Human Evolution in East Africa

Human Evolution

• Archeological evidence suggests the East African Rift Valley is where humanity originated
• A fossil named Chororapithecus, dating back 10 million years, was found in Anchar in 2007
• Ardipithicus ramiduskadabba, from 5.8-5.2 million years ago, was found in Middle Awash
• Ardipithicus ramidus, dating back 4.2 million years, was found at Aramis in Afar in 1994
• Fossils of Australopithecines were discovered at Belohdelie and date back 3.6 million years
• A three-year-old child's fossil, Australopithecusafarensis, named Selam, was found at Dikika, Mille, Afar in 2000 and dates back 3.3 million years
• Another Australopithecus afarnesis, Lucy/Dinkinesh, was found at Hadar in Afar in 1974 A.D.
  • Lucy had 40% of her body parts, weighed 30kg, was 1.07 meters tall with a bipedal-looking pelvis, dating back 3.18 million years
• Genus Homo emerged 2-2.5 million years ago
• Homo habilis was found in the Lower Omo dating back 1.9 million years
• Homo erectus walked upright and was found at Melka Kunture, Konso Gardula, and Gadeb dating back 1.6 million years
  • They seem to have come from Africa and spread out
  • Use of fire and burial practives started
• Homosapiens were knowledgeable humans dating back 400,000 years ago

Neolithic Revolution

• Humans transitioned from a mobile way of life to a sedentary lifestyle
• Hunting and gathering shifted to the domestication of plants and animals
• The domestication process occurred independently across the world
• Ethiopians and others in the Horn cultivated teff, dagussa, nug, and enset

The Peopling of the Region

• Ethiopia and the Horn are known for ethnic and linguistic diversity
• There are about 90 languages and 200 dialects in Ethiopia and the Horn
• Afro-Asiatic and Nilo-Saharan are the two afro language super families

Afro-Asiatic Sub-Families

• Cushitic has four branches
  • Beja represents the Northern branch
  • Agaw represents the Central branch
  • Afar, Oromo, Sidama and Somali represent the Eastern branch
  • Dhalo in Kenya and Nbugua in Tanzania represent the Southern branch
• Semitic has two divisions
  • Ge'ez, Tigre, and Tigrigna covers the Northern branch
  • The Southern branch is further divided
    • Transverse includes Amharic and Harari
    • Outer includes Gafat and Gurage
• Omotic: Boro-Shinasha, Wolayta, Gamo, Gofa
• Nilo-Saharan: Gumuz, Nu’er, Kunama ethnic groups exist

Emergence of States

• Sedentary agriculture was a factor in the emergence of states
• Houses were built near cultivated plots and fenced in farmlands and residences
• Families chose to live together forming communities for security and mutual aid
• States were formed through expanding agriculture
• State is an autonomous political entity with population, territory, sovereignty, and a government to decree and enforce laws
• Theocratic states were the first states and priests maintained social and religious affairs
• Priests were gradually replaced by chiefs as production became market-oriented
• Chiefs collected tributes as protection payments
• The army, bureaucracy, and supporters were maintained using tributes

Early State Formation

• Ethiopia and the Horn saw early state formation
• States started small but grew into powerful kingdoms and empires with a defined social structure
• Proximity to water like the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Indian Ocean and interior land helped some states dominate their neighbors

Ancient States

• Punt was the earliest state recorded in Ethiopia and the Horn
• Evidence about Punt comes from Egyptian hieroglyphic writings about naval expeditions
• Queen Hatshepsut's expedition (1490-1468 B.C.) is well-documented and illustrated and is recorded at her tomb in Dier El Bahri
• Da’amat was located south of Aksum
• Mukarib was used as a politico-religious title in Da’amat, similar to practices in South Arabia
• Yeha and Hawulti Melazo were major ones cultural centers in northern Ethiopia

Aksumite State

• The Aksumite state formed around 200-100 B.C.
• At its peak, Aksumite lands reached from the Red Sea coast in the east
• Its territories stretched to the western edge of the Ethiopian plateau overlooking the Nile Valley in the west
• They also stretched from Eritrea's northern tip and possibly to Shewa's northern areas
• Adulis was the major port of Aksum
• Aksumite kings were in contact with the outside world, especially South Arabia
• The Aksumite state was one of the world's four great powers with the Roman Empire, Persia, and China
• It was a major naval and trading power from the first to the seventh centuries
• Internal and external issues contributed to the Aksumite State's decline in the late seventh century including decreased agricultural output and a possible plague or epidemic
• In addition, rebellions by the Beja and Agaw and the destruction of Adulis by Arabs around 702 sealed its demise

Zagwe Dynasty

• Merra Teklehaimanot, an Agaw prince, founded the dynasty
• The center was in the Bugna District, Wag and Lasta around Adafa near Roha (Lalibela)
• The Agaw upheld old Aksumite customs and Zagwe kings sustained cultural and trade ties with the eastern Mediterranean
• The Zagwe era was marked as a golden age
  • Evident in paintings and translating religious works from Arabic to Ge'ez
  • Also shown in cave, semi-hewn, and monolithic churches
  • Bete Medhanelem is the largest of the eleven Lalibela churches
  • Bete Giyorgis is said to be built in the shape of a cross.
• Internal issues of royal succession and opposition from the Amhara and Tigriy ethnic groups caused the fall of the Zagwe Dynasty
  • The Zagwe kings were viewed as illegitimate rulers

Achievements of Ethiopia

• As states grew, architecture blossomed using the engraving of stele around the third century A.D as a unique method
  • Fifty eight steles exist in and around Aksum, either well- made and decorated, partially complete, or megaliths
  • The tallest measures 33 meters
• UNESCO recognizes the Zagwe churches as masterpieces of Christian art and architecture
• Early Sabean inscriptions in Eritrea and Ethiopia date back to the ninth century B.C.
  • Sabean inscriptions lacked vowels
• Script variants arose after the seventh and sixth centuries B.C., evolving into the Ge'ez script
• Ethiopia's ancient writing system contributed greatly to literature, art, and historical writing
• A gap of 7-8 years exists in determining the date of the Annunciation between the Ethiopic and Gregorian calendars from the alternative calculations
  • The Ethiopic solar calendar has 12 months of 30 days, plus 5 or 6 epagomenal days added every four years, comprising a thirteenth month
• Numerals, using the Ge'ez numeric system, came to Ethiopia and the Horn around the fourth century A.D.

The Solomonic Dynasty

• The Solomonic Dynasty's rulers claimed legitimacy to take power from the Zagwe Dynasty
• Yikuno-Amlak founded it
• The name "Restoration" is put in quotation marks due to the lack of historical evidence
• The period was characterized by political instability
  • Succession struggles among Yikuno-Amlak’s descendants followed after his reign ended in 1285
  • The succession issue was largely resolved in 1300 during Widim-Ra’ad’s reign when a ‘royal prison’ was built at Amba-Gishen
  • All male royals were kept at Amba, guarded by loyal soldiers
• There was no permanent capital
  • First in medieval Amhara, around Lake Haiq
  • Shifted south to Menz, Tegulet, and Bulga
• Amde-Tsion, the first "Solomonic" King, led rapid territorial expansion economically and politically to control trade routes and seize territory
• Evangelization and Religious Movements, like the Expansion of Christianity, rose at the time

Ewostatewos Movement

• Founded by Ewostatewos in Sara'e to establish his own monastic community
• Strict adherence to Sabbath
• Deqiqe Estifanos/ the Estifanosites
  • Founded by Abba Estifanos
  • He emphasized a rigid monastic structure with poverty, self-sufficiency, equality, and independence from secular powers
• Rivalry developed between the Christian Kingdom and the Muslim Sultanates
  • Zeila was the main outlet to the sea in the medieval period
  • The Solomonic rulers and Ifat fought to control the trade route through Zeila
  • The first clash between them occurred in 1328
  • The Muslim Sultanates organized their armies causing Muslim Sultan, Haqaddin I, to stop merchants of Amde-Tsion, confiscate goods, and imprison Ti’iyintay
  • This caused Amde-Tsion to wage a campaign against Haqaddin I

Religious Conflicts

• Conflicts took place for over two centuries between the Christian Kingdom and the Adal Sultanate, lasting from 1529 to 1543
• Internal strife, corruption, and anarchy among Muslim Sultanates intensified, leading to the rise of Imam Ahmed Ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi
• Imam Ahmed mobilized pastoral communities from Afar, Somali, Harla, and Harari

Ahmeds Unification

• He unified the communities to expand the Christian Kingdom, address needs, and protect Islamic beliefs
• Having gained audience as Imam to fight, Ahmed refused to pay tribute by 1520, and in 1527 launched a campaign against the Chrstian Kingdom
• The command of the Imam's army was marked by mobility and flexible tactics
• The larger Christian force was beaten at Shimbra Kure in 1529
• The wife of the Imam, Bati Del Wanbara, daughter of Mahfuz, convinced her husband to avenge her father's death

Portuguese Intervention

• LebneDengel, the Christian king, was forced to retreat and died as a fugitive in 1540
• Gelawdewos (1540-1559) took over, facing intense conflict with Turkish musketeers aiding Imam Ahmed
• As requested by Lebne-Dengel in 1535, four hundred Portuguese soldiers with matchlocks arrived in 1541 led by Christopher da Gama
• The Queen mother, Seble-Wongel, advised Emperor Gelawdewos on Woyna-Dega
• Imam Ahmed was attacked and killed on February 25, 1543 while encamped near Lake Tana

Roman Catholicism

• Christian Kingdom leaders saw an alliance with Roman Catholicism as a tactic to secure modern weapons and training
• Jesuit missionaries came to Ethiopia in 1557, led by Bishop Andreas de Oviedo, to promote Catholicism.
  • Joao Bermudez, Andreas de Oviedo, Pedro Paez and Alfonso Mendez headed efforts to evangelize
• The Jesuits began preaching with Emperor Gelawdewos (1540-59)
• Susenyos converted to Catholicism in 1612, declaring it the state religion in 1622
• Resistance occurred as voices rose up against Catholicism between 1617-8
• Emperor Fasiledas(1632-67) opposed the changes and was loyal to the emperor
• Fasiledas expelled the Jesuits after successfully battling Catholic change
• Emperor Fasiledas introduced the "Close-Door Policy" that isolated state for 150 years

The Gadaa System

• The Gadaa system helped the Oromo in their efforts to grow societal customs, maintain law and order, defend their territory, and managing their economies
• It fully functioned in the early sixteenth-century
• Periodic succession and power sharing were system elements for preventing one-man leadership
• Representation in all clans, lineages, and confederations
• The Oromo had generation and and age grades to organize delineating economic responsibilities
• The head of government during the eight years was the Abba-Gadaa
  • Abba Bokku (father of scepter), Abba Chaffe (head of the assembly), Abba-Dula (war leader), Abba Sera (father of law), Abba Alanga (judge), Abba Sa'a (father of treasury)
• The senior Qallu (Abba Muda)'s was important to legitimizing gadaa power
• Women created their own sisterhood with the Sinqe institution

Natural Pressures

• Multiple factors together with natural and manmade factors drove the Oromo population movements -Growing human and livestock populations were outstripping land
• The conflict between the Christian Kingdom and Muslim Sultanates prompted Oromos to move out
• The Oromo were divided in 1522 under the Borana and Barentu confederacies, around the time the movement began

Historical Peaks

• Gondar prospered during the time of Emperors Fasiledas, Yohannes 1, and lyasu 1
• Restoring the Orthodox Church as state religion and establishing a royal prison at Amba Wahni solved power struggles
• Yohannes I set aside a separate area for Muslims at Addis Alem
• Lyasu I reformed land and taxes and updated the Fetha Negest
• Fasil Gemb/castle was constructed at the time

Zemene-Mesafint Rule

• Zemene-Mesafint was a time when leaders had different political hands through different regional lords
• Lords from Tigray, Semen, Dembiya, and Begemedir. Lasta ruled during this period
• Yejju dominated the Zemen-Mesafint and was controlled at Debretabor
• Ali Gwangul was known as the "Yejju dynasty" founder in 1786
• The Zemen-Mesafint :
  • Had no government
  • The power of regional factions was growing
  • There was an increasing amount of power held by Yejju leaders
  • Contention and rivarly among regional leaders

People and Places

• The Hadiya, Halaba, Kambata, and Gurage were autonomous and semiautonomous political entities in South- Central

Agricultural Economies

• They were economically focused on agriculture and trade
• The Gurage were a major hub for politics and trade
  • Those who were Abega or Azmach combined military and political power
• The Gibe States emerged around Gibe
• Limmu-Enarya was the initial Gibe state
  • Power for the kingdo was at the height during Ibsa's reign
• Known states included Guma. Gomma, Jimma and Gera
• Evolved from Wallagga, and the Mecha Oromo during the time, the Laga states, Leads, and Naqamle
  • Bakare Godana founded it in 1840, and his successors continued the power and legacy after his death
• Named state Lecoa Lellam
  • Tullu was the founder who founded it, with his son Jote becoming his successor
• State of Ilu also named Ilu - Abba Bor
  • The area's were known for economic opportunities
• Some islamic areas were developed in the 1800
  • The Assosa, Bela Shangul and Khomosha were founded on the abbay river, as well as the Sheikhdum River
• There were two trade routes in Ethiopia at the time
• One route came from Southwestern capital Bonga and tied into the north areas
• The other route came Southwestern Bonga and traveled through the East
• The items salt bars, coins, and linens
• The Jabari, Afgala, Muslim, and Oromo were the area of the area involved

Nation Building

• Ethiopia's state developed in two stages
  • Regions into people groups from the unification Territorial expansion into the countries

Kasa Hailu Ruler

• Kasa was a rule of the country
• His aim was a nation for the nation
• He was appointed with a new name in 1855.
• His plan was centered on governance with a clear government
• Three leaders, Menilek and Wagsyum emerged during the chaos and a fight
• Kasa emerged victorious from the fight and became Emporia after that and tried to keep decentralization on his area
• Yohanness also sought religious equality with the other religions at the time
• Conversion for his empire occurred and spread during that time
• The people turned to Christ during that time

Wars Carried Out

• Many fought against invaders
• One battle was in Dabarki in 1848 and Kasa lost said battle at the time
• One battle was in Gunda where more power was needed at the time to fight for what was wanted
• One treaty made between the people finally was what started the true need to fight and stop future incursions