Ethiopia

 
Adventures in the Bone Trade: The Race to Discover Human Ancestors in Ethiopia's Afar Depression
by Jon E. Kalb
Listed under Paleontology

African Ark : People and Ancient Cultures of Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa
by Carol Beckwith (Photographer), et al
Hardcover: 310 pages
Harry N Abrams; ISBN: 0810919028; (September 1990)

Aksum: An African Civilization of Late Antiquity
by Stuart Munro-Hay
Hardcover: 294 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.00 x 9.75 x 6.50
Publisher: Edinburgh Univ Pr; ; (May 1991)
ISBN: 0748601066

Archaeology at Aksum, Ethiopia, 1993-7
by David W. Phillipson (Editor)
Book Description This two-volume work provides a detailed account of five seasons' archaeological research at Aksum, which Dr. Phillipson directed on behalf of the British Institute in Eastern Africa. Aksum was the capital of a major state centered on the highlands of Northern Ethiopia/Eritrea, which exercised a powerful influence on international trade during the first seven centuries AD. Christianity was adopted in the 4th Century AD, and Aksum played a vitally important role in the rise of Ethiopian civilization. The research described is intended to provide a comprehensive view of ancient Aksum, including aspects which had received little previous attention. Dr. Phillipson and his colleagues describe royal tombs and commoner graves, domestic economy and international trade, monumental architecture and farming settlements, finely carved ivory and flaked stone tools. The chronological framework is set in its Ethiopian, African and international context.
Hardcover: 538 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.75 x 11.75 x 8.25
Publisher: Society of Antiquaries of London; ; (December 15, )
ISBN: 1872566138

Bibliography of the Earth Sciences for the Horn of Africa : Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia and Djibouti, 1620-1993
by Jon E. Kalb
Listed under Earth Sciences

Churches of Ethiopia: The Monastery of Narga Sellase
by Stanislas Chejnacki, Mario Di Salvo, Osvaldo Rainieri
Narga Sellase's monastery sits on a tiny islet in the middle of Lake Tana, the great body of water in the centre of the Ethiopian plateau near to the imperial city of Gondar. Founded in 1748, Narga Sellase is one of the constellation of monasteries on the lake. They are the expression of a civilization which since the 4th century has known the Christianity on which its identity is founded.

The extraordinary beauty of the natural surroundings and the concentric space of the monastic complex enclose the holiness of the sanctuary, making Narga Sellase a strikingly suggestive place. The church is one of the masterpieces in the multi-millenial Ethiopian civilization-- an ancient but extant Christian enclave in Africa--, and is noted not only for the superb quality of the paintings which completely cover the walls of the maqdas, the sancta sanctorum, but also as a testimony to imperial devotion, as expressed by the prostrate figure of Queen Mentewwab, the foundress, depicted at the feet of the Majesty.

Narga Sellase plays an important part in the history of 18th century Ethiopian art, when European, Islamic, and Indian influences gathered into an artistic form which maintained its fundamental Ethiopian features, not only in the magnificent paintings but also in the decoration, well-integrated into the architecture, and the architecture itself.

Eating the Flowers of Paradise : A Journey Through the Drug Fields of Ethiopia and Yemen
by Kevin Rushby

The Ethiopians: A History
by Richard Pankhurst
Paperback: 299 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.76 x 8.90 x 5.97
Publisher: Blackwell Publishers; ;
ISBN: 0631224939

My Life and Ethiopia's Progress: The Autobiography of Emperor Haile Sellassie I
by Emperor Haile Sellassie
Paperback: 337 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.77 x 7.02 x 5.00
Publisher: Research Associates School Times Publications; ; (May 18, )
ISBN: 0948390409

Haile Sellassie I: The Formative Years 1892-1936
by Harold G. Marcus
Book Description His role approximated Europe's absolutist rulers of the transitional period between feudalism and capitalism. Like his Western counterparts, Haile Sellassie introduced a standing army, a permanent bureaucracy, new forms of taxation, uniform laws, and the mechanisms of a national economy. He also came to control the landed aristocracy, whose authority he redefined and whose functions he redirected to strengthen his increasingly centralized state. The emperor supported his programs through more efficient exploitation of the existing modes of agricultural production, in whose interstices merchant capitalism grew in cooperation with the ruling elites. Even though the Ethiopian absolutist social formation anticipated a more advanced method of production, it contained elements of social organization that characterized earlier centralized empires. 

As had the Egyptian pharaoh, the Chinese emperor, and the Persian king of kings, Haile Sellassie constructed a bureaucracy in which talent, skill, achievement, and, above all, loyalty to the ruler counted more than ethnic or social origins. The emperor's men ensured that the crown received a continuous flow of resources to maintain the machinery of royal and bureaucratic authority. Together with their patron, "they strove to concentrate in their own hands, the main centers of power and control in the country"; they codified and unified law, regularized revenue collection, and standardized administrative practices. The bureaucrats also helped to portray the ruler as the heir to ancient cultural traditions, whose importance would be strengthened through his governance. The king and his men fostered belief in ancient prescriptions through educational, cultural, and religious institutions. Uninterested in any new and secular legitimation base his authority on traditional or charismatic themes and on the mystification surrounding the monarchy. As this study reveals, Haile Sellassie built a bureaucratic, absolutist monarchy that related to the world capitalist economy. Yet, however much such an abstraction helps us to understand the complexities of a period of long personal rule, it would have meant little to the emperor himself, involved as he was in the daily business of power and authority. Haile Sellassie viewed himself as the embodiment of Ethiopia's proud sovereignty and independence. His national vision derived from his early experiences as heir of Ras Makonnen, a military ruler whose army kept order and whose officers constituted an oligarchy that exploited a polyglot, non-Christian population. Haile Sellassie naturally regarded this political order as normal and in the best interests of Ethiopia's peoples. He governed, as had his immediate predecessors, by acting as the country's balancer of power, a method that worked well in a customary government that mediated between the ruling classes and the masses. His limited Western education directed him toward change, however, and he introduced modern institutions whose functions he never clearly understood. He found them useful, however, because they added to imperial power and to the authority of the central government that acted in the emperor's name. 

Haile Sellassie always worked behind the scenes, manipulating actors and events to his advantage. His political goals were obvious, even if his tactics were concealed. He was always involved, though always proclaiming his innocence, his inaction, his isolation from events. He never admitted his nature as a politician but posed as a tool of fate, ready to do God's will or the will of the people. His apparent noninvolvement in politics only underscores the obscurity in which he maneuvered; the emperor's deft hand was invariably apparent in retrospect, and his careful planning became as obvious a success. He was such a good actor, however , that even thoughtful persons never understood the Haile Sellassie was able to educate a cadre of "Young Ethiopians" to strengthen the central government, to transform Addis Ababa, his ramshackle capital, into a leading city, and to begin securing Ethiopia's frontiers from encroachment by adjacent colonial powers. Ever jealous of his country's sovereignty and independence, the emperor also directed Ethiopia's trade and other activities away from its traditional European partners toward Japan and America, both of whom he believed supported his country's independence. By so doing, he robbed France of a good economic reason to protect Ethiopia from Italy; he alienated Great Britain; and he permitted Italy to contemplate his nation's conquest. 

Mussolini regarded Ethiopia's progress, especially after 1928, when Haile Sellassie gained indisputable power, as potentially threatening Somalia and Eritrea and as marking Italy's failure to transform the Solomonic Empire into a roman colony. During 1930-1932, domestic political considerations drove him to consider an attack on Ethiopia, and by 1934-1935, the European situation permitted the aggression. By then, Ethiopia was without allies and without the means to counter the Fascists. Haile Sellassie learned, as would other leaders, that collective security was the opiate of small, defenseless countries. Although the emperor would suffer defeat, despair, and exile, he would return in 1941, as a phoenix, to restore the status quo ante.
Paperback: 242 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.85 x 8.99 x 5.99
Publisher: Red Sea Pr; ; (March )
ISBN: 1569020086

Beyond the Throne: The Enduring Legacy of Emperor Haile Selassie I
by Indrias Getachew
Book Description Endorsed by the royal family, this is an intimate look into the life of a man who was considered a tyrant by some and a messiah by others. The descendent of a royal bloodline dating back to Biblical times, the life of the emperor was as rich and epic as his heritage. This book is a detailed look at man who stands as one of the prominent historical figures of the twentieth century. The beautiful edition has never-before-seen photographs of the emperor and showcases the work of one of a young new Ethiopian writer and two of the world's top specialists in Ethiopian history.
Hardcover: 156 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.00 x 8.00 x 8.00
Publisher: Shama Books; ; (January 20, )
ISBN: 1931253005

The Emperor: Downfall of an Autocrat
by Ryszard Kapuscinski
Translated by William R. Brand, and Katarzyna Mroczkowska-Brand
Haile Selassie, His Most Puissant Majesty and Distinguished Highness the Emperor of Ethiopia, enjoyed a 44-year reign until his own army gave him the boot in 1974. In the days following the coup, the Polish journalist Ryszard Kapuscinski traveled to Ethiopia and sought out members of the imperial court for interviews. 

His composite portrait of Selassie's crumbling imperium is an astonishing, wildly funny creation, beginning with the very first interview. "It was a small dog," recalls an anonymous functionary, "a Japanese breed. His name was Lulu. He was allowed to sleep in the Emperor's great bed. During various ceremonies, he would run away from the Emperor's lap and pee on dignitaries' shoes. The august gentlemen were not allowed to flinch or make the slightest gesture when they felt their feet getting wet. I had to walk among the dignitaries and wipe the urine from their shoes with a satin cloth. This was my job for ten years." (Well, it's a living.)

Elsewhere, the interviewees venture into tragic or grotesque or downright unbelievable terrain. Kapuscinski has shaped their testimonies into an eloquent whole, and while he never alludes to the totalitarian regime that ruled his native Poland during the same period, the analogy is impossible to ignore. Amazon.com
Paperback: ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.52 x 7.99 x 5.20
Publisher: Vintage Books; ; Reissue edition (April 1989)
ISBN: 0679722033

The Coronation Of H.I.M. Emperor Haile Sellassie
Photographs and text of the inauguration of Ras Tafari to the Ethiopian throne in 1930
Paperback: 39 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.15 x 8.40 x 10.90
Publisher: Frontline Distribution International Inc.; ; Illustrated edition (October 6, )
ISBN: 0948390549

Haile Selassie's War: Haile Selassie, Lion of Judah, Africa's Greatest Military Leader
by Anthony Mockler
Book Description "Half-man, half-snake" was how the Emperor Haile Selassie was described by one of his most ferocious rivals, the eunuch Balcha, who had commanded the artillery at the battle of Adowa where the first Italian invasion of Ethiopia was bloodily repulsed. Forty years later the old Galla warrior was to die, machine-gun in hand, once again attempting, this time without success to halt the Italian intruders. 

Anthony Mocker's immensely readable epic history is divided into three parts. First the scene is set in Ethiopia, still feudal, and in Italy, newly fascist. The second part describes in compelling detail the Italian invasion and the battles in the north: it ends with the invaders in undisputed control of their new Roman Empire and with Haile Selassie living in apparently hopeless exile near Bath. 

The final section recounts how, following Italy's entry into World War II, British Somali land was invaded and conquered and fears of a British debacle spread all over East Africa. But then the tide of battle turned. As Mussolini's dreams crumbled into dust and his armies into defeat, the ex-Emperor, supported by the bold but amateurish troops of Orde Wingate's Gideon Force, fought his way step by step back into full control of his Empire, despite all the attempts to stop him by Italians, Ethiopians, and even by his allies the British. 

First published in 1984, this revised edition of Anthony Mockler's acclaimed history contains a new foreword by the author. Praised as "a memorable book" by John Keegan in the Sunday Times, Haile Selassie's War remains an epic tale of colonial ambition, warfare, and heroism.
Paperback: 496 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.32 x 8.54 x 6.54
Publisher: Interlink Pub Group; ;
ISBN: 1566564735

The Emperor's Clothes: A Personal Viewpoint on Politics and Administration in the Imperial Ethiopian Government 1941-1974
by Gaitachew Bekele
Hardcover: 125 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.84 x 9.33 x 6.28
Publisher: Michigan State Univ Pr; ;
ISBN: 087013325X

The Kebra Negast: The Lost Bible of Rastafarian Wisdom and Faith from Ethiopia and Jamaica
edited by Gerald Hausman, introduction by Ziggy Marley
What did Jamaican reggae singer Bob Marley and Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia have in common? A love for the Kebra Negast, holy book of Ethiopian Christians and Jamaican Rastafarians. Contemporary scholars date the Kebra Negast to the 14th century, but it retells the stories of much earlier Biblical times, one very important story in particular. According to the Kebra Negast, the Israelites' Ark of the Covenant was spirited away to the ancient kingdom of Ethiopia by wise King Solomon's own son, offspring of the union between Solomon and the exotic Queen Makeda of Ethiopia (a.k.a. the Queen of Sheba). Gerald Hausman, a consummate storyteller of native traditions, presents the core narrative of the Kebra Negast, from Adam to the rise of the Ethiopian Solomonid dynasty. On top of this, he injects his own encounters with Rastafarians during his travels in Jamaica--dreadlocked Rastas as modern-day Samsons, their unwavering faith in Jah, and a rare outsider's glimpse at the Nyabinghi ceremony. The combination of ancient tale and modern belief give Hausman's Kebra Negast the rich flavor of enduring truth. --Brian Bruya - Amazon.com
Hardcover: 203 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.75 x 8.60 x 5.70
Publisher: St. Martin's Press; ; (November )
ISBN: 0312167938

Rastafari: Roots and Ideology
by Barry Chevannes
Paperback: 298 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.81 x 8.58 x 5.57
Publisher: Syracuse Univ Pr (Trade); ; (December )
ISBN: 0815602960

Rasta: Emperor Haile Sellassie and the Rastafarians
by Jah Ahkell
Paperback: 60 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.19 x 8.45 x 5.54
Publisher: Unknown; ; (October 12, )
ISBN: 0948390018

Jimma Abba Jifar : An Oromo Monarchy Ethiopia 1830-1932 With a Post-Script
by Herbert S. Lewis
Paperback: 180 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.50 x 8.50 x 5.25
Publisher: Red Sea Pr; (December )
ISBN: 1569020892

Imagining Ethiopia : Struggles for History and Identity in the Horn of Africa
by John Sorenson
Hardcover: 216 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.75 x 9.50 x 6.25
Publisher: Rutgers University Press;
ISBN: 0813519721

Yohannes IV of Ethiopia
by Zewde Gabre-Sellassie
Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Red Sea Pr; ;
ISBN: 1569020434

Sheba: Searching for the Legendary Queen
by Nicholas Clapp
Hardcover: 320 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.28 x 8.58 x 5.85
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co; ; (April )
ISBN: 0395952832

Surrender or Starve: Travels in Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Eritrea
by Robert D. Kaplan
Listed under Somalia

In Search of King Solomon's Mines
by Tahir Shah
Synopsis King Solomon, the Bible's wisest king, also possessed extraordinary wealth. He built a temple at Jerusalem that was said to be more fabulous than any other landmark in the ancient world, heavily adorned with gold from Ophir. The precise location of this legendary land has been one of history's great unsolved mysteries. Long before Rider Haggard's classic adventure novel "King Solomon's Mines" produced a fresh outbreak of gold fever, explorers, scientists and theologians had scoured the world for the source of the king's astonishing wealth. In this book, Tahir Shah takes up the quest, using as his leads a mixture of texts including The Septuagint, the earliest form of the Bible, as well as geological, geographical and folkloric sources. Time and again the evidence points towards Ethiopia, the ancient kingdom in the horn of Africa whose imperial family claims descent from Menelik, the son born to Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. Tahir Shah's trail takes him to a remote cliff-face monastery where the monks pull visitors up on a leather rope, to the ruined castles of Gondar, and to the churches of Lalibela, hewn from solid rock. In the south, he discovers an enormous illegal gold mine, itself like something out of the Old Testament, where thousands of men, women and children dig with their hands. But the hardest leg of the journey is to the accursed mountain of Tullu Wallel, where legend says there lies an ancient shaft, once the entrance of King Solomon's mines. Tahir Shah's account of his journey in search of the facts behind the fiction is every bit as exciting as Rider Haggard's. Amazon.co.uk

Fire in the Night : Wingate of Burma, Ethiopia, and Zion

Greater Ethiopia : The Evolution of a Multiethnic Society
by Donald N. Levine

When the World Began : Stories Collected from Ethiopia (Oxford Myths and Legends)
by Elizabeth Laird

Legacy of Bitterness : Ethiopia and Fascist Italy, 1935-1941
by Alberto Sbacchi
Legacy of Bitterness: Ethiopia and Fascist Italy 1935-91 is an important study of the relationship between Ethiopia and Fascist Italy during the 1930s. Italy's colonial ambitions in Ethiopia and the gallant resistance of the Ethiopians led to global segmentation of world opinion. The legacy of bitterness in Italo-Ethiopian relations to which the title refers stems from the fact that the Italians, besides using poison gas during the invasion of Ethiopia, continued to commit atrocities against the colonial people during their five year presence in Ethiopia. In the anti-colonial resistance of the Ethiopians to Fascist rule, moreover, the Ethiopian nobility was conspicuously absent, focused as it was on its own self-preservation. In spite of a lack of leadership and coordination, however, the Ethiopians patriots delayed Italian demographic colonization and drained the Italian economy by keeping Ethiopia in a state of continuous warfare. The emergent Black nationalism of that period capitalized on the precarious internal situation of Ethiopia to win world public opinion and support in preventing the recognition of the Italian Empire. Italy's atrocities, including the use of banned poison gas, posed a dilemma that had to be addressed by the Western powers. The international community, for political reasons and military considerations - primarily the containment/appeasement of Nazi Germany - proceeded to eliminate the economic sanctions against Italy which had been imposed by the League of Nations, after two years of debate, acknowledged the (illegal) acquisition of Ethiopia by Italy. Thus was Ethiopia sacrificed for the security of Europe. The author, a renowned authority on the subject, has skillfully provided a broad perspective on the Italo-Ethiopian war global terms. His study looks at the response to the war by emergent black nationalism in the Diaspora, and Ethiopia's bitter struggle to tip the balance of world opinion in its favor. The Publisher
Paperback: 390 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.43 x 9.03 x 6.04
Publisher: Red Sea Pr;
ISBN: 0932415741

Ethiopia (Cultures of the World)

The Beta Israel in Ethiopia and Israel : Studies on Ethiopian Jews

Ethiopia and the Middle East
by Haggai Erlich, Hagai Erlikh
Hardcover: 227 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.75 x 9.50 x 6.50 
Publisher: Lynne Rienner Publishers;
ISBN: 1555875203 

The Autobiography of Emperor Haile Sellassie I : King of Kings of All Ethiopia and Lord of All Lords

A History of Ethiopia: Updated Edition
by Harold G. Marcus
Paperback: 394 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.85 x 8.96 x 6.06
Publisher: University of California Press; ; Updated edition (January 7, )
ISBN: 0520224795

The Life and Times of Menelik II: Ethiopia 1844-1913
by Harold G. Marcus
Hardcover: ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.25 x 9.25 x 6.25
Publisher: Red Sea Pr; ; Reprint edition
ISBN: 1569020094
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The Holy Piby
by Shepherd Robert Athlyi Rogers, et al
Paperback: 103 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.25 x 8.39 x 5.39
Frontline Books/Research Associates; ISBN: 0948390638; (April 20, )
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The Queen of Sheba & Her Only Son Menyelek a/k/a The Kebra Nagast
by E. A. Wallis Budge
Book Description The story of the Queen of Sheba and her only son Menyelek. In this ancient Ethiopian scriptural text, the story of how the Ark Of The Covenant was taken from Jerusalem to Ethiopia by Menyelek, the son of King Solomon of Israel and Queen Makeda of Ethiopia, is revealed and interpreted...
Paperback: 256 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.51 x 8.40 x 5.42
Publisher: Research Associates School Times Publications; ; (July 31, )
ISBN: 0948390425
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Hath... The Lion Prevailed...?
by John Moodie
Paperback: 40 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.16 x 8.45 x 5.53
Publisher: Frontline Distribution International Inc.; ; (October 12, )
ISBN: 0948390441
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A History of Ethiopia
by Harold G. Marcus
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