Abyssinia is a term that has been widely used for centuries since the 150s BC as a geographical expression for Aksumite culture. Initially, the name sounded like Habesha, but the language features of foreign traders gradually Latinized the word, simplifying it for themselves.
Geography
Abyssinia is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, bordered by a lack of direct access to the sea. Almost 100 million people live in a small area like France.
One of the lowest life expectancy rates in the world is fixed here. According to reports, women can live for about 50 years, and men for about 48 years.
Location of the lowest point on Earth, located 116 meters below sea level, in the Danakil depression. Dalol is one of the only lava lakes in the world and it is the hottest place on the planet.
Abyssinia is the birthplace of the Blue Nile, whichtogether with the White is the longest river in the world, the Nile.
Religion
The country of Abyssinia is one of the oldest civilizations of the Ancient World era. The power of the Orthodox state extended far beyond the city of Aksum. He formed the basis of the Christian culture of Northern Ethiopia and Eritrea.
Tewahedo, or the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, is one of the oldest forms of Christianity in the world, a religion that came from Egypt. About 330 AD. e. Frumentius, the Apostle of Ethiopia, turned to the Aksumite king Ezane, who made Christianity the official religion of the empire. Today, 35% of Ethiopians are Christians.
Ethiopia's main languages also indicate the presence of Judaism in the country. The presence of a number of words associated with religion - hell, idol, Easter, cleansing, alms, is clearly not of Jewish origin. These words should have flowed directly from a Jewish ecclesiastical source. In general, there are more than 200 languages in the country.
Around the 9th century, Christian Abyssinia began to decline and break up into separate principalities. The reason for this was the flourishing religion of Islam, penetrating the territory of the African Highlands. During the first pilgrimage of the companions of the Prophet Muhammad, the king granted them land for settlement in the Aksumite kingdom. They were concentrated in the central part of modern Ethiopia. Abyssinia was the first country to adopt Islam as a religion in the past and sheltered the Prophet Muhammad, his family and followers when they were persecuted andkilled by pagan Arabs. Today, 45% of the population is Muslim.
Politics
Over the centuries, the policy of the country has undergone many changes. Abyssinia is now called Ethiopia. After the revolution, since 1987 it has been the People's Democratic Republic. It is the only country in Africa that has never been officially colonized, but had to defeat the Italians twice to remain independent.
Emperors ruled the country of Abyssinia until 1974, the locals claim that they were descendants of King Solomon from the Bible and Makeda (Queen of Sheba). Haile Selassie became the last Ethiopian emperor.
The first internationally recognized female African head of state was Queen Zewditu of Ethiopia. The Empress ruled from 1916 to 1930.
Traditions
Abyssinia is the birthplace of a special "coffee ceremony". The beans are roasted on the spot, crushed and brewed. Served in several ceramic cups without handles, in which coffee is for one good sip, but according to tradition, they drink it slowly, enjoying intimate conversations. When the beans are roasted to smoke, they are passed around, the smoke from them becoming a blessing to the diners. They offer popcorn with coffee.
Coffee was first discovered by an Ethiopian goat herder named Kaldi in the Koffa region. Today, one in three people drink coffee at least once a day.
Injera - Teff bean flatbread, similar to a pancake, an integral part of traditional meat and vegetable dishes. rawmeat is considered a delicacy. A variety of spicy sauces saturate its taste, in addition, spices act as an excellent marinade.
Traditionally, Ethiopian parents and children do not have a common surname. Most children take their father's first name as their last name.
Architecture and agriculture
Rural houses are built mostly of stone and mud, the most readily available resources in the area. They blend easily with the natural environment.
Architectural remains include carved stelae, vast palaces and ancient temples that are still used and preserved by Ethiopians. In the temples built on the hills, even today they hold the main festive events, where people from the villages gather all around and sing, making a procession.
The earliest example of human ancestors using tools has been traced back to Ethiopia.
The fertile soils of the northern part of the African continent and the temperate climate are suitable for growing crops such as: teff, wheat, corn and durro.
Agriculture is developed in Habesha, they plow the land in the old fashioned way, on oxen. The Ethiopians were the first to domesticate wild camels, donkeys and sheep. The Orthodox Church is an integral part of the culture.
A few more facts
The Ethiopian calendar has 13 months and is 7 or 8 years behind the Western calendar. The 13th month has only five days, or six in a leap year.
Ethiopian Distance Runner Abebe Bikila wasthe first black African to win a gold medal in an Olympic marathon in 1960, and he ran the race barefoot. He won the race again in Tokyo four years later and became the first person to win the race twice, setting a world record.
The ancient skeleton named Lucy is a major archaeological find. This human fossil, believed to have lived over 3 million years ago, was found in 1974 in the Great Rift Valley in Ethiopia. She was named after The Beatles song Lucy In The Sky with Diamonds, which was playing on the radio at the time she was found. Even older remains were found in Hadar in 2001. Dating back over 5 million years, they are the earliest known ancestors of modern humans.
One local resident came up with a dangerous entertainment for tourists right in the backyard of his house. Almost every night he feeds raw meat to wild hyenas. Entertainment has become very popular and extreme. Right from the hands, everyone can treat a flock of predatory animals.
