Explore Ethiopia’s Hidden Treasures

Capital city: Addis Ababa (New Flower)
Population: 120 million (2022)
Surface area: 1.13 million square km (437,794 square miles)
Languages: Amharic (official language), Afaan Oromo, Tigrigna and Somali. English is also the administrative language.
Religion: Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, Muslim and Protestant Christianity
Currency: Ethiopian Birr (ETB)
Time zone: GMT+3
Telephone code: +251
Electric supply: 220 Volts 50 cycles AC (Adapters can be easily found in all major cities)

Ethiopia is the tenth largest country in Africa with its rich cultural heritage and incredible diversity both in its people and landscape. The major ethnic/linguistic groups are the Oromo (34.4%), Amhara (27%), Somali 6.2%), Tigray (6.1%) and Sidamo (4%).

Ethiopia’s economy is dominated by subsistence agriculture. Coffee accounts for 55% of Ethiopia’s exports. Its vast plateaus and craggy peaks of the Simien and Bale mountain ranges are breathtaking and home to much of Ethiopia’s wildlife, including the endangered Walia ibex, the Gelada Baboons and the Ethiopian wolf.

The remarkable Danakil Depression is one of the lowest, hottest and driest places on Earth. Looking like something from another planet, its bubbling lava lakes, vast salt flats and steamy fields in vivid greens, reds and yellows are unlike any other landscape on Earth. The tribes of the Lower Omo Valley, adorned with a fascinating array of lip plates, body paint and intricate beaded jewelry, are just one piece in Ethiopia’s complex and richly varied cultural and unique lifestyle.

WHAT MAKES ETHIOPIA UNIQUE?

ETHIOPIA IS A HOMELAND OF ALL HUMAN ANCESTORS

The Afar desert of Ethiopia, in the Middle Awash, is the early home of our human ancestors. According to the latest research, fossils of Homo gender have been found buried in the soil of this area. This is also the area where “Lucy”, one of the World’s most famous fossils, was also found.

Lucy is the common name of AL 288-1, several hundred pieces of fossilized bone representing 40 percent of the skeleton of a female of the hominin species Australopithecus afarensis. In Ethiopia, the assembly is also known as Dinkinesh, which means “you are marvelous” in the Amharic language. Lucy was discovered in 1974 in Africa, at Hadar, a site in the Awash Valley of the Afar Triangle in Ethiopia.

ETHIOPIA HAS ITS OWN ALPHABET

Ethiopia is the only country in Africa with its own alphabet. Even though there are more than 80 different languages spoken in Ethiopia, Amharic is the work language, a semiotic language descending from Ge’ez, the language of ancient Axum which is still used by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

Amharic has its own alphabet, consisting of 209 symbols and 25 letter variants. Other regional languages such as Oromigna, Tigrinya and Arabic are also widely spoken, along with English, used in administration and for secondary education.

Amharic is an Ethiopian Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amharas and as a lingua franca by other populations residing in major cities and towns of Ethiopia.

ETHIOPIA IS HOME TO THE ARC OF COVENANT

Ethiopia is a home to the legendary Ark of the covenant and considered as one of the oldest Christian nations in the World, adopting Christianity during the 4th Century. It is also claimed to be the home to the legendary Ark of the Covenant containing the 10 Commandments.

This relic is said to be kept in Axum and only one man is allowed to see it. Also, Ethiopia is the home of the Black Jews, known as Beta Israel and Islam also appeared early in Ethiopia when Mohammed’s followers were persecuted and sought refuge in Abyssinia.

The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church claims to possess the Ark of the Covenant, or Tabot, in Axum. The object is currently kept under guard in a treasury near the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion. Replicas of the Axum tabot are kept in every Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo church, each with its own dedication to a particular saint; the most popular of these include Mary, George and Michael.

ETHIOPIA IS THE ORIGIN OF COFFEE

According to a legend, Kaldi, an Ethiopian shepherd, once discovered the properties of this stimulating plant after noticing that his goats became very active and awake after eating berries from a certain tree. It is believed that the Ethiopian highlands are the origin of the coffee plant.

Ethiopia is one of the top coffee-producing countries of Africa and Arabica beans are specially appreciated. The coffee ceremony is one of the most recognizable parts of culture, offering this peculiar ritual during festivities, visits or as a daily routine for community or family meetings.

Coffee was first exported out of Ethiopia to Yemen by Somali merchants from Berbera and Zeila in modern-day Somaliland, which was procured from Harar and the Abyssinian interior.

YOU WILL BE SEVEN YEARS YOUNGER WHEN YOU COME TO ETHIOPIA

You will be seven years younger when you travel in Ethiopia. Ethiopia is the only Christian country that still follows the Julian calendar and consequently it is seven years and eight months behind the rest of the Christian world (which follows the revised Gregorian calendar). Thus, the Ethiopian calendar consists of 13 months: 12 months of 30 days and another month of five (or six days in leap years) days duration.

ETHIOPIA HAS THE HIGHEST UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITES IN AFRICA

Ethiopia has the lead with eleven sites; followed by South Africa with ten, Morocco and Tunisia being home to nine sites; then Algeria, Egypt, Senegal, and Tanzania at seven. While the others are listed as cultural sites, including the ruins of the city of Axum; the fortified historic route of Harar Jugol; the stonewalled terraces of Konso, (also known as the “natural New York village”).

Also the lower valleys of both the Awash and the Omo River where the evidence of human evolution was found; the eleven rock-hewn churches of Lalibela;, and Tiya with its 32 carved stelae covered with indecipherable symbols.

Ethiopia is amongst the countries that have registered their tangible and intangible heritage under UNESCOs cultural heritage list. According to the Ethiopian Ministry of Culture and Tourism, UNESCO has recognized four intangible and nine tangible Ethiopian (a total of 13) heritages.