Mythologies of the Amhara People [Abyssinians]

Amharas (Amharic: አማራ, romanized: Āmara; Ge'ez: ዐምሐራ, romanized: ʾÄməḥära) are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group which is indigenous to Ethiopia, traditionally inhabiting parts of the northwest Highlands of Ethiopia, particularly inhabiting the Amhara Region. According to the 2007 national census, Amharas numbered 19,867,817 individuals, comprising 26.9% of Ethiopia's population, and they are mostly Oriental Orthodox Christian (members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church). They are also found within the Ethiopian expatriate community, particularly in North America. They speak Amharic, an Afro-Asiatic language of the Semitic branch which serves as the main and one of the five official languages of Ethiopia. As of 2018, Amharic has over 32 million native speakers and 25 million second language speakers. The Amhara and neighboring groups in North and Central Ethiopia and Eritrea, more specifically the diaspora refer to themselves as "Habesha" (Abyssinian) people. Historically, the Amhara held significant political position in the Ethiopian Empire. They were at the origin of the Solomonic dynasty and all the Solomonic emperors were Amhara with the exception of Yohannes IV since the restoration of the dynasty in 1270.

Amhara, people of the Ethiopian central highlands. The Amhara are one of the two largest ethnolinguistic groups in Ethiopia (the other group being the Oromo). They constitute more than one-fourth of the country’s population. The Amharic language is an Afro-Asiatic language belonging to the Southwest Semitic group. It is related to Geʿez, the sacred literary language of the Ethiopian Orthodox church, an ancient religion that took root in the Aksum Empire in the 4th–5th century and affirmed a miaphysite doctrine. The Amhara, along with the Tigray peoples, are the principal adherents of this church. The Amhara long dominated the history of their country; Amharic was the official language of Ethiopia until the 1990s, and it remains important. As descendants of a southward movement of ancient Semitic conquerors who mingled with indigenous Cushitic peoples, they inhabit much of the central and western parts of present-day Ethiopia. All except one of the country’s emperors from 1270 to 1974 were Amhara; this dominance created competitive quarrels between the Amhara and their northern neighbours, the Tigray, and other Ethiopian ethnic groups, such as the Oromo. Tensions rose between the Amhara and the Oromo during the period of socialist rule (1974–91), as the Oromo claimed an increasingly prominent role in the nation’s social and political affairs. After 1991 a measure of Amhara sentiment was directed against the Tigray, who had gained influence during the struggle against the Marxists.

Since the 1990s, the Amhara people of Ethiopia have been subject to ethnic violence, including massacres by Tigrayan, Oromo and Gumuz ethnic groups among others, which some have characterized as a genocide.^{[excessive citations]} Large-scale killings and grave human rights violations followed the implementation of the ethnic-federalist system in the country. In most of the cases, the mass murders were silent with perpetrators from various ethno-militant groups— from TPLF/TDF, OLF–OLA, and Gumuz armed groups. Ethnically motivated attacks against the Amhara have been reported, with mass graves being discovered in various locations. The results of two consecutive National Census Analyses and a report by CSA head Samia Gutu revealed that over 2 million Amhara could not be traced. The figure is generally associated with the decades-long massacres and enforced disappearances of the Amhara people. From the ongoing nature of the violence, the actual number is expected to be higher. The Tigrayan People's Liberation Front (TPLF) among other groups were formed in the 1970s with a manifesto and plan, for Tigray to secede from Ethiopia. Previous resentments between ethnic Tigray and Amhara rulers were seeking recognition as the legitimate defender of Ethiopianism was reported. The Tigray manifesto is criticized for incorporating polarizing contents that symbolize the Amhara people as the responsible ethnic group for socio-economical, and country-level political and historical issues. Violence against ordinary Amhara, its intellectuals, and civic leaders started in the early 1990s, with the armed Liberation Front groups occupying many parts of the country.

The Amhara Region (Amharic: አማራ ክልል, Åmara Kilil), officially the Amhara National Regional State (Amharic: የአማራ ብሔራዊ ክልላዊ መንግሥት), is a regional state in northern Ethiopia and the homeland of the Amhara, Awi, Xamir, Argoba, and Qemant people. Its capital is Bahir Dar which is the seat of the Regional Government of Amhara. Amhara is the site of the largest inland body of water in Ethiopia, Lake Tana (which is the source of the Blue Nile), and Semien Mountains National Park (which includes Ras Dashan, the highest point in Ethiopia). Amhara is bordered by Sudan to the west and northwest and by other the regions of Ethiopia: Tigray to the north, Afar to the east, Benishangul-Gumuz to the west and southwest, and Oromia to the south. Towns and cities in Amhara include: Bahir Dar, Dessie, Gonder, Debre Birhan, Debre Tabor, Kombolcha, Weldiya, Debre Markos, Seqota, Kobo, and Metema. During the Ethiopian Empire, Amhara included several provinces (such as Dembiya, Gojjam, Begemder, Angot, Wollo, Shewa and Lasta), most of which were ruled by native Ras or Negus. The current Amhara region corresponds to often large parts of the former provinces of Begemder, Dembiya, Angot, Bete Amhara (Wollo), Gojjam and Shewa. With the rise of the Solomonic Dynasty in 1270 under Emperor Yekuno Amlak (born in the Maqdalla region) and until the establishment of Gondar as the new imperial capital around 1600, the Debre-Birhan to Mekane-Selassie region was the primary seat of the roving Wolloye-Shewan emperors. This period is most significant in the formation of the medieval Ethiopian state, the spread and consolidation of Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity (following the example set by the Zagwe kings in preserving the Axumite heritage) and propagating to the core provinces (besides Tigray/Eritrea, and Lasta) of Bete Amhara, Gojjam, Begemder, northern Shewa, Gafat, and Damot.

The Amhara are the politically and culturally dominant ethnic group of Ethiopia. They are located primarily in the central highland plateau of Ethiopia and comprise the major population element in the provinces of Begemder and Gojjam and in parts of Shoa and Wallo. In terms of the total Ethiopian population, however, the Amhara are a numerical minority. The national population has usually been placed at between 14 and 22 million. It is generally estimated that the Amhara, together with the closely related Tigre, constitute about one-third of this total population. One of the most recent estimates gives the number of native speakers of Amharic, the language of the Amhara, as approximately 7,800,000. Their national clothes are basically white, whether the shawls and light blankets worn over the shoulders by the men or the white dresses and wraps worn by the ladies. Life in the Amhara farming society is hard. Many Amhara live in the harsh and stark mountains, easy to defend, but making it difficult to travel and gain provisions. The men in the fields, the women around the house and the children at home and watching the sheep--all work very hard. The fields are plowed with oxen, seeds are sown and harvested by hand, and the harvest is threshed by the feet of animals. In the home, the primary cooking fuel is the dried dung of the farm animals. Nothing is wasted.

The Amhara People, also known as Abyssinians, are an ethnic group traditionally inhabiting the northern and central highlands of Ethiopia, particularly the Amhara Region. The Amhara, who are the second largest ethno-linguistic group after the Oromo people, are descendants of ancient Semitic conquerors who migrated southward to mingled with indigenous Cushitic peoples who built the powerful ancient Kingdom of Aksum in Ethiopia. They claim ancestry through Shem the eldest son of biblical Noah and trace their lineage all the way to King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba; aw well as the legendary ancient King Menelik I. They carried that same ancestral line all the way to 1974 with Emperor Haile Selassie. Also, about 50 % of the Amhara are part of what is known as the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, which is an ancient Christian church founded around the 4th century. The Amhara appear to be descended from the same people group as the Tigray-Tigrinya people. Their Sabaean ancestors came to the highlands of what is now Eritrea and Ethiopia from the Arabian Peninsula. These Semitic migrants gradually mixed with the Cushitic peoples there. Successive waves of migrations across the Red Sea straits and around the Horn have enriched the mix of cultural and genetic heritage in the historical period. Recent reconstruction of human prehistory from DNA studies indicates this narrow southern end of the Red Sea was the major point from which original humans moved from the African continent into Asia and on to the East and West. This area has continued to be the crossing point for migrations in both directions in recent millennia.

The term "Amhara" is derived from amari, meaning "one who is pleasing, agreeable, beautiful, and gracious." Amhara culture is often identified with Abyssinian culture, which is regarded as the heir to the cultural blending of ancient Semitic and Cushitic (African) patterns; other heirs are the Tigre-speaking people of Eritrea, and the Tegreñña speakers of northern Ethiopia. The name "Ethiopia" is derived from an ancient Greek term meaning "people with sunburned faces" and has been revived to designate the present-day state, which also includes non-Abyssinians. The Amhara themselves often use the term "Amhara" synonymously with "Ethiopian Orthodox (Monophysite) Christian," although their own, more precise expression for this religion is "Towahedo" (Orthodox). In the past, books on Ethiopia have often referred to this religion as "Coptic," derived from the Greek term for Egyptian. Until Haile Selassie was crowned emperor in 1930, the Coptic metropolitan of Alexandria, Egypt, had also been the head of this Ethiopian church and had appointed Ethiopian archbishops. Much Amhara ingenuity has long been invested in the direct exploitation of natural resources. An Amhara would rather spend as much time as necessary searching for suitably shaped hard or soft saplings for a walking cane than perform carpentry, which is traditionally largely limited to constructing the master bed (alga ), wooden saddles, and simple musical instruments. Soap is obtained by crushing the fruit of the endod (Pircunia abyssinica ) bush. Tannin for depilation of hides and curing is obtained from the yellow fruit of the embway bush. Butter is preserved and perfumed by boiling it with the leaves of the odes (myrtle) bush. In times of crop failure, edible oil is obtained by gathering and crushing wild-growing sunflower seeds (Carthamus tinctorus ). If necessary, leaves of the lola bush can be split by women to bake the festive bread dabbo. The honey of a small, tiny-stingered bee (Apis dorsata ) is gathered to produce alcoholic mead, tej, whereas the honey of the wild bee tazemma (Apis Africans miaia ) is gathered to treat colds and heart ailments. Fishing is mostly limited to the three-month rainy season, when rivers are full and the water is muddy from runoff so that the fish cannot see the fishers. Hunting elephants used to be a sport of young feudal nobles, but hunting for ivory took place largely in non-Amhara regions. Since rifles became available in Amhara farming regions, Ethiopian duikers and guinea fowl have nearly disappeared.

A spectre is haunting Ethiopia. It is the spectre of Amhara nationalism. The Amhara question is reverberating all across the country and among Ethiopians abroad. If the rising influence and popularity of nationalist narratives and the power they unleash have not already made obvious the power of Amhara nationalism, the ‘coup d’état’ against the Amhara regional government on 22 June 2019 certainly should. The ‘coup d’état’ involved the assassination of the Amhara regional governor and the chief of staff of the Ethiopian Defense Forces and their aides. In Ethiopia, ethnic politics is now entering a new era, which involves a massive assessment of an Amhara ethnic identity. People are raising pertinent questions and deliberating if they have a shared history to cherish and an ethnicity of their own. ‘We now call ourselves Amhara, first and foremost; we are mobilizing to reaffirm our Amhara identity and redefine an Amhara horizon’, says Belete Molla, the chairman of the National Movement of Amhara (NaMA). Meanwhile, political statements have begun to come forward. These include the unprecedented war of words between the former Amhara Democratic Party (ADP) and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) in mid-July 2019.3 The rising tension between the two parties followed the latter’s issuance of a strong statement denouncing the ADP in the wake of the 22 June ‘coup d’état’.

Amhara culture, nestled in the highlands of Ethiopia, weaves a tapestry of rich heritage, captivating traditions, and a deep sense of identity that spans millennia. As one of Ethiopia’s largest ethnic groups, the Amhara people have contributed significantly to the country’s history, art, literature, and way of life. At the heart of Amhara culture lies a profound appreciation for family and community. Family bonds are cherished, and respect for elders is a cornerstone of their societal fabric. Generations gather to celebrate milestones, passing down wisdom, stories, and customs to keep the flame of tradition alive. Language plays an essential role in preserving Amhara culture. Amharic, a Semitic language with its unique script, serves as a unifying force among the Amhara people, facilitating communication and preserving a vast reservoir of literature and poetry. The beauty of Amharic prose and the mesmerizing rhythm of its poetry are treasured elements of their cultural heritage. Religion deeply influences the Amhara way of life. The majority of Amhara people are adherents of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. Their religious practices, characterized by vibrant ceremonies, colorful festivals, and reverence for religious sites, intertwine with their daily routines, fostering a sense of spirituality that permeates every aspect of Amhara culture. Music and dance are an integral part of the Amhara experience. From traditional folk music to rhythmic dances, these expressions embody the joy and resilience of the Amhara people. Dance forms like the “Eskista” captivate with their intricate movements and vibrant costumes, reflecting the group’s unique character and distinctiveness.

The Amhara are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group or tribe traditionally inhabiting regions of Ethiopia’s Northwest Highlands, especially in the Amhara region. According to the 2007 national census, the Amhara numbered over 19,000,000 individuals, comprising more than 26% of Ethiopia’s population. They are mostly Orthodox Christian members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. The Amhara are also within the Ethiopian expatriate society or community, especially in North America. The Amhara speak Amharic. Amharic is an Afro-Asiatic language of the Semitic branch. The Amharic serves as the official language of Ethiopia. Some scholars or western sources have classified the Amhara and the Tigrayans as Abyssinians. They have historically inhabited the central, western, and northern regions or parts of Ethiopia. The people are primarily agriculturalists, perhaps comprising or constituting the earliest farming group in Ethiopia. Other groups such as Gurages, Agews, Gafats, Hararis, and Argobbas chiefly use and produce domesticated grains native to their area, such as Nug and Teff. Some suggest the Amhara’s origin to be present-day Yemen, the Aksum Empire, and shifted to Sayint, now known as Wollo, a place that people knew as the Amhara region in the past. The Amhara people are presently one of the two largest tribes or ethnic groups in the Ethiopian state, along with the Oromo. In the modern sense, the region now called Amhara in the feudal period comprised several provinces with less or greater autonomy. They include Gojjam, Wollo, Gondar, Lasta, Shewa, Angot, Semien, and Fetegar. The traditional homeland of the Amhara people is the central highland plateau of Ethiopia. For more than two centuries, they have inhabited this area.

The Amhara (pronounced am-HAH-ruh) are mostly farmers who live in the north central highlands of Ethiopia. The Amhara display a mixed physiological heritage. They speak a Semitic language, and historical and linguistic factors, compared with their primary myths of origin, seem to indicate that their Semitic ancestors came from what is modern-day Yemen. Addis Abeba, the capital of Ethiopia and of the previous Amhara Abyssinian Empire, is home for many Amhara but actually an enclave within the land of the Oromo peoples. Many Amhara live in other countries as well, including neighboring nations Eritrea and Djibouti. Populations are found in major metropolitan areas of North America. According to their traditions they trace their roots to Menelik I, the child born of the queen of Sheba and King Solomon. Most scholars agree their traditions and legends are quite fanciful, though they seem to contain, as legends of origin commonly do, a core of historical information. Surely the people's own oral traditions have to be considered in reconstructing their history. There are extensive sources reporting on their traditions. They are so well- known as to be considered common knowledge. These oral traditions seem to reflect a historical link to the Sabaean (Sabean or Sheban) people, referred to in several ancient sources. It is thought that the Sabaean (Sheban) people began to settle on the west coast of the Red Sea, from their home in southern Arabia, about 1000 BC. Menelik I was the first of the Solomonic line of rulers of Ethiopia that ended only with the deposing of Emperor Haile Selassie in 1974. By about 400 BC their civilization became the Axum Empire, based on a mixture of the early Sabaean culture and the prior Cushitic culture. Axum ruled the region till in the 900s AD. Historian Basil Davidson includes this historical event in his Chronologue of African history: "Origins of Axumite culture in northeast Ethiopia by synthesis of local people and immigrants from southern Arabia." The ruins of the ancient city of Axum can still be seen in Tigray Province. Except for a few notable exceptions, the Amhara have been the dominant people group in Ethiopia history. The strength of their culture is shown in this influence though they number only about 17 million of the estimated 53 million population of modern Ethiopia (figures from the 1994 Ethiopian census: 17,400,000 mother- tongue speakers). Population figures vary by source. People Groups.org reports the current global population as 32,664,400.

The term "Amhara" is derived from AMARI, meaning "one who is pleasing, agreeable, beautiful, and gracious." Amhara culture is often identified with Abyssinian culture, which is regarded as the heir to the cultural blending of ancient Semitic and Cushitic (African) patterns; other heirs are the Tigre [Tigray]-speaking people of Eritrea, and the Tigreñña [Triginya] speakers of northern Ethiopia. The Amhara themselves often employ the term "Amhara" synonymously with "Ethiopian Orthodox (Monophysite) Christian, " although their own, more precise expression for this religion is "Tewahedo" (Orthodox). Ethiopia is located in the northeastern part of Africa, roughly between 5 and 16 degrees north latitude and between 33 and 43 degrees east longitude. It is mountainous, separated from the Red Sea by hot lowland deserts; a steep escarpment in the west borders the hot lowland in the Sudan. The mountain-fortress type of landscape has frequently enabled the plateau people to retain their independence against would-be invaders. The provinces of Begemder [Gonder], Gojam, and Welo [Wallo] are Amharic speaking, as are parts of Shewa [Shoa] since Amhara expansion. According to the 1984 census, the population of Ethiopia was estimated as 42 million. Of these, 28 percent referred to themselves as "Amhara, " and 32 percent stated that they spoke Amharic at home. Hence, about 14 million could be identified as Amhara, subject to qualification, by the effects of Amharization during the rule of Emperor Haile Selassie (1930-1974) and the political strife against Amhara domination since then.

The religious belief of most Amhara is Monophysite—that is, Tewahedo (Orthodox) Christianity, to such an extent that the term "Amhara" is used synonymously with "Abyssinian Christian." Christian Amhara wear a blue neck cord ( meteb ), to distinguish themselves from Muslims, In rural regions, the rules of the church have the de facto force of law, and many people are consecrated to church functions: priests, boy deacons and church students, chorister-scribes, monks, and nuns. Besides the ecclesiastical function of the qes (parish priest), the chorister-scribe—who is not ordained—fulfills many services. He translates the liturgy from Ge'ez to Amharic, chants and sometimes composes devotional poetry ( qēnē ), and writes amulets. The latter may be unofficial and discouraged by the priests, but ailing persons believe strongly in them and may use them to prevent disease. Prior to examinations, church students often chew and swallow a Datura weed called astenager (lit., "to stimulate talk") to enhance memory of biblical quotations and other details learned by rote and to aid correct pronunciation of the liturgy. Ceremonies often mark the annual cycle for the public, despite the sacredotal emphasis of the religion. The calendar of Abyssinia is Julian, but the year begins on 11 September, following ancient Egyptian usage, and is called amete mehrāt (year of grace). Thus, the Abyssinian year 1948 A . M . corresponds roughly with the Gregorian (Western) A . D . 1956. The new year begins with the month of Meskerem, which follows the rainy season and is named after the first religious holy day of the year, Mesqel-abeba, celebrating the Feast of the Cross. On the seventeenth day, huge poles are stacked up for the bonfire in the evening, with much public parading, dancing, and feasting. By contrast, Christmas (Ledet) has little social significance except for the genna game of the young men. Far more important is Epiphany (Temqet), on the eleventh day of Ter. Ceremonial parades escort the priests who carry the tabot, symbolic of the holy ark, on their heads, to a water pool. There are all-night services, public feasting, and prayers for plentiful rains. This is the end of the genna season and the beginning of the guks tournaments fought on horseback by the young men. The long Lenten season is approaching, and clergy as well as the public look forward to the feasting at Easter (Fassika), on the seventeenth day of Miyazya. Children receive new clothes and collect gifts, chanting house to house. Even the voluntary fraternal association mehabber is said to have originated from the practice of private communion. Members take turns as hosts at monthly meetings, drinking barley beer together with the confessor-priest, who intones prayers. Members are expected to act as a mutual aid society, raising regular contributions, extending loans, even paying for the tazkar (formal memorial service) forty days after a member's death, if his family cannot afford it.

The Amhara appear to be descended from the same people group as the Tigray-Tigrinya people. Their Sabaean ancestors came to the highlands of what is now Eritrea and Ethiopia from the Arabian peninsula. These Semitic migrants gradually mixed with the Cushitic peoples there. Successive waves of migrations across the Red Sea straits and around the Horn have enriched the mix of cultural and genetic heritage in the historical period. The name is sometimes rendered Amara, from their name for themselves in the Amharic language. Recent reconstruction of human prehistory from DNA studies indicates this narrow southern end of the Red Sea was the major point from which original humans moved from the African continent into Asia and on to the East and West. This area has continued to be the crossing point for migrations in both directions in recent millennia. The mix of Cushite and Semitic peoples were united over the centuries in the Amhara-Tigray empire, called Abyssinia. This word Abyssinia is a derivation from the name for a group of the Tigray people at that time, the Habash. The Amhara and Tigrinya-Tigray groups claim close ties with the Jews, having adopted many cultural values and religious beliefs from them. The basic ancestry of the Amhara is Semitic, as is their language. But they became a unique people as they intermarried and absorbed some of the Cushitic peoples who preceded them in this area. There was a strong Oromo strain in the royal family and nobles. The Amhara features are similar to the southern Arabs, olive to brown skin, with fine features and dark circles around the eyes. Most sources say the name comes from the word amari, meaning "pleasing, agreeable, beautiful and gracious." The national and ethnic identity of the Amhara has been strongly intertwined with a form of the Christian faith since about 350 CE, when Syrian (Nestorian) Christianity was introduced to the royal family by a young Syrian sailor. After the Royal Family accepted the new faith, they requested missionaries from Syria and later developed ties with the Egyptian Church, hence the inclusion of the term Coptic (Egyptian) in the name of the Ethiopian Coptic Orthodox Church since early times.