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Afar people

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Afar (Qafar)
Qafara
عفر
An Afar man in nomadic attire, 1950
Total population
3,350,000 (2019–2022)[1]
Regions with significant populations
Horn of Africa
Ethiopia2,700,000 (2022)[1]
Djibouti342,000 (2019)[1]
Eritrea304,000 (2022)[2]
Languages
Afar
Religion
Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
Saho,Somalis,Beja,and otherCushiticpeoples[3]

TheAfar(Afar:Qafár), also known as theDanakil,AdaliandOdali,are aCushiticethnic groupinhabiting theHorn of Africa.[4]They primarily live in theAfar RegionofEthiopiaand in northernDjibouti,as well as the entire southern coast ofEritrea.The Afar speak theAfar language,which is part of theCushiticbranch of theAfroasiaticfamily.[4]Afars are the only inhabitants of theHorn of Africawhose traditional territories border both theRed Seaand theGulf of Aden.[5]

Etymology

The etymology of the term “Dankali” can be traced back to the Afar language and is derived from the words “dan” (meaning “people” or “nation” ) and “kali” (referring to the Afar Region). The term has been used for centuries to refer to the Afar people, their language, culture, and way of life. Its usage reflects the Afar people’s sense of pride in their unique identity and their determination to preserve their heritage and way of life in the face of various historical and contemporary challenges.[citation needed]

History

Early history

A man of theDanakiltribe

The earliest surviving written mention of the Afar is from the 13th-centuryAndalusianwriterIbn Sa'id,who reports of a people calledDankal,inhabiting an area which extended from the port ofSuakin,to as far south asMandeb,nearZeila.[6]

The Afar are consistently mentioned in Ethiopian records. They are first mentioned in the royal chronicles of EmperorAmda Seyonin a campaign beyond theAwash River.The Afar country was originally known in Ethiopian records as "Adal", a word that was used to denote the area of the lowerAwash Riverto the country north ofLake Abbe,whichG.W.B Huntingforddescribes as a "Danakil state in heavily forested region with permeant water and swamps". The chronicler describes the Afars as being "very tall with ugly faces" and that their hair was plaited like that of women so that it "reached to their waists". The chronicler was greatly impressed by their military prowess, as he states that they were "great fighters", for when they went into battle "they tied the ends of their garments, one man to the next, that they might not flee".[7]

They are again mentioned over a century later in the royal chronicles of EmperorBaeda Maryam.According to his chronicler the ruler of the Danakil offered to intervene and help in the Emperor's campaign against their neighbors, theDobe'a.He sent the Emperor a horse, a mule laden with dates, a shield, and two spears to show his support, along with a message saying, "I have set up my camp, O my master, with the intention of stopping these people. If they are your enemies, I will not let them pass, and will seize them."[7]

According to sixteenth centuryPortugueseexplorerFrancisco Álvares,theKingdom of Dankaliwas confined byAbyssiniato its west andAdal Sultanatein the east.[8]He also described that the Afar salt trade was extremely lucrative in the area. The mineral he adds, were considered very cheap in the Afar country, but was very valuable by the time it got toShewa.[9]

Pre-20th century

Portrait of two Afar men in traditional attire, 1888.
Main articles:Imamate of AussaandAussa Sultanate

Afar society has traditionally been organized into independent kingdoms, each ruled by its ownSultan.Among these were theSultanate of Aussa,Sultanate of Girrifo/Biru,Sultanate of Tadjourah,Sultanate of Rahaito,andSultanate of Gobaad.[10]In 1577, the Adal leader Imam Muhammed Jasa moved his capital fromHarartoAussain modernAfar region.In 1647, the rulers of theEmirate of Hararbroke away to form their own polity.Harariimams continued to have a presence in the southern Afar Region until they were overthrown in the eighteenth century by theMudaito dynastyof Afar who later established theSultanate of Aussa.The primary symbol of the Sultan was a silverbaton,which was considered to have magical properties.[11]

The Afar are divided into two subgroups, the Asaimara ( "Red Men" ) and the Adoimara ( "White Men" ). The Asaimara were regraded as the nobility, whereas the Adoimara were seen as inferior stock. These groups are further subdivided into upwards of 150 sub-tribes, the chief tribe of the Asaimara was the Mudaito in the south, to which the sultan ofAussabelonged to. The Modaitos who occupied the region of the lower Awash, were the most powerful tribe, and no European traversed their territory without claiming the right of hospitality or the brotherhood of blood. Some Afars helped the Europeans by providing, for a fee, the security of Western caravans that circulated between the southern coast of theRed Seaand central Ethiopia. The Afars were also heavily active in theRed Sea slave trade,serving as guides to Arab slave traders. A major slave route to Arabia crossed through Afar country, with Afars reportedly still actively trading in slaves as recently as 1928.[12]

The Afars were consistently viewed as violent and bloodthirsty, and generally had a bad reputation for massacring caravans and expeditions. As Italian explorer L. M. Nesbitt describes: "The Danakils kill any stranger on sight. The taking of a life has become a habit of their nature." In one notable incident,Werner Munzinger,along with his wife, child and a force consisting of 350 soldiers, 2 guns, and 45 camels, arrived inTadjoura,with their errands being to open up the roads betweenAnkoberand Tadjoura, to enter into communication with King Menelik of Shewa by traversing through theDanakil Desert.On the 14th of November upon reaching Aussa, the Egyptian force was attacked at night by a large number of Afars. The Afar managed massacred their army leaving only a small number left which fled to Tadjoura. Amongst the Egyptian casualties were the leader Munzinger, his wife, and his child.[13][14][15][16]

Towards the end of the 19th century, the sultanates of Raheita and Tadjoura on the coasts of the Red Sea have then colonized between European powers:ItalyformsItalian EritreawithAssabandMassawa,and France theFrench SomalilandinDjibouti,but the inland Aussa in the south was able to maintain its independence for longer. Even comparatively fertile and located on theAwash River,it was demarcated from the outside by surrounding desert areas. Ethiopia wanted to neutralize Aussa and prevent them from helping the Italians during the course of theFirst Italo-Ethiopian Warin 1895–1896. The show of Abyssinian force dissuaded the Afar sultanMahammad Hanfareof theSultanate of Aussafrom honouring his treaties with Italy, and instead Hanfare secured a modicum of autonomy within the Ethiopian Empire by accepting EmperorMenelikindirect rule after the war.[17][18]

20th century

Map of the Afar Country and the Northern Part of the Abyssinian Highlands, 1869

When a modern administrative system was introduced in Ethiopia after the Second World War, the Afar areas controlled by Ethiopia were divided into the provinces of Eritrea, Tigray, Wollo, Shewa and Hararge. Tribal leaders, elders, and religious and other dignitaries of the Afar tried unsuccessfully in the government from 1961 to end this division. Following an unsuccessful rebellion led by the Afar Sultan,Alimirah Hanfare,theAfar Liberation Frontwas founded in 1975 to promote the interests of the Afar people. Sultan Hanfadhe was shortly afterward exiled toSaudi Arabia.Ethiopia's then-ruling communistDergregime later established theAutonomous Region of Assab(now calledAseband located inEritrea), although low-level insurrection continued until the early 1990s. In Djibouti, a similar movement simmered throughout the 1980s, eventually culminating in theAfar Insurgencyin 1991. After the fall of the Derg that same year, Sultan Hanfadhe returned from exile.

In March 1993, theAfar Revolutionary Democratic Front(ARDUF) was established. It constituted a coalition of three Afar organizations: theAfar Revolutionary Democratic Unity Union(ARDUU), founded in 1991 and led byMohamooda Gaas(or Gaaz); theAfar Ummatah Demokrasiyyoh Focca(AUDF); and theAfar Revolutionary Forces(ARF). A political party, it aims to protect Afar interests. As of 2012, the ARDUF is part of theUnited Ethiopian Democratic Forces(UEDF) coalition opposition party.[19]

Demographics

Geographical distribution

Tadjourah women rest after dancing for the 21st Sultan of Gobaad
Approximate area inhabited by the Afar ethnic group.

The Afar principally reside in theDanakil Desertin theAfar RegionofEthiopia,as well as inEritreaandDjibouti.They number 2,276,867 people in Ethiopia (or 2.73% of the total population), of whom 105,551 are urban inhabitants, according to the most recent census (2007).[20]The Afar make up over a third of the population of Djibouti, and are one of the nine recognizedethnic divisions(kililoch) of Ethiopia.[21]

Language

ISO 639 icon for the Afar language

Afars speak theAfar languageas amother tongue.It is part of theCushiticbranch of theAfroasiaticlanguage family.

The Afar language is spoken by ethnic Afars in the Afar Region of Ethiopia, as well as in southern Eritrea and northern Djibouti. However, since the Afar are traditionallynomadicherders,Afar speakers may be found further afield.

Together, with theSaho language,Afar constitutes theSaho–Afardialect cluster.

Society

Religion

A group of young Afar men in traditional clothing

Afar people are predominantlyMuslim.They have a long association withIslamthrough the various local Muslim polities and practice theSunnisect of Islam.[22]The majority of the Afar had adopted Islam by the 13th century due to the expanding influence of holy men and traders from theArabian peninsula.[23]The Afar mainly follow theShafi'ischool of Sunni Islam. Sufi orders like theQadiriyyaare also widespread among the Afar. Afar religious life is somewhat syncretic with a blend of Islamic concepts and pre-Islamic ones such as rain sacrifices on sacred locations, divination, and folk healing.[24][25]

Culture

A traditional Afar dwelling in theDanakil Desert

Socially, they are organized intoclanfamilies led by elders and two main classes: theasaimara('reds') who are the dominant class politically, and theadoimara('whites') who are a working class and are found in theMabla Mountains.[26]Clans can be fluid and even include outsiders like the (Issa clan).[24]

In addition, the Afar are reputed for their martial prowess. Men traditionally carry thejile,a famous curved knife. They also have an extensive repertoire of battle songs.[22]

The Afar are mainly livestock holders, primarily raising camels but also tending to goats, sheep, and cattle. However, shrinking pastures for their livestock andenvironmental degradationhave made some Afar instead turn to cultivation, migrant labor, and trade. The Ethiopian Afar have traditionally engaged in salt trading but recentlyTigrayanshave taken much of this occupation.[24]

See also

Notes

  1. ^abc"Afar".Ethnologue.Archivedfrom the original on 9 March 2023.Retrieved2 December2023.
  2. ^"Afar".Ethnologue.Archivedfrom the original on 9 March 2023.Retrieved6 March2024.
  3. ^Joireman, Sandra F.(1997).Institutional Change in the Horn of Africa: The Allocation of Property Rights and Implications for Development.Universal-Publishers. p. 1.ISBN1581120001.
  4. ^abConcise Encyclopedia of Languages of the World.Elsevier. 6 April 2010.ISBN9780080877754.Archivedfrom the original on 24 March 2023.Retrieved25 October2023.
  5. ^Fairhead, J. D., and R. W. Girdler. "A discussion on the structure and evolution of the Red Sea and the nature of the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and Ethiopia rift junction-The seismicity of the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Afar triangle." Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series A, Mathematical and Physical Sciences 267.1181 (1970): 49–74.
  6. ^Richard Pankhurst,The Ethiopian Borderlands(Lawrenceville: Red Sea Press, 1997), p. 61
  7. ^abPankhurst,The Ethiopian Borderlands,pp. 61–67, 106f.
  8. ^Chekroun, Amélie.Le "Futuh al-Habasa": écriture de l'histoire, guerre et société dans le Bar Sa'ad ad-din[TheFutuh al-Habasa:Writings on History, War and Society in the Bar Sa'ad ad-din (Ethiopia, 17th century).]. Université Panthéon-Sorbonne. p. 196.Archivedfrom the original on 28 September 2022.Retrieved12 May2022.
  9. ^Pankhurst,The Ethiopian Borderlands,pp. 109
  10. ^Shehim, Kassim.THE INFLUENCE OF ISLAM ON THE 'AFAR (ETHIOPIA).Archivedfrom the original on 18 March 2024.Retrieved18 March2024.
  11. ^Trimingham, p. 262.
  12. ^Page, Willie.Encyclopedia of africaN HISTORY andCULTURE(PDF).Facts on File inc. p. 4. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 17 February 2019.Retrieved12 March2019.
  13. ^Wylde, Modern Abyssinia, p. 25.
  14. ^Trimingham, p. 172.
  15. ^Edward Ullendorff, The Ethiopians: An Introduction to Country and People, second edition.London: Oxford University Press. 1965. p. 90.ISBN0-19-285061-X.
  16. ^Poluha, Eva (28 January 2016).Thinking Outside the Box: Essays on the History and (Under)Development of Ethiopia.Xlibris Corporation.ISBN978-1-5144-2223-6.Archivedfrom the original on 22 May 2024.Retrieved15 November2021.
  17. ^Akyeampong, Emmanuel Kwaku; Gates, Henry Louis (2012).Dictionary of African biography vol 1–6.Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 3–4.ISBN9780195382075.Archivedfrom the original on 22 May 2024.Retrieved7 August2022.
  18. ^Soule, Aramis Houmed (2018).Deux vies dans l'histoire de la Corne de l'Afrique: Les sultans 'afar Maḥammad Ḥanfaré (r. 1861–1902) & 'Ali-Miraḥ Ḥanfaré (r. 1944–2011).Centre français des études éthiopiennes. pp. 38–43.ISBN9782821872332.Archivedfrom the original on 22 May 2024.Retrieved7 August2022.{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help)
  19. ^Ethiopia – Political Parties,Accessed: 1-07-2006.
  20. ^"Country level"Archived16 August 2010 at theWayback Machine,Table 3.1, p.73.
  21. ^"The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency".www.cia.gov.Archivedfrom the original on 8 April 2023.Retrieved10 April2018.
  22. ^abMatt Phillips, Jean-Bernard Carillet,Lonely Planet Ethiopia and Eritrea,(Lonely Planet: 2006), p. 301.
  23. ^Miran, Jonathan (2005). "A Historical Overview of Islam in Eritrea".Die Welt des Islams.45(2): 177–215.doi:10.1163/1570060054307534– viaJSTOR.
  24. ^abcSkutsch, Carl, ed. (2005).Encyclopedia of the World's Minorities.Vol. 1. New York: Routledge. pp. 11, 12.ISBN1-57958-468-3.
  25. ^Brugnatelli, Vermondo. "Arab-Berber contacts in the Middle Ages and Ancient Arabic dialects: new evidence from an old Ibadite religious text." African Arabic: approaches to dialectology. Berlin: de Gruyter (2013): 271–291.
  26. ^Uhlig, Siegbert (2003).Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: A-C.Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 103.ISBN978-3-447-04746-3.Archivedfrom the original on 22 May 2024.Retrieved14 October2015.

References

  • Mordechai Abir,The era of the princes: the challenge of Islam and the reunification of the Christian empire, 1769–1855(London: Longmans, 1968).
  • J. Spencer Trimingham,Islam in Ethiopia(Oxford: Geoffrey Cumberlege for the University Press, 1952).

Further reading

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