Amharic folk literature is a time-honoured tradition dating back to the imperial songs of the 14th and 15th centuries. One of these subgenres is Amharic folk poetry which is permeated with the political, social, econo...Amharic folk literature is a time-honoured tradition dating back to the imperial songs of the 14th and 15th centuries. One of these subgenres is Amharic folk poetry which is permeated with the political, social, economic, and cultural legacies of successive Ethiopian governments that rise and demise. The image of these governments was determined by their integrity, vision, and responsiveness to the aspirations of the populace. This study was designed to determine the popular image of the imperial governments of Menelik II and Haile Selasse I as reflected in Amharic folk poetry. Without prejudice to some odes which invariably idealise the vision of these monarchs, the politically-inspired Amharic folk poetry is found to be critical of the feudal status quo thus perpetuating its negative images. This underpins the partial unpopularity of Menilik and Haile Selasse. However, these critical gestures would by no means undermine their monumental contributions to the reunification, modernization, and survival of Ethiopia. Thus, the contemporary Amharic folk-poetry is neither iconoclastic nor idealistic but an impassioned allegory of the nation-state.展开更多
The Zagwe period is believed to be the richest and most artistic period of Ethiopian civilization since the conversion of Ezana though its achievements have been virtually consigned to obscurity. One of the ideologica...The Zagwe period is believed to be the richest and most artistic period of Ethiopian civilization since the conversion of Ezana though its achievements have been virtually consigned to obscurity. One of the ideological weapons which aggravated its obscurity is arguably the deep-rooted allegiance of the Kδbra Nagast to the Solomonic Dynasty. Contemporary researchers on Kδbra Nagast seem to have underestimated the ideological onslaught of the Kδbra Nagast on the Zagwe period that Agaw contribution to the medieval Ethiopian civilization has been virtually shrouded in mystery. Thus, expatriate and compatriot authorities on the medieval Ethiopian cultural history are called upon to demystify the obscurity of the Zagwe period, thereby, to reconstruct the unsung contributions of Agaw civilization with intellectual profundity and inquiry.展开更多
The Zagwe period is believed to be the richest and most artistic period of Ethiopian civilization since the conversion of Ezana though its achievements have been virtually consigned to obscurity. One of the ideologica...The Zagwe period is believed to be the richest and most artistic period of Ethiopian civilization since the conversion of Ezana though its achievements have been virtually consigned to obscurity. One of the ideological weapons which aggravated this obscurity is arguably the deep-rooted allegiance of the Kebra Nagest to the Solomonic dynasty. Contemporary researchers on Kebra Nagest seem to have underestimated the ideological onslaught of the Kebra Nagest on the Zagwe period that their contributions to the medieval Ethiopian civilization have been virtually shrouded in mystery. Thus, expatriate and compatriot authorities on the medieval Ethiopian cultural history are called upon to revisit the impacts oftbe Kob~ NSg^gt on the Zagwe period from the other end of the telescope, thereby, to reconstruct the unsung achievements of Ag^w civilization.展开更多
文摘Amharic folk literature is a time-honoured tradition dating back to the imperial songs of the 14th and 15th centuries. One of these subgenres is Amharic folk poetry which is permeated with the political, social, economic, and cultural legacies of successive Ethiopian governments that rise and demise. The image of these governments was determined by their integrity, vision, and responsiveness to the aspirations of the populace. This study was designed to determine the popular image of the imperial governments of Menelik II and Haile Selasse I as reflected in Amharic folk poetry. Without prejudice to some odes which invariably idealise the vision of these monarchs, the politically-inspired Amharic folk poetry is found to be critical of the feudal status quo thus perpetuating its negative images. This underpins the partial unpopularity of Menilik and Haile Selasse. However, these critical gestures would by no means undermine their monumental contributions to the reunification, modernization, and survival of Ethiopia. Thus, the contemporary Amharic folk-poetry is neither iconoclastic nor idealistic but an impassioned allegory of the nation-state.
文摘The Zagwe period is believed to be the richest and most artistic period of Ethiopian civilization since the conversion of Ezana though its achievements have been virtually consigned to obscurity. One of the ideological weapons which aggravated its obscurity is arguably the deep-rooted allegiance of the Kδbra Nagast to the Solomonic Dynasty. Contemporary researchers on Kδbra Nagast seem to have underestimated the ideological onslaught of the Kδbra Nagast on the Zagwe period that Agaw contribution to the medieval Ethiopian civilization has been virtually shrouded in mystery. Thus, expatriate and compatriot authorities on the medieval Ethiopian cultural history are called upon to demystify the obscurity of the Zagwe period, thereby, to reconstruct the unsung contributions of Agaw civilization with intellectual profundity and inquiry.
文摘The Zagwe period is believed to be the richest and most artistic period of Ethiopian civilization since the conversion of Ezana though its achievements have been virtually consigned to obscurity. One of the ideological weapons which aggravated this obscurity is arguably the deep-rooted allegiance of the Kebra Nagest to the Solomonic dynasty. Contemporary researchers on Kebra Nagest seem to have underestimated the ideological onslaught of the Kebra Nagest on the Zagwe period that their contributions to the medieval Ethiopian civilization have been virtually shrouded in mystery. Thus, expatriate and compatriot authorities on the medieval Ethiopian cultural history are called upon to revisit the impacts oftbe Kob~ NSg^gt on the Zagwe period from the other end of the telescope, thereby, to reconstruct the unsung achievements of Ag^w civilization.
