The Agaw or Agew ( gez, አገው ''Agäw'', modern ''Agew'') are a pan-ethnic identity native to the northern highlands of
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
and neighboring
Eritrea
Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopi ...
. They speak the
Agaw languages, which belong to the
Cushitic branch of the
Afroasiatic language family
The Afroasiatic languages (or Afro-Asiatic), also known as Hamito-Semitic, or Semito-Hamitic, and sometimes also as Afrasian, Erythraean or Lisramic, are a language family of about 300 languages that are spoken predominantly in the geographic su ...
, and are therefore linguistically closest related to peoples speaking other Cushitic languages.
The Agaw peoples in general were historically noted by travelers and outside observers
to have practiced what some described as a “Hebraic religion”, though some practiced
Ethiopian Orthodoxy, and many were
Beta Israel Jews. A small minority have adopted Islam in the last few centuries. Thousands of Agaw Beta Israel converted to Christianity in the 19th and early 20th century (both voluntarily and forcibly), becoming the
Falash Mura
Falash Mura is the name given to descendants of the Beta Israel community in Ethiopia who converted to Christianity, primarily as a consequence of western proselytization during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This term also includes Beta ...
, though many are now returning to Judaism.
History
The Agaw are perhaps first mentioned in the third-century ''
Monumentum Adulitanum'', an
Aksumite
The Kingdom of Aksum ( gez, መንግሥተ አክሱም, ), also known as the Kingdom of Axum or the Aksumite Empire, was a kingdom centered in Northeast Africa and South Arabia from Classical antiquity to the Middle Ages. Based primarily in ...
inscription recorded by
Cosmas Indicopleustes
Cosmas Indicopleustes ( grc-x-koine, Κοσμᾶς Ἰνδικοπλεύστης, lit=Cosmas who sailed to India; also known as Cosmas the Monk) was a Greek merchant and later hermit from Alexandria of Egypt. He was a 6th-century traveller who ma ...
in the sixth century. The inscription refers to a people called "Athagaus" (or Athagaous), perhaps from ʿAd Agaw, meaning "sons of Agaw."
[Uhlig, Siegbert, ed. ''Encyclopaedia: A-C''. p. 142.] The Athagaous first turn up as one of the peoples conquered by the unknown king who inscribed the ''Monumentum Adulitanum''. The Agaw are later mentioned in an inscription of the fourth century emperor
Ezana of Axum
Ezana ( gez, ዔዛና ''‘Ezana'', unvocalized ዐዘነ ''‘zn''; also spelled Aezana or Aizan) was ruler of the Kingdom of Axum, an ancient kingdom located in what is now Eritrea and Ethiopia. (320s – c. 360 AD). He himself employed the ...
and the sixth-century emperor
Kaleb of Axum
Kaleb (), also known as Saint Elesbaan, was King of Aksum, which was situated in modern-day Eritrea and Ethiopia.
Procopius calls him "Hellestheaeus", a variant of grc-koi, Ελεσβόάς version of his regnal name, gez, እለ አጽ� ...
. Based on this evidence, a number of experts embrace a theory first stated by
Edward Ullendorff and
Carlo Conti Rossini that they are the original inhabitants of much of the northern
Ethiopian Highlands, and were either forced out of their original settlements or assimilated by
Semitic-speaking Tigrayans,
Amharas
Amharas ( am, አማራ, Āmara; gez, ዐምሐራ, ʾÄməḥära) are a Ethiopian Semitic languages, Semitic-speaking ethnic group which is indigenous to Ethiopia, traditionally inhabiting parts of the northwest Ethiopian Highlands, Highlands ...
and
Tigrinyas
The Tigrinya people (, ), also known as Tigrigna, are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group native to Eritrea. They speak the Tigrinya language. There also exists a sizable Tigrinya community in the diaspora.
History
One view believes that the n ...
.
Cosmas Indicopleustes also noted in his ''
Christian Topography
The ''Christian Topography'' ( grc, Χριστιανικὴ Τοπογραφία, la, Topographia Christiana) is a 6th-century work, one of the earliest essays in scientific geography written by a Christian author. It originally consisted of fiv ...
'' that a major gold trade route passed through the region "Agau". The area referred to seems to be an area east of the
Tekezé River
The Tekezé or Täkkäze River ( amh, ተከዜ, ti, ተከዘ; originally meaning "river" in Ge’ez, ), also spelled Takkaze, is a major river of Ethiopia. For part of its course it forms a section of the westernmost border of Ethiopia and Eri ...
and just south of the
Semien Mountains, perhaps around
Lake Tana
Lake Tana ( am, ጣና ሐይቅ, T’ana ḥāyik’i; previously Tsana) is the largest lake in Ethiopia and the source of the Blue Nile. Located in Amhara Region in the north-western Ethiopian Highlands, the lake is approximately long and ...
.
They currently exist in a number of scattered enclaves, which include the
Bilen in and around
Keren, Eritrea; the
Qemant people (including the now-relocated
Beta Israel), who live around
Gondar in the
North Gondar Zone of the
Amhara Region, west of the Tekezé River and north of Lake Tana; a number of Agaw live south of Lake Tana, around
Dangila in the
Agew Awi Zone of the Amhara Region; and another group live around
Soqota
Sekota, also spelled Sokota, Sakota, Soqota (Amharic language, Amharic: ሰቆጣ; formerly ሰቈጣ) is a town and separate Soqota (woreda), woreda in northern Ethiopia. The name is likely from the Agaw language, Agaw word ''sekut'', "fortified ...
in the former province of
Wollo, now part of the Amhara Region, along with
Lasta,
Tembien
Tembien ( Tigrigna: ተምቤን) is a historic region in Tigray Region and former provinces of Ethiopia. It is a mountainous area of that country. During the reforms in 1994–95, the old provinces were replaced with regions, zones and woredas ...
, and
Abergele
Abergele (; ; ) is a market town and community, situated on the north coast of Wales between the holiday resorts of Colwyn Bay and Rhyl, in Conwy County Borough and in the historic county of Denbighshire. Its northern suburb of Pensarn lies on ...
.
The Cushitic speaking Agaw ruled during the
Zagwe dynasty
The Zagwe dynasty ( Ge'ez: ዛጔ ሥርወ መንግሥት) was an Agaw medieval dynasty that ruled the northern parts of Ethiopia and Eritrea, after the historical name of the Lasta province. Centered at Lalibela, it ruled large parts of the t ...
of Ethiopia from about 900 to 1270. The name of the dynasty itself comes from the Ge'ez phrase ''Ze-Agaw'' (meaning "of the Agaw"), and refers to the Agaw people.
Language
The Agaw speak
Agaw languages. They are a part of the
Cushitic
The Cushitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken primarily in the Horn of Africa, with minorities speaking Cushitic languages to the north in Egypt and the Sudan, and to the south in Kenya and Tanzania. As o ...
branch of the
Afro-Asiatic
The Afroasiatic languages (or Afro-Asiatic), also known as Hamito-Semitic, or Semito-Hamitic, and sometimes also as Afrasian, Erythraean or Lisramic, are a language family of about 300 languages that are spoken predominantly in the geographic s ...
family. Many also speak other languages such as
Amharic
Amharic ( or ; (Amharic: ), ', ) is an Ethiopian Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amharas, and also serves as a lingua franca for all oth ...
,
Tigrinya and/or
Tigre.
Subgroups
* The Northern Agaw are known as
Bilen, capital
Keren
* The Western Agaw are known as
Qemant
* The Eastern Agaw are known as
Xamir
* The Southern Agaw are known as
Awi
Notable people
*
Gebre Mesqel Lalibela, ruler of Ethiopia who is credited with having constructed the rock-hewn churches of
Lalibela
Lalibela ( am, ላሊበላ) is a town in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Located in the Lasta district and North Wollo Zone, it is a tourist site for its famous rock-cut monolithic churches. The whole of Lalibela is a large and important sit ...
*
Abebaw Tadesse, Awi, Ethiopian general
See also
*
Zagwe dynasty
The Zagwe dynasty ( Ge'ez: ዛጔ ሥርወ መንግሥት) was an Agaw medieval dynasty that ruled the northern parts of Ethiopia and Eritrea, after the historical name of the Lasta province. Centered at Lalibela, it ruled large parts of the t ...
*
Bilen people
References
{{authority control
Ethnic groups in Ethiopia
Cushitic-speaking peoples