Abyssinian

A group of Abyssinians are astride horses in brightly colored saddles at the top of the hill across the valley.

2019, Maaza Mengiste, The Shadow King, Canongate Books (2020), page 308:


Ethiopia

→ Gujarati: ઇથિયોપિયા (ithiyopiyā)

→ Hindi: इथियोपिया (ithiyopiyā)

→ Korean: 에티오피아 (etiopia)

→ Navajo: Iithiyópya

→ Yoruba: Ìtíópíà

/ˌiː.θiˈəʊ.pɪ.ə/

From Latin Aethiopia, from Ancient Greek Αἰθιοπία (Aithiopía), from Αἰθίοψ (Aithíops), of Proto-Hellenic origin. Displaced native Old English Siġelhearwena land (literally “land of the sun worshippers”).

ncog

Aethiopia (Classical Greek term)
Ethiopia

ເອທິໂອປີ

ʼē thi ʼō pī

The Ethiopian Empire, from c. 1270 to 1974; Abyssinia.

A country in East Africa.
Italian Ethiopia, from 1936 to 1941.

Provisional Military Government of Socialist Ethiopia, from 1974 to 1987; Derg.

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia#English

The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, since 1987.

Wheat has been and continues to be one of the most important cereal crops in Ethiopia in terms of both area under cultivation and production.

1991, Tesfaye Tesemma, “Improvement of indigenous durum wheat landraces in Ethiopia” in Plant Genetic Resources of Ethiopia, 288


Amharic

Fifi smiles and nods, then says “yes” in Amharic with that typical Ethiopian inflection that makes it sound less like a word and more like a sharp intake of air.

2019, Maaza Mengiste, The Shadow King, Canongate Books, published 2020, pages 218–219:


Ethiopian

Ahmed was also appreciated for his talents as a showman, because he had no equal in letting loose the famous eskista, with the heaving quiver of the torso and shoulders, of which Ethiopians are so fond. Eskista is the dance of the Amharas, enhancing amorous repartee and expressing collective jubilation.

2002 August 1, Frank Tenaille, Music is the Weapon of the Future: Fifty Years of African Popular Music, →ISBN, page 168:

A person from Ethiopia or of Ethiopian descent.

The Ethiopian eunuch.

(dated) A black-skinned person, especially one from Africa.

(slang, derogatory) A very skinny person, referencing the historic malnutrition and poverty in Ethiopia.


Ethiopian

en-adj

Ethiopian (comparative more Ethiopian, superlative most Ethiopian)

more Ethiopian (comparative)
most Ethiopian (superlative)

One of Ethiopia's most popular traditional dances, eskista, which is said to have originated from the lower highlands of Ethiopia's Amhara region, exemplifies the type of multi-functionality that Martin (1967) acknowledges as it is performed in many different settings of the Ethiopian community.

2018 February 20, Adesola Akinleye, Narratives in Black British Dance: Embodied Practices, →ISBN, page 195:

Of, from, or pertaining to Ethiopia, the Ethiopian people or the Ethiopian culture.

Any person of color recognized his Ethiopian heritage immediately. That nose, those lips, good hair or no.

2016, Colson Whitehead, The Underground Railroad, Fleet (2017), page 314:

(dated, not comparable) Of, from, or pertaining to Africa and the African diaspora.


9/11 attacks
Federal Communications Commission
National Emergency Number Association
United States

Chosen by the United States in the 1960s in place of the older British 999 number as a better way to avoid accidental calls from push-button telephones. It is officially pronounced "nine-one-one," not "nine-eleven," since "nine-eleven" refers to the 2001 attacks in New York and Washington. 9/11 is universally distinguished from 911 and usually refers to the September 11, 2001 attacks. Officially written as 9-1-1 in regulations and materials from the United States National Emergency Number Association and Federal Communications Commission, which is also advocated by some media style guides.

When you call 911 in the United States, a local dispatcher usually answers the phone with "911" or "911. What's your emergency?"

I don't know why they couldn't just keep it as it was! How hard is it to remember 911?
You mean 999...
I mean 999!
That's the American one!
Yeah!

2006 Feb. 3, Graham Linehan, The IT Crowd, Season 1, Episode 2

Well, look, I wear a mask, I try not to be a maskhole about it. If I see — if I see somebody who doesn't have a mask, I don't call 911.

2021 March 18, John Kennedy, quotee, “SEN. JOHN KENNEDY (R-LA) IS INTERVIEWED ON FOX NEWS”, in Political Transcript Wire, Lanham:

The telephone number for emergency services in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Belize, Costa Rica, Argentina, Uruguay, Ecuador, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Liberia, Ethiopia, the Philippines, Anguilla, Palau, and Tonga.

emergency services(Australia) 000(Mongolia) 105(China, Iran) 110(New Zealand) 111(European Union) 112(Japan, South Korea) 119(UK, Ireland) 999


Abyssinia

From New Latin Abissīni, of Abissīnus (“Abyssinian, Ethiopian”), from Arabic الْحَبَشَة (al-ḥabaša), from حَبَش (ḥabaš, “Abyssinian”). The humorous use of Abyssinia as a parting phrase is due to its phonetic resemblance to I'll be seeing ya.

(historical) The Ethiopian Empire, a former empire in East Africa, consisting of modern-day Ethiopia and Eritrea.

አቢሲንያ

historical name of the Ethiopian Empire - Ethiopia and Eritrea

ብሔረ አግዓዝ

bəḥerä ʾägʿaz


birr

The currency of Ethiopia, divided into 100 santims.


FDR

Federal Democratic Republic
Federal Democratic Republic#English

Initialism of Federal Democratic Republic.

Abbreviation of Ethiopia. (Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia)


santim

From Amharic ሳንቲም (santim), from French centime. Doublet of centim, centime, and centimo.

A subunit of Ethiopian currency. 100 santims equal a birr.


ras

From Amharic ራስ (ras). More at Etymology 2.


kocho

A bread-like fermented food made from chopped and grated ensete pulp, a staple of Ethiopian cuisine.


Oromo

A member of a people of eastern Africa, Ethiopia and northern Kenya.


negus

1590s, borrowed from Amharic ንጉሥ (nəguś, “king, ruler”), itself a loan from Ge'ez ንጉሥ (nəguś, “king, ruler”), from the verb ነግሠ (nägśä, “rule”).

Sir, the Negus of Ethiopia is here in person; and this is the day of our death, doe what you can to saue your selfe, for my part I meane here to die

1614 Samuel Purchas, Purchas his pilgrimes. part 2 In fiue bookes, Chap. V. The Voyage of Sir FRANCIS ALVAREZ, a Portugall Priest, made vnto the Court of PRETE IANNI, the great Christian Emperour of Ethiopia, §. XVII. (p. 1102)

In the Abyssinian Language a King is call'd Negus. Their Monarch they stile Negus Negasta, which is as much as to say, King of Kings.

1739, John Campbell, The Travels and Adventures of Edward Brown, page 292:

It was a Syrian merchant, Frumentius, who is credited with converting Ezana, the Negus (king or emperor) of the powerful northern Ethiopian state of Aksum.

2009, Diarmaid MacCulloch, A History of Christianity, Penguin, published 2010, page 240:

(historical) A ruler of Abyssinia (Ethiopia), or of a province of Ethiopia; specifically, the king of Ethiopia before 1974.


Ge'ez

He takes out a leather-bound Bible, written in Ge'ez, illuminated by drawings of angels with large, soulful eyes.

2019, Maaza Mengiste, The Shadow King, Canongate Books (2020), page 328:

An Ethiopian language which is extinct but still used liturgically.


teff

en-noun

teff (countable and uncountable, plural teffs)

Eragrostis tef
Eragrostis tef#Translingual

A love grass, Eragrostis tef, with small seeds, grown as a cereal and for forage in Ethiopia and parts of Arabia.


Fano

An ethnonationalist Amhara militia and former protest movement in Ethiopia.


Sagan

Alternative form: Segan

I had resolved to pass along the eastern shore of Lake Ganjule, in order to solve the problem of the sources of the river Sagan, the largest affluent of Lake Stefanie, which was supposed to flow out of Lake Ganjule. This I found to be not the case. The sources of the Sagan lie east of the south end of Lake Abaya. But there is a broad channel connecting Lake Ganjule with the Sagan.

1904, Oscar Neumann, From the Somali Coast Through Southern Ethiopia to the Sudan, U.S. Government Printing Office, →OCLC, page 784:

A town in southern Ethiopia, named for the river.


injera

injera (countable and uncountable, plural injeras)

/ˈɪn.dʒiːɹə/

Borrowed from Tigrinya እንጀራ (ʾənǧära) or Amharic እንጀራ (ʾənǧära).

In Ethiopia, a volcanic pepper and spice seasoning, berbere, is widely used, and the stews called wats are eaten with a spongy flat bread, injera.

1987 July 29, Steven Barboza, “Culinary Delights of Africa Reflect a Continent's Diversity”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

The tang of fresh injera coats the air above her head.

2019, Maaza Mengiste, The Shadow King, Canongate Books (2020), page 190:

A pancake-like flatbread made from fermented teff flour, a traditional food of Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Yemen, and the Nuer people of Sudan.


Ethiopic

en-adj

Ethiopic (comparative more Ethiopic, superlative most Ethiopic)

more Ethiopic (comparative)
most Ethiopic (superlative)

From Latin aethiopicus, from Ancient Greek Αἰθιοπικός (Aithiopikós). By surface analysis, Ethiop + -ic.


woreda

An administrative division of Ethiopia, managed by a local government.


begena

A type of lyre of Ethiopian and Eritrean origin with a rectangular soundbox and ten strings, which is played with a plectrum.


mehalek

(historical) A former currency of Abyssinia.


Abbay

The name of the upper reaches of the Blue Nile in Ethiopia.

ዐባይ

the name of the upper reaches of Blue Nile in Ethiopia


Ethiopianize

en-verb

Ethiopianize (third-person singular simple present Ethiopianizes, present participle Ethiopianizing, simple past and past participle Ethiopianized)

Ethiopianizes (present singular third-person)
Ethiopianizing (participle present)
Ethiopianized (participle past)
Ethiopianized (past)


Ogadenia

A proposed state seeking secession from Ethiopia.


Oromia

Oromia is home to over 40 million people, predominantly from the Oromo people.

The largest and most populous region in Ethiopia, covering an area of approximately 353,006 square kilometers.


Afaria

The transitional government in Ethiopia has been concerned that FRUD could link with the older Afar Liberation Front (ALF) in Ethiopia and Eritrea with its dream of a separate "Afaria".

1993, Africa Insight - Volumes 23-24, page 15:

The outbreak of ethnic violence in 1991 severely strained Djiboutian-French Relations. Paris, which had deployed troops in March to disarm Ethiopian soldiers fleeing into Djibouti, dismissed the government's claims that Ethiopian Afars were seeking to establish a “greater Afaria” and in October ordered its troops to remain in their barracks.

2015, Tom Lansford, Political Handbook of the World 2015, →ISBN:

For instance, in the Afaria region of Ethiopia (Afaria is situated close to Ethiopia-Somalia and Ethiopia-Kenya borders) there is a sustained standoff between tigrai-amhara organizations (Tigrai Liberation National Front and Afar Liberation Front).

2016, Sai Felicia Krishna-Hensel, Order and Disorder in the International System, →ISBN, page 124:


Amharia

The historical territories and homeland of the Amhara tribe.


Ethiopian cross

en-noun

Ethiopian cross (plural Ethiopian crosses)

An elaborate, stylized version of the Christian cross symbol that is unique to Ethiopia and Eritrea.


en-proper noun

People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia

(history) A former country in East Africa, a communist government that existed in Ethiopia from 1987 to 1991.

Etiopijos Liaudies Demokratinė Respublika


Punt

bor

<i class="Latn mention" lang="egy">pwnt</i>

(historical) A former kingdom in the Afar Triangle, Horn of Africa, Africa, in what is now Ethiopia. A country contemporaneous with the Old Kingdom of Egypt, where frankincense, gold, ebony, ivory is found.


Erta Ale

A continuously active basaltic shield volcano in the Afar Region of northeastern Ethiopia.


Ethiocentric

en-adj

Ethiocentric (comparative more Ethiocentric, superlative most Ethiocentric)

more Ethiocentric (comparative)
most Ethiocentric (superlative)

Emphasizing Ethiopia or its culture or languages.


Derg

Borrowed from Amharic ደርግ (därg, “committee; council”).

bor+

(historical) The Provisional Military Administrative Council, the communist military junta that ruled Ethiopia from 1974 to 1987.


masenqo

a single-stringed bowed lute commonly used by Ethiopian azmaris.


qocho

Gurage food, with its foundation of qocho, specialized in kitfo (sautéed meat in butter and cheese) and chopped sautéed kale/collard greens (Brassica oleracea) […]

2009, James C. McCann, Stirring the Pot: A History of African Cuisine, Ohio University Press, →ISBN, page 90:


eskista

Ahmed was also appreciated for his talents as a showman, because he had no equal in letting loose the famous eskista, with the heaving quiver of the torso and shoulders, of which Ethiopians are so fond. Eskista is the dance of the Amharas, enhancing amorous repartee and expressing collective jubilation.

2002 August 1, Frank Tenaille, Music is the Weapon of the Future: Fifty Years of African Popular Music, Lawrence Hill Books, →ISBN, page 168:

One of Ethiopia's most popular traditional dances, eskista, which is said to have originated from the lower highlands of Ethiopia's Amhara region, exemplifies the type of multi-functionality that Martin (1967) acknowledges as it is performed in many different settings of the Ethiopian community.

2018 February 20, Adesola Akinleye, Narratives in Black British Dance: Embodied Practices, Palgrave Macmillan, →ISBN, page 195:

The Amhara people of Ethiopia have the Eskista, a celebratory dance that centres around movement in the shoulders and is said to be inspired by the movements of a snake.

2023 April 4, Araba Ofori-Acquah, Return to Source: Unlock the Power of African-Centered Wellness, Hay House, →ISBN, page 52:

A folk dance of the Amhara people of Ethiopia characterized by intense shoulder, chest, and neck movement.


P'ent'ay

A majority of the population adheres to Christianity (mainly the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and P’ent’ay), while around a third follows Islam (primarily Sunni Islam).

2017 June 2, IBP, Inc, Ethiopia Electoral, Political Parties Laws and Regulations Handbook: Strategic Information, Regulations, Procedures (World Business and Investment Library), →ISBN, page 9:

All denominations and organizations of Protestantism in Ethiopia and Eritrea.


Tewahedo

For many Ethiopian Orthodox, history has forged an almost patriotic link between Tewahedo Christology and loyalty to their nation against the incursion of foreign religious ideas.

2006 October 1, Craig Ott, Harold A. Netland, Globalizing Theology: Belief and Practice in an Era of World Christianity, →ISBN, page 151:

It is important to note that the interiors of many old Tewahedo churches are entirely covered with outsized mural icons.

2011 April 30, Paulos Milkias, Ethiopia (Nations in Focus), →ISBN, page 323:

The Tewahedo tradition brings all this worldwide heritage together in a synthesis that makes it purely Ethiopian.

2022 January 12, Alemayehu Wassie, Demel Teketay, Mengistie Kindu, Mulugeta Lemenih, Thomas Knoke, Thomas Schneider, State of the Art in Ethiopian Church Forests and Restoration Options, →ISBN, page 57:

Belonging or relating to the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and/or the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church.


Wolaitan

en-adj

Wolaitan (comparative more Wolaitan, superlative most Wolaitan)

more Wolaitan (comparative)
most Wolaitan (superlative)

Of or relating to the Wolaita people in southern Ethiopia


Wolaitan

A member of a Wolayttattuwa-speaking ethnic group found in the Wolaita Region in southern Ethiopia.


shemma

From around the age of ten, they begin to be taught “important” things like holding a hand (of the corner of the cloth they cover their bodies with, then shemma) before the mouth and turn aside from people if they sneeze, …

1995, Reidulf Knut Molvaer, Socialization and Social Control in Ethiopia (Äthiopistische Forschungen; 44), Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, →ISBN, →ISSN, page 77:

The shemma is draped over the head and shoulders in a graceful fashion and sometimes held by the wearer over nose and mouth.

2000, Ethiopian Costumes, Ethiopian Tourism Commission, page 11:

In some central and northern areas, women's traditional clothes are often made from cloth called shemma.

2024 November 25, Wikipedia contributors, “Culture of Ethiopia”, in English Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation:

A traditional Ethiopian or Eritrean handwoven cotton cloth that holds cultural, social, and religious significance.