Islam in Ethiopia — Wikipedia

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An Ethiopian mosque

L’ Islam in Ethiopia is the second religion of the country according to the 2007 census. It brings together 33.9% of the inhabitants. The most practiced religion remains Orthodox Christianity, with 43.5% of members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and 19.3% other Christians, mainly Protestants [ first ] , [ 2 ] .

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In Ethiopia, Islam has been present since its beginnings, even before the Hegira, by the presence of disciples of Muhammad. Residents convert there at least from the VIII It is century.

The early days of Islam [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

At the beginning of VII It is century, while Muhammad was in conflict in Mecca with the tribe of Quraïchites, some of his disciples sought refuge in the kingdom of Aksum, in northern Ethiopia [ 3 ] . The exile of these disciples, like Djafar Ibn Abi Talib, became the first “Hegira” (of Arabic: hydra , migration) of Islam. Islamic tradition calls the sovereign Aksumite “Ashama Ibn Abjar” and situates it in Negash. Muhammad asked these exiled Muslims to respect and protect Aksoum [ 3 ] . A Muslim cemetery of VII It is century was found in Negash [ 4 ] .

In 628, when Islam was well established in Medina, Muhammad sent a letter to the sovereign of Ethiopia to order him to embrace Islam. Muslim sources claim that the sovereign, the propell , replied positively. When he died, two years later, Muhammad would have prayed for him as for any other Muslim. But the country remained Christian afterwards [ 3 ] .

The Ethiopian tradition claims that this hospitality protected Aksum from Muslim invasions to VII It is And VIII It is centuries. However, the advent of a strong political power in Arabia is undoubtedly one of the causes of the disappearance of Aksum, which quickly entered into conflict with Muslim entities, in particular towards the coast where they controlled access to maritime trade [ 5 ] .

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At least from the IX It is century, Islamized groups live in the east and the south of the horn, especially in the mountains of the čärčär but undoubtedly even in the southern shewa, attested by burials [ 6 ] .

Confrontations between Christian and Muslims kingdoms [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

At XIII It is century, a new power emerged in Ethiopia, called Solomonide, founded by the negus Yekuno Amlak (1270 – 1283). Conflicts became greater between Christian and Muslims states [ 5 ] (in particular the Adal), causing many destruction. The Muslim conquest of the Christian kingdoms of Nubia (makuria, nobatie and alodie) from the XIV It is century, then advances from Harar under the direction of Ahmed Ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi at the start of XVI It is century, almost made the Christian kingdom disappear. It was only thanks to the help of Portuguese in 1541, that the kingdom avoided annihilation. Under Sarsa Dengel (1563 – 1597), the Christian kingdom manages to consolidate and weaken the neighboring Muslim powers [ 5 ] . At the same time, the Oromos take advantage of the relative vacuum created by these conflicts to extend to the southern provinces [ 7 ] .
At XVIII It is century and at the beginning of XIX It is century, Christian power was weakened, partly under the domination of Muslim leaders, in particular Wollo. Téwodros II (1855 – 1868) undertook to promote Christianity, followed by Yohannès IV (1872 – 1889) who came into conflict with Egypt who had taken control of Harar.

The extension of the Empire under Ménélik II (1889 – 1913) led to the integration of many territories populated by Muslims. His grandson, Iyasu, was deposited in 1916, accused of having converted to Islam. His successor, Hailé Sélassié Ier, appeased the kingdom, but Islam had lower status in this Christian state. It was then the advent of the Republic that the country became secular and that the Muslims obtained rights identical to Christians.

Distribution [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

Muslims are in the majority in the southern and east regions: Somali, Afar and Harar, as well as in certain parts of Oromia [ 8 ] . The city of Harar is the oldest center of culture, teaching and dissemination of Islam in the country. Muslims are estimated between 33% and 45% of the population according to sources [ 9 ] .

Convenient [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

Ethiopian Muslims are mainly Sunnis. As in Sudan and neighboring Somalia, most Muslims are members of a Sufi brotherhood, even informally (for example Qadiriyya in Welllo). The motivations are sometimes more to receive the spiritual power of the founder or local leaders. Daily prayer and Ramadan fasting have a lot, whether in town in rural areas. Many Muslims make the pilgrimage to Mecca every year.

Sharia [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

During the Italian occupation, between 1935 and 1941, Sharia law became the official law in Addis Ababa and in the Welllo. In 1960, under Muslim pressure, the government of Haïlé Sélassié recognized the existence of Sharia law which concerned a growing number of people. From this moment, certain aspects of Islamic civil law and family law have been integrated into the Ethiopian law in customary law [ 8 ] .

Geopolitical aspects [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

In the 1930s, Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia asserted themselves as two neighboring and parallel theocratic powers. However, the Italian fascist regime attacked Ethiopia in 1935. This pushed Hailé Selassié to ask for the help of neighboring Muslim powers. In fact, Saudi Arabia, the main power of the region, remained neutral and helped Italy under the underneath. During the occupation, between 1936 and 1941, the Italians supported Islam in the region, which was revitalized. After the Second World War, around the city of Harar, a political Islam appeared. Muslims in the region were divided between a political and Wahhabite Islam on the one hand supported by Saudi Arabia, and on the other an ethnicized, popular and traditional Islam. As Somali nationalism has not joined Harar’s political Islam, the latter failed. But this fracture still exists today. Until the fall of the Ethiopian Empire in 1974, the Muslim opposition opposed the regime more by claiming the place of Arabic than to the name of Islam itself. Panarabism touched the whole Middle East. Finally, with the strong influence of Saudi Arabia, the Ethiopian Empire was overthrown by the army, which instituted a communist dictatorship and sought to destroy both Islam and Christianity. Then, the reopening of the Suez Canal, the War of the Ogaden in 1977 – 1978, and the Battle of Harar woke up the Islamo -Christian litigation. Mengistu tolerates Christians and Muslims, but the resentments remained strong between communities. Currently, whether in Saudi Arabia or among the Ethiopian Islamists, it is the figure of a Christian Ethiopia to conquer who dominates, and no longer that of the host country of the first persecuted Muslims. Despite everything, Ethiopian Muslims continue to identify with Ethiopia. For two decades, Saudi Arabia has supported Ethiopian Islam in multiple ways: construction of mosques, Koranic schools, dissemination of the Arabic language, aid to pilgrimages, or annual subsidies to converts in particular [ 3 ] .

The city of Harar is considered the fourth holy city of Islam. It is a large place of influence of Islam in East Africa. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage, it houses 82 mosques, some of which date X It is century, as well as 102 mausoleums.

  1. ↑ 2007 census , p. 18
  2. ↑ Data of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
  3. ↑ A B C and D Analyse de hagai erlich, en 2005.
  4. ↑ (in) Layers of Time: A History of Ethiopia After pailing Bourg, Denis, Nework, New York, 2000, P. 43
  5. ↑ A B and C Stéphane Ancel, “Islam in Ethiopia”, 2003, on line .
  6. ↑ FAUVELLE-AYMAR and HIRSCH [2010].
  7. ↑ FICQUET (Eloi), “La Fabrique des origins Oornograph» Annals of Ethiopia , vol. 18, 2002, pp. 55-71.
  8. ↑ a et b Presentation Ethiopia by the University of Laval
  9. ↑ Berhanu Abegaz, « Ethiopia: A model nation of minorities », 2005.

Bibliography [ modifier | Modifier and code ]

  • Ahmed Hassen Omer, Islam, trade and politics in IFAT (Central Ethiopia) in the 19th century: the emergence of a crossroads city, Aleyyu Amba So, the courses called the courar, Paris I, you. BETRIAND HELD, 2007, 2 Vist.
  • Cuoq (Joseph), Islam in Ethiopia, from origins to XVI It is century , Paris, Nouvelles Latin editions, 1981, 287 p.
  • Chekroun (Amélie), The “Futuh al-Habasa”: writing of history, war and society in the Sa’ad Ad-Din bar (Ethiopia, 16th century) So, the courses called the courar, Paris I, you. Bertrand their cookies, 2013, 482 p., See online on Tel
  • Erlich (Hagai), “Islam of Ethiopia and the Saudis”, Overseas , n° 11, 2005, p. 181-188 see online
  • Fauvelle-aymar (François-xavier), Hirsch (Bertrand), «Muslim historic spaces in Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa: a reassessment», Northeast African Studies , vol. 11, n° 1, 2004-2010 (New Series), p. 25-53 see online
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