About Ethiopia
Ethiopia officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia is a country located in the Horn of Africa and its capital city is Addis Ababa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2. Ethiopia is bordered by Eritrea to the north, Djibouti and Somalia to the east, Sudan and South Sudan to the west, and Kenya to the south. With its capital at Addis Ababa, it is also the most populous landlocked nation in the world.
Ethiopia is a land of enormous diversity and as a result it has more than 80 languages and over 200 dialects. Amharic or Amharigna is the official language of Ethiopia although the government encourages local languages to be taught in schools. The working languages of the national/regional governments may differ according to regions. Other main languages include Oromigna and Tigrigna. English, French, Italian and Arabic are also widely spoken.
Ethiopia has history and cultural richness in abundance. Trace the past from the skeleton of one of the earliest discovered hominids, our ancestor of 3.5 million years, through the pre-Christian stellae of Axum, the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela, the castles of Gondar, the Forbidden City of Harar, to the remains of the Kingdom of Haile Selassie, Emperor of Abyssinia.
Alongside its rich history, Ethiopia also offers great trekking in the Simiens – a world heritage site. The Simiens are home to endemic flora and fauna, including the Simien fox, the walia ibex, the gelada baboon, the bearded vulture, thick-billed raven and eagles. Further south, the Bale Mountains are rich in flora and bird life. The Omo valley tribes is a must visit for those travelers interested in people and culture because these almost forgotten Omo nomadic tribes are worth the interaction with unique life styles and culture.
