Agaw people
Cushitic and Ethiosemitic peoples[3] |
The Agaw or Agew (
The Agaw peoples in general were historically noted by travelers and outside observers
History
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
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
The Agaw speak the
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
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
- Gebre Mesqel Lalibela, ruler of Ethiopia who is credited with having constructed the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela
- Na'akueto La'ab, Kedus Harbe and Yetbarak, other Zagwe kings
- Abebaw Tadesse, Ethiopian general
See also
References
- ^ "Census 2007" Archived March 5, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, first draft, Table 5.
- Venture Center. Retrieved 28 January 2013.
- ISBN 1581120001.
- ISBN 9780080877754. Retrieved 2023-10-25.
- ISBN 9780080877754. Retrieved 2023-10-25.
- ^ Gamst, Frederick C. (1969). The Qemant - A Pagan-Hebraic Peasantry of Ethiopia. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. p. 29.
- ^ Gamst 1969, p. 30.
- ^ Gamst 1969, p. 119–121.
- ^ a b c Uhlig, Siegbert, ed. Encyclopaedia: A-C. p. 142.
- ISBN 0-7486-0106-6.
- ISBN 0-19-821671-8.
- ^ Taddesse Tamrat, Church and State in Ethiopia (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1972), p.50
- ISBN 0631224939.
- ISBN 9780080877754. Retrieved 2023-10-25.
- ^ Taddesse Tamrat, Church and State in Ethiopia (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1972), p.51