The book represents the first in a series on travel writing, translation, tourism, and advertising. It spans biblical narratives, religious missions, scientific explorations, and the lesser known travels in Ethiopia (Prester John, Queen of Sheba, the Ark of the Covenant, the Blue Nile, Maq’dala, Lalibela and Gondar). In particular, stemming from the cultural turn in translation studies and geography, this work adopts a comparative and diachronic perspective on colonial and postcolonial descriptions of space and place, examining the variation in intertextual citation and re-writing, from early accounts to contemporary travelogues, marking a persistence in stereotyping.
"The objective of this study is to provide a critical edition of the andәmta, or the commentary, of the biblical Book of Genesis. . .Ethiopia has developed and established its own tradition of interpretation of biblical and other religious texts. This tradition, known as andәmta, is a unique and valuable legacy of the ancient Ethiopian Orthodox Täwah̩edo Church" -- p.1.
This book takes a look at the Ethiopian translation of the Old Testament, which is of fundamental importance both in terms of the influence it has had on Ethiopian life and culture, as well as being one of the 'daughter versions' of the Greek Old Testament.
The Crusades had a wide variety of impacts on societies throughout Europe, Asia, and Africa. One such notable impact was its role in the development of knowledge between cultures. This book argues that the Nubian kingdom of Dotawo and the Latin Christians became increasingly more connected between the twelfth and early fourteenth centuries than has been acknowledged. Subsequently, when Solomonic Ethiopian-Latin Christian diplomatic relations began in 1402, they were building on the prior connections of Nubia, either wittingly or unwittingly: Ethiopia became the ‘Ethiopia’ that the Latin Christians had previously been aiming to develop relations with. The histories of Nubia, Ethiopia, and the Crusades were directly and indirectly entwined between the twelfth century and 1402. By placing Nubia and Ethiopia within the wider context of the Crusades, new perspectives can be made regarding the international activity of Nubia and Ethiopia between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries and the regional role reversal of Dotawo and Solomonic Ethiopia from the early fourteenth century. Prior to the fourteenth century, Nubia had been the dominant Christian power in the region before Solomonic Ethiopia began to replace it, including by adopting elements of discourse which had previously been attributed to Nubia, such as its ruler being the recognised protector of the Christians of north-east Africa. This process should not be viewed in isolation of the wider regional geo-political context. Nubia, Ethiopia, and the Crusading World, 1095-1402 will appeal to all those interested in the history of the Crusades, Nubia, and Ethiopia, particularly concerning inter-regional physical and intellectual connectivity.
Since the sixteenth century, Ethiopian Orthodox Chris-tianity and the indigenous religions of Ethiopia have been confronted with, and influenced by, numerous Catholic and Protestant missions. This book offers historical, anthropological and personal analyses of these encounters. The discussion ranges from the Jesuit debate on circumcision to Oromo Bible translation, from Pentecostalism in Addis Ababa to conversion processes among the Nuer. Juxtaposing past and present, urban and rural, the book breaks new ground in both religious and African studies. Verena Bll and Evgenia Sokolinskaia are researchers at the department of African and Ethopian Studies at the Asia-Africa Institute, University of Hamburg. Steven Kaplan is professor of African Studies and Comparative Religion at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
In The Ethiopian Homily on the Ark of the Covenant, Amsalu Tefera offers an editio princeps of the Ethiopic text of Dǝrsanä Ṣǝyon together with an annotated English translation. This homily, most likely composed in the fifteenth century, links the term Zion with the Ark of the Covenant and recounts at length its wanderings from Sinai to Ethiopia. As a Christian document, many of the events are interpreted as symbolic of Mary and the heavenly New Jerusalem. First edited by the author for his 2011 doctoral dissertation, the critical text and apparatus present a complete collation of the ten known witnesses to this homily. Detailed notes are supplied on significant and difficult terms in the translation.
Finally I have managed to read the Manuscript of your book, Exploration in African Biblical Studies. I read it with much and personal interest. You have taken up a set of very interesting and important issues, which relate directly to the theological tasks of the Church in Africa. I appreciate the contributions you are making in this area - informative, challenging and stimulating. They show a good grasp of Biblical knowledge, so that you speak with a good measure of authority. As the book is a collection of essays, each would need to be judged on its own merit. There is no clear flowing link between them, so as to form a unit. I liked especially your treatment of African Cultural Hermeneutics. This area has not received much attention and your essay would be instrumental in opening the way in that direction. I do not feel so comfortable about the essay dealing with African-American Hermeneutics. My general feeling is that this is an area for African Americans to handle, just as areas dealing directly with Africa should be left to us to tackle. The essay on Cush-Africa in the Old Testament is fascinating and informative. You have made a very good case, which, among other things, demolishes the Anti-Africa attitude of many Western scholars. What you have demonstrated here should be said a hundred times over, and be said in the great centres of Biblical study the world over. Professor J. S. Mbiti, Germany
The study developed a results framework to analyze Ethiopia’s progress towards selected CAADP/Malabo, SDGs and Agenda 2063 goals. A Computable General Equilibrium model linked to an income distribution Micro-Simulation model were used to identify priority investment areas for accelerated agricultural growth, poverty and inequality reduction. Simulation results indicate that the current investment trend and composition would leave Ethiopia off-track to meet these objectives. The analysis of alternative agricultural investment scenarios shows that the public sector has still a great role to play in promoting agricultural growth in Ethiopia. Past expenditure levels have been high, though not sufficient, and would need to increase substantially with an emphasis on the quality of public agricultural spending. Productivity remains one of the major challenges but also one of the most effective solutions for accelerated agricultural growth in Ethiopia. Agricultural investments should be designed considering the agricultural value-chain. While social protection programs are important for the poor, rural non-agricultural development could provide a more sustainable source of income.
This Selected Issues paper reviews the extent to which growth in Ethiopia has translated into higher living standards. A key feature of the economic strategy has been an explicit commitment to poverty reduction and structural transformation. This is underpinned by the vision of a “developmental state,” whereby a proactive public sector leads the development process and the private sector is oriented to support the development goals. The paper also identifies key bottlenecks hindering further broadening of growth across key sectors to reduce poverty, and highlights the main areas for policy action.
