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Gafat People
The Gafat (Amharic: ጋፋት) are an extinct ethnic group that once inhabited present day western Ethiopia. They spoke the Gafat language, an extinct South Ethiopic grouping within the Semitic subfamily of the Afroasiatic languages and closely related to Harari and Eastern Gurage languages. According to Alleqa Taye, in the year 1922 Gafat was only spoken privately in Gojjam due to the Amhara designating them outcasts. Etymology A few linguists have postulated Gafat is an extract from the root Harari term ''Gáfá'' meaning slave. History Gafat was located just within the kingdom of Damot to the north upper Gibe River and bordered directly on southern bank of the Blue Nile. Like near by Damot, Gafat is reported in the Gedle Yared to have come under Zagwe rule in the 12th century and Tekle Haymanot accomplished his mission as well. Gafat on both side of the Nile appeared to have kept them in great numbers. The thirteenth century Amhara rebel leader Yekuno Amlak was suppor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gafat Language
The Gafat language is an extinct South Ethiopic language once spoken by the Gafat people along the Blue Nile in Ethiopia, and later, speakers pushed south of Gojjam in what is now East Welega Zone. Gafat was related to the Harari language and Eastern Gurage languages. The records of this language are extremely sparse. There is a translation of the Song of Songs written in the 17th or 18th Century held at the Bodleian Library. Charles Beke collected a word list in the early 1840s with difficulty from the few who knew the language, having found that "the rising generation seem to be altogether ignorant of it; and those grown-up persons who profess to speak it are anything but familiar with it." The most recent accounts of this language are the reports of Wolf Leslau, who visited the region in 1947 and after considerable work was able to find a total of four people who could still speak the language. Edward Ullendorff, in his brief exposition on Gafat, concludes that as of the time ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Ansata
The Battle of Ansata was fought in the year 1270 AD between the forces of Yekuno Amlak, future emperor of Ethiopia, and Yetbarak of the Zagwe dynasty. The forces of Yekuno Amlak had received assistance from the Gafat whose commander was an unnamed Muslim called "The Malassay A Malassay ( Harari: መለሳይ ''Mäläsay'') was a member of the elite infantry units that formed the Adal Sultanate's household troops. According to Manfred Kropp, Malassay were the Harari armed forces. Etymology Malassay appears to refer t ..." and from Sultan Dil Gamis of the Sultanate of Shewa, giving the Amhara rebels an advantage over the Zagwe. After defeating his army, Yekuno Amlak pursued Yetbarak, the king of Zagwe, into the church of Saint Qirqos at Ansata, slaying him. References Ansata Ansata {{battle-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gafat Armament Engineering Complex
Gafat Armament Engineering Complex is one of the military production facilities of the Metals and Engineering Corporation. With its headquarters in Bishoftu, it specializes in producing wide range of infantry equipment that meet the requirement of the Ethiopian National Defense Force. History It was established in January 1986 as the Gafat Engineering Factory to fulfill the need for local manufacture of basic infantry equipment. It initially produced AK-47 automatic rifles and light machine guns, as well as maintenance. It was later expanded to manufacture PK machine guns, and automatic weapons attached on armoured vehicles and helicopters. To fully utilize its manufacturing capacity, the complex has diversified by supplying various items for civilian use. It is often believed that North Korean advisors assisted with manufacturing of small arms. Products Military products include: various types of automatic rifles and machine guns; 40mm grenade launchers; various types of guns s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buda (folklore)
Buda ( Ge’ez: ቡዳ) (or bouda), in Ethiopian and Eritrean folk religion, is the power of the evil eye and the ability to change into a hyena. Buda is generally believed by the wider society to be a power held and wielded by those in a different social group, for example among the Beta Israel or metalworkers.Wagaw, Teshome G. ''For Our Soul: Ethiopian Jews in Israel''. Detroit: Wayne State Univ. Press, 1993. The belief is also present in Sudan, Tanzania, and among the Berber people in Morocco. Belief in the evil eye, or buda, is still widespread in Ethiopia.Turner, John W. "Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity: Faith and practices". A Country Study: Ethiopia'. Thomas P. Ofcansky and LaVerle Berry, eds. Washington: Library of Congress Federal Research Division, 1991. The Beta Israel, or Ethiopian Jews, are often characterized by others as possessing buda. Other castes such as ironworkers are often labeled as bearing the buda. In fact, the Amharic word for manual worker, ''tabi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sekela (woreda)
Sekela (Amharic: ሰከላ) is one of the woredas in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Part of the West Gojjam Zone, Sekela is bordered on the southwest by Bure, on the west by the Agew Awi Zone, on the north by Mecha, on the northeast by Yilmana Densa, on the east by Kuarit, and on the southeast by Jabi Tehnan. The administrative center of Sekela is Gish Abay. Overview The Lesser Abay River, commonly considered to be the uppermost reach of the Blue Nile, originates in this woreda, and flows north into Lake Tana. In June 2002, heavy rains caused flooding and landslides in nine kebeles in Sekela and neighboring woredas, which covered or completely washed away more than of land planted in crops, and destroyed about 8600 quintals of harvested crops. One person and more than a hundred animals died in this disaster. Demographics Based on the 2007 national census conducted by the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia (CSA), this woreda has a total population of 138,691, an increase of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Achefer
Achefer (Amharic: አቸፈር) was a woreda in Amhara Region, Ethiopia. It was named for the historic district of Achefer, which was first mentioned in the 16th century. Part of the Mirab Gojjam Zone, Achefer was bordered on the south by the Agew Awi Zone, on the west by the Semien Gondar Zone, on the north by Lake Tana, on the northeast by Bahir Dar Zuria, and on the southeast by Merawi; the Lesser Abay River defined the woreda's eastern boundary. The woreda included Dek Island. The administrative center was Yesmala; other towns in Achefer included Durbete, Liben, Kunzela, Chiba and Wandege. Acheref was divided for Debub Achefer and Semien Achefer woredas. Demographics Based on figures published by the Central Statistical Agency in 2005, this woreda has an estimated total population of 326,195, of whom 160,763 are men and 165,432 are women; 24,565 or 7.53% of its population are urban dwellers, which is about the same as the Zone average of 7.6%. With an estimated area of 2 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James Bruce
James Bruce of Kinnaird (14 December 1730 – 27 April 1794) was a Scottish traveller and travel writer who confirmed the source of the Blue Nile. He spent more than a dozen years in North Africa and Ethiopia and in 1770 became the first European to trace the origins of the Blue Nile from Egypt and Sudan. Early life James Bruce was born at the family seat of Kinnaird, Stirlingshire, and educated at Harrow School and Edinburgh University, and began to study for the bar, but his marriage to the daughter of a wine importer and merchant resulted in him entering that business instead. His wife died in October 1754, within nine months of marriage, and Bruce thereafter travelled in Portugal and Spain as part of the wine trade. The examination of oriental manuscripts at the Escorial in Spain led him to the study of Arabic and Ge'ez and determined his future career. In 1758 his father's death placed him in possession of the estate of Kinnaird. To North Africa On the outbreak of war ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Encyclopaedia Aethiopica
The ''Encyclopaedia Aethiopica'' (''EAe'') is a basic English-language encyclopaedia for Ethiopian and Eritrean studies. The ''Encyclopaedia Aethiopica'' provides information in all fields of the discipline, i.e. anthropology, archaeology, ethnology, history, geography, languages and literatures, art, religion, culture and basic data. Although the main audience is academic, most articles are readable also for non-specialists. The ''EAe'' is illustrated with maps and photographs. It employs an in-house form of romanization of Geez, Amharic, and other languages, which varies greatly from standard formats, such as BGN/PCGN: the emperor Menelek II's name, for example, is written as "Mənilək II". Authorship and structure The ''Encyclopaedia Aethiopica'' has hundreds of authors from at least thirty countries. High academic standards are secured by an editorial team based at the Research Unit Ethiopian Studies (since 2009 Hiob Ludolf Centre for Ethiopian Studies) at the University ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oromo People
The Oromo (pron. Oromo language, Oromo: ''Oromoo'') are a Cushitic people, Cushitic ethnic group native to the Oromia region of Ethiopia and parts of Northern Kenya, who speak the Oromo language (also called ''Afaan Oromoo'' or ''Oromiffa''), which is part of the Cushitic languages, Cushitic branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are the largest List of ethnic groups in Ethiopia, ethnic group in Ethiopia and represent a large portion of Ethiopia's population. The Oromo people traditionally used the ''gadaa'' system as the primary form of governance.Harold G. MarcuA History of Ethiopia University of California Press (1994) pp. 55 Google Books A leader is elected by the ''gadaa'' system and their term lasts eight years, with an election taking place at the end of those eight years. Although most modern Oromos are Muslims and Christians, about 3% practice Waaqeffanna, the native ancient monotheistic religion of Oromos. Origins and nomenclature The Oromo people are one o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
