Berhanu Zerihun (

Amharic Amharic is an Ethio-Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amhara people, and also serves as a lingua franca for all other metropolitan populati ...

: ብርሃኑ ዘሪሁን; 1933-34 – 24 April 1987) was an Ethiopian writer in

and journalist, noted for his clear and crisp

writing style In literature, writing style is the manner of expressing thought in language characteristic of an individual, period, school, or nation. Thus, style is a term that may refer, at one and the same time, to singular aspects of an individual's writing ...

, which contrasted against the more complex writing style popular in his time.

Early life

Born in

Gondar Gondar, also spelled Gonder (Amharic: ጎንደር, ''Gonder'' or ''Gondär''; formerly , ''Gʷandar'' or ''Gʷender''), is a city and woreda in Ethiopia. Located in the North Gondar Zone of the Amhara Region, Gondar is north of Lake Tana on ...

the son of an Orthodox Christian Priest, Zerihun Mersa, as a child Berhanu was not interested in sacred texts and devoted much of his spare time to reading new Ethiopian "secular" books. His first poem about a corrupt judge was published in the newspaper '' Yezareitu Ethiopia''. Berhanu enrolled in the Addis Ababa Technical School, alongside his studies, he was an editor of a school magazine and regularly contributed to newspapers.

Career

After graduating in 1956, Berhanu worked for a year as assistant shop master at the Technical School, and subsequently at the Mapping and Geography Institute for two years. He continued writing for newspapers. During Berhanu's career as a journalist, he was a deputy editor of ''Yezareitu Ethiopia'' from 1959 until 1961. In 1961 he became editor-in-chief of Voice of Ethiopia, and from 1963 to 1966 editor of Addis Zemen. Berhanu was reinstated as the editor of Addis Zemen after the

Ethiopian Revolution The Ethiopian Revolution () was a period of civil, police and military upheaval in Ethiopia to protest against the weakened Haile Selassie government. It is generally thought to have begun on 12 January 1974 when Ethiopian soldiers began a rebel ...

. In 1977/8 he was arrested for political reasons, since ''

Addis Zemen Addis Zemen (Amharic "New Era"; also known as Addis Abreham) is a town in northern-central Ethiopia. Located in the Debub Gondar Zone of the Amhara Region, on the road connecting Gondar and Bahir Dar, Addis Zemen has a latitude and longitude of ...

'' did not reflect the political line of the Derg government. After nine months in detention Berhanu was released and appointed editor of the magazine ''Yekkatit''. In 1980, he was appointed editor of the international magazine World Marxist Review. Berhanu was also a prolific writer. Among his first books were ●''Hulet Yeemba Debdabewoch ("Two Letters of Tears" 1960)'' a collection of short stories dealing with Ethiopian political themes such as

starvation Starvation is a severe deficiency in caloric energy intake, below the level needed to maintain an organism's life. It is the most extreme form of malnutrition. In humans, prolonged starvation can cause permanent organ damage and eventually, de ...

. ●''Del Kemot Behuala ("Victory after Death" 1963)'', which dealt with the Sharpeville massacre in South Africa. ●''Yebedel Fetsamie ("The Fulfillment of Crime" 1965)'' on the subject of prostitution in Ethiopia. ●''YeTewodros Enba ("Tewodros's Tears" 1966)'', a noted work of historical fiction about Emperor

Tewodros II Tewodros II (, once referred to by the English cognate Theodore; baptized as Kassa, – 13 April 1868) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1855 until his death in 1868. His rule is often placed as the beginning of modern Ethiopia and brought an end to ...

which was well received. Berhanu was most famous for his ''revolutionary'' trilogy of novels, ''Maebel ("The Flood") (Vol. 1, 1974; Vol. 2, 1981; Vol. 3, 1982).'' It was a political work. The novels depicted the problems of Ethiopian society, the inequities of the old regime, and the prospects of socialist development. All three volumes of ''Maebel'' were subsequently read on the radio. Berhanu also wrote plays, among them "Moresh" (Codename, Password), which was staged by the National Theatre, and "Tatennyaw Tewanay" ("The Troublesome Actor") in 1983. His last novel, ''YeTangut Mestir'' ("Tangut's Secret"), was published in 1987.

Legacy and death

Berhanu began to suffer from health problems in the early 1980s and died on 24 April 1987; he was buried in the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Addis Ababa. Berhanu rejuvenated Ethiopian literature by introducing his own literary style. His literary manner is sometimes referred to as ''berhanigna'', i.e., "the language of Berhanu."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berhanu Zerihun 1930s births 1987 deaths Amharic-language writers Year of birth uncertain Ethiopian dramatists and playwrights Ethiopian journalists 20th-century Ethiopian novelists 20th-century dramatists and playwrights 20th-century journalists Ethiopian male writers Male novelists Male journalists Male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century male writers