suppressed by terror. An invasion of US-backed Somalia was successfully repulsed in 1977/78 with Soviet help.

The repression against the civilian population led to the growth of regional resistance groups within the country, some of which allied with Eritrean separatists.

Years of lack of precipitation in the Sahel zone led to severe crop failures and the resulting famine in twenty African countries in 1984. Not least because of the ongoing civil war, Ethiopia was the country worst hit by this disaster. Nearly 20,000 children died of malnutrition every month.

In 1991 the regime collapsed and Mengistu Haile Mariam fled to Zimbabwe. Meles Zenawi became president of the new interim government.

In April 1993 Eritrea gained independence after nearly thirty years of civil war. Between 1999 and 2000 both countries waged another war over border disputes. In December 2000, both sides signed the Algiers Peace Treaty. The ensuing fragile peace is being monitored by soldiers from the United Nations Mission to Ethiopia and Eritrea. However, Ethiopia did not accept the arbitration ruling of the Independent Boundary Commission in The Hague in October 2003.

In 2001 the country was hit again by a drought and famine.

But with the election of Abiy Ahmad as Prime Minister of the country on April 2, 2018, there was a surprising change of course and the country really flourished. He had released thousands of political prisoners and brought numerous women into his cabinet. On October 28, 2018, Zewde even became a woman president of the country with Zahle-Work.

However, the President has – comparable to the German Federal President – more representative tasks.

Ethiopia Facts