ABOUT ETHIOPIA RICH IN TOURIST ATTRACTIONS
BOTH NATURAL AND CULTURAL, MANY RECOGNIZED BY UNESCO (UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL SCIENTIFIC & CULTURAL ORGANIZATION)
3000 years of Ethiopian civilization
Ethiopia is one of the oldest nations in the world. It has long been an intersection between the civilizations of North Africa, the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa. Ethiopia was never colonized, maintaining its independence during the “scramble for Africa” until the Italian military occupation which was achieved through the use of mustard gas, Italian and colonial manpower, and superior firepower. During this period, the Italians merged the country with Eritrea and Italian Somaliland to form Italian East Africa and despite continued guerilla attacks, Abyssinia (as Ethiopia was called then) was not able to relinquish itself of Italian control until the allies pushed them out with the help of colonial troops. Ethiopia has long been a member of international organizations: it became a member of the League of Nations, signed the Declaration by United Nations in 1945, founded the UN headquarters in Africa, was one of the 51 original members of the UN, and is the headquarters for and one of the founding members of the former OAU and current AU.
ETHIOPIA THE HIDDEN TREASURE
Ethiopia is located in the Horn of Africa (Eastern Africa), with the Great Rift Valley at its centre with stunning scenery and one of the oldest sites of human existence in the world.
PEOPLE AND CULTURE
Over 80 linguistic groups exist in Ethiopia, representing four of the five Afro-Asiatic families of languages, including the Omotic language family found exclusively within the confines of Ethiopia.
TOPOGRAPHY
Ethiopia’s topography consists of a central high plateau bisected by the Ethiopian segment of the Great Rift Valley in to the northern and southern highland and surrounded by lowlands, more extensive on the east & southeast than on the south & west.
ETHIOPIAN CALENDAR
Ethiopia uses the Ethiopian calendar, which dates back to the Coptic calendar 25 BC, and never adopted the Julian or Gregorian reforms. One Ethiopian year consists of twelve months.
MUSIC
Some 1600 years before his counterparts in Europe, the Ethiopian Saint Yared devised a musical notation in the 6th century for his stupendous repertoire of sacred music with finely choreographed sacred dance to go with it.
