AY Honors/African Lore/Answer Key
Amhara is an ethnicity of people in the central highlands of Ethiopia, numbering about 15 million, 27% of the country's population. They speak Amharic, which appertains to the South-Western Semitic languages Their predominant religion is Christianity of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.
Historians generally consider the Amhara to have been Ethiopia's ruling elite for centuries, represented by the line of emperors ending in Haile Selassie was an oromo and amhara. Commentator Marcos Lemma disputes the accuracy of such a statement, arguing that other ethnic groups have always been active in the country's politics. One possible source of confusion for this stems from the mislabeling of Amharic speakers as "Amhara," and the fact that many people from other ethnic groups have Amharic names.
Amhara is also one of the nine ethnic divisions (kililoch) of Ethiopia, containing the homeland of the Amhara people. Previously known as Region 3, its capital is Bahir Dar. Covering 156,960 km2 in the northwest of the country, its population (as of 1999) is 15,850,000.
External links
- Africa Guide: Amhara
- Map of Amhara Region at UN-OCHA
- Lemma, Marcos (MD, PhD). Template:Web reference
