Culture of Ethiopia

The culture of Ethiopia is very multi-faceted. Among many traditions, respect (especially of one's elders) is very important. In Ethiopian culture it is customary to rise up out of one's seat or give up one's bed for an older friend or family member, even if they may be just a year older.

Music
Ethiopian music is extremely diverse, with each of the country's 80 tribes being associated with unique sounds. Some forms of tribal music are strongly influenced by Muslim and folk music from elsewhere in the Horn of Africa, especially Somalia. However, Ethiopian religious music also has an ancient Christian element, traced to Yared, who lived during the reign of Gabra Masqal. In northeastern Ethiopia, in Wollo, a Muslim musical form called manzuma developed. Sung in Amharic, manzuma has spread to Harar and Jimma, where it is now sung in the Oromo language. One of the most popular musicians from Ethiopia is the Los Angeles–area expatriate Aster Aweke.

The last three decades of the 20th century saw Ethiopia wracked by famine and drought, and war. Since the end of the 1990s, however, the country has made steps towards recovery, and among other improvements, music has become more omnipresent and more easily accessible outside of Addis Ababa. Ethiopian music uses a unique modal system that is pentatonic, with characteristically long intervals between some notes. This creates a somewhat "unfinished" and anticipatory atmosphere to the music.

Traditional music is played by itinerant musicians called azmari, who are regarded with both suspicion and respect by Ethiopian society. Folk instruments include masenqo (fiddle), washint (flute), kebero (percussion) and krar (lyre).

Ethiopia is a musically traditional country. Of course, popular music is played, recorded and listened to, but most musicians also sing traditional songs, and most audiences choose to listen to both popular and traditional styles. A longstanding popular musical tradition in Ethiopia was that of brass bands, imported from Europe during the reign of Haile Selassie. By the end of World War 2, large orchestras accompanied singers; the most prominent orchestras were the Army Band, Police Band and Imperial Bodyguard Band. Most of these bands were trained by Europeans or Armenians.

From the 1950s to the 1970s, Ethiopian popular musicians included Bezunesh Bekele, Mahmoud Ahmed, Alemayehu Eshete, Hirut Bekele, Ali Birra, Ayalew Mesfin, Muluken Mellesse and Tilahun Gessesse, while popular folk musicians included Alemu Aga, Kassa Tessema, Ketema Makonnen, Asnaketch Worku and Mary Armede. Perhaps the most influential musician of the period, however, was Ethio-jazz innovator Mulatu Astatke. Amha Records, Kaifa Records, and Philips-Ethiopia were prominent Ethiopian record labels during this era. Since 1997, Buda Musique's Ethiopiques series has compiled many of these singles and albums on compact disc.

During the 1980s, the Derg controlled Ethiopia, and emigration became almost impossible. Musicians during this period included Ethio Stars, Wallias Band and Roha Band, though the singer Neway Debebe was most popular. He helped to popularize seminna-worq (wax and gold), a poetic form of double entendre that often enabled singers to criticize the government without upsetting the censors.

More recently, music from Tigray and Eritrea has become popular in Ethopia and among exiles, especially in Italy. The biggest new trend, however, was the rise of bolel, a sort of blues-like music, played by sarcastic azmari playing in parts of Addis Ababa, especially Yohannès Sefer and Kazentchis. Bolel musicians include Tigist Assefa, Tedje and Admassou Abate.

Currently the most prominent Ethiopian singer internationally is Gigi. Through her performing with top jazz musicians like Bill Laswell and Herbie Hancock, Gigi has brought Ethiopian music to popular attention, especially in the United States, where she now lives.

Clothing
Handwoven fabrics with decorative woven borders.Traditional clothes in Ethiopia are made from traditional cloth called yahager lebs (clothes of the country(side)), which is made of cotton woven together in long strips. These strips are then sewn together. Sometimes shiny threads are woven into the fabric for an elegant effect (see photo) . It takes about two to three weeks to make enough cloth for a dress. The bottom of the shirt may be ornated by patterns.

Dancer in restaurant, wearing one style of traditional dress.Men wear pants and a knee-long shirt with a white collar, and a sweater. Men as well as women wear shawls, the neTela (see photo). Women's dresses are called habasha kemis. The dresses are usually white with some color on the bottom. Bracelets and necklaces from silver and gold are worn on arms and feet to complete the look. These traditional clothes are still worn on a day-to-day-basis in the country-side. In cities and towns, western clothes are popular; however, on special occasions, such as New Year, Christmas or weddings, traditional clothes are worn by some.1

Woman wearing neTela cotton shawl with decorative trim, over western clothing.Often, a woman will cover her head with a shash, a cloth that is tied at the neck. Shama and kuta, gauze-like white fabrics, are also often used.2 This is common among both Muslim and Christian women. Among the latter, elderly women will wear a shash on a day-to-day basis, while other women only wear a shash while attending church.

Cuisine
Ethiopian cuisine consists of various vegetable or meat side dishes and entrees, often prepared as a wat or thick stew. One or more servings of wat are placed upon a piece of injera, a large sourdough flatbread, which is 50 cm (20 inches) in diameter and made out of fermented teff flour. One does not eat with utensils, but instead uses injera (always with the right hand) to scoop up the entrees and side dishes. Traditional Ethiopian food does not use any pork or seafood (aside from fish), as most Ethiopians have historically adhered to Islam, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, or Judaism, all of which prohibit eating pork and seafood. Additionally, throughout a given year, Orthodox Christians observe numerous fasts (such as Lent), during which food is prepared without any meat or dairy products.

Sports
Ethiopia's most popular sport is Athletics, in which they win many medals for in the Olympic Games. Other sports in Ethiopia include rugby and soccer.

Media
Radio and television are under the control of the Ethiopian government. There are nine radio broadcast stations, eight AM and one shortwave, licensed to operate. The major radio broadcasting stations (all AM) are Radio Ethiopia, Radio Torch (private), Radio Voice of One Free Ethiopia, and the Voice of the Revolution of Tigray. The single television broadcast network is Ethiopian Television. In keeping with government policy, radio broadcasts occur in a variety of languages. Print media, because of high poverty levels, low literacy rates, and poor distribution outside of the capital, serve only a small portion of the population. Major daily newspapers include Addis Zemen, the Daily Monitor, and the Ethiopian Herald.

Language
The official language of Ethiopia is Amharic, a Semitic language which is spoken by about 27 million people (2.7 million expatriate). Amharic is written with the Ge'ez script, with derives its name from the ancient Semitic language of the same name. The Ge'ez language is extinct but is still in use by the Beta Israel Jewish community and the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Another major language in Ethiopia is Oromo, a Cushitic language.