Abraham Adgeh (; born 1965) is an Ethiopian-Israeli writer, social activist, and scholar on the history of the

Beta Israel The Beta Israel ( he, בֵּיתֶא יִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Bēteʾ Yīsrāʾēl''; gez, ቤተ እስራኤል, , modern ''Bēte 'Isrā'ēl'', EAE: "Betä Ǝsraʾel", "House of Israel" or "Community of Israel"), also known as Ethiopian Jews ...

. He is also a structural engineer and head of the laboratory department at Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. For his literary work, he won the Yuri Stern Minister of Immigrant Absorption Prize for Creative Immigrants in 2008.

Biography

Adgeh was born in a rural village in Ethiopia. His father was a blacksmith, and he grew up with five brother and sisters. His elementary school was an hour's walk from his home, and his high school was three hours away from his house. At the age of 17, he fled to

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

after finding out that

Mossad Mossad ( , ), ; ar, الموساد, al-Mōsād, ; , short for ( he, המוסד למודיעין ולתפקידים מיוחדים, links=no), meaning 'Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations'. is the national intelligence agency ...

was organizing an immigration route for Ethiopian Jews to emigrate. He walked 600 kilometers with 15 other Jews, and was caught on the border by a Sudanese patrol officer 38 days later. He was transferred to a refugee camp, where he stayed for one year with a tropical disease. He forged a passport and left for a flight to Paris, and arrived in Israel in January 1984. Two years after immigrating, he reconnected with his parents. He graduated from a high school in Haifa and completed his studies at Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. Since 1998, he has served as the head of the laboratory department in their Construction and Maintenance Division.

Research and activism

Adgeh frequently gives lectures at colleges and other public institutions on the history of the Ethiopian Jewish community. In 2013, he was appointed as a member to a committee in the field of literature at the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration. He volunteers for the Israeli government program "A New Way" to formulate policy for the integration of Ethiopian immigrants into Israel society. On 28 September 2017, Adgeh, as part of the tenth Piyut Festival, hosted a conference for "Longing for Jerusalem Event of the in an Encounter with the Hebrew Language".

References

{{Authority control 1965 births Living people Ethiopian Jews Ethiopian emigrants to Israel Israeli engineers Israeli scholars Technion – Israel Institute of Technology alumni