Ethiopia has more than 80 languages and several religions, and the two subjects are closely linked. This page gives the overview. The guides to greetings, Amharic phrases and inside an Ethiopian Orthodox church go into detail.
Language
Amharic is the working language of the federal government and the most widely understood language in the country, and it is the one you will hear in Addis Ababa. Other major languages include Afaan Oromo, which has the most speakers, Tigrinya, Somali, Sidama, Wolaita and Afar. Each region uses its own language in local schools and offices.
Amharic and Tigrinya are written in the Ethiopian script, fidel, which grew out of the old Ge’ez script. It is read from left to right, and each character stands for a consonant and a vowel together. See the Ethiopian alphabet. Afaan Oromo and Somali are written in the Latin alphabet.
English is taught from primary school and is the language of teaching in secondary school and university. In Addis Ababa, in hotels, and in the tourist industry you can usually get by in English, but outside the cities it is much less common. A few words of Amharic are a great help and always appreciated. Start with Amharic phrases for travellers.
Religion
Ethiopia is among the oldest Christian countries in the world, and Islam arrived here in its earliest days. In the 2007 census, about 44 percent of Ethiopians were Ethiopian Orthodox Christians, about 34 percent Muslim and about 19 percent Protestant, with smaller Catholic and traditional communities. The Beta Israel, the Ethiopian Jewish community, has lived in the northern highlands for centuries, although most of its members have emigrated.
- Orthodox Christianity came to the kingdom of Aksum in the 4th century. Its churches, feasts and fasts shape the calendar. Orthodox Christians fast on Wednesdays and Fridays, eating no meat, eggs or dairy, so you will find fasting food on most menus. See fasting food and Meskel.
- Islam reached Ethiopia in about the year 615, when the first followers of the Prophet Muhammad took refuge in Aksum. It is widespread in the east and south. On Fridays at noon, Muslims go to Friday prayer in towns across the country. See Harar and Dirre Sheikh Hussein.
- Protestant churches have grown fast in the last decades, especially in the south and the west.
Many Orthodox Christians wear a small cross on a cord around the neck. Christians and Muslims live side by side, and neighbours of both faiths visit each other at holidays. See the Ethiopian calendar for how religion shapes the year.
