Ethiopia
Facts
In square kilometers Ethiopia is as big as France and Spain combined.
Addis Ababa (2400 meters above sea level), the capital city of Ethiopia , is the
diplomatic capital of Africa.
Probably due to the high altitude of the country, Ethiopians are famous for
being great long distance runners. Almost
more than 70% of Africa's mountains are found in Ethiopia.
The source of the great Blue Nile river is Lake Tana, and Ethiopia contributes
more than 85 % of the water.
Ethiopia as a multi ethnic state is often known as a mosaic of language and
culture: more than 83 languages and 200 dialects are spoken through out the
country.
The
now widely spread coffee originated in Ethiopia from a region called Kaffa.
Ethiopia follows the "Julian calendar" consisting of 12 months of 30
days each and a 13th month of 5 or 6 days. It is roughly 7 and half years behind
the Gregorian calendar.
The Ethiopian fiscal year begins on 8 July and the Ethiopian new year begins on
11 September.
The sun dictates the Ethiopian time: when you get up early in the morning you
start by counting one and you end up at twelve when the day ends , and start
counting again from one when the night begins, and end at twelve o'clock just
before the sun rises in the morning. The Ethiopian mid day and mid night is six
o'clock.
Harrar seen through the window of an old Indian house, also
called the Rimbaud house.
Ethiopia is the only country in Africa with its own language that can be
expressed both in spoken and written form-Amharic. And a differnt church
/religious language (Ge'ez)that can also be expressed both in spoken and written
form proving that the country was one of the most civilized ancient nation in
the time of the Greeks.
Ethiopia claims to preserve many Biblical relics among the most famous are the
"Arc of the Covenant" and piece of the "True Cross " on
which Jesus Christ is believed to have been crucified.
The Great Rift valley ,which is the only geographical feature of planet earth
visible from the moon , cuts Ethiopia in to two crossing the country from top to
bottom.
Some of the earliest roots of humanity are buried in the rift valley. "Lucy
" the oldest direct human ancestor ever found (3.5 Million years old) was
unearthed in Hadar.
The population of Ethiopia is estimated at 68 million, and different from many
advanced nations, 50% of the population are young (under 20).
Ethiopia was never colonized.
Haileselassie the last Ethiopian Emperor is also considered emperor of
Rasteferians in Jamaica. In fact Rasteferians take their names from the
emperor's first title"Ras Teferi "Meaning prince Teferi.
Ethiopia
is believed to be the water tower of Africa, as many rivers flowing into other
African countries originate in Ethiopia. It
is believed 50% of Ethiopian soil has crossed its boundary.
100 years ago, about 40% of the country was thickly forested.
Today only 3% remains.
Ethiopia is home of the Black Jews (the Felashas)
Ethiopia
is famous for its rock art. The single tallest monument ever raised by humanity
in the BCS is found in the country. Especially in the northern part many
churches are not built , they are carved out of a mountain of rock. The famous
Lalibela , which consists of about eleven rock churches networked with each
other, is believed to be the 8th world wonder.
Door
in the carved churches of Lalibela,
Ethiopia Monk in a Lalibela church carved in the rock,
10
meters below the ground.Ethiopia
About
seven places in Ethiopia are registered by UNESCO as world heritage sites, which
this includes the famous Semien mountains national park.
Prince Ruspoli's Turaco
is often described as the rarest, most beautiful, most
enigmatic and Ethiopia's most elusive bird. First discovered in 1890s
,disappeared for almost 50 years and reappeared in 1940s, again disappears for
almost 30 years and reappears in 1970s in the Yabelo region. Almost nothing is
known about the species and its nest and eggs have never been seen.
The
country is a paradise for bird watchers with more than 813 species of birds.
Of these about 16 are exclusive to Ethiopia.
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