Journal of Ethiopian Studies

“Am I not a king’s son?” A Previously Unpublished Letter Sheds New Light on the Manner in which Prince Alämayähu faced the Dilemma of his Ambiguous Status as an Exile in Britain in 1879

2025-07-24T06:11:48+00:00

Contrary to popular assumptions, Däjazmač (or, as he was known internationally, Prince) Alämayähu, exiled son of Emperor Tewodros (r. 1855-1868), and heir to the Ethiopian throne, had no difficulty adjusting to the life of the British aristocracy. Despite the trauma of the siege of Mäqdäla, the death of his father, the loss of his birth-right as a result of inglorious British military plunder, and the untimely and tragic death of his mother on the unremittingly cold and damp trek to the coast shortly afterwards, Alämayähu’s resilience was remarkable. His capacity and determination to maintain his princely status was manifest just a few weeks later, when General Robert Napier, who had commanded the British troops at Mäqdäla, thought to amuse the young boy by throwing him a ball to catch while on the deck of troop carrier HMS Urgent, en route from Alexandria to Malta. Asked by Napier why he had not run for the ball, Alämayähu explained that it was below his dignity: “Am I not a king’s son, why should I go and fetch it?” And a few weeks later, at the suitably grand manor house on the Isle of Wight where he lived and rode to hounds, the seven year-old reprimanded his adoptive grandparents for suggesting that they should drop the term ‘Prince’ when they addressed him. “A king’s son is always a prince”, he solemnly reminded them.

Aspects of Classical Greek Tragedy in Tsegaye Gebremedhin’s Oda Oak Oracle

2025-07-24T07:31:53+00:00

This paper explores some salient features of classical Greek drama reflected in modern Ethiopian drama through the analysis of Oda Oak Oracle, a play by Tsegaye Gebremedhin. The parallels between the two dramatic works that are remotely related in spatio-temporal setting have been studied by examining the striking similarities between Sophocles’ Oedipus the King (5^th century B.C.) and Tsegaye’s Oda Oak Oracle (1965). The temporal gap can be bridged by arguing that great literature is timeless in its appeal. Comparative textual analysis has been used as a basic method in the paper. Primary data that substantiate the central arguments of the paper have been drawn from the plays under study through close reading. Secondary data have been gathered from related literature on the subject. Theory has been drawn from the principles underpinning classical Greek tragedy. Through close reading and analysis, it has been established that the two plays demonstrate striking parallels in terms of plot construction, thematic preoccupation, character delineation and dramatic techniques.

Konso Indigenous Knowledge and Social Institutions: the Crux and Kernel of Environmental Adaptation

2025-07-24T07:35:49+00:00

This article delves into the place and role of Indigenous Knowledge (IK) and social institutions in human environmental adaptation. It has explored how Konso social institutions shaped and sustained a culture of environmental adaptation in the face of natural and anthropogenic adversities. A qualitative research approach has been employed to carry out the research. Longitudinal observation, in-depth interviews, and focus group discussions constituted the major data-gathering tools, while ‘Situated Learning Theory’ provided an essential framework for exploring modes of knowledge acquisition and transmission. The study revealed that the Konso people have devised complex and mutually reinforcing indigenous institutions that prop up a culture of environmental adaptation. While efficient methods of labor organization ensured mobilization and coordination of the needed manpower to build terraces and water ponds, neighborhood and clan organizations, together with the “Poqalla” institution, have nurtured the youth to observe and uphold established norms, ancestral values, and work ethics. It was also found that in light of the demographic shift and socio-political changes that have transpired through time, Konso traditional environmental wisdom exhibited both resilience and exceptional dynamic agility. Embedded in and mediated by indigenous social institutions, skillful adaptation to environmental challenges has become the hallmark of Konso survival strategy.

Naming of Some Selected Macro Settlement Places in Gojjam

2025-07-24T07:41:05+00:00

This study aims to investigate the naming systems, meanings, and languages of place names, contributing to sociolinguistic knowledge for the people. The study employs a descriptive qualitative research design. In-depth interviews and document consultations were used as tools for data collection. The raw data of place names were taken from the zone and woreda agriculture offices. Informants, who included experts in the Culture and Tourism Office, elderly people, and clergymen, were selected purposively. The data analysis showed that some selected macro settlement place names are bestowed in single, paired, and /Ɂnnə-/-based personal name systems. These personal name-based place name systems are indexations of acclaimed individuals and founders who established their territories in their names. On the other hand, name systems are signs of territorial administrative integration, reflecting the psychology of acclaimed individuals, people’s experiences, and human circumstances in life. Moreover, some macro settlement place names have water, gender, land features, time, and religion-based name systems. Semantically, these settlement place names have referential and connotative meanings. Despite the language of the names, some were bestowed in Amharic and Ge’ez, while others were named in a Ge᾽ez-Amharic hybrid. Moreover, a few of the names were in Afaan Oromo and Hebrew. Essentially, place names were manifestations of geospatial identity, human coincidence, religious affiliation, and the natural characteristics of the landscape in various socio-cultural dimensions.

በጥምቀት በዓል ላይ የተከሰቱ አበይት ሁነቶች እና የዘመን መንፈስ፤ በአዲስ አበባ፤ ጃን ሜዳ (ከ1917 ዓ.ም እስከ 1966 ዓ.ም)

2025-07-24T07:48:27+00:00

የዚህ ጥናት ዓላማ የጥምቀት በዓል ላይ የተከሰቱ አበይት ሁነቶች በማሳየት በወቅቱ የነበረውን የዘመን መንፈስ መመርመር ነው፡፡ ጥናቱ በአዲስ አበባ ከተማ በሚገኘው ጃን ሜዳ በሚባለው ስፍራ ከ1917 ዓ.ም እስከ 1966 ዓ.ም ድረስ ባሉት አመታት የተከበሩ የጥምቀት በዓላት ላይ የተከሰቱ አበይት ሁነቶችን በቅደም ተከተል በማቅረብ ላይ ያተኮረ ነው፡፡ ጥናቱ አይነታዊ የምርምር ስልትን የተከተለ ሲሆን፣ በቃላዊ ታሪክ የፎክሎር ጥናት ዘርፍ የሚመደብ ነው፡፡ ለጥናቱ ጠቃሚ የሆኑ ቀዳማይና ካልዓይ መረጃዎች ተሰብስበዋል፡፡ ለቀዳማይ መረጃዎች ቃለመጠይቅና ንጥል ሁነት ማሳያ የመረጃ መሰብሰቢያ ዘዴዎች ተግባራዊ የተደረጉ ሲሆን፣ ከተለያዩ መዛግብት የተገኙ ካልዓይ መረጃዎችም ጥቅም ላይ ውለዋል፡፡ በእነዚህ ዘዴዎች የተሰበሰቡ መረጃዎች ያላቸውን ትርጉምና በወቅቱ የነበረውን የዘመን መንፈስ ለመመርመር ^‹‹ኦራላይዝድ ሂስትሪ^›› የንድፈሃሳብ መንገድን የተከተለ ነው፡፡ በእነዚህ ዓመታት በተከበሩ የጥምቀት በዓላት ወቅት ንጉሱ፣ መኳንት፣ መሳፍንት፣ የኃይማት አባቶች በስፍራው በመገኘት የተለያዩ መንፈሳዊና ዓለማዊ ስርዓቶችን ይፈጽሙ እንደነበር ጥናቱ ያሳያል፡፡ የጥምቀት በዓልም ከኃይማኖታዊ ስርዓትነቱ በተጨማሪ የተለያዩ ማህበራዊና ፖለቲካዊ ጉዳዮች ማከናወኛ ሕዝባዊ መድረክ በመሆንም ያገለግል እንደነበር ጥናቱ ያሳያል፡፡ በጃን ሜዳ በተከበሩ የጥምቀት በዓላት ላይ ከተለያዩ አለማት የመጡ የኃይማኖት አባቶች፣ ዲፕሎማቶች፣ አምባሳደሮችና የሀገራት መሪዎች ይገኙ ነበር፡፡ ይህም የጥምቀት በዓል ለዲፕሎማሲ፣ ለሕዝብ ለሕዝብ ትስስርና ለሀገር ገጽታ ግንባታ ከፍተኛ ሚና እንደነበረው ጥናቱ ያሳያል፡፡ ሀገሪቱ ውስጥ የተከሰቱ አበይት ታሪካዊ ሁነቶች በጥምቀት በዓል አከባበር ላይ የፈጠሩት ተጽዕኖ እንዲሁም የዘመኑን መንፈስ እንደሚያሳዩ ጥናቱ አመላክቷል፡፡

This study aims to analyze the zeitgeist in the epiphany ritual, focusing on major events that happened from 1925 to 1974. Specifically, the study examines the Epiphany ritual held at Jan Meda in Addis Ababa and the major events during those years, presenting these events chronologically. The research adopts a qualitative methodology from a folklore studies perspective, utilizing an oral history approach. In the study, primary and secondary data were collected and used. Primary data were collected using interviews and case study data-gathering techniques, while secondary data were gathered from archival sources. The data were analyzed qualitatively. In analyzing and interpreting the zeitgeist within the temporal time, “Oralized History” was used as a conceptual framework. The findings reveal that, during the specified period, the Epiphany rituals were significant as religious events and sociopolitical and cultural platforms. In the Epiphany rituals, major events, which are religious and secular, happened with the attendance of Emperor Haile Selassie, members of the nobility, judicial authorities, and spiritual leaders. The Epiphany ritual was used as a major venue for diplomatic engagement, fostering people-to-people connections and contributing to nation-building. This is also evidenced by the attendance of spiritual leaders, diplomats, ambassadors, and heads of state from diverse nations at the Jan Meda rituals. Finally, the study underscores the reciprocal relationship between historical events and the ritual of the Epiphany, demonstrating how the sociopolitical dynamics of the time influenced the ritual's practices and how, in turn, these practices reflected and shaped the spirit of the time.

መጽሐፈ ሐተታ ዘርዐ-ያዕቆብ አክሱማዊ? የዳዊት መዝሙር እንደማስረጃ

2025-07-24T07:53:50+00:00

ዓለማየሁ ሞገስ የተባሉ ጸሐፊ በ1961 “ሐተታ ዘዘርዐ-ያዕቆብ ኢትዮጵያዊ ፈላስፋ” በሚል ርእስ ለቢኤ ድግሪ ማሟያ የቀረበ ጥናት አሳትመው ነበር። በዓለማዮሁ ሞገስ ስራ መጽሐፈ ሐተታ ዘርዐ-ያዕቆብና የዳዊት መዝሙር ጥብቅ ትስስር እንዳላቸው በማያሻማ መንገድ ቢገለጽም ትስስሩ ግን በሚገባ ተዘርዝሮ የተብራራ አይደለም። ስራው ከመጽሐፈ ሐተታ ዘርዐ-ያዕቆብ ኹለቱ ቅጂዎች በአንዱ ብቻ በማትኮር የተጻፈም ነው። ሌላው ደግሞ ስራው የየመጽሐፈ ሐተታ ዘርዐ-ያዕቆብ ጸሐፊ ሳይኾን አይቀርም ተብሎ የሚታማው ጁስቶ ዳ ኡርቢኖ የዳዊት መዝሙር ዕውቀት ፈጽሞ አይዳስስም። ይኽ ጽሑፍ እነዚኽ ክፍተቶች ለመቅረፍ ሰርተዋል። ለዚኽም ጽሑፉ የዳዊት መዝሙር በመጽሐፈ ሐተታ ዘርዐ-ያዕቆብ የተጠቀሰበት መንገድ የኢትዮጵያ ሊቃውንት የዳዊት መዝሙር ንባብ ከሚጠቅሱበት ባህል ጋር ማነጻጸር፣ በመጽሐፈ ሐተታ ዘርዐ-ያዕቆብ የሚገኙ የዳዊት መዝሙር ንባቦች የቀረቡበት ዓውድ የኢትዮጵያ መጻሕፍት ፈለግ ተከትሎ እንደኾነ መፈተሽ፣ በመጽሐፈ ሐተታ ዘርዐ-ያዕቆብ የሚገኙ የዳዊት መዝሙር ንባቦች ምንጮች ሊኾኑ ከሚችሉ የኢትዮጵያ ጸዋትወ ዜማ ወይም ቅኔ መጻሕፍት ማመሰካከር የመሳሳሉ ዓይነተኛ የጥናት ዘዴዎች ተጠቅመዋል። ከተጠቀሱት ዓይነተኛ የጥናት ዘዴዎች ትንተና በመነሣትም ጽሑፉ በመጽሐፈ ሐተታ ዘርዐ-ያዕቆብና የዳዊት መዝሙር ያለ ትስስር ጥብቅና ጥልቅ እንደኾነ አረጋግጠዋል። ትስስሩም ምዕራፍ በመባል በሚታወቀው የጸዋትወ ዜማ ድርሰት እንደሚመሰረት በዝርዝር ተገልጸዋል። ከጽሑፉ ትንተናዎች ማየት እንደሚቻለው ደግሞ የመጽሐፈ ሐተታ ዘርዐ-ያዕቆብ ጸሐፊ የዳዊት መዝሙር ዕውቀት፣ ፍቅር እና ክብር በጁስቶ ዳ ኡርቢኖ የታወቁ ኹሉም ስራዎች ፈጽመው አይገኙም፤ በሕይወቱ እና የስራ ፍሬዎቹም ጭራሽኑ አይታዩም። እነዚኽ ማስረጃዎች ሲመዘኑ ጁስቶ ዳ ኡርቢኖ የመጽሐፈ ሐተታ ዘርዐ-ያዕቆብ ጸሐፊ አድርጎ መውሰድ ፍጹም አዳጋች ያደርጓል። ይኽ ደግሞ በመጽሐፈ ሐተታ ዘርዐ-ያዕቆብ በበቂ መንገድና በሚገባ አጽንዖት የተገለጸውን የዘርዐ-ያዕቆብ ኢትዮጵያዊነት ያጸናል።

The inquiries of Zara Yaeqob (hereafter referred to as the Hateta) is an autobiographical text copied from parchment and sent to Antoine D'Abbadie of France by an Italian monk named Giusto d’ Urbino, who lived in Ethiopia from 1847 to 1855. However, the original parchment from which the copy was made has yet to be found. Consequently, the authenticity of the Hateta and the true identity of its author have long been subject to debate. Although the Hateta is presented as an autobiography, it is thoroughly interwoven with Psalm verses from the Psalter. Throughout the Hateta, the Psalter is quoted extensively and referenced in depth to the extent that it is sometimes treated as a Psalter itself. This strong link between the Hateta and the Psalter formed the basis of Alemayohu Moges’s pioneering work, Hateta Zara Yaeqob: Ethiopian Philosopher (1968). While Alemoyohu Moges’s work was novel in opening an important new line of inquiry, it lacked rigor in demonstrating the supposed textual link between the Hateta and the Psalter. His analysis also relied solely on manuscript Eth. Abb. 215, and he did not address Giusto d’ Urbino’s potential authorship of the Hateta. This study addressed these gaps by thoroughly exploring the link between the Hateta and the Psalter using both Eth. Abb. 215 and Eth. Abb. 234 manuscripts and examining Giusto d’ Urbino’s knowledge or use of the Psalter in his scholarly contributions. The analysis revealed that most of the Psalm verses appearing in the Hateta are also found in an Ethiopian book called Me’eraf. In contrary, Giusto d’ Urbino’s scholarly output do not indicate a comparable depth of knowledge, respect or love for the Psalter or Psalms as that displayed in the Hateta. In light of these evidence, it is reasonable to conclude that the Hateta is uniquely Ethiopian and that its true author hailed from Axum.

የጋብቻ ለውጥ መለማመጃ ሥርዓተ ክዋኔዎች በጃቢ ጠህናን ማኅበረሰብ

2025-07-24T07:59:02+00:00

ጋብቻ በባሕርይው ሰዎች ጠበቅ ያለ ለውጥ የሚያካሂዱበት የሕይወት ዘመን የደረጃ ሽግግር ማድረጊያ ከመሆኑ ጋር ተያይዞ፣ የተለያዩ ዓላማዎች ባሏቸውና ተከታታይ በሆኑ ሥርዓተ ክዋኔዎች ታጅቦ ይከበራል፡፡ ጋብቻ በጃቢ ጠህናን ወረዳ አሁንም ድረስ ከአስራ ስምንት ዓመት ዕድሜ የሚፈጸምባቸው ሁኔታዎች መኖራቸው ደግሞ ተጋቢዎች ላይ የሚደርሰውን ጫና ከባድና ውስብስብ ያደርገዋል፡፡ ሆኖም በወቅቱ በሚፈጸሙ ሥርዓተ ክዋኔዎች አማካኝነት ሽግግሩን አካሂደው፣ ለውጡን ተቀብለው የማኅበረሰቡ አካል ሲሆኑ ይስተዋላል፡፡ ይህን ከጋብቻ በፊትና በኋላ ያለውን ተቃርኖ

በማስማማትና ለውጡን በማላመድ የማኅበረሰቡ ህልውና ሚዛኑን ጠብቆ እንዲቀጥል ያስቻሉ ሥርዓተ ክዋኔዎችን የመረመረ ጥናት ባለመኖሩ ይህንን ጥናት ማካሄድ አስፈላጊ ሆኗል፡፡ የጥናቱ ዋና ዓላማ በጋብቻ ወቅት የሚፈጸሙሥርዓተ ክዋኔዎች ምን ምን እንደሆኑ መግለጽና ሚናቸው ምን እንደሚመስል ከጃቢ ጠህናን ወረዳ ማህበረሰብ ባህል፣ አኗኗር፣ ልማድና እምነት አንጻር ማሳየት ነው፡፡ በውስጡ ዋና ዋና የጋብቻ ሽግግር ሥርዓተ ክዋኔዎችን መግለጽ እና ለተጋቢዎች ለውጥም ሆነ ለማህበረሰቡ የሚያበረክቷቸውን ሚናዎች መተንተን የሚሉ ንዑሳን ዓላማዎችን ይዟል፡፡ ጥናቱ ዓይነታዊ ሲሆን መረጃዎች ከቀዳማይና ከካልአይ ምንጮች ተሰብስበዋል፡፡ ተሳትፏዊና ተሳትፏዊ ያልሆነ ምልከታ እንዲሁም ነጻ ቃለ መጠይቅ በመረጃ መሰብሰቢያነት የተጠቀመ ሲሆን መረጃው የተግባራውያንን የንድፈ ሐሳብ ፈለግ በመደገፍ ተተንትኗል፡፡ የመረጃ ትንተናው ውጤት እንደሚያሳየው በጋብቻ ወቅት ከሰርግ ዋዜማ እስከ ጫጉላ ግላጭ ድረስ ምሪ የመፍታት፣ የወንድ ሙሽራን የመፈተን እና ቃል የማስገባት እንዲሁም የዙረሽ ግቢ ክዋኔዎች በሙሽሪት ወላጆች ቤት የሚፈጸሙ ሲሆን፤ ሙሽሮችን የተለየ ምግብ መመገብ፣ የጫጉላ ቤት ጨዋታ እና የጫጉላ ግላጭ ሥነ ሥርዓቶች ደግሞ በወንዱ ሙሽራ ወላጆች ቤት የሚቀጥሉ መሆናቸውን አመላክቷል፡፡ ሥርዓተ ክዋኔዎችም ጋብቻውን የማጀብ ወይም የማድመቅ፣ ሕክምና የመስጠት (የመፈወስ)፣ ባለጉዳይን ከሽግግሩ ጋር የማስማማት እና ለውጡን የማወጅ (ማረጋገጥ) ባጠቃላይ የጋብቻ ለውጡን የማለማመድ ሚናዎች እንዳሏቸው ጥናቱ አመላክቷል፡፡

Marriage is a phase of life in which humans go through drastic changes, and it is celebrated with a continuum of rituals with different objectives. The fact that marriage still takes place below the age of eighteen in the Jabi Tehinan district makes the pressure on married couples difficult and complicated. However, it can be seen that they have made the transition, accepted the transformation, and become a part of the society through the processes that take place at the time. It is necessary to conduct this research because there is no research that has examined the rituals that allowed the existence of the community to maintain its balance by harmonizing the contradiction between before and after marriage and adapting to the change. The main purpose of the study is to explain what the rituals that take place during marriage are and to show what their role is like in terms of the culture, lifestyle, customs, and beliefs of the Jabi Tehinan district community. It has the specific objectives of describing the major processes of marriage transition and analyzing the roles they contribute to the transition of couples and to society. The study is qualitative, and the data used primary and secondary sources. The research data were collected through participant and non-participant observation and open-ended interview methods. The research also used the functionalism theoretical framework to analyze data. The results of the data analysis show that during the marriage period, from the eve of the wedding to the wedding ceremony and honeymoon, the activities of untying the bridegroom, testing the bridegroom and making promises, and the circumambulation are performed at the bride's parents' house. He pointed out that feeding the brides a different meal, the wedding house game, and the ending honeymoon ceremony will continue at the home of the groom's parents. Rituals can accompany or highlight the marriage, provide treatment (heal), adapt the couple to the transition, and announce (validate) the transformation.

የምርቃን ስርዓተ ከበራ ኃይል በሰሜን ወሎ ማኅበረሰብ

2025-07-24T08:06:33+00:00

የዚህ ጥናት ዋና ዓላማ የምርቃን ስርዓተ ከበራ የሚያስገኘውን ማኅበረ-ስነልቦናዊ ፋይዳ መመርመር ነው፡፡ ስለሆነም የሰሜን ወሎ ማኅበረሰብን ፍልስፍና፣ አስተሳሰብ እንዲሁም አመለካከት ለመረዳት ላቅ ያለ ሚና ይኖረዋል፡፡ ጥናቱ በባህርይው ከአይነታዊ ምርምር የሚዋገን ነው፡፡ በተለያዩ መስፈርቶች ከተመረጡ የመረጃ አቀባዮች በምልከታ ፣ በቃለ መጠይቅ እንዲሁም በቡድን ውይይት የመረጃ መሰብሰቢያ ዘዴዎች የተሰበሰበውን መረጃ በሀቲታዊ ትንተና ስልት እየተተነተነ እና በክዋኔ ንድፈ ሃሳብ እየተመራ ዘልቋል ፡፡ የጥናቱ ግኝት የምርቃን ስርዓተ ከበራ አመክንዮአዊ አስተሳሰብ ላይ የሚመረኮዝ ሲሆን ትኩረቱም ጤንነትን ፣ ተደማጭነትን ፣ አዱኛን ፣ የልጅ ፍሬን እንዲሁም ረጅም እድሜን የሚመኙበት ስርዓታዊ እሳቤ ነው ፡፡ የምርቃን ቱርፋት ተመራቂው ህይወቱን በአርያነት የመምራት፣ ማኅበራዊ ትስስርን የማጠናከር ፣ ቀና የመሆን እንዲሁም ሰዎችን ለመልካም ተግባር የማሰለፍ ኃይልን የሚያጎናጽፍ መሆኑ ተመላክቷል ፡፡ ከዚህም በተሻጋሪ የማኅበረሰብን ማንነት ፣ ስርዓት ፣ አኗኗር ፣ ልማድ ፣ ወግ ፣ ታሪክ ፣ ስነልቦና ፣ ርዕዮተ ዓለም እንዲሁም የህይወት ፍልስፍና ገላጭ ሆኖ የሚቀርብ መሆኑን ጥናቱ ጠቁሟል ፡፡ ምርቃን በተለያዩ ዐውዶች ላይ የሚከወን ቢሆንም በዋናነት ግን ልጅ ሲወለድ ፣ አዲስ ቤት ተሰርቶ ሲገባ ፣ በግጭት አፈታት ስርዓት ፣ በእርሻ ስራ ፣ በሰርግ ፣ ቡና ሲጠጣ እንዲሁም በቱፋታ ስርዓት ላይ የሚሉት ተጠቃሽ ናቸው፡፡ ምርቃን ከአምላክ እና አላህ ጋር የመገናኛ ድልድይ መሆኑ ተመላክቷል፡፡ እንዲሁም እውነታ ላይ ሲመሰረት በልዕለ ተፈጥሯዊ ኃይል ቅቡል እንደሆነ ይታመናል ፡፡ የምርቃን ስርዓተ ከበራ ማኅበራዊ ፣ ስነ ልቦናዊ ፣ አስተዳደራዊ እንዲሁም አዱኛዊ አበርክቶዎች ያሉት መሆኑን ጥናቱ ጠቁሟል፡፡ ይሁን እንጂ ምርቃን ለልማት እንዲውል በማድረጉ ሂደት ውስጥ ውስንነት ታይቷል፡፡ በመሆኑም የሀገር ሽማግሌዎች፣ መንግስታዊ ያልሆኑ ድርጅቶች እንዲሁም የባህል ተመራማሪዎች ምርቃን ለልማት በሚውልበት ሁናቴ ላይ ትኩረት ቢሰጡ መልካም ነው፡፡

The main purpose of this study is to examine the socio-psychological benefits of the blessing ritual practices in the North Wollo community. The study argues that studying blessing rituals plays a significant role in understanding the philosophy, thinking, and attitudes of a given community. To that end, a qualitative research approach and a descriptive research design were employed. The data were collected from selected informants through observation, interviews, and focus group discussions. The study used performance theory. The results of the study indicated that the ritual practice of blessing is based on logical thinking. Moreover, the ritual practice seeks health, honor, prosperity, and longevity. It is indicated that the product of blessing empowers the graduate to lead a noble life, strengthen social relations, be kind, and inspire people to do good deeds. The study also indicated that the blessing ritual is a reflection of the community’’s identity, lifestyle, customs, traditions, history, psychology, ideology, and philosophy of life. Blessing is performed in various contexts; it is mainly mentioned when a child is born, when a new house is built, in conflict resolution systems, during agricultural work, at weddings, when drinking coffee, and during the Tufata system. It is indicated that the blessing is a bridge of communication with God and Allah. It is also believed to be endowed with supernatural powers when based on reality. Moreover, the study indicated that the blessing ritual has social, psychological, administrative, and economic benefits. However, there have been limitations in the process of using the blessing for development. Therefore, it would be good if elders, non-governmental organizations, and cultural researchers paid attention to the way in which the blessing is used for development.

የባህላዊ አዳኝና የሚታዊ ተጋዳሊ ጉዞ እጣዎች ንጽጽራዊ ትንተና፤ በመለየት ፈለግ መነሻ

2025-07-24T08:12:14+00:00

የዚህ ጥናት መሰረታዊ ግብ በሚታዊ ተጋዳሊና በባህላዊ አዳኝ የህይወት እጣ ጉዞዎች የሚታዩ ተመሳስሎዎችንና ልዩነቶችን በማነጻጸር የፎክሎር ጥናት ትንተና ለሁለንተናዊነት (universality) እና አካባቢያዊነት (locality) ትኩረት መስጠት እንደሚገባ ማሳየት ነው፡፡ ጥናቱ አይነታዊ ሲሆን ኢትኖግራፊያዊ የምርምር ንድፍን ተከትሏል፡፡ ለጥናቱ ከምስራቅ ወለጋ ዞን፣ ኪረሙና ጉድሩ፤ ከኢሉ አባቦር ዞን፣ ቡሬ፤ ከጅማ ዞን፣ ሰኮሩ ወረዳ በታላሚ ናሙና ተመርጠዋል፡፡ በእነዚህ ወረዳዎች ከሚኖሩ የተጠኚው ማሕበረሰብ አባላት መረጃዎቹ የተሰበበሰቡት በቃለ መጠይቅና በቡድን ተኮር ውይይት ነው፡፡ በቃለ መጠይቅ የተሳተፉት 24 ቁልፍ መረጃ አቀባዮች ሲሆኑ፣በቡድን ውይይት ደግሞ 23 የባህሉ እውቀት ያላቸው ግለሰቦች ናቸው፡፡ ሁሉም የጥናቱ ተሳታፊዎች የተመረጡት በታላሚ እና በጓድ ጥቆማ የንሞና ዘዴዎች ነው፡፡ ከርዕሰ ጉዳዩ ጋር ግንኙነት ያላቸው ሰነዶች ከአብያተ መጻሕፍትና ከሌሎችም ቦታዎች ተሰብስበዋል፡፡ የመረጃዎቹን ምሉዕነትና ትክክለኝነት የማጣራት ስራ ከተከናወነ በኋላ በመለየት ምእራፍ ስር በሚገኙት አምስት ንዑሳን ምዕራፎች ስር ተመድበው ትንተናው ተካሂዷል፡፡ የጥናቱ ውጤትም፣ በገድል ጥሪ፣ ጥሪውን ለመቀበል በሚኖር ፈቃድ (እምብኝታ)፣ በልእለ ተፈጥሮ ረድኤት፣ የመጀመሪያውን እና የመጨረሻውን ቅጽሮች በመዝለቅ፣ በሚታዊ ተጋዳሊና በባህላዊ አዳኝ የእጣ ጉዞዎች መካከል ተመሳስሎ መኖሩን አሳይቷል፡፡ በእነዚህ ምእራፎች ስር ያሉ ዝርዝር ጉዳዮች ሲታዩ ግን፣ በሚታዊ ተጋዳሊና በባህላዊ አዳኝ የዕጣ ጉዞዎች መካከል ባህል ፈጠር ልዩነቶች ታይተዋል፡፡ ይህም የፎክሎር መረጃዎችን ለሁሉም ባህሎች በሚሰራው በሁለንተናዊነት ወይም የየባህሎች ተናጠናላዊ ዝርዝር ጉዳዮች ላይ በሚያተኩረው አካባቢያዊነት ላይ ብቻ ተመስርቶ መተንተን ጥናቱን የተሟላ እንደማያደርገው ያሳያል፡፡ ስለሆነም የጋራ አካዳሚዊ ዕውቀቶችን ለማዳበርና የየባህሎችን ተናጠላዊ ጉዳዮች ለመረዳት ለሁለቱም ተገቢው ትኩረት ቢሰጥ መልካም ይሆናል፡፡

The primary objective of this study is to underscore the necessity of integrating both universality and locality in folklore analysis. By conducting a comparative examination of the mythic hero’s and the traditional hunter’s life journeys, this research highlights their shared motifs as well as culturally distinct variations. Employing a qualitative ethnographic approach, the study focuses on selected communities in Kiramu and Guduru (East Wollega Zone), Bure (Ilu Aba Bor Zone), and Sokoru Woreda (Jimma Zone). Data were systematically collected through in-depth interviews with 24 key informants and focus group discussions involving 23 culturally-knowledgeable participants. Participants were selected using a combination of purposive and snowball sampling techniques to ensure depth and relevance. Supplementary archival materials were also gathered from libraries and other relevant sources. Following a rigorous verification process to ensure data accuracy and completeness, the findings were organized into five analytical subsections. The study reveals striking parallels between the mythic hero’s journey and that of the traditional hunter, particularly in key stages such as: the call to adventure; the acceptance (or refusal) of the call; the intervention of supernatural aid, and the symbolic crossing of thresholds (both initial and final). However, a closer examination of these stages uncovers culturally specific variations, demonstrating that neither a purely Universalist (cross-cultural) nor an exclusively localist (culture-specific) approach suffices for a comprehensive understanding of folklore. Thus, this study advocates for a dual analytical framework—one that balances universal archetypes with local particularities—to advance scholarly discourse and foster a deeper appreciation of both shared narrative structures and unique cultural expressions.

Mine to Win, 2016, by Hiwot Taffera

2025-07-24T08:19:45+00:00

A theoretical discussion of literature, popular memory, and history enables us to argue that novels are valid historical sources, pertinent to their role in shaping popular memory and imagination. The employment of memory and imagination is the work of both historians and novelists. Bearing in mind the role of literary texts in the “deployment of popular memory to recompose past events,” the historian uses novels for their role in crafting collective popular imagination rather than for their accurate historical information. Although not accurate, the novel can provide an insight into the social and cultural aspects of human life. Literary works are not a reliable source of information about past events. However, art forms such as the novel take a historical theme to construct their imaginative story. By refocusing the debate on history in literature from the accuracy of information to the role of literature informing national imagination and popular memory, novels can be sites for shaping popular perception and exploring historical themes. Similarly, the novel Mine to Win imaginatively reconstructs a periodized past of the 1850s-1870s, revolving around student life, scholarly traditions of that epoch, and the everyday lives of the community.

አፍሪካ ከቀኝ ግዛት ወደ ነፃነት (1945-1980) ተስፋዎችና ውጤቶች

2025-07-24T08:23:04+00:00

This book focuses on the expectations and outcomes of political independence as it examines Africa’s journey from colonialism to liberation between 1945 and 1980. It is written in Amharic language, in a rare way, definitely provides a wider Ethiopian readership with useful insights about the second half of the twentieth century history of Africa. Given Amharic literature’s dearth of attention to African issues and African context, it would be wise for Ethiopian writers to take a cue from the author.