About Ethiopia

Ethiopia is the tenth largest country in Africa with a surface area of 1,194,000 square kilometers (461,003 sq. miles). It lies in eastern Africa, between the Equator and the Tropic of Cancer, in a region known as the Horn of Africa. Bordered by five countries, it is landlocked (due to its separation from Eritrea).

  • It was home to the most ancient kingdom in Africa, one of the first monarchies in the world.
  • It is the sole African country to possess an alphabet more than 2,000 years old.
  • It is the only country on the continent to have maintained independence in the face of European colonizers.
  • It still follows the her own Calendar, 7 years and 8 month behind the Gregorian Calendar and it has 13- months – It has twelve lunar months of thirty days, plus one month of five or six days, depending on the leap year. It is in GMT+3 hours zone; days starting at sunrise; dawn being 12 AM, middy 6 PM, dusk 12 PM Ethiopian time.
  • The Cradle of Mankind- the oldest hominid remains of Selam (3.3 million) and Lucy (3.18 million years old).
  • Ethiopians enjoy complete freedom of religion. However, two religions are professed by the great majority: Christianity & Sunny Islam. Religion has always been a major influence in Ethiopia. Certainly no country in sub-Saharan Africa can trace its origins as far back. Ethiopia is mentioned thirty-three times in the Bible and many times in the Qur’an.
  • Ethiopia has been called “The Roof of Africa” for its most outstanding topographical feature: a huge central plateau, the Ethiopian Massif. Formed in the Tertiary era by volcanic activity, this great massif occupies more than half of the total surface area of the country, and has an average elevation of between 1,800 and 2, 400 meters (5,700- 7, 700 feet). Nine peaks rise above 4, 000 meters (12,800 feet) and eleven above 3,000 meters (9,600 feet). The highest peak is Called Ras Dashen, 4543 meters, the fourth highest peak in Africa.
  • It is a country where one of the lowest and driest places found in northeastern part-the Danakil Depression, 116 meter below sea level.
  • It has been called the “water tower” of Northeast Africa. The combination of its high altitude, 14 large rivers (many of them international), numerous lakes and other sources of fresh water, has created an extensive natural irrigation system to various regions of the Horn. Lake Tana, Ethiopia’s largest sheet of water covering 3,600 sq. Kilometers (1,389 Sq. miles) forms the headwaters of the Blue Nile, or Abbay as it is known in Ethiopia, the longest river in the world.
  • Ethiopia is composed of about 83 ethnic groups with 200 dialects. Based on the language they speak, they can be divided into Semitic, Cushitic, Nilotic and Omotic stocks.
  • The Cradle of Coffee Arebica, the Land of thousand miles’, home of the Ark of Covenant, custodian of some of the world’s oldest civilizations, a tourist Paradise, beautiful, secretive & mysterious.

Ethiopia also presents one of the most stunning natural environments in Africa. Because of the size of the country, and the great variety of its landscapes and climate, Ethiopia represents all that Africa has to offer. Its conducive climatic conditions and landscape made Ethiopia the home of bird life (over 850 species of which 21 are endemics) and 350 species of animals, out of which 9 are indigenous. Ethiopia, after the rains, is a land decked with flowers and with many more native plants than most countries in Africa.

Blessed with rich cultures, unique wildlife, startlingly blue skies and dramatic landscapes littered with ancient treasures, Ethiopia is a captivating destination that might not yet be on your radar, but should be.

If you’re looking for a destination with a difference, combining ancient history, cultural riches and stunning landscapes, this might be the place!