Amhars
The Amhars ( Amharic አማራ Amara ) were traditionally the most important ethnic group in Ethiopia .
They speak an Ethio- Semitic language , Amharic , which is related to Old Ethiopian but not directly derived from it. The Amhars are Christians and most of them belong to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church . However, there are also a large number of Amhars who are Muslims , especially in the Wällo region .
The Amharen are linguistically related to the Tigray . Both ethnic groups are summarized in the name Habesha . Until the second half of the 20th century, the term Amhara was used exclusively for the Amharic language and for the medieval province of Amhara (in the area of Wällo); the Amharic-speaking people generally refer to themselves as "Ethiopians" or as residents of the respective geographic region.
In the 2007 census, almost 20 million people were counted as Amhars in Ethiopia, making them 26.89% of the total population and the second largest people after the Oromo . Around 15.7 million Amhara live in the Amhara region, where they make up 91.48% of the population and 87.6% live in the countryside. In all other regions of the country, Amharen predominantly live in urban areas. 1.2 million amhars (47.05% of the population) live in the state capital Addis Ababa , and over 1.9 million in Oromia .
Culture
The Amhars who settled in the countryside mostly farm . Craft professions such as pottery and blacksmith are traditionally viewed as inferior. Girls are able to marry when they reach sexual maturity , but at the latest when they are 14 years old. Relationship arranged marriage is predominant. A marriage usually takes place through a church wedding. A priest can also only approve the marriage. Divorce is provided for by law and can be negotiated. This also regulates the dispute over the property regime and the distribution of custody. Traditionally, the mother has the right to choose the child's name. The naming is based on feelings or wishes (e.g. Desta - joy, Seyum - called to dignity). Under inheritance law, land is bequeathed to the sons, while cattle are passed on to all descendants.
Political situation
Until the revolution of the Derg in 1974 and partly until the overthrow of Mengistu Haile Mariam in 1991, the Amharen were the people who supported the state of Ethiopia. It is a matter of dispute whether it was a question of genuine ethnic dominance, since the empire that existed until 1974 had a strictly aristocratic and partly feudal character. The elite of the state consisted mainly of Amharic nobles and military personnel , but the Amharic rural population was just as subject to feudalistic conditions as elsewhere, and culturally assimilated Oromo also made up part of the state- supporting elite, right up to the line of succession ( Lijj Iyassu V. , 1913– 1916 Emperor of Ethiopia). In any case, after the overthrow of Mengistu by the rebels of the People's Liberation Front of Tigray (TPLF; later part of the Revolutionary Democratic Front of the Ethiopian Peoples EPRDF) in 1991 , the Amharen were replaced by the Tigray as the people of the state. The introduction of "ethnic federalism" with the ethnically defined states weakened the role of the Amhars.
Since the introduction of the new administrative structure of Ethiopia, there has been a federal state of Amhara , whose titular nation is the Amhars. The National Democratic Movement of the Amharen exists within the EPRDF as a coalition partner of the TPLF. She is currently the regional government in Amhara. In addition, the opposition coalition for unity and democracy , which emphasizes national unity and strives for a stronger central state, also finds support among the Amhars. The All-Amhara People's Organization , a member party of the United Ethiopian Democratic Forces , is generally committed to the self-determination of the Amhars.
See also
Individual evidence
- ↑ Donald N. Levine: Amhara , in: Siegbert Uhlig (Ed.): Encyclopaedia Aethiopica , Volume 1, 2003, ISBN 3-447-04746-1
- ↑ Central Statistics Agency : Summary and Statistical Report of the 2007 Population and Housing Census Results ( Memento of March 5, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 4.7 MB)
- ↑ John W. Harbeson: Ethiopia's Extended Transition , in: Journal of Democracy , Vol. 16/4 , October 2005, p. 149
