Locating Ethiopia Even though Ethiopia is widely mentioned in great Classical mythologies, maps, art, sculptures, poetry, war narratives, it has always been difficult to establish the country or its people in concise geographical and historical contexts on the basis of…

 ( This is the second part of the article, “Ethiopianism,” The “Neo-Official-Nationalism,” and the “Oromia First!” Trend, published on July 30.) In the past, on another platform (at OSA Conference, July 2016, Washington DC), I put forward three scenarios for…
Trouble in the Somali federal region

Attack on minority, looting orgy grips Jijiga as defence force clashed with Abdi Illey’s paramilitary forces Heavy artillery and sporadic gunfire spluttered around the Somali region’s capital Jijiga this morning as Ethiopia’s National Defence Forces (ENDF) entered the town to…
On Transitional Government and Ethnic Federalism

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s visit to the Ethiopian diaspora in the US has offered the occasion to raise two crucial issues that have been the object of intense discussions among many students of Ethiopian politics and political activists since his…
Ode to Ethiopia

Maria Thomas, author (“African Visas” and “Come to Africa and save your Marriage”) and a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, Ethiopia, probably said it best: “If you’ve ever lived in Ethiopia, you never really put it behind you. You follow the…
The intellectual project of Global Ethiopia

The idea of global Ethiopia is an architectural narrative scheme to unpack Ethiopia and the global intellectual and cultural movement it has inspired. Through systematic exploration of ancient mythologies, historical records, biblical verses and contemporary events, the various strands of…