Agaw people

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Agaw
አገው
Cushitic and Ethiosemitic peoples[3]

The Agaw or Agew (

Central Cushitic languages, which belong to the Cushitic branch of the Afroasiatic language family,[5] and are therefore closely related to peoples speaking other Cushitic languages
.

The Agaw peoples in general were historically noted by travelers and outside observers

Ethiopian Orthodoxy,[7] and many were Beta Israel Jews. Thousands of Agaw Beta Israel converted to Christianity in the 19th and early 20th century (both voluntarily and forcibly),[8] becoming the Falash Mura
.

History

Zagwe
King.

The Agaw are first mentioned in the third-century Monumentum Adulitanum, an Aksumite inscription recorded by Cosmas Indicopleustes in the sixth century. The inscription refers to a people called "Athagaus" (or Athagaous), perhaps from ʿAd Agaw, meaning "sons of Agaw."[9] The Athagaous first turn up as one of the peoples conquered by the unknown king who inscribed the Monumentum Adulitanum.[10] The Agaw are later mentioned in an inscription of the fourth century Ezana of Axum, known as the Ezana Stone. Here, they are referred to as "Atagaw," a name closely resembling the earlier mention.[9][11]

Cosmas Indicopleustes also noted in his

Semien Mountains, perhaps around Lake Tana.[9] He also makes a reference to a "governor of Agau", who was entrusted by Kaleb with the protection of the long-distance caravan routes from Agau. According to Taddesse Tamrat, Kaleb's governor of Agau probably has his seat of government in the area of Lasta, which would later serve as the center of the Zagwe dynasty.[12]

The Cushitic speaking Agaw ruled during the Zagwe dynasty of Ethiopia from about 1137 to 1270. Post-contemporary sources accuse this polity of being usurpers and derided their achievements. The Zagwe rulers were subsequently deposed, and the throne was seized by a Semitic-speaking Amhara dynasty. Despite this, the new monarchs granted the Zagwe rulers and their descendants the title of Wagshum, allowing them to govern their native regions of Wag and Lasta.[13]

Language

Bet Gabriel-Rufael church in Lalibela, one of several rock-hewn churches built by the medieval Zagwe dynasty

The Agaw speak the

Central Cushitic languages which are a part of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic family.[14] Many also speak other languages such as Amharic, Tigrinya and/or Tigre
.

Distribution

The Agaws comprise of several different linguistic groups, residing in scattered communities across a wide geographical area spanning from Eritrea to Gojjam. In their local traditions, they consistently point to Lasta as their origin of dispersal.[15]

These scattered enclaves include the

Abergele
.

Subgroups

  • The Northern Agaw are known as Bilen.
  • The Western Agaw are known as
    Qemant
    .
  • The Eastern Agaw are known as Xamir.
  • The Southern Agaw are known as Awi.

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ^ "Census 2007" Archived March 5, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, first draft, Table 5.
  2. Venture Center
    . Retrieved 28 January 2013.
  3. .
  4. . Retrieved 2023-10-25.
  5. . Retrieved 2023-10-25.
  6. ^ Gamst, Frederick C. (1969). The Qemant - A Pagan-Hebraic Peasantry of Ethiopia. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. p. 29.
  7. ^ Gamst 1969, p. 30.
  8. ^ Gamst 1969, p. 119–121.
  9. ^ a b c Uhlig, Siegbert, ed. Encyclopaedia: A-C. p. 142.
  10. .
  11. .
  12. ^ Taddesse Tamrat, Church and State in Ethiopia (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1972), p.50
  13. .
  14. . Retrieved 2023-10-25.
  15. ^ Taddesse Tamrat, Church and State in Ethiopia (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1972), p.51