Portal:Ethiopia

Topics Culture Geography Health History Mathematics Nature People Philosophy Religion Society Technology Ethiopia /ˌiːθiˈoʊpiə/ (Ge'ez: ኢትዮጵያ ʾĪtyōṗṗyā), a landlocked state in the Horn of Africa, is one of the most ancient countries in the world. Officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, it is the second most populous nation in Africa with over 80.2 million people and the tenth largest by area. The capital is Addis Ababa. Ethiopia is bordered by Djibouti and Somalia to the east, Kenya to the south, Eritrea to the north, and Sudan and South Sudan to the west. Though most African countries are far less than a century old, Ethiopia has been an independent country since ancient times. A monarchical state for most of its history, the Ethiopian dynasty traces its roots to the 10th century BC. Besides being an ancient country, Ethiopia is one of the oldest sites of human existence known to scientists today—having yielded some of humanity's oldest traces, it might be the place where Homo sapiens first set out for the Middle East and points beyond. When Africa was divided up by European powers at the Berlin Conference, Ethiopia was one of only two countries that retained its independence. It was one of only three African members of the League of Nations, and after a brief period of Italian occupation, Ethiopia became a charter member of the United Nations. When other African nations received their independence following World War II, many of them adopted the colors of Ethiopia's flag, and Addis Ababa became the location of several international organizations focused on Africa. The Modern Ethiopian state, and its current borders, are a result of significant territorial reduction in the north and expansion in the south, toward its present borders, owing to several migrations and commercial integration as well as conquests, particularly by Emperor Menelik II and Ras Gobena. In 1974, the dynasty led by Haile Selassie was overthrown as civil wars intensified. Since then, Ethiopia has been a secular state with a variety of governmental systems. Today, Addis Ababa is still the site of the headquarters of the African Union and UNECA. The country has arguably one of the most powerful militaries in Africa. Eritrea and Ethiopia are the only African countries with their own alphabet. Ethiopia also has its own time system and unique calendar, seven to eight years behind the Gregorian Calendar. It has the largest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Africa. Selected panorama Crater Lake Landscape near Debre Zeyt, Ethiopia Selected article 120px The 2007–2008 Ethiopian crackdown in Ogaden was a campaign involving the Ethiopian Army on the offensive against the rebel Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF). The crackdown against the guerrillas began after they killed 74 people in an attack on a Chinese-run oil exploration field in April 2007. The main military operations were centered around the towns of Degehabur, Kebri Dahar, Werder and Shilavo in Ogaden, which are in the Ethiopian Somali Region. The area is home to the Ogaden clan, seen as the bedrock of support to the ONLF. According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), various human rights abuses were committed by the Ethiopian Military and ONLF rebels. Hundreds of civilians were killed and tens of thousands were displaced in 2007 alone, though exact figures are unknown because the area is remote and Ethiopian officials have restricted access for humanitarian groups and journalists. (Read more...) Selected picture Credit: Jialiang Gao The Blue Nile Falls fed by Lake Tana near the city of Bahar Dar, Ethiopia forms the upstream of the Blue Nile. WikiProject Ethiopia WikiProject Africa Selected biography Amda Seyon (also Amde Tsiyon and other variants, Ge'ez ዐምደ ፡ ጽዮን ʿamda ṣiyōn, Amharic āmde ṣiyōn, "Pillar of Zion") was Emperor of Ethiopia (1314–1344; throne name Gebre Mesqel Ge'ez ገብረ ፡ መስቀል gabra masḳal, Amh. gebre mesḳel, "slave of the cross"), and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. According to the British expert on Ethiopia, Edward Ullendorff, "Amde Tseyon was one of the most outstanding Ethiopian kings of any age and a singular figure dominating the Horn of Africa in the fourteenth century." His conquests of Muslim borderlands greatly expanded Ethiopian territory and power in the region, maintained for centuries after his death. Amda Seyon asserted the strength of the newly (1270) installed Solomonic dynasty and therefore legitimized it. These expansions further provided for the spread of Christianity to frontier areas, sparking a long era of proselytization, Christianization, and integration of previously peripheral areas. (Read more...) The following Wikimedia sister projects provide more on this subject: What are portals? List of portals Featured portals