Hist.

1012: History of
Ethiopia and the Horn
 UNIT ONE

INTRODUCTION
1.1. The Nature and Uses of History
A. Nature of History
• History, Greek Istoria and Herodotus
• The infinite past vs. history (account of the past)
• History is a systematic study and organized
knowledge of the past, not list of chronology.
• Gives meaning through interpretations
• Selection in historical writing (human interaction
with nature)
• Periodization (key characteristics)
• Continuity with change
• Does history repeats itself?
Cont’d
B. Uses of History
• History Helps Understand the Present. It is storehouse to
understand difficulties of today by tracing their origin in the
past.
• History Provides a Sense of Identity. As memory is important
to the individual so also is history to the society to define
identity and relationships.
• History Provides the Basic Background for Other Disciplines.
• History Teaches Critical Skills. It enables source identification
and evaluation; make argument and interpretation based on
evidence, preparation of coherent narration and in general
analytical skill.
• History Helps Develop Tolerance and Open-Mindedness.
Studying different societies in the past help to transcend
cultural particularism.
Cont’d
• History Supplies Endless Source of Fascination.
• Beware that history can also be abused for political,
social, economic, cultural, etc. agendas.
• Can you mention a part of Ethiopian history that
fascinates you?
1.2. Sources and Methods of Historical Study
• Historical studies rely on evidences from sources. The
two categories of historical sources are called Primary
and Secondary. Primary sources are original or first
hand with proximity to the event in space and time.
They include written materials such as manuscripts and
letters, etc. artifacts such as coins and audio and visuals.
• Secondary sources are, however, published accounts or
unpublished theses with interpretations of the event
long after it happened often based on primary sources.
They include books, articles, theses, etc. Secondary
sources are not final accounts.
• The other source is oral data, largely a primary source
and valuable for non-literate societies. Oral tradition
include folk
Cont’d
songs and sayings, while oral history
constitute personal testimonies or
recollections.
• Whether primary, secondary or oral sources
all of them should be subjected to thorough
evaluation, examination and criticism for
their authenticity and veracity.
1.3. Historiography of Ethiopia and the Horn

• Historiography is the history of history itself or historical

studying and writing. It is as old as humanity but
intentional and organized study and narration appeared
in the 5th century BC Greece (Herodotus, 484-425 and
Thucydides, 455-400) and later China (Sima Qian of the
Han dynasty). History began as an academic discipline
and scientific study in the 2nd half of the 19th c. Europe
(Leopold von Ranke, 1795-1886 and his colleagues).
Ranke is called ‘the father of modern historiography’.
• Historiography of Ethiopia and the Horn has made
enormous transformations. The earlier reference to the
region came with the Periplus of the Erythrean Sea by
an anonymous author in the 1st c. AD. The Christian
Topography of the 6th c. AD describes about
Cont’d

Aksumite trade and military exploits on both

sides of the sea.
• Apart from inscriptions, religious documents
or manuscripts such as found at Abba
Gerima monastery in Yeha (7th c. AD) and
Haiq Estifanos (13th c. AD) give brief history
of medieval kings. The largest group of
sources for the period were hagiographies of
Orthodox Christian Church written in Geez.
Although they praise mainly saints, there are
often anecdotes including the state and
territorial conquests. There were also
Muslim hagiographies including the one that
Cont’d
• Indigenous chronicles in Geez first appeared in the 14th c.
and continued in Amharic in the 19th c. They are done by
trained scribes or clergymen assigned by the monarchs.
The earliest and the last surviving ones are the Glorious
Victories of Amde-Tsion (14th c. AD) and the Chronicle of
Iyasu and Empress Zewditu (20th c. AD), respectively.
Chronicles often contain legends, facts, genealogy,
military exploits, etc. They lack quantification and explain
events in religious terms.
• Arabic documents including that of al-Masudi (10th c.) and
Ibn Battuta (14 c.) are equally important. Yemeni writers
give eye witness accounts and one of them Shihab ad-Din
wrote Futuh al-Habesha about the wars of Imam Ahmed
in the 16th c. The other one was al-Haymi who led a
Yemeni delegation to Fasiledes in 1647.
Cont’d
• Abba Bahrey’s Geez script is valuable for Oromo population
movement despite its limitations.
• Missionary documents including that of Francesco Alvarez
(16th c.) and traveler accounts including that of James Bruce
(18th c.) contributed to the historiography of Ethiopia.
• Foreign writers also showed interest including a German
called Hiob Ludolf who wrote Historia Aethiopica based on
an Ethiopian priest named Abba Gorgorios. August Dillman
published in the 19th c. two studies with better research than
Ludolf on ancient Ethiopia [including The Book of Henok].
• In the 20th c. traditional Ethiopian writers emerged who
distanced themselves from chroniclers. Unlike chroniclers,
they covered a range of topics on social justice and
administrative reform. Aleqa Taye and Debtera Fisseha-
Giorgis Abyezgi wrote on the history of Ethiopia; Aleqa Asme
on the Oromo people.
Cont’d
• Later Negadrases Afework Gebre-Iyesus and Gebre-Hiwot
Baykedagn joined them. Afework wrote the first Amharic
novel, Tobiya, and Gebre-Hiwot Atse Menilikena Ityopia and
Mengistina Yehizb Astedader. The most prolific, however,
was Blatten Geta Hiruy Wolde-Selassie who published 4
major works: Ityopiana Metema, Wazema, Yehiwot Tarik
and Yeityopia Tarik. The last two exhibited objectivity and
methodological sophistication than the earlier ones.
• The Italian Occupation interrupted the early writing and
Tekle-Tsadik Mekuria and other professional historians
served as a bridge after liberation. There were also works
including Yilma Deressa’s Ye Itiopia Tarik Be’asra
Sidistegnaw Kifle Zemen about the Imam’s war and
Oromo population movement and Blatten Geta Mahteme-
Selassie’s Zikre Neger about prewar land tenure and
taxation. Dejazmach Kebede wrote Yetarik Mastawesha.
Cont’d
• The 1960’s was decisive due to the emergence of history as
an academic discipline and full-time occupation with the
opening of the Dep’t of History in 1963 HSIU. MA launched
in 1979 and PhD in 1990. The IES was opened in 1963 with
considerable historians including Richard Pankhurst. IES
published the Journal of Ethiopian Studies since its
inception and its library contains literary works of various
disciplines.
• The professionalization of history in other parts of the
Horn is a post-colonial phenomenon and a reaction to
decades of Euro-centric colonial historiography. The
decolonization of African historiography required new
methodological approach, i.e. utilization of oral data as
well as archaeology, anthropology and linguistics.
European academic institutions also adjusted to the new
reality and SOAS done foundational researches on
African history.
1.4. The Geographic Context

• The Horn includes Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia and

Somalia as part of the Great Rift Valley often dividing
the highlands which are surrounded by lowlands (desert
and semi deserts). The diverse physiographic features
led to regional variation in climate, natural vegetation,
soil composition and settlement patterns. There are also
linguistic and religious diversities. Despite such features
of uniqueness, the peoples of the region have a shared
common past. The history of the region was shaped by
contacts with other nations through commerce,
migrations, wars, slavery, colonialism, etc.
• Geographical factors of location, landforms, resource
endowment, climate and drainage determine livelihoods.
Cont’d
• The location of the Horn and the Red Sea enhanced
communications with the Mediterranean, the Middle
East, the Indian Ocean, India and China.
• Drainage system has profound impact on human
history. There are five drainage systems in Ethiopia
and the Horn, i.e. the Nile River, linking 9 nations,
Gibe/Omo-Gojeb linking Ethiopia with Kenya,
Genale/Jubba-Shebele linking Ethiopia with Somalia
and the Indian Ocean, the Awash basin liking the
highland with lowland, the Rift Valley Lake systems
linking Ethiopian Ziway with Kenyan Turkana. The
drainage systems not only provided livelihoods, but
also facilitated movement of peoples and exchange of
goods, technologies, ideas, cultures, etc.
Cont’d

• There are three major environmental zones of Ethiopia

and the Horn. The first is the vast Eastern lowland
which includes lowland Eritrea, the Danakil
Depression, Djibouti, the Ogaden, lower lands of
Hararghe, Bale, Sidamo and the whole of Somalia. Hot
and dry conditions prevail with irregular little rainfall
except along Awash, Wabe-Shebele and Genale/Jubba
Rivers. The second is the massif highland immediately
to the West of the Eastern lowland which includes
Eritrea, Arsi, Bale and Hararghe Plateau with the Rift
Valley dividing the zone into east and west. Mountains,
deep valleys and plateau are major features. The third
zone is the western periphery on borderlands with
the Sudan.
Cont’d
• Despite varied environments, population
movements caused constant interactions linking
most of Africa linguistically and ethnically.