() is a genre of improvised

oral poetry Oral poetry is a form of poetry that is composed and transmitted without the aid of writing. The complex relationships between written and spoken literature in some societies can make this definition hard to maintain. Background Oral poetry is ...

from Ethiopia. The genre originates in the

Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን, ''Yäityop'ya ortodoks täwahedo bétäkrestyan'') is the largest of the Oriental Orthodox Churches. One of the few Chris ...

, which historically provided traditional religious education, including the composition of qene. Its origins are supposed to date back to the 14th century.

Elements

''Sam-ena-warq''

The defining characteristic of qene is a literary device known as ''sem-ena-werq'' (; “wax and gold”), which uses

ambiguity Ambiguity is the type of meaning in which a phrase, statement or resolution is not explicitly defined, making several interpretations plausible. A common aspect of ambiguity is uncertainty. It is thus an attribute of any idea or statement ...

to layer hidden meanings within the text; the term refers to an obvious meaning (the wax) above a deeper meaning (the gold). In the process of goldsmithing, a clay cast is made around wax, after which the wax is drained and molten gold is poured into the cast. This device is similar to a double entendre, and is predicated on multiple meanings of individual words or sentences.

''Wista weira''

''Wista weira'' (; “inside the olive”) is a literary device similar to ''sem-ena-werq'', though less common. While it also uses ambiguity to provide hidden meanings, its ambiguity comes from interpretation of the qene as a whole, rather than words or sentences.

History

Origin claims

Tradition credits its invention to Tawanay of Gojjam, who is said to have lived in the 14th century and founded the famous Qene school of Gonj. Other tradition claims further back to Yared, a 6th-century Aksumite composer.

Earliest documentation

The earliest specimens of qene

extant Extant is the opposite of the word extinct. It may refer to: * Extant hereditary titles * Extant literature, surviving literature, such as ''Beowulf'', the oldest extant manuscript written in English * Extant taxon, a taxon which is not extinct, ...

date back to the late 15th century to the reign of Emperor Eskender (1478–94).

Qene schools

Qene has always been associated with Amhara culture and people, although it was originally composed in Ge'ez. The main qene schools have always been located in Amhara areas, such as Gonj and Washara monasteries in Gojjam, at Gondar town in Begemder, Sayint in Wollo and Wadla monastery in Lasta. The rules and style of qene were historically taught as part of religious education in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, in the level of schooling known as ''qene bet'' (“house of poetry”). Well-known modern Ethiopian poets include Tsegaye Gabre-Medhin, Kebede Michael, and Mengistu Lemma.

Themes

''Sem-ena-werq'' in religious qene represents the dualism of

Miaphysite Miaphysitism is the Christology, Christological doctrine that holds Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, the "Incarnation (Christianity), Incarnate Logos (Christianity), Word, is fully divine and fully human, in one 'nature' (''physis'')." It is a posi ...

Christianity, such as that of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. These poems were composed for religious events and church activities. Secular qene was historically used to subtly insult and criticize those in positions of authority.

References

Ethiopian poetry Ethiopian literature {{Ethiopia-stub