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74-425: " Fuzzy-Wuzzy " was originally used by British soldiers in the 19th century as a name for Hadendoa warriors on the Red Sea coast of the Sudan , and referred to their elaborate butter-matted hairstyles. In 1942, during the Pacific invasion, the Japanese had built up a force of 13,500 in the Gona region of Papua with the intention of invading Port Moresby . The key to the offensive was an overland trail across

148-567: A referendum in Eritrea supervised by the United Nations (dubbed UNOVER) in which the Eritrean people overwhelmingly voted for independence, Eritrea declared its independence and gained international recognition in 1993. The EPLF seized power, established a one-party state along nationalist lines and banned further political activity. As of 2020, there have been no elections. On 28 May 1993, Eritrea

222-517: A distinct language. The most widely spoken languages are Tigrinya and Arabic . The others are Tigre , Saho , Kuinama , Nara , Afar , Beja , Bilen and English . Tigrinya , Arabic and English serve as the three working languages. Most residents speak languages from the Afroasiatic family, either of the Ethiopian Semitic languages or Cushitic branches. Among these communities,

296-559: A northern extension of the Ethiopian Highlands , I home to montane grasslands and woodlands . Habitats here vary from the sub-tropical rainforest at Filfil Solomona to the precipitous cliffs and canyons of the southern highlands. Filfil receives over 1,100 mm of rainfall annually. There is a steep escarpment along the eastern side of the highlands, which is the western wall of the East African Rift. The western slope of

370-566: A racial slur. Kipling's poem "Fuzzy-Wuzzy" praises the Hadendoa for their martial prowess, because "for all the odds agin' you, Fuzzy-Wuz, you broke the square ". This could refer to either or both historical battles between the British and Mahdist forces where British infantry squares were "broken" . The first was at the Battle of Tamai , on 13 March 1884, and the second was on 17 January 1885 during

444-428: A referendum be held immediately to settle the Eritrean question of sovereignty. The United Nations Commission of Enquiry arrived in Eritrea in early 1950 and after about six weeks returned to New York to submit its report. Two reports were presented. The minority report presented by Pakistan and Guatemala proposed that Eritrea be independent after a period of trusteeship. The majority report compiled by Burma, Norway, and

518-461: A religious purpose in pre- Christian times. One of these granite columns, the Obelisk of Aksum , is the largest such structure in the world, standing at 90 feet (27 metres). Under Ezana ( fl. 320–360), Aksum later adopted Christianity. Christianity was the first world religion to be adopted in modern Eritrea and the oldest monastery in the country, Debre Sina , was built in the fourth century. It

592-607: A shorter period of service or a less difficult working condition. In some occasions, the Papuans were forced into service. On 29 August 1942, the Japanese task force broke through the Australian line forcing the Australians to retreat further back to Templeton's Crossing . Eventually, the Australians were forced to retreat to Myola . Six hundred and fifty Australians died in the campaign. It

666-471: A southern Ethiopian kingdom, recognized the Italian occupation of his rivals' lands of Bogos , Hamasien , Akkele Guzay , and Serae in exchange for guarantees of financial assistance and continuing access to European arms and ammunition. His subsequent victory over rival kings and enthronement as Emperor Menelek II (r. 1889–1913) made the treaty formally binding upon the entire territory. In 1888,

740-480: A visit to Eritrea was the Portuguese explorer Francisco Alvares in 1520. His books have the first description of the local powers of Tigray , the kingdom of Axum and Barnagais (the lord of the lands by the sea) The contemporary coast of Eritrea was the one that guaranteed the connection to the region of Tigray where the Portuguese had a small colony, and therefore the connection to the interior Ethiopian , allies of

814-747: Is a member of the African Union , the United Nations , and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development , and is an observer state in the Arab League alongside Brazil and Venezuela . The name Eritrea is derived from the ancient (originally Greek) name for the Red Sea , the Erythraean Sea ( Ἐρυθρὰ Θάλασσα Erythra Thalassa , based on the adjective ἐρυθρός erythros "red"). It

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888-497: Is available, regardless of their own needs. They sleep four each side of the stretcher and if the patient moves or requires any attention during the night, this is given instantly. These were the deeds of the "Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels" – for us! No known injured soldier that was still alive was ever abandoned by the Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels, even during heavy combat. In July 2007, grandsons of Australian World War II soldiers and grandsons of

962-549: Is mentioned in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea as an important market place for ivory , which was exported throughout the ancient world. At the time, Aksum was ruled by Zoskales , who also governed the port of Adulis . The Aksumite rulers facilitated trade by minting their own Aksumite currency . After the decline of Aksum, the Eritrean highlands fell under the domain of the Christian Zagwe dynasty , and later, fell under

1036-578: Is one of the oldest monasteries in Africa and the world. Debre Libanos , the second oldest monastery, was said to have been founded in the late fifth or early sixth century. Originally located in the village of Ham, it was moved to an inaccessible location on the edge of a cliff below the Ham plateau. Its church contains the Golden Gospel, a metal-covered bible dating to the thirteenth century during which Debre Libanos

1110-477: Is speculated that this number would have been much larger without the Papuans' service. As one Australian digger has noted: They carried stretchers over seemingly impassable barriers, with the patient reasonably comfortable. The care they give to the patient is magnificent. If night finds the stretcher still on the track, they will find a level spot and build a shelter over the patient. They will make him as comfortable as possible fetch him water and feed him if food

1184-429: Is the probable location of a triple junction where three tectonic plates are pulling away from one another. The highest point of the country, Emba Soira , is located in the center of Eritrea, at 3,018 m (9,902 ft) above sea level . Eritrea has volcanic activity in the southeastern parts of the country. In 2011 Nabro Volcano had an eruption. The main cities of the country are the capital city of Asmara and

1258-607: The Barka Valley dating from 8,000 BC appear to offer the first concrete evidence of human settlement in the area. Research also shows that many of the ethnic groups of Eritrea were the first to inhabit these areas. Excavations in and near Agordat in central Eritrea yielded the remains of an ancient pre-Aksumite civilization known as the Gash Group . Ceramics were discovered that were dated back to between 2,500 and 1,500 BC. Around 2,000 BC, parts of Eritrea were most likely part of

1332-648: The Battle of Abu Klea (when the square was badly broken, though thereafter promptly reformed). Kipling's narrator, an infantry soldier, speaks in admiring terms of the "Fuzzy-wuzzys", praising their bravery which, although insufficient to defeat the British, did at least enable them to boast of having "broken the square"—an achievement which few other British foes could claim. Writing in The Atlantic in June 2002, Christopher Hitchens noted "[Yet] where Kipling excelled—and where he most deserves praise and respect—was in enjoining

1406-689: The Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF), a successor of the ELF , defeated the Ethiopian forces in Eritrea and helped a coalition of Ethiopian rebel forces take control of the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa . In the 1980s a non-government organization called the Eritrea Inter-Agency Consortium (EIAC) aided in the development projects for the Eritrean Liberation movement. Following

1480-533: The Eritrean government's human rights record is among the worst in the world. The Eritrean government has dismissed these allegations as politically motivated. Freedom of the press in Eritrea is extremely limited; the Press Freedom Index consistently ranks it as one of the least free countries. As of 2022 Reporters Without Borders considers the country to be among those with the least press freedom. Eritrea

1554-583: The Habesh Eyalet . Massawa served as the new province's first capital. When the city became of secondary economical importance, the administrative capital was soon moved across the Red Sea to Jeddah . The Turks tried to occupy the highland parts of Hamasien in 1559 but withdrew after they encountered fierce resistance. They were pushed back by the Bahri Negash and highland forces. In 1578 they tried to expand into

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1628-459: The Hanish Islands . Human remains found in Eritrea have been dated to 1 million years old and anthropological research indicates that the area may contain significant records related to the evolution of humans. The Kingdom of Aksum , covering much of modern-day Eritrea and northern Ethiopia , was established during the first or second century AD. It adopted Christianity around the middle of

1702-541: The Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa , with its capital and largest city being Asmara . It is bordered by Ethiopia in the south , Sudan in the west, and Djibouti in the southeast. The northeastern and eastern parts of Eritrea have an extensive coastline along the Red Sea . The nation has a total area of approximately 117,600 km (45,406 sq mi), and includes the Dahlak Archipelago and several of

1776-468: The Land of Punt , first mentioned in the twenty-fifth century BC. It was known for producing and exporting gold , aromatic resins , blackwood , ebony , ivory , and wild animals. The region is known from ancient Egyptian records of trade expeditions to it, especially a well-documented expedition to Punt in approximately 1,469 BC during the reestablishment of disrupted trade routes by Hatshepsut shortly after

1850-787: The Owen Stanley Ranges . The trail ranged from the small village of Buna on the north coast of Papua and went up the slopes through Gorari and Oivi to Kokoda . The trail was approximately 160 kilometres (99 mi) long, folded into a series of ridges, rising higher and to 2,100 metres (6,900 ft) and then declining again to 900 metres (3,000 ft). It was covered in thick jungle, short trees and tall trees tangled with vines. In June 1942, Australian Major General Basil Morris issued an "Employment of Natives Order", which allowed native Papuans to be recruited as carriers for three years. Between August and December that year, around 16,000 Papuans were recruited, often with false promises such as

1924-698: The Scramble for Africa . On 15 November 1869, the ruling local chief sold lands surrounding the Bay of Assab to the Italian missionary Giuseppe Sapeto on behalf of the Rubattino Shipping Company . The area served as a coaling station along the shipping lanes introduced by the recently completed Suez Canal . In 1882, the Italian government formally took possession of the Assab colony from its commercial owners and expanded their control to include Massawa and most of

1998-718: The Tigrinyas make up about 50% of the population, with the Tigre people constituting around 30% of inhabitants. In addition, there are several Nilo-Saharan -speaking Nilotic ethnic groups. Most people in the country adhere to Christianity or Islam , with a small minority adhering to traditional faiths . Eritrea is one of the least developed countries . It is a unitary one-party presidential republic in which national legislative and presidential elections have never been held. Isaias Afwerki has served as president since its official independence in 1993. According to Human Rights Watch ,

2072-512: The 'Fuzzy Wuzzy Commemorative Medallion' to living Papua New Guineans who assisted the Australian war effort, usually bringing survivors and their families to Port Moresby for ceremonial presentations. Australian veterans generally complained that the recognition was too little, too late. Fuzzy-Wuzzy " Fuzzy-Wuzzy " is a poem by the English author and poet Rudyard Kipling , published in 1892 as part of Barrack Room Ballads . It describes

2146-610: The 16th century, the Ottomans conquered the Eritrean coastline, then in May 1865 much of the coastal lowlands came under the rule of the Khedivate of Egypt , until it was transferred to Italy in February 1885. Beginning in 1885–1890, Italian troops systematically spread out from Massawa toward the highlands, eventually resulting in the formation of the colony of Italian Eritrea in 1889, establishing

2220-597: The 1941 Battle of Keren , the British expelled the Italians and took over the administration of the country. Economically, the decade of British administration saw a significant restructuring of the Eritrean economy. Until 1945, the British and Americans relied on Italian equipment and skilled labor for wartime needs and to support the Allies in the Middle East. This economic boom, fueled by substantial Italian involvement, lasted until

2294-493: The British colony of Sudan and partly to Ethiopia. After the peace treaty with Italy was signed in 1947, the United Nations sent a Commission of Enquiry to decide the fate of the colony. In the 1950s, the Ethiopian feudal administration under Emperor Haile Selassie sought to annex Eritrea and Italian Somaliland. He laid claim to both territories in a letter to Franklin D. Roosevelt at the Paris Peace Conference and

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2368-539: The British to avoid the very hubris that he had helped to inspire in them. His 'Recessional' is only the best-known and most hauntingly written of many such second thoughts. ... There is also 'The Lesson', a poem designed to rub in the experience of defeat in Africa, 'Fuzzy-Wuzzy', a tribute to the fighting qualities of the Sudanese." Benjamin Britten adapted the poem for his song of the same name between 1922 and 1923, and it

2442-564: The Egyptian forces, and some of them had acquired military experience in the Egyptian army. The term " Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels " was used by Australian soldiers during World War II to describe Papua New Guinean stretcher bearers. The term was not widely deemed to be problematic when it was used by Kipling and by British soldiers during the Sudan Campaign or by Australian soldiers in the 20th century; however, more recently some have deemed it to be

2516-641: The Eritrean and Ethiopian highlands during the mid-first millennium BC. Dʿmt was a kingdom that existed from the tenth to fifth centuries BC in what is now Eritrea and northern Ethiopia. Given the presence of a massive temple complex at Yeha , this area was most likely the kingdom's capital. Qohaito , often identified as the town of Koloe in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea , as well as Matara were important ancient Dʿmt kingdom cities in southern Eritrea. The realm developed irrigation schemes, used plows , grew millet , and made iron tools and weapons. After

2590-584: The Eritrean coastal lowlands after the Egyptians withdrew from Eritrea in February 1885. In the vacuum that followed the 1889 death of Emperor Yohannes IV , Gen. Oreste Baratieri occupied the highlands along the Eritrean coast and Italy proclaimed the establishment of Italian Eritrea , a colony of the Kingdom of Italy . In the Treaty of Wuchale (It.  Uccialli ) signed the same year, Menelik OI of Shewa ,

2664-547: The Eritrean parliament and formally annexed Eritrea . The Eritrean secessionist movement organised the Eritrean Liberation Front in 1961 and fought the Eritrean War of Independence until Eritrea gained de facto independence in 1991. Eritrea gained de jure independence in 1993 after an independence referendum . Contemporary Eritrea is a multi-ethnic country with nine recognised ethnic groups, each of which has

2738-634: The First Session of the United Nations. In the United Nations, the debate over the fate of the former Italian colonies continued. The British and Americans preferred to cede all of Eritrea except the Western province to the Ethiopians as a reward for their support during World War II . The Independence Bloc of Eritrean parties consistently requested from the United Nations General Assembly that

2812-737: The Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels took part in the "Kokoda Challenge". The last Fuzzy Wuzzy Angel from the Kokoda Track area, Faole Bokoi, died aged 91 in 2016. He was appointed the Village Constable of his village, Manari, in the 1950s and had visited Australia as a guest of the Returned Services League in his later years. The last Fuzzy Wuzzy Angel was Havala Laula who died on 24 December 2017. In June 2008, Australian senator Guy Barnett called for his country's Parliament to give official recognition to Papua New Guineans' courage and contributions to

2886-472: The Italian administration launched its first development projects in the new colony. The Eritrean Railway was completed to Saati in 1888, and reached Asmara in the highlands in 1911. The Asmara–Massawa Cableway was the longest line in the world during its time but was later dismantled by the British in World War II. Besides major infrastructural projects, the colonial authorities invested significantly in

2960-554: The Mahdi, and were divided into six tribes: Hadendoa, Halanga, Amarar , Beni-Amer , Habab, and Bishariyyin . All of these are semi-nomadic and inhabit the Sudan's Red Sea Hills , Libyan Desert , and southern Egypt . The Beja provided a large number of warriors to the Mahdist forces. They were armed with swords and spears and some of them carried breech-loaded rifles which had been captured from

3034-436: The Middle East. The British placed Eritrea under British military administration until Allied forces could determine its fate. In the absence of agreement amongst the Allies concerning the status of Eritrea, the British administration continued for the remainder of World War II and until 1950. During the immediate postwar years, the British proposed that Eritrea be divided along religious community lines and annexed partly to

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3108-542: The Portuguese. Massawa was also the stage for the 1541 landing of troops by Cristóvão da Gama in the military campaign that would eventually defeat the Adal Sultanate in the final battle of Wayna Daga in 1543. By 1557, the Ottomans had occupied all of northeastern present-day Eritrea for the next two decades, an area which stretched from Massawa to Swakin in Sudan. The territory became an Ottoman governorate, known as

3182-755: The Union of South Africa called for Eritrea to be incorporated into Ethiopia. Following the adoption of U.N. Resolution 390A(V) in December 1950, Eritrea was federated with Ethiopia under the prompting of the United States. The resolution called for Eritrea and Ethiopia to be linked through a loose federal structure under the sovereignty of the emperor. Eritrea was to have its own administrative and judicial structure, its own new flag, and control over its domestic affairs, including police, local administration, and taxation. The federal government, which for all practical purposes

3256-680: The administration of the coastal highlands into the Christian province of Midri-Bahri ("Sea land" in Tigrinya, although it included some areas such as Shire in Ethiopia on the other side of the Mereb, today in Ethiopia) ruled by a Bahri Negus (or Bahri Negash, meaning "sea king"). With its capital at Debarwa , the state's main provinces were Hamasien , Serae , and Akele Guzai . The first Westerner to document

3330-902: The agricultural sector. They also oversaw the provision of urban amenities in Asmara and Massawa, and employed many Eritreans in public service, particularly in the police and public works departments. Thousands of Eritreans were concurrently enlisted in the army, serving during the Italo-Turkish War in Libya as well as the First and Second Italo-Abyssinian Wars. Additionally, the Italian Eritrea administration opened many new factories that produced buttons, cooking oil, pasta, construction materials, packing meat, tobacco, hide, and other household commodities. In 1939, there were approximately 2,198 factories and most of

3404-458: The beginning of her rule as the king of ancient Egypt. Excavations at Sembel found evidence of an ancient pre- Aksumite civilization in greater Asmara. This Ona urban culture is believed to have been among the oldest pastoral and agricultural communities in East Africa . Artifacts at the site have been dated to between 800 BC and 400 BC, contemporaneous with other pre-Aksumite settlements in

3478-438: The centralizing policies of the imperial Ethiopian state. On 1 September 1961, the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF), under the leadership of Hamid Idris Awate , waged an armed struggle for independence. In 1962, Emperor Haile Selassie unilaterally dissolved the Eritrean parliament and annexed the territory. The ensuing Eritrean War of Independence went on for 30 years against successive Ethiopian governments until 1991, when

3552-420: The colonial government in Italian Eritrea. After il Duce declared the birth of the Italian Empire in May 1936, Italian Eritrea (enlarged with northern Ethiopia's regions) and Italian Somaliland were merged with the just-conquered Ethiopia into the new Italian East Africa ( Africa Orientale Italiana ). This Fascist period was characterized by imperial expansion in the name of a "new Roman Empire". Eritrea

3626-484: The employees were Eritrean citizens. The establishment of industries also increased the number of Italians and Eritreans residing in the cities. The number of Italians in the territory increased from 4,600 to 75,000 in five years; and with the involvement of Eritreans in the industry, trade and fruit plantations were expanded across the nation, and some of the plantations were owned by Eritreans. In 1922, Benito Mussolini 's rise to power in Italy brought profound changes to

3700-439: The end of the war. However, shortly after the conflict concluded, the Eritrean economy faced a combination of recession and depression that severely impacted the local urban population. War factories that had employed thousands were shut down, and Italians began to be repatriated. Additionally, many small manufacturing plants established between 1936 and 1945 were forced to close due to intense competition from factories in Europe and

3774-399: The fall of Dʿmt in the fifth century BC, the plateau came to be dominated by smaller successor kingdoms. This lasted until the rise of one of these polities during the first century, the Kingdom of Aksum , which was able to reunite the area. The Kingdom of Aksum (or Axum) was a trading empire centered in Eritrea and northern Ethiopia. It existed from approximately 100–940 AD, growing from

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3848-400: The fourth century. Beginning in the 12th century, the Ethiopian Zagwe and Solomonid dynasties held sway to a fluctuating extent over the entire plateau and the Red Sea coast. Eritrea's central highlands, known as Mereb Melash (" Beyond the Mereb "), were the northern frontier region of the Ethiopian kingdoms and were ruled by a governor titled the Bahri Negasi ("lord of the sea"). In

3922-489: The highlands is more gradual, descending to interior lowlands. Southwestern Eritrea is drained by the Atbara River , which flows northwestwards to join the Nile . The northwestern slope of the highlands is drained by the Barka River , which flows northwards into Sudan to empty into the Red Sea. Western Eritrea is part of the Sahelian Acacia savanna , which extends across Africa south of the Sahara from Eritrea to Senegal. The Afar Triangle or Danakil Depression of Eritrea

3996-406: The highlands with the help of Bahri Negash Yisehaq, who had switched alliances due to a power struggle. Ethiopian Emperor Sarsa Dengel made a punitive expedition against the Turks in 1588 in response to their raids in the northern provinces, and apparently by 1589, they were once again compelled to withdraw their forces to the coast. The Ottomans were eventually driven out in the last quarter of

4070-477: The nomadic Tigre and Beni Amer clans of the west (closely related to the Funj Kingdom in Sudan) and the Arabic Muslims of Massawa and the pastoralist Sultanate of Assua found in the two coastal regions. These fractured groups hindered the political and economic development of present-day Eritrea from the limited exchanges that hinders development and innovation, thus creating an inequality in state strength. The boundaries of present-day Eritrea were established during

4144-412: The oldest hominid fossils found to date that reveal significant stages in the evolution of humans and to represent a possible link between the earlier Homo erectus and an archaic Homo sapiens . Her remains have been dated to 1 million years old. She is the oldest skeletal find of her kind and provides a link between earlier hominids and the earliest anatomically modern humans . It is believed that

4218-505: The port town of Asseb in the southeast, as well as the towns of Massawa to the east, the northern town of Keren , and the central town Mendefera . Local variability in rainfall patterns and reduced precipitation are known to occur, which may precipitate soil erosion, floods, droughts, land degradation , and desertification. Eritrea is part of a 14-nation constituency within the Global Environment Facility , which partners with international institutions, civil society organizations, and

4292-432: The present-day boundaries of the country. Italian rule continued until 1942 when Eritrea was placed under British Military Administration during World War II; following a UN General Assembly decision in 1952, Eritrea would govern itself with a local Eritrean parliament, but for foreign affairs and defense, it would enter into a federal status with Ethiopia for ten years. However, in 1962, the government of Ethiopia annulled

4366-541: The private sector to address global environmental issues while supporting national sustainable development initiatives. In 2006, Eritrea announced that it would become the first country in the world to turn its entire coast into an environmentally protected zone. The 1,347 km (837 mi) coastline, along with another 1,946 km (1,209 mi) of coast around its more than 350 islands, will come under governmental protection. Based on temperature variations, Eritrea can be broadly divided into three major climate zones:

4440-439: The proto-Aksumite Iron Age period around the fourth century BC to achieve prominence by the first century AD. According to the medieval Liber Axumae ( Book of Aksum ), Aksum's first capital, Mazaber, was built by Itiyopis, son of Cush. The capital was later moved to Axum in northern Ethiopia. The kingdom used the name "Ethiopia" as early as the fourth century. The Aksumites erected a number of large stelae , which served

4514-471: The respect of the ordinary soldier for the bravery of the Hadendoa warriors who fought the British army in Sudan and Eritrea . "Fuzzy-Wuzzy" was the term used by British soldiers for Beja warriors who were supporting the Mahdi of Sudan in the Mahdist War . The term relates to the elaborate tiffa hair style favoured by the Hadendoa tribe, a subdivision of the Beja people. The Beja people were one of several broad multi-tribal groupings supporting

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4588-406: The section of the Danakil Depression in Eritrea was a major site in terms of human evolution and may contain other traces of evolution from Homo erectus hominids to anatomically modern humans. During the last interglacial period, the Red Sea coast of Eritrea was occupied by early anatomically modern humans. It is believed that the area was on the route out of Africa that some scholars suggest

4662-445: The sixteenth century. However, they retained control over the seaboard until the late 1800s. The central Eritrean highlands then became a vassal fiefdom of the lords of Tigray, who were seldom on good terms with the dominant Amhara branch of the Ethiopian family. In 1734, the Afar leader Kedafu, established the Mudaito Dynasty in Ethiopia, which later also came to include the southern Denkel lowlands of Eritrea, thus incorporating

4736-406: The southern Denkel lowlands to the Sultanate of Aussa . The sixteenth century also marked the arrival of the Ottomans, who began making inroads in the Red Sea area. Eritrea's pre-colonial period had four distinct regions that were divided by geography, thus, having limited contact with each other. The regions were ruled as follows: the Abyssians (Tigrinya-speaking Christians) in the highlands,

4810-492: The southern end of the Red Sea, is the home of the fork in the rift. The Dahlak Archipelago and its fishing grounds are situated off the sandy arid coastline. Eritrea may be split into three ecoregions . A hot arid coastal plain extends along the coast. The coastal plain is narrow in the west and widens towards the east. These coastal lowlands are part of the Djibouti xeric shrublands ecoregion. The cooler, more fertile highlands reach up to 3,000 m (9,800 ft) and are

4884-405: The sphere of influence of the Ethiopian Empire . The area was at first known as Ma'ikele Bahri ("between the seas/rivers", i.e. the land between the Red Sea and the Mereb river ). The entire coastal domain of Ma'ikele Bahri was under the Adal Sultanate during the reign of Sultan Badlay ibn Sa'ad ad-Din . The state was later reconquered by the Ethiopian Emperor Zara Yaqob who reorganized

4958-439: The war effort. I was stunned to learn that Australia has not officially recognised these wonderful PNG nationals who saved the lives of Australian servicemen. They carried stretchers, stores and sometimes wounded diggers directly on their shoulders over some of the toughest terrain in the world. Without them I think the Kokoda campaign would have been far more difficult than it was. In 2009, the Australian government began awarding

5032-405: Was admitted into the United Nations as the 182nd member state. Eritrea is located in East Africa . It is bordered to the northeast and east by the Red Sea , Sudan to the west, Ethiopia to the south, and Djibouti to the southeast. Eritrea lies between latitudes 12° and 18°N, and longitudes 36° and 44°E. The country is virtually bisected by a branch of the East African Rift . Eritrea, at

5106-412: Was an important seat of religious power. In the seventh century AD, early Muslims from Mecca , at least companions of the Islamic prophet Muhammad , sought refuge from Qurayshi persecution by travelling to the kingdom, a journey known in Islamic history as the First Hijrah . They reportedly built the first African mosque , that is the Mosque of the Companions in Massawa. The kingdom

5180-680: Was chosen by the Italian government to be the industrial center of Italian East Africa. After 1935, art deco architecture was widely employed in Asmara. The Italians designed more than 400 buildings in a construction boom that only halted with Italy's involvement in World War II . These included the Fiat Tagliero Building and Cinema Impero . In 2017, the city was declared a World Heritage Site , described by UNESCO as featuring eclectic and rationalist built forms, well-defined open spaces, and public and private buildings, including cinemas, shops, banks, religious structures, public and private offices, industrial facilities, and residences . ) Through

5254-402: Was first formally adopted in 1890, with the formation of Italian Eritrea ( Colonia Eritrea ). The name persisted throughout subsequent British and Ethiopian occupation, and was reaffirmed by the 1993 independence referendum and 1997 constitution . Madam Buya is the name of a fossil found at an archaeological site in Eritrea by Italian anthropologists. She has been identified as among

5328-452: Was further revised in 1968. It remains unpublished. T. S. Eliot included the poem in his 1941 collection A Choice of Kipling's Verse . Eritrea Eritrea ( / ˌ ɛr ɪ ˈ t r iː ə / ERR -ih- TREE -ə or /- ˈ t r eɪ -/ -⁠ TRAY - ; , pronounced [ʔer(ɨ)trä] ), officially the State of Eritrea , is a country in

5402-592: Was the existing imperial government, was to control foreign affairs (including commerce), defense, finance, and transportation. The resolution ignored the wishes of Eritreans for independence but guaranteed the population democratic rights and a measure of autonomy. In 1958, a group of Eritreans founded the Eritrean Liberation Movement (ELM). The organization mainly consisted of Eritrean students, professionals, and intellectuals. It engaged in clandestine political activities intended to cultivate resistance to

5476-669: Was used by early humans to colonize the rest of the Old World. In 1999, the Eritrean Research Project Team composed of Eritrean, Canadian, American, Dutch, and French scientists discovered a Paleolithic site with stone and obsidian tools dated to more than 125,000 years old near the Gulf of Zula south of Massawa , along the Red Sea littoral. The tools are believed to have been used by early humans to harvest marine resources such as clams and oysters. Research shows tools found in

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