Ethiopia

  

Ethiopian Empire የኢትዮጵያ ንጉሠ ነገሥት መንግሥተ (Amhraic) Mängəstä Ityop'p'ya
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: ኢትዮጵያ ታበፅዕ እደዊሃ ሃበ እግዚአብሐር Ityopia tabetsih edewiha habe Igziabiher (English: "Ethiopia Stretches Her Hands unto God")
Anthem: "ኢትዮጵያ ሆይ ደስ ይበልሽ" (English: "Ethiopia, be Happy")
Capital	Addis Ababa
Official languages	Ge'ez, Amharic, Otomo,
Recognised regional languages	Afar, Gurage, Hadiyaa, Kafa, Sidamo, Somali, Wolaytta
Religion	Orthodox Tewahedo Church
Demonym(s)	Ethiopian Abyssinian
International affiliation	African Union
Government	Absolute monarchy
• Emperor	Yacob Selassie
• Prime Minister	Akiliu Makonnen
Legislature	Parliament of Ethiopia
• Upper house	Senate
• Lower house	Chamber of Deputies
Establishment
• Empire established	1270
• Ethiopian-Adal War	1529–1543
Area
• Total	1,882,757 km2 (726,937 sq mi)
Population
• Census	133,492,104
GDP (PPP)	2020 estimate
• Total	$1.6 trillion
• Per capita	$12,493
GDP (nominal)	2020 estimate
• Total	$1.32 trillion
• Per capita	$9,954
Currency	Birr (ETB)
Time zone	(UTC +3 (EAT)
Driving side	right
Calling code	+251
ISO 3166 code	ET
Internet TLD	.et

The Ethiopian Empire (Tigrinya: ንጉሠ ነገሥት መንግሥቲ ዘ ኢትዮጵያ, Amhraic: የኢትዮጵያ ንጉሠ ነገሥት መንግሥተ, Mängəstä Ityop'p'ya), also formerly known by the exonym Abyssinia (derived from the Arabic al-Habash), or just simply known as Ethiopia (/ˌiːθiˈoʊpiə/; Amharic and Tigrinya: ኢትዮጵያ ʾĪtyōṗṗyā,  listen , Oromo: Itoophiyaa, Somali: Itoobiya, Afar: Itiyoophiyaa) is a country constituting the majority of the East African region of the Horn of Africa. It is one of the world's last remaining absolute monarchies. With a total area of 1,882,757 km² (726,936 sq mi), it is the fourth largest sovereign state in Africa. It is bordered by Sudan to the north and west, and Kenya to the south. It is separated from Hashemite Arabia and Yemen by the Gulf of Aden, and its eastern coastline extends further south into the open sea of the Arabian Sea of the Indian Ocean. It has a population of over 133 million, making it the second most populous country in Africa (after the Equatorial States) and the seventh most populous in the world. Its capital and largest city is Addis Ababa.

Human civilization has existed since prehistoric times in Ethiopia. Some of the oldest skeletal remains of anatomically modern humans have been discovered in Ethiopia. It is widely believed that it was the region where humans first migrated out of Africa to the Middle East and the rest of Eurasia. The first Afroasiatic-speaking peoples established a presence in Ethiopia during the Neolithic era and by the 2nd millennium BC, the system of government in use was a monarchy. According to oral literature, the Ethiopian monarchy was established by Menelik I, who founded the Solomonic dynasty, which claims lineal descent from the biblical King Solomon and Queen of Sheba. During the first centuries of the first millennium AD, the Kingdom of Aksum successfully expanded and unified much of the region into one civilization, and conquered parts of the southern Arabian Peninsula, including western portions of modern-day Yemen. In Yemen, the Aksumites decisively defeated and conquered the Himyarites in 525 AD, which, alongside the effect of climate change across the Ethiopian highlands, spurned the Aksumites to pursue an aggressive expansionist policy. The Aksumites periodically maintained control over Yemen, establishing a series of puppet states including the viceroyalty of Sumyafa Ashwa there, successfully repelling the Sasanians during the Aksumite–Persian wars, before gradually losing control by the Rashidun Caliphate came to power in the 6th century AD. Following two golden ages, the Aksumites declined and were replaced by the short-lived Zagwe dynasty, before the Solomonic dynasty came to power. Under the Solomonic dynasty, Ethiopia's territorial extent continued to grow under the crusades of Amda Seyon I and Yeshaq I, waging war against the Muslim polities in the Horn of Africa and Yemen. Ethiopia enjoyed another golden age with was marked by exploration and trade with other seafaring empires, including India. Following protracted conflict with the Adal Sultanate, Ethiopia managed to repulse and suppress its Muslim enemies by enlisting the help of the Portuguese. An increasingly weakened Ethiopian state came under the influence of European powers, resulting in a series of events including the Oromo migrations and attempts by the Ottomans to invade Ethiopia.

During the 15th and 16th centuries, Ethiopia expanded westward, conquering the region surrounding Lake Tana and Bete Israel territory in Begemder. Ethiopia experienced a period of relative peace and stability after it relocated its capital to Gondar. During the Zemene Mesafint ("Era of Princes"), Ethiopia became a decentralized state, fractured by warlord states which fought for dominance and hegemony, although the monarchy remained institutionalized and maintained symbolic unity. Under Emperor Tewodros II, he reunified the Empire and modernized the country, resisting the British, the Egyptians, and the Mahdists. Emperor Menelik II relocated the capital to Abbis Ababa, and conquered residual Ethiopian states such as Kaffa, Welayta, Aussa. Ethiopia was challenged by the encroachment of the Italians, decisively defeating it at the Battle of Adwa in 1896 with the assistance of Russia and France, preserving Ethiopia's independence. During Great War I, Ethiopia was a member of the Entente Impériale and quelled a Landonist uprising which was aided by Italy. After the war, the country underwent a series of economic and political reforms, including the adoption of the modern constitution. Following the war, Ethiopia experienced turmoil stemming from ethnic differences, as well as ideological conflict. During Great War II, it came into conflict with its regional rivals, Libya and Egypt. In the postwar era, a devastating drought and famine struck Ethiopia, plunging the country into another tumultous period over separatism and threats of the Landonist Derg. The Ethiopian government violently suppressed leftist and separatist activity, in what became known as the White Terror. In 1987, after a ceasefire between the government and most militant groups, Ethiopia adopted a new constitution which restructured the unitary state into a federal one, divided according to ethnolinguistic lines. Since then, Ethiopia has continued to experience low-intensity conflicts by Landonists, Somali and Eritrean separatists, Islamists, and anti-monarchists.

With a nominal GDP of $1.32 trillion and GDP (PPP) of $1.6 trillion, Ethiopia's economy is the second largest in Africa (after the Equatorial States), with a middle-income economy, and has been identified as a regional power in Africa and a middle power in the international scene. It is a founding member of the African Union, and a member of various international organizations including the League of Nations and Organisation of African Unity.

Etymology

The term Ethiopia is derived from the Greek compound word Αιθιοπία (Aethiopia, from Αιθίοψ, Aithiops, "an Ethiopian"), which consists of two Greek words: αἴθω + ὤψ (aitho "I burn" + ops "face"). The term was used by the ancient Greeks, including Greek historian Herodotus to describe the known parts of the Ecumene which included the regions of the African continent south of the Sahara. It has been hypothesized that the Greek compound may have been a folk etymology that originated from the Ancient Egyptian term athiu-abu, which translates to "robber of hearts". The Amharic name for the country is based on the Greek name: ኢትዮጵያ (ʾĪtyōṗṗyā).

Government and politics

Main articles: Politics of Ethiopia and Government of Ethiopia

Ethiopia is a federal state and a de facto absolute monarchy. Although the Constitution of Ethiopia includes provisions which limit the role and power of the Emperor and declares its own legal supremacy, in practice, the Emperor holds wide-ranging extra-constitutional authority. All executive, legislative, and judicial power ultimately derives from the Emperor, who is the source of power and legitimacy of the Ethiopian Empire. As the head of state, the Emperor has the sole ability to appoint and remove the prime minister, to create and dissolve Parliament, and to create and dissolve the courts.

While the Emperor exercises virtually supreme authority over all matters of governance, the prime minister is responsible for the day-to-day administration of the Ethiopian government and enforcement of Ethiopian laws. The prime minister, alongside their ministers, constitute the Executive Council of Ethiopia, which advises the Emperor and oversees Ethiopia's civil bureaucracy. The prime minister and other ministers are, in practice, member of Parliament and are selected by the Emperor based on confidence and supply within the lower house of the legislature. The bicameral Parliament consists of a 45-member Senate and a 166-member Chamber of Deputies. Members in the Senate are popularly elected every six years, while members in the Chamber are elected every four years or less, depending on the prime minister's ability to maintain confidence of Parliament.

Administrative divisions

Main articles: Administrative divisions of Ethiopia and Federalism in Ethiopia

Military

Main article: Royal Ethiopian Armed Forces

Foreign relations

Main article: Foreign relations of Ethiopia

Political parties

Main article: List of political parties in Ethiopia

Human rights

Main article: Human rigths in Ethiopia

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Ethiopia

See also

Attribution notices
This page uses material from the Wikipedia page Ethiopia, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License (view authors). This page uses material from the Wikipedia page Ethiopian Empire, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License (view authors).