The name “Ethiopia” originates from the Greek words aitho (I burn) and ops (face), which together signify “scorched faces.” Ethiopia shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the Northeast, East and Southeast, Kenya to the South, South Sudan to the West, and Sudan to the Northwest.
In Ethiopia, the population is 128,948,548, with a growth rate of 2.47% per year, 10,880 births per day, and 2,089 deaths per day. The population of Ethiopia is equivalent to 1.59% of the world’s total’s population.
Ethiopia is one of the world’s oldest countries, its territorial extent having varied over the millennia of its existence. In ancient times it remained centred on Aksum, an imperial capital located in the northern part of the modern state, about 100 miles (160 km) from the Red Sea coast. The landlocked country on the Horn of Africa capital is Addis Ababa (“New Flower”), located almost at the centre of the country. Ethiopia is the largest and most populated country in the Horn of Africa. With the 1993 secession of Eritrea, its former province along the Red Sea, Ethiopia became landlocked.
Similarly, Ethiopia is the main nation within Africa that was never formally colonized; in any case, it needed to overcome Italian forces twice to stay free. The present territory was consolidated during the 19th and 20th centuries as European powers encroached into Ethiopia’s historical domain.
Ethiopia became prominent in modern world affairs first in 1896, when it defeated colonial Italy in the Battle of Adwa, and again in 1935–36, when it was invaded and occupied by fascist Italy. Liberation during World War II by the Allied powers set the stage for Ethiopia to play a more prominent role in world affairs. Ethiopia was among the first independent nations to sign the Charter of the United Nations, and it gave moral and material support to the decolonization of Africa and to the growth of Pan-African cooperation.
The cultural heritage of Ethiopians resides in their religions, languages, and extended families. All major language and religious groups have their own cultural practices (which also vary by geographic location); however, there are commonalities that form strong and recognizable national traits.
Most cultural institutions, including the National Museum of Ethiopia, the Museum of the Institute of Ethiopian Studies, and the National Library and Archive of Ethiopia, are located in Addis Ababa. Evidence of Ethiopia’s rich cultural history is also found throughout the country at various sites, several of which have been designated UNESCO World Heritage sites.
