HISTORY OF

ETHIOPIA AND THE

HORN
SHORT NOTE BY ETIEL
TUTORIAL
 UNIT ONE
1.1. The Nature and Uses of History
IN THIS CHAPTER WE WILL SEE
1. WHAT IS HISTORY ?
2. WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF HISTORY ?
3. WHAT IS THE USE OF HISTORY ?
4. WHAT IS HISTORIOGRAPHY ?
5. WHAT IS HISTORIOGRAPHY OF ETHIOPIA ?
6. WHAT IS THE GEOGRAPHICAL CONTEXT ?
1.1, Nature of History
• The term history derived from the • Historians select which topics and
Greek word Istoria, means “inquiry” problems they wish to study , which
or “an account of one’s inquiries.” means they select specific concern from
the past.
• The first use of the term is attributed
• The major concern of history is the study
to one of the ancient Greek
of human society and its interaction with
historians, Herodotus (Father of the natural environment .
history) .
• What differentiates history from other
• In ordinary usage, history means all disciplines is that history studies the
the things that have happened in the interaction between the two in the past
human past. within the framework of the continuous
• In MODERN Definition history is an process of change taking place in time .
organized and systematic study of the • historians organize and divide the human
past. past into discrete period ,which is in to
ancient, medieval and modern history.
• The study involves the
• The basic fabric of society in Ethiopia and
discovery ,collection, organization, the Horn remains similar and continues
and presentation of information to have special characteristics .
about past events
 1.2, Uses of History
1, History helps to better understand the 4, History Teaches Critical Skill
present
history is the only significant store house of
Help students to develop key research
information available for the examination and skills.
analysis of how people behaved and acted in Includes how to find and evaluate
the past .
sources; how to make coherent
2, History provides a sense of Identity
arguments based on various kinds of
Knowledge of history is indispensable to
understand who we are and where we fit the
evidence .
world 5, History Helps to Develop Tolerance
It is only through sense of history that and open mindedness
communities defines their identity , orient
them , and understand their relationships with Studying different societies in the past
the past and with otehr societies . .
3, History provides the basic background for 6, History supplies endless source of
other disciplines
fascination
History is extremely valuable for other
disciplines such as Anthropology , sociology , Only by history we can grasp how and
religion , Art , philosophy , political science . why things change .
 1.3 Source of History
• Historians are not creative writers like novelists. • Secondary materials give us what appear to be finished
Therefore, the work of historians must be supported accounts of certain historical periods and phenomena.
by evidence arising from sources. • Nevertheless, no history work can be taken as final, as
• Sources are instruments that bring to life what new sources keep coming to light
appear to have been dead. • Oral sources are especially valuable to study and
• With out sources, there is no history. document the history of non-literate societies.
• Sources are key to the study and writing of history. • Oral sources can be primary and secondary sources .
• Primary sources are original or first hand in their • By this method people transmit information from one
proximity to the event both in time and in space. generation to another .
• Examples of primary sources are :- manuscripts
• For the history of Ethiopia and the Horn, historians use
a combination of the sources
(handwritten materials), diaries, letters, minutes,
court records and administrative files, travel • However, whatever the source of information-primary
documents, photographs, maps, video and or secondary, written or oral- the data should be
audiovisual materials, and artifacts such as coins, subjected to critical evaluation before used as
fossils, weapons, utensils, and buildings. evidence.
• Secondary sources are second-hand published • Primary sources have to be verified for their originality
accounts about past events. and authenticity because sometimes primary sources
like letters may be forged.
• They are written long after the event has occurred
• Secondary sources have to be examined for the
and often based on primary sources.
reliability of their reconstructions.
• Examples of secondary sources are articles, books, • Oral data may lose its originality and authenticity due
textbooks, biographies, and published stories or to distortion through time. Therefore, it should be
movies . crosschecked with other sources
 1.4 Historiography
• Historiography can be defined as the history of historical • The earliest written Ethiopian material dates from
writing . the seventh century A.D is the document that
• Historiography study knowledge of the past, either recent found in Abba Gerima monastery in Yeha.
or distant, is obtained and transmitted.
• The organized study and narration of the past was
• This was followed by a manuscript discovered in
introduced by ancient Greek historians notably Herodotus Haiq Istifanos monastery of present day Wollo in
and Thucydides the thirteenth century A.D.
• The most important early figure in Chinese historical • The largest groups of sources available for
thought and writing was the Han dynasty figure Sima Qian medieval Ethiopian history are hagiographies
• History emerged as an acdamic discipline in the second half originating from Ethiopian Orthodox Church.
of the nineteenth century first in Europe and subsequently
in other parts of the world including the US . • Hagiographies is enhancing the prestige of saints.
• The German historian, Leopold and his colleagues • A parallel hagiographical tradition existed among
established history as an independent discipline in Berlin Muslim communities of the country. One such
with its own set of methods and concept
account offers tremendous insight into the life of
• He is considered as the “father of modern historiography."
a Muslim saint, Shaykh Ja’far Bukko of Gattira, in
• Historiography of Ethiopia and the Horn has changed present day Wollo, in the late nineteenth
enormously during the past hundred years.
century. Besides the saint’s life, the development
• The earliest known reference that we have on history of of indigenous Islam and contacts between the
Ethiopia and the Horn is the Periplus of the Erythrean Sea,
written in the first century A.D by an anonymous author. region’s Muslim community and the outside
• Another document describing Aksum’s trade and the world are some of the issues discussed in this
Aksumite king’s campaigns on both sides of the sea is the document
Christian Topography composed by Cosmas Indicopleustes, • Ethiopia had also an indigenous tradition of
a Greek sailor, in the sixth century A.D.
history writing called chronicles.
• Chronicles in the ancient Ethiopian Ge’ez tongue first • Abba Bahrey’s Geez script on the Oromo written in 1593.
appeared in the 14th century and continue (sometimes in • The document provides us with first-hand information about the Oromo
Amharic) into the early 20th population movement including the Gadaa System
• The contribution of development of European missionaries and travelers to
• The earliest and the last of such surviving documents are the the Ethiopian historiography is also significant .
Glorious Victories of Amde-Tsion and the Chronicle of Abeto • From the early sixteenth until the late nineteenth centuries missionaries
Iyasu and Empress Zewditu respectively . (Catholics and Protestants) came to the country .
• chronicles explain historical events mainly in religious terms . • Missionaries sources provide us with valuable information covering a
considerable period. Some of the major topics covered by these sources include
• Chronciles environs in palace . religious and political developments within Ethiopia, and the country’s foreign
relations.
• Chronciles provide a glimpse in to the character and live of • An example of such account is " The Prester John of the Indies ", composed by
kings , also they offer little information about the social and a Portuguese priest, Francisco Alvarez who accompanied the Portuguese
economic development compared with Hagiography and mission to the court of Lebne-Dengel in 1520 .
Travel accounts . • Travel documents had important contribution to the development of Ethiopian
historiography .
• Written accounts of Arabic speaking visitors to the coast also
• One example of travel documents is James Bruce’s Travels to Discover the
provide useful information on various aspects of regions Source of the Nile . Like other sources, however, both the missionaries and
history . travelers’ materials can only be used with considerable reservations and with
care for they are socially and politically biased.
• For example :- Al - Masudi and Ibn Batuta described the
• Foreign writers also developed interest in Ethiopian studies. One of these
culture , language , import - export trade in the main central figures was a German, Hiob Ludolf .
region of East Africa cost in 10th and 14th century respectively • Ludolf was the founder of Ethiopian studies in Europe in the seventeenth
. century.
• In 16th and 17th century , we have two documents composed • He wrote Historia Aethiopica (translated into English as A New History of
by Yemeni writer's who were eye witnesses to the events Ethiopia).
they described • Ludolf never visited Ethiopia; he wrote the country’s history largely based on
information he collected from an Ethiopian priest named Abba Gorgorios
• The first document titled '' Futuh Al Habesha '' was composed (Abba Gregory) who was in Europe at that time .
by Shihab Al - Din , who recoreded the conflict b/n Christian • In the nineteenth century, August Dillman published two studies on ancient
kingdom and Muslim principalities in 16th century . Ethiopian history.
• Compared to Ludolf , Dillman demonstrated all markers of objectivity in his
• The other document left to us by Al - Haymi who lead a historical research endeavors .
Yemeni delegation in 1647 to the Court of Fasildas
1.5 HISTORIOGRAPHY OF
ETHIOPIA
In the early twentieth century saw the emergence of traditional Ethiopian Yilma Deressa is another important writer who wrote Ye Ityopiya Tarik Be’asra
writers who made conscious efforts to distance themselves from chroniclers Sidistegnaw Kifle Zemen(A History of Ethiopia in the Sixteenth Century).
whom they criticized for adulatory tone when writing about monarchs. The book addresses the Oromo population movement and the wars between
The earliest group of these writers are :- the Christian kingdom and the Muslim sultanate .
1, Aleqa Taye Gebre mariam Blatten Geta Mahteme-Selassie Wolde-Meskel wrote Zikre Neger
2, Aleqa Asme Giorgis Zikre Neger is a comprehensive account of Ethiopia’s prewar land tenure
systems and taxation
3, Debtera fisseha - Giorgis
Another work dealing specifically with aspects of land tenure is left to us by
Later , Negadrases Afework Gebre Iyesus and Gebre Hiwot Baykedagn Gebre-Wold Engidawork .
joined them
Dejazmach Kebede Tesema wrote his memoir of the imperial period,
Taye and Fisseha-Giorgis wrote books on the history of Ethiopia published as Yetarik Mastawesha in 1962 E.C
Asme produced a similar work on the Oromo people. The 1960s was a crucial decade in the development of Ethiopian
Afework wrote the first Amharic novel, Tobiya, in Ethiopian history . historiography for it was in this period that history emerged as an academic
Gebre-Hiwot has Atse Menilekna Ityopia (Emperor Menilek and Ethiopia) discipline .
and Mengistna Yehizb Astedader (Government and Public Administration) to In 1963 " The department of History " was opened in the Haile Selassie I
his name. university ( HSIU ) .
Gebre-Hiwot is the most prolific writer of the early twentieth century In 1979 and 1990 department launched its MA and PHD programs respectively
Blatten Geta Hiruy Wolde -Selassie published four major works namely .
Ethiopiana Metema (Ethiopia and Metema), Wazema (Eve), Yehiwot Tarik (A Institute of Ethiopian studies ( IES ) found on 1963 and is Institutional home of
Biographical Dictionary) and Yeityopia Tarik (A History of Ethiopia). professional historiography of Ethiopia .
Gebre-Hiwot and Hiruy exhibited relative objectivity and methodological Richard Pankhurst an historian in IES , the First Director and Fonuding
sophistication in their works member of the institute .
The Italian occupation of Ethiopia interrupted the early experiment in He has authored and co - authored Twenty two books and several hundred
modern history writing and publications . articles on Ethiopia .
After liberation, Tekle-Tsadik Mekuria formed a bridge between writers in The decolonization of Africans required new Methodological approch to the
pre-1935 and Ethiopia professional historians who came after him. study of the past , which involves a oral data tapping the precepts of ancillary
disciplines like anthropology , archeology and linguistics .
Tekle-Tsadik has published about eight historical works.
Foundation research was done at school of oriental and African studies
Tekle-Tsadik made better evaluation of his sources than his predecessors. ( SOAS) in London and Department of history at Wisconsin Madison
university ..
1.7 GEOGRAPHICAL
CONTEXT OF ETHIOPIA AND
THE HORN
The term “Ethiopia and the Horn” refers to that part of Northeast Ethiopia and Horn lies between the Red Sea , Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean on
Africa . the one hand, and the present-day eastern frontiers of Sudan and Kenya on the
other .
which currently contains the countries of Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia,
The Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden linked Northeast Africa to the Eastern
and Somalia . Mediterranean , the Near and Middle East , India , and the Far East .
This region consists mountains that are uplifted because of the Great The Indian Ocean has linked East Africa to the Near and Middle East, India and
Rift Valley . the Far East .
The Rift Valley is a fissure in the Earth’s crust running down from Syria Ethiopia and the horn - has 5 principal drainage system
to Mozambique and marking the separation of the African and 1. Nile River 3 . Awash River
Arabian tectonic plates. 2. Gibe / omo Gojeb 4 . Ethiopian Rift Valley lake
The major physiographic features of the North east region are :- 5 . Genale / Jubba - shebele
1. Massive highland 1 . NILE RIVER - Flowing from Uganda in the south to the Sudan in the north,
the White Nile meets the Blue Nile (Abay ) in Ethiopia that starts from the
2. Complex mountains and plateaus environs of Tana Lake In Khartoum and eventually, drains into the
3. Divided by Rift Valley Mediterranean Sea through Egypt .
4. Sourrounded by low lands , semi desert , desert and tropical 2.The Awash River System - is an entirely Ethiopian system and links the cool
Forests rich highlands of Central Ethiopia with the hot, dry lowlands of the Danakil
Depression .
People across this region are diverse , speak many languages , live in 3. The Ethiopian Rift Valley Lakes System - is a self-contained drainage basin,
variety types of dwellings however peoples of the region were never and includes a string of lakes stretching from Lake Ziway in the north to Lake
isolated , they interact through history and also share common past . Turkana ( Rudolf ) on the EthioKenyan border.
The history of Ethiopia and the Horn has been shaped by contacts 4. The Gibe /Omo–Gojeb River System - links southern Ethiopia to the semi -
with others through commerce, migrations, wars, slavery , desert lowlands of northern Kenya .
colonialism , and the waxing and waning of state systems . 5. The Shebele and Genale rivers - originate in the Eastern highlands and flow
southeast toward Somalia and the Indian Ocean .
Geographical Factors Only the Genale (known as the Jubba in Somalia) makes it to the Indian Ocean .
1. Location 2. Landforms Studying the drainage systems of Ethiopia and the Horn is crucial for proper
3. Resource endowment 4. Climate understanding of the relationships of the peoples living within the river basins .
5. Drainage systems Ethiopia and the horn can be divided in to three major distinct environment
zones .
END OF FIRST UNIT
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THIS NOTE