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Saturday, December 7, 2013

ETHIOPIA-Fun Facts

Ethiopia is a very unique country with an amazing history that goes back several thousand years. There was so much I did not know about this wonderful place. Here are some of our favorite facts we learned about enchanting Ethiopia!
                                                                         
- Ethiopia is the only African country with its own alphabet.
- Time in Ethiopia is counted on the opposite side of the clock (6:00 is at our 12:00).
-Ethiopia is the original birthplace of coffee. It was discovered in the region of Kaffa.   Ethiopia is the world’s seventh largest producer of coffee today, and Africa’s top producer.
-People in Ethiopia generally speak Amharic, which is a Semitic language like Arabic and is considered a sacred language to Rastafarians.
-Ethiopia claims to hold the Ark of the Covenant as well as a piece of the True Cross on which Jesus was crucified.
-Ethiopia is known as the Cradle of Mankind, with some of the earliest ancestors found buried in the soil.  Lucy (3.5 million years old), the most famous fossils found, were unearthed in Hadar.
                                                             
-Ethiopia remains one of the only nations in Africa never to be colonized.  It was occupied briefly by the Italians from 1936 to 1941.
-Ethiopia is home to 9 UNESCO World Heritage sites, more than any other country in Africa.
-There are more than 80 different ethnic groups in Ethiopia with just as many languages and over 200 dialects are spoken throughout the country.
-Teff, the grain used to make the Ethiopian staple injera, is an ancient grain believed to have originated in Ethiopia between 4000BC and 1000BC.  It is the smallest grain in the world and is rich in calcium, phosphorous, iron, copper, aluminum, barium, thiamine, and is a good source of protein, amino acids, carbohydrates and fiber.  It is a great gluten-free option.   

-There are 13 months in the Ethiopian calendar
- Traditionally, parents and children do not share a last name. Most children take their        father’s first name as their last name.
 

1 comment:

  1. What a colorful and healthy dish. Looks delicious , too. Thank you

    ReplyDelete