Introduction to the Course

This course is prepared for a common course given to Students of Higher

Learning Institutions.
The purpose is to help students understand the history of Ethiopia and the Horn
from ancient times to 1995 as a base for shaping and bettering the future.
The module generally focuses on major topics in the history of Ethiopia and the
Horn including social, cultural, economic, and political developments and their
interrelationships thereof.
The contents of the module consider the chronology and thematic relations of
events in time and space. To make this course inclusive and representative, the
module also includes regional histories across the period. 1
 Hist. 1101 2

UNIT ONE

THE NATURE AND USES

OF HISTORY
3
 Hist. 1101 4

Unit Starters
 What do we mean by history?
 What is the relevance of knowing about
the past?
 Have you ever read a historical work? Do
you remember the title and author of the
work?
 Can you name some writers of the history
of Ethiopia and the Horn?
 Hist. 1101 5

Unit One
Introduction
This unit introduces the nature of history and
historiography,
History is a systematic study and organized knowledge of
the past.
Historiography, on the other hand, refers to the history of
history; it explores changes in historical interpretations
through time.
The knowledge of the past is essential to society.
What happens in the present, and what will happen in the future,
to a great extent, is influenced by what happened in the past.
The unit considers popular and academic conceptions of
history, the why and how of studying history and trends in
 Hist. 1101 6

1.1 The Nature and Uses of History

The term history derived from the Greek word Istoria,
meaning “inquiry” or “an account of one’s inquiries.”
 The first use of the term is attributed to one of the ancient Greek
historians, Herodotus (c. 484–425 B.C.E.), who is often held to be
the “father of history.”
In ordinary usage, history means all the things that have
happened in the human past. This includes:
1. The past that still waits to be recorded
2. The accounts of the past provided by historians, that is,
‘history’.
Historians apply their expertise to surviving records and write
history in the form of accounts of the past.
Academically, history can be defined as an organized and
 Hist. 1101 7

NATURE OF HISTORY
Evidently, what actually happened in the past is
almost infinite. Historians select which topics and
problems they wish to study.
The major concern of history is the study of human
society and its interaction with the natural
environment, which is also the subject of study by
many other disciplines.
What differentiates history from other disciplines is
History: past and others: present.
Because of the longevity of that time, historians
organize and divide the human past into separate
periods after identifying significant
developments in politics, society, economy, culture,
 Hist. 1101 8

NATURE OF HISTORY
Then they give a label to each period to convey the key
characteristics and developments.
Accordingly, history is conventionally divided into ancient,
medieval and modern history.
This is what we call periodization in history; one of the
key characteristics of the discipline.
When historians talk about continuities, they are not
implying that a particular pattern applied to everyone in the
world or even in a particular country or region. Nor are they
claiming that absolutely nothing changed in the pattern they
are describing.
All aspects of human life that is, social, cultural, economic,
and political in the past have been changing from time to
 Hist. 1101 9

B. Uses of History
Peoples live in the present and plan for and worry about the
future.
History, however, is the study of the past.
Why bother with the past while living in the present and
anticipating what is yet to come?
History Helps Better Understand the Present
knowledge of relevant historical background is essential for a balanced and
in-depth understanding of many current world situations.
History Provides a Sense of Identity
it is only through sense of history that communities define their identity,
orient themselves, and understand their relationships with the past and with
other societies.
History Provides the Basic Background for Other Disciplines
 Hist. 1101 10

Cont’d.
Historical knowledge is valuable in the pursuit of other disciplines
such as literature, art, philosophy, religion, sociology, political
science, anthropology, economics, etc.
History Teaches Critical Skills
Studying history helps to know how to find and evaluate sources;
how to make coherent arguments based on various kinds of
evidence and present clearly in writing.
History Helps Develop Tolerance and Open-
Mindedness
Most of us have a tendency to regard our own cultural practices,
styles, and values as right and proper. By studying the past,
students of history acquire broad perspectives that give them the
range and flexibility required in many life situations.
History Supplies Endless Source of Fascination
Exploring the ways people in distant ages constructed their lives
 Hist. 1101 11

Uses of History
To conclude,
Through studying history can we grasp how and why things
change; and only through history are we able understand what
elements of a society persist despite change.
As history can be useful, it can also be abused. Such abuses
come mainly from deliberate manipulation of the past to fit
current political agenda.
While personal biases are not always avoidable, a historian is
different from a propagandist
 Hist. 1101 12

1.2 Sources and Methods of Historical Study

Historians are not creative writers like novelists.
Therefore, the work of historians must be supported by
evidence arising from sources.
Sources are instruments that bring to life what appear to
have been dead. It is said that “where there are no
sources, there is no history”.
Sources are, therefore, key to the study and writing of
history.
 Historical sources are broadly classified into;
1. Primary sources: original or first hand in their proximity
to the event both in time and in space. Handwritten
materials, diaries, letters, minutes, court records and
administrative files, travel documents, photographs, maps,
 Hist. 1101 13

Sources and Methods of Historical Study

2. Secondary sources: second-hand published accounts
about past events. They are written long after the event has
occurred, providing an interpretation of what happened, why
it happened, and how it happened,
3. Oral data: valuable to study and document the history of
non-literate societies, and used to fill missing gaps and
corroborate written words.
 Oral tradition: when people transmit information from
one generation to another, through folk songs and folk
sayings.
 Oral history: when people provide oral testimonies of
lived experience.
 Hist. 1101 14

Sources and Methods of Historical Study

Nevertheless, no history work can be taken as final, as
new sources keep coming to light.
Whatever the source of information-primary or secondary,
written or oral- the data should be subjected to critical
evaluation
o Primary sources have to be verified for their originality and
authenticity
o Secondary sources have to be examined for the reliability of their
reconstructions.
o Oral data may lose its originality and authenticity due to distortion
through time.
In short, historians (unlike novelists) must find evidence
about the past, ask questions of that evidence, and come
 Hist. 1101 15

1.3 Historiography of Ethiopia and the Horn

Historiography: the history of historical writing, studying how
knowledge of the past, either recent or distant, is obtained and
transmitted.
People have had some sense of the past since the beginning of
humanity. Yet historiography is an intentional attempt to
understand the past
The organized study and narration of the past was introduced
by ancient Greek historians notably Herodotus (c. 484–425
B.C.E.) and Thucydides (c.455-400 B.C.E.)
Chinese historical thought and writing was flourished during
the Han dynasty by Sima Qian (145–86 B.C.E.).
 Hist. 1101 16

Historiography of Ethiopia and the Horn

However history emerged as an academic discipline in the
second half of the 19th c first in Europe
The German historian, Leopold Von Ranke (1795–1886),
and his colleagues established history as an independent
discipline
o Introduce set of methods and concepts by which historians
 collect evidence of past events
 evaluate that evidence
 present a meaningful discussion of the subject
 Ranke’s greatest contribution to the scientific study of the
past is such that he is considered as the “father of modern
 Hist. 1101 17

Historiography of Ethiopia and the Horn

The earliest known reference that we have on history of
Ethiopia
1. Periplus of the Erythrean Sea, written in the 1st C A.D
by an unknown author.
2. Christian Topography: describing Aksum’s trade and the
then Aksumite king’s campaigns composed by Cosmas
Indicopleustes in the sixth century A.D.
3. The earliest written Ethiopian material dates from the
seventh century A.D. found in Abba Gerima monastery
in Yeha.
4. Areligious manuscript discovered in Haiq Istifanos
monastery in the thirteenth century A.D.
 Hist. 1101 18

Historiography of Ethiopia and the Horn

All the above sources have the benefit of providing insights
into the country’s past as they contain the list of medieval
kings and their history
The largest groups of sources available for medieval
Ethiopian history are hagiographies originating from
Ethiopian Orthodox Church.
Invariably written in Ge’ez, an important function of hagiographies is enhancing the
prestige of saints.
Yet other related anecdotes are also introduced, and often discussed in detail such as
the development of the church and the state including territorial conquests by
reigning monarchs.

A parallel hagiographical tradition existed among Muslim

communities of the country
One such account offers tremendous insight into the life of a Muslim saint, Shaykh
 Hist. 1101 19

Chronicles
Ethiopia had also an indigenous tradition of history writing:
chronicles.
First appeared in the in Ge’ez in 14th c and continue
(sometimes in Amharic) into the early twentieth century
The earliest and the last of such surviving documents are
the Glorious Victories of Amde-Tsion
the Chronicle of Abeto Iyasu and Empress Zewditu
Chronicles:
o incorporate both legends and facts about the monarch’s genealogy,
upbringing, military exploits, piety and statesmanship
o known for their factual detail and strong chronological framework
o explain historical events mainly in religious terms
 Hist. 1101 20

Arab writers
 Written accounts of Arabic-speaking visitors to the coast
also provide useful information.
 Al-Masudi and Ibn Battuta described the culture, language and
import-export tradein the 10th and in the 14th C respectively.
 For 16ht and 17th c we have two documents composed by
Yemeni writers who were eyewitnesses to the events they
described.
1. Futuh al Habesha was composed by Shihab ad-Din, who
recorded the conflict between the Christian kingdom and the
Muslim principalities
2. Al-Haymi, who led a Yemeni delegation in 1647 to the court of
Fasiledes (r. 1632-67).
Other materials that appeared in the 16th C. include Abba
Bahrey’s Geez script written in 1593 and provide us with
 Hist. 1101 21

European missionaries and Travelers accounts

From the early 16th until the late 19th C, missionaries provide
us with valuable information focusing on religious and
political developments within Ethiopia, and the country’s
foreign relations.
o Prester John of the Indies, composed by a Portuguese
priest, Francisco Alvarez who accompanied the
Portuguese mission to the court of Lebne-Dengel in
1520.
o James Bruce’s Travels to Discover the Source of the
Nile
Like other sources, however, both the missionaries and
travelers’ materials can only be used with considerable
reservations and with care for they are socially and
 Hist. 1101 22

Foreign writers
Foreign writers also developed interest in Ethiopian studies.
One of these figures was a German, Hiob Ludolf (1624-
1704).
Ludolf was the founder of Ethiopian studies in Europe in the
17th C. who wrote Historia Aethiopica (trans. as A New
History of Ethiopia).
He wrote the country’s history largely based on information
he collected from an Ethiopian priest named Abba
Gorgorios (Abba Gregory) who was in Europe at that
time.
In the 19th C., August Dillman published two studies on
ancient Ethiopian history. Compared to Ludolf, Dillman
demonstrated all markers of objectivity in his historical
 Hist. 1101 23

Early twentieth century Historiography

This period saw the emergence of traditional Ethiopian
writers who distance themselves from chroniclers whom.
Unlike chroniclers, these writers dealt with a range of topics
from social justice, administrative reform and economic
analysis to history.
Taye and Fisseha-Giorgis wrote books on the history of Ethiopia
Asme produced a similar work on the Oromo people.
Afework wrote the first Amharic novel, Tobiya, in Ethiopian history
Gebre-Hiwot has Atse Menilekna Ityopia and Mengistna
Yehizb Astedader to his name.
The most prolific writer of the early 20th C. Ethiopia was,
however, Blatten Geta Hiruy Wolde-Selassie.
Hiruy published four major works namely Ethiopiana Metema,
Wazema, Yehiwot Tarik and Yeityopia Tarik.
 Hist. 1101 24

After liberation
Tekle-Tsadik Mekuria formed a bridge between writers in pre-
1935 & Ethiopia professional historians who came after him.
Tekle-Tsadik has published about eight historical works.
Yilma Deressa’s; Ye Ityopiya Tarik Be’asra Sidistegnaw Kifle
Zemen.
Blatten Geta Mahteme-Selassie Wolde-Meskel also
contributed his share, he wrote Zikre Neger, a comprehensive
account of Ethiopia’s prewar land tenure systems and taxation.
Another work dealing specifically with aspects of land tenure is
left to us by Gebre-Wold Engidawork.
Dejazmach Kebede Tesema. Kebede wrote his memoir of the
imperial period, published as Yetarik Mastawesha in 1962 E.C.
The 1960s was a crucial decade in the development of Ethiopian
historiography for it was in this period that history emerged as an
academic discipline.
 Hist. 1101 25

The 1960s
The 1960s: was a crucial decade in the development of
Ethiopian historiography
 Period that history emerged as an academic discipline
 Historical studies as a full-time occupation began
 The opening of the Department of History at Haile
Selassie I University (HSIU)
 The establishment of IES in 1963.
 Professionalization of history in other parts of the Horn is a
post-colonial phenomenon. Foundational research was done at
the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London
and the Department of History at the University of Wisconsin-
Madison.