Sidama Crisis Monitor

By Sidama Crisis Monitor

Report

March 2024

CHAPTER 1: The root causes of perennial Ethiopian political instability and conflicts

1.1 Indigenous peoples of northeast Africa

Cushitic language speaking peoples have been the indigenous dwellers of northeast Africa from southern Egypt to Tanzania for several millennia. Cushitic language was first spoken in northeast Africa 13000 years ago. Christopher Ehret (2023) argues that there was a unified Proto-Cushitic language in the Red Sea Hills as far back as 11000 BC (Early Holocene period), that is 13000 years ago. At present, the descendants of these ancient Cushitic peoples include the Beja in Southern Egypt, Eastern Sudan and Eritrea, Nubia in Sudan (who speak a mix of Cushitic and Nilo-Saharan languages), Agew/Qimant, Afar, Saho, Somali, Oromo, Sidama, Hadiya, Halaba, Kambata, Maraqo, Darashe in Ethiopia, Rendille and Sakuye in Kenya, Iraqw, Burunge and Gorowa in Tanzania, among others. Although limited records exist about the dispersal and migration of the Cushites in Northeast Africa, archaeological, anthropological and linguistic evidence point to their ubiquitous presence in the region for thousands of years. Cushitic peoples must therefore learn, preserve and defend their 13000 year heritage in northeast Africa against the onslaught by late comers who attempted in vain to deny, denigrate and adulterate our history. Due to limited literary tradition among the Cushitic peoples, the late comer settlers fabricated false historical narratives to legitimize their rules and exploit the natural resources of Northeast Africa, the homeland of the ancient Cushites.

The Cushitic civilization of Kerma in northern Sudan was one of the oldest civilizations in the world that flourished in ancient Nubia, Northern Sudan from 2500-1500 BC and was not only rival to ancient Egyptian civilization but also a source of it. During the Napata Cushitic civilization 750-590 BC Cushitic kings conquered Egypt and established the 25th Egyptian dynasty. The 25th Kushitic dynasty of Egypt was known by Greeks and the rest of the world as “ the Ethiopian” dynasty of ancient Egypt referring to the Cushitic peoples south of Egypt. However, due to invasions by the 26th Egyptian dynasty, the capital of Cushitic kingdom was moved to Meroe, south of Napata in Northern Sudan in 656 BC. Nevertheless, the Cushitic civilization of Meroe declined after invasion by the Aksumite King Ezana in 330 AD. The Aksumites came across the name Ethiopia or Cush for the first time when they conquered Meroe in 330 AD.

1.2 False historical narratives: Who are Ethiopians?

The 8th century Greek poet, Homer was believed to have coined the term Aethiopians or Aithiopians (people with burnt faces in Greek) referring to the Cushitic peoples living south of Egypt. Later, Herodotus, a 5th century BC Greek historian wrote extensively about Aithiopians referring to people living in the present day Northern Sudan. Ancient Egyptians and the Hebrew Bible referred to Northern Sudan just south of Egypt as the Land of Cush. Louis Jonker (2023) in his paper, ”The Cushites in Herodotus and Chronicles (Bible): Revisiting the Asa Narrative” argues that there is no doubt, through Herodotus’ use of the term Aithiopia that he referred to the region on the African continent to the south of Egypt, which was Cush. Ethiopia is an English translation of the Greek word Aithiopia. Therefore, Ethiopia referred to in the Bible was Cush and was never Abyssinea. The Cushitic peoples must claim the name Ethiopia as synonymous to Cush. All Bible references to Ethiopia were Greek translations from the Hebrew Bible that referred to Cush. The original Hebrew Bible referred only to Cush and never to Ethiopia.

Contrary to this scientific etymological evidence, some unitarian writers fabricate false claim with no foundation in history and fact about the origin of the name Ethiopia. They claim that the word Ethiopia originated from the name of unknown ancient 12th king of Ethiopia called “Ethiopis” or “Itiyyopis” who they argue was the father of Aksumawi (see Ayele Bekerie 2004). This is a patently false narrative without any foundation in history and etymology. It is a pure lie and fabrication to distort history and deny historical legitimacy to the indigenous Cushites.

Another false historical narrative is unitarits’ claim about Abyssinean Ethiopia’s 3000 year history. This is yet another pure historical perjury. Taddesse Tamirat (1972), a renowned Tigray historian wrote: “South Arabian immigrants began to settle in the hinterland of Adulis as far inland as the surroundings of Aksum before the 5th century BC. From then on their settlement became the spearhead of the long process of semitization in the Ethiopian region. The extensive area of north-east Africa between the Red Sea and the Nile as far north as the first cataract and including the whole of the Ethiopian region is still predominantly inhabited by a large family of people known to anthropologists and linguists as Kushites.” This historical evidence attests two facts. First, the ancient indigenous residents of north-east Africa were almost exclusively the Cushites. Secondly, there was no recorded Abyssinian civilization in north-east Africa before 1st century AD, that is before 2000 years. The first known major civilization led by the assimilated Kushites and the descendants of Semitic language speaking migrants from Arabia was the Aksumite civilization which began in the 1st century AD. The Aksumite civilization is therefore 2000 years old today and not 3000 years old. Therefore, the repeated claim of 3000 year Abyssinian civilization is unfounded and a false historical narrative. In addition, in Tigray there is an ancient building site which was referred to as the palace of the Queen of Sheba. The mythological Queen of Sheba and King Solomon of Judah were believed to have lived 900 years before the establishment of Aksum. How could the mythological woman who lived in 900 BC could build a palace in Aksum which was founded in 1st century AD. This is yet another false theological-historical narrative far from the truth.

A notable feature of the Aksumite civilization was the constant wars of occupation and assimilation of the indigenous Cushitic peoples. The Agew, who occupied most of the presentday Ethiopian highlands since the ancient time, were the immediate victims of wars of occupation and assimilation that went on for 2000 years. The Aksumite also assimilated Saho, another ancient highland Cushites and in 330 occupied Meroe in northern Sudan.

It was this constant expansion of the Aksumite empire into the surrounding Agew land and the intermarriage between the Aksumite soldiers and officials on the one hand and the indigenous Agew on the other hand that resulted in a new tribe known as Amhara. The substratum of the Amharic language are both Geez and Agew providing the linguistic evidence to the assimilation process. In this regard, Tadesse Tamirat (1972) wrote: “…the Agew were the native inhabitants of the Ethiopian plateau north of the River Jema. The immigrants from South Arabia settled in the northern part of this region and lived among the Agew population, who gradually adopted the language of the settlers. These linguistically semitized natives later constituted the dominant section of the peoples of Aksum. As the kingdom acquired additional territories, large groups of these people were apparently recruited and settled in distant frontier stations. Here they intermarried with the local people and formed yet another semitized zone in the interior of the Agew country, which was gradually passing into the influence of Aksum. …The Amara tribal group ….was probably the earliest to be established as such during the pre-Christian period of Aksumite history…”. This historical evidence further disproves any claim that there was any notable Abyssibean civilization before the 1st century AD, that is before the Aksumite civilization and there was no tribe called Amhara before Aksum. Both Axum and Amhara were the offsprings of assimilation of the Agews and settlers from southern Arabia. This identity crisis has been the root cause of all false historical narratives and conflicts in present day Ethiopia for the past 2000 years.