EthiopiaEthiopia

• Flag adopted February 6th of 1996• Green bar represents abundance• Yellow bar represents religious freedom• Red bar represents blood split for the country• Star’s rays represent equality and promise for future• The star’s blue background represents peace and democracy

About EthiopiaAbout Ethiopia

• Landlocked and mountainous country on the horn of Africa• Population 85.2 million and growing by 3.2% annually• Size of country is about the same as California and Texas

combined• Amharic, a language related to Hebrew and Arabic is the official

language • English is taught in secondary education but only educated

urban elite can speak it

HistoryHistory

• Oldest independent country in Africa with human remains dating back 5 million years

• 1700’s “Era of Princess” • 1869 Emperor s became significant unified force• 1975 social govt. in name and military in style• 1990’s provisional govt.• Today heavy-handed govt. (dictator style) has cast doubts on

democracy• 2006 officially declared war on Somalia

Religion/CultureReligion/Culture

• 45% of the population belong to the Ethiopia Orthodox Church

• 35% are Muslims

• Music and dance play a significant role in culture celebrating feast days each month remembering angels, saints and religious fathers

EconomyEconomy

• Over 80% of the population works in agriculture• Only 10% of land is fit for growing crops• Rural wealth is measured by the size of one’s herd• Coffee accounts for more than half of all exports• Drought, soil erosion, and war have all contributed to the poor

economy and periodic famines• Poverty and hunger run rampant

PovertyPoverty

• Malnutrition is responsible for over half of the deaths of children five years and younger

• Approximately 1.5 million people have HIV

• Ethiopia is home to over 4 million orphans

• Most people do not have safe drinking water or adequate sanitation

HealthHealth

EducationEducation

• Less than half of school aged children are enrolled

• Schools are overcrowded even with 4-hour split shifts

• Only 1/3 of all students complete primary school

• Most children not enrolled in school work to support the family

LiteracyLiteracy

Cultural TabooCultural Taboo

• Showing too much skin (modest society)• Discussing finances• Being aggressive, loud, demanding (demonstrates poor character)• A reasonable distance is kept and prolonged eye contact is avoided

during conversations• Pointing with a finger or foot • Thrilling of tongue is an expression of excitement or happiness• Slow nods of the head indicate sadness while quicker nods indicate

agreement

MigrationMigration

• From 1960 to 2000 the number of African immigrants in US grew from 33,355 to 1.4 million with biggest growth since 1990

• Most immigrants into the US are from Nigeria, (13.1%), Egypt (9.6%), and Ethiopia (9.5%)

ReferencesReferences• Africa, 11th Edition, Gemma Pitcher and David Andrew, 2007

• Ethiopia and Eritrea, 4th Edition; Jean-Bernard Carillet and Stuart Butler, Lonely Planet 2009

• U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Office of Immigration Statistics, Annual Flow Report

• Ethiopia—Culture Smart! The Essential Guide to Customs and Culture, Sarah Howard; Kuperard Publishing, 2009

• Culturegram, Cary Public Library Database