The history ofEthiopia in the Middle Ages^{[note 1]} roughly spans the period from the decline of theKingdom of Aksum in the 7th century to theGondarine period beginning in the 17th century.^[1] Aksum had been a powerful empire duringlate antiquity, appearing in thePeriplus of the Erythraean Sea and mentioned byIranian prophetMani as one of the "four great kingdoms on earth", along with theSasanian Empire of Persia, theRoman Empire, andChina's Three Kingdoms.^[2] The kingdom was an integral part of the trade route betweenRome and theIndian subcontinent,^[2] had substantial cultural ties to theGreco-Roman world,^[3] and was a very early adopter ofChristianity underEzana of Aksum in the mid-4th century.^[4] The use of "Ethiopia" to refer to the region dates back to the 4th century.^[2] At its height, the kingdom spanned what is nowEritrea, northern Ethiopia, eastern Sudan, Yemen and the southern part of what is now Saudi Arabia.^[5] However, by the 7th century, the kingdom had begun a slow decline, for which several possible political, economic, and ecological reasons have been proposed. This decline, which has been termed the "Post-Aksumite Period", saw extreme loss of territory and lasted until the ascension of theZagwe dynasty.^[6]

In the late 10th century, the Kingdom of Aksum fell to a queen known asGudit. Historians are unsure of her ethnicity and religion, but she is theorized to have beenAgaw and likelynon-Christian, as she targeted churches in her attacks.^[7] Confusion surrounds the period directly following her reign, but the dynasty proper is considered to have been founded byMara Takla Haymanot in 1137.^[8] The capital moved southward fromAksum toLalibela,^[9] where manyrock-hewn churches were built.^[10] Despite the anti-Christian nature of Gudit's takeover, Christianity flourished under Zagwe rule^[11] but its territorial extent was markedly smaller than that of the Aksumites, controlling the area betweenLasta and the Red Sea.^[12]

The Zagwe dynasty was overthrown in 1270 byYekuno Amlak, whose successors came to be known as theSolomonic dynasty.^[13] TheKebra Nagast, a 14th-centurynational epic, established the dynasty's claim of direct descent fromSolomon, recounting the story of Solomon and theQueen of Sheba, whose child was supposedlyMenelik I.^[14] TheSemiticAmhara rulers of the Solomonic dynasty therefore represented a restoration of the Israelite lineage of the Aksumites, as opposed to theCushitic Zagwe rulers, who were viewed in retrospect as illegitimate.^[15] In the nearly 150 years between the reigns ofAmda Seyon I andZara Yaqob, the Solomonic emperors made significant territorial expansions into non-Christian lands to the south, west, and east of the highlands, conquering much of the territory that comprises modern-day Ethiopia.^[16] Despite enormous expansions and the successful spread of Christianity, Ethiopia was invaded by Adal, supported by theOttoman Empire, in 1531. It was not until 1540 that Ethiopia began to regain its territory with the support of thePortuguese Empire. Ethiopia's weakened state after the war left it susceptible to theOromo migrations, in which theOromo people of southern Ethiopia began to expand northward and established permanent settlements.^[17] This altered political and cultural landscape is seen as the beginning of the modern era in Ethiopia.^[18] From a historiographical perspective, the Middle Ages are a mysterious period ofEthiopian history, as there was comparatively little contact with foreign nations versus the ancient and modern periods.^[19]

As anearly Christian nation, the Kingdom of Aksum enjoyed closediplomatic relations with theByzantine Empire.^[20] Across the Red Sea, theHimyarite Kingdom had become aJewish state, persecuting Christians under the rule ofDhu Nuwas. Byzantine emperorJustin I called uponKaleb of Aksum for assistance to the Himyarite Christians, and the Aksumite invasion occurred in 525. The invasion was successful, enlarging the Kingdom of Aksum to its greatest territorial extent. However, Aksumite rule in the region was turbulent, and the territory was lost to theSasanian Empire in theAksumite–Persian wars less than 50 years later.^[21] With a Persian presence established inSouth Arabia, Aksum no longer dominated Red Sea trade; this situation only worsened following theMuslim conquest of Persia in the 7th century.^[22]

Archaeological evidence suggests that the population of the city of Aksum began to diminish in the 7th century. Around the same time, the kingdom appears to have ceased the minting of gold coins, indicating a withdrawal from international trade.^[22] This has been attributed to the aforementioned Persian and Muslim expansions, though other additional factors have been proposed as well. Historical records regarding the water levels of the Nile in Egypt indicate that theEthiopian Highlands received less rainfall at the time, Aksum was among the nations affected by thefirst plague pandemic, and destruction ofstelae from this time suggest internal unrest.^[22][23] The final three centuries of the Kingdom of Aksum are considered a dark age by historians, offering little in the way of written and archaeological records.^[10]

In the late 10th century, external documents refer to a queen ruling over the land of "al-Ḥabaša" (Abyssinia). The documents state that the queen (referred to in one document as queen of the "Bani al-Hamwiyah") killed the king of Ethiopia, and suggest that she had seized power at least as early as the 960s. No religion or ethnic group has been decisively identified with Bani al-Hamwiyah, but the queen, who is known asGudit, was certainlynon-Christian, as her reign was characterized by the destruction of churches in Ethiopia which is seen as opposition to the spread of Christianity in the region.^[24] TheEthiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, which was subordinate to theCoptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, had not been sent ametropolitan fromAlexandria for many years during the 10th century. However, after Gudit's reign had ended, the succeeding Ethiopian king reached out toPope Philotheos of Alexandria regarding the deteriorated situation, and Philotheos subsequently re-established relations between Egypt and Ethiopia. This set the scene for a Christian renaissance in Ethiopia.^[11]

Though the Aksumite era was ended by Gudit, the Zagwe dynasty was not established until 1137 byMara Takla Haymanot.^[8][25] The Zagwe kings, who are thought to beAgaw,^[8] moved the capital south toLalibela, which itself is named after theEthiopian emperor of the same name.^[9] Under Lalibela's reign, the construction of elevenrock-hewn churches began.^[10] Though Christianity experienced growth in this period, Ethiopia's territory diminished significantly since the fall of the Kingdom of Aksum, centred primarily on the Ethiopian highlands betweenLasta andTigray. The kingdom ofMedri Bahri, which controlled the Red Sea coast in modern-day Eritrea, was a client state of Ethiopia.^[12]

The Zagwe dynasty came to an end in 1270, afterYekuno Amlak overthrew them and established what came to be known as theSolomonic dynasty.^[13] TheKebra Nagast, a 14th-centurynational epic, describes the dynasty's claim to descent from Solomon,^[26] and was used to justify the takeover from the Zagwe dynasty. The epic states that the Kingdom of Aksum was founded byMenelik I, who was allegedly the son of Solomon and theQueen of Sheba, known as Makeda in Ethiopia.^[14] By connecting Yekuno Amlak to this ancestry, it was seen as authority for the dynasty to rule Ethiopia. In contrast, theCushitic Zagwe kings were not seen as part of this lineage, and were denounced as illegitimate rulers.^[15]

One of the defining features of Ethiopia under the Solomonic dynasty was territorial expansion, primarily into Muslim areas. This began during the reign of Yekuno Amlak himself, conquering theSultanate of Shewa in 1285.^[27] The most significant expansions took place underAmda Seyon I, who conquered theKingdom of Damot, theHadiya Sultanate,Gojjam,Fatagar, theSultanate of Dawaro, theSultanate of Bale, and theSultanate of Ifat.^[28] By the early 16th century, the empire's borders reached pastMassawa in the north, past theOmo River in the south, to theAdal Sultanate in the east and near the confluence of theDidessa River and theBlue Nile in the west.^[29]

Although Adal was a tributary of Ethiopia, the sultanate invaded Ethiopia in 1531 with the support of theOttoman Empire and other Muslim peoples in the region.^[30] Thesubsequent war continued until 1543 and it was only with the help of thePortuguese Empire andCristóvão da Gama that Ethiopia was able to reclaim its lost territory and win the war. However, both the Christian and Muslim regions of Ethiopia were significantly weakened by the war; this has been suggested as a possible factor of theOromo migrations of the 16th century.^[17] From political, religious and cultural perspectives, the mid-16th century signifies the shift from the Middle Ages to theearly modern period.^[18][1]

Medieval Ethiopia is typically described as afeudal society relying ontenant farmers who constituted the peasant class, with landowners, nobility, and royalty above them in the social hierarchy.^[31] However, because of scarcity of information, knowledge on Ethiopian feudalism primarily comes from theGondarine period.^[32]

Some archaeological evidence and contemporary accounts have allowed for inferences of possible class structure in the Kingdom of Aksum. Thekings of Aksum occupied the top of the social hierarchy, and a noble class below them is probable, based on size differences between larger palaces and smaller villas. A middle class may have consisted of merchants, independent farmers, and civil officials. Peasants likely included artisans in the urban centres, and farmers whose work supported Aksumite society. Slaves were the lowest social class; Greek travellerCosmas Indicopleustes states that slaves in Aksum came primarily from the Sasu (in southern^{[note 2]} Sudan^{[note 3]}) andBarbaria (Somalia) regions.^[2]

Geʽez was the common language used throughout the Aksumite period, initially written using theAncient South Arabian script, but with theGeʽez script by the 1st century. The script began as a vowel-lessabjad, developing into a vocalizedabugida in the 4th century. However, Greek was used up until the decline of Aksum, appearing in stelae inscriptions, onAksumite currency, and spoken as alingua franca to facilitate trade with theHellenized world.^[2] Geʽez remained in official written use through the entire Middle Ages (its counterpart in Islamic polities being Arabic), but likely declined as a spoken language in the post-Aksumite period. The exact period of this decline is uncertain, as essentially all written records continued to be written in Geʽez, but evidence ofTigrinya andAmharic appears in medieval texts. In addition,Cushitic andOmotic languages must have been spoken, and likely predate Semitic languages in the region. Geʽez has persisted to the modern day as aliturgical language.^[35] The Amhara nobles supported theZagwe princeLalibela in his power struggle against his brothers which led him to make Amharic "tongue of the king" (Ge'ez:ልሳነ ንጉሥLessana Negus) as well as fill theAmhara nobles in the top positions of his Kingdom.^[36] While the appellation of "language of the king" (Amharic:የንጉሥ ቋንቋ "Ye-Negus QwanQwa") and its use in the royal court are otherwise traced to theAmhara EmperorYekuno Amlak.^[37][38]

Prior to the adoption of Christianity, the Kingdom of Aksum practisedSemitic polytheism, which spread to the region fromSouth Arabia.^[39] It has also been suggested that Judaism was present in the kingdom since ancient times; it is not known how widely the religion was practised, but its influence uponEthiopian Christianity is significant.^[40]

Christianity was introduced to the Kingdom of Aksum primarily byFrumentius, a 4th-centuryPhoenician missionary who was a slave to the king of Aksum. After preaching Christianity in the region, he was freed shortly before the king's death, though he stayed to teachEzana of Aksum, who was the king's son and heir to the throne. He eventually converted Ezana to Christianity in the mid-4th century, which became the official religion of the Kingdom of Aksum shortly thereafter.^[41]

Having established itself as a Christian nation, Ethiopia expanded its borders and spread the religion to the surrounding peoples who practisedtraditional African religions,Judaism, and, later,Islam. The Aksumites enjoyed friendly relations with theByzantine Empire for this reason,^[20] and although Ethiopia became secluded after the decline of Aksum, the kingdom participated in European religious and diplomatic affairs in the late Middle Ages.Wedem Arad sent an envoy to Spain in 1306 for the purpose of a religious alliance,^[42][43] Ethiopian monks participated in theCouncil of Constance in 1414–1418,^[44] an Ethiopian diaspora is documented inRome as early as the 15th century,^[45] and there are several documented diplomatic missions from Ethiopia toSpain andItaly throughout the 15th century.^[46]

Despite officially being a Christian kingdom,Islam's history in Ethiopia is nearly as old as Islam itself. The first Muslims fled persecution in Arabia in 613 or 615, seeking refuge in the Kingdom of Aksum in an event known as theMigration to Abyssinia.^[47] TheDahlak Archipelago, now part of Eritrea, came under Muslim rule in the early 8th century; the Muslims there constituted the first permanent Muslim population in Ethiopia. By the 11th century, the area became the independentSultanate of Dahlak.^[48]

There is evidence that theShewa region had become Islamized and established asultanate in the 12th century,^[49] and by the 13th century there was significant Muslim presence in what is now eastern Ethiopia. As part of the Solomonic dynasty's expansions, many Muslim states in the east were conquered or became subjects of Ethiopia.^[50] Tensions grew between Ethiopia and the Muslim states, eventually culminating in theEthiopian–Adal war.^[51]

TheBeta Israel are anethnoreligious group, most of whom now live in Israel, but originated inSemien.^[52] Their origins have been the subject of scholarly debate for decades. The Beta Israel oral tradition is that of an ancient Jewish ancestry, which is usually claimed from theTribe of Dan.^[42] Genetic testing suggests that the group could have been founded by a small group of Jewish settlers in the region who converted the local population and intermarried among them over 2000 years ago. This hypothesis is further supported by the Beta Israel's non-observance of theTalmud, which would have been written after thisethnogenesis.^[53]

Written documents describing the Beta Israel date back to the 14th century. Under the reign ofYeshaq I, the Beta Israel were defeated in a war; he subsequently revoked their land ownership rights (known asrist) unless they converted to Christianity. Upon losing their land, they became known asFalasha ("landless, wandering"), which is a term that became used interchangeably with Beta Israel, but is now considered derogatory.^[52]

Most of Ethiopian historiography focuses on Christian and Muslim history. However, although the vast majority of Ethiopians adhere to those religions today, there were significant communities which practicedtraditional religions during the Middle Ages. Remnants of these cultures can be seen today in funerarystelae andtumuli, which are widespread in Ethiopia.^[54]

TheEthiopian Highlands and theGreat Rift Valley resulted in medieval Ethiopia having a varied climate. Generally and like today, it can be divided into the highlands, lowlands and tropical regions. These climate zones dictated the agricultural practices in each region. Cereals and legumes, such asteff,millet,sorghum,barley, wheat,lentils, andchickpeas were grown in the cooler highlands.Pastoralism was prevalent in the hot, arid lowlands; and fruiting plants, such ascoffea (coffee) andfalse banana were grown in the wetter tropical regions.^[55]

Although Ethiopia had been an agricultural civilization since the 6th millennium BC, it relied heavily on agriculture and became arural economy after its decline as a significant trading power.^[56] Trade was primarily conducted on a small scale, though large market towns existed as well, serving as stops forcaravans. Maritime trade continued through the Middle Ages, however this was no longer in the hands of the Ethiopian kingdom, but instead controlled by Muslim merchants. Beginning in the 8th century, a trade route to theDahlak Archipelago was Ethiopia's link to the Red Sea, but a route betweenShewa andZeila came to prominence in the late 13th century.^[57]

While agriculture was the backbone of the Ethiopian economy, the kingdom exported some luxury goods, namely gold, ivory, andcivet musk. A significant number ofslaves (including manyeunuchs) also came from Ethiopia and were sold in Arabia.^[58]

Medieval Ethiopia was a highly militaristic nation based on a system of ethnic regiments known asṣewa inGeʽez. This practice can be traced back to the beginning of the Aksumite period, when the men of newly subjugated tribes were forced to become soldiers for the king of Aksum, commanded by atributary who was likely a local chief. The regiments were given a plot of land called agult in exchange for their military service.^[59]Merid Wolde Aregay suggests, based onChristopher Ehret's linguistic theories, that the origin of Aksumite rule itself may have been through the subjugation ofAgaw agriculturalists by Geʽez-speaking pastoralists.^[60][61] These regiments were instrumental in maintaining Aksumite sovereignty over the trade routes within its empire; however, due to the decentralized nature of the regiments, chiefs could easily rebel against the king.^[62] The regimental system continued through the Middle Ages, but by the Zagwe era they consisted of professional soldiers.^[63] In the Solomonic era, during the reign ofZara Yaqob, this professionalism was reflected in theAmharic termč̣äwa, asṣewa carried a connotation of slavery which was no longer accurate.^[64][65]

The sword and spear were universal in Ethiopia amongst both the infantry and cavalry. Thejavelin andshotel were used inIfat. Soldiers of the cavalry were often equipped withchain mail and helmets, though some used a form of cloth armour. The bow and arrow were widespread, andarrow poison was occasionally used. Ethiopia's first experience with firearms was theEthiopian–Adal War, which saw guns used on both sides.^[66]

Information regarding the Aksumite navy is limited, though it must have been crucial to the kingdom as it relied on maritime trade. TheMonumentum Adulitanum, an ancient Aksumite inscription, mentions the worship of the sea godBeher, who is identified withPoseidon. The 6th-century Byzantine historianProcopius describes the Aksumite fleet as consisting ofsewn boats, similar to thedhow still in use today.^[2] Throughout the Middle Ages, Ethiopia's administration and expansion was primarily focused on inland areas, though the northern coastal regions such as theSultanate of Dahlak which controlled the Red Sea coast of modern-dayEritrea, were subject to Ethiopia for centuries.^[67]

The most considerable body of visual artworks from medieval Ethiopia is that ofilluminated manuscripts. They bear some similarity to Coptic andByzantine illuminated manuscripts, though they retain early Christian iconographic practices originating inPalestine which are absent elsewhere after theByzantine Iconoclasm in the 8th century.^[68] However, study of Ethiopian manuscripts has thus far been limited.^[69] There are some surviving examples of churchmurals, though many are in poor condition and as such have not been the subject of significant research.^[70]

Medieval Ethiopian literature primarily consists of religious texts, particularlyhagiographies.^[71] Although original Ethiopian additions were made to texts, early Ethiopian literature mostly comprised translations, generally from Greek under the Aksumites, and later Arabic.^[72] The first indigenous Ethiopian hagiographies appear in the 14th century.^[73]

Another prominent Ethiopian literary genre is that of the royal chronicle, which dates back to the reign ofAmda Seyon I. These documents recounted the rules of the kings, including their administration of the kingdom and their military campaigns. They were used to legitimize the Solomonic dynasty, similarly to theKebra Nagast, which is probably the best-known piece of Ethiopian literature.^[74][14]

Music in Ethiopia is divided between secular (zafan) and sacred (zema). While secular music varied between locations and ethnic groups,zema generally remained consistent.^[75] Ethiopian tradition dates the origins ofzema to the 6th century, creditingYared with the composition of the liturgical hymns as well as an indigenous system ofmusical notation calledmeleket.^[76] However,zema is part ofBeta Israel culture, while the attribution to Yared and the notation system are not. A 16th-century royal chronicle credits two clerics with the system; this, coupled with the differences between Christian and Jewish traditions, suggest that Yared was not responsible for these creations.^[77]

Also attributed to Yared is the traditional form ofAmhara poetry known asqene.Qene utilizes a literary device known assem-ena-werq ("wax and gold"), in which the "wax" is the face value of a message and the "gold" is the deeper meaning hidden underneath.^[78] The device is reflective of theMiaphysite beliefs of theEthiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, with the wax representing the human nature of Jesus and the gold representing the divine. There is evidence ofqene from at least as early as the 15th century.^[79]

Buildings constructed in the Kingdom of Aksum have been subject to more research than those of the Middle Ages, leading to the identification of a discernible Aksumite architectural style. Art historian Claire Bosc-Tiessé defines the general characteristics as "...walls made by the alternation of horizontal wooden beams with layers of small stones joined with mortar, the whole surface being sometimes coated, and transverse rounded beams at regular intervals on the facade..." exemplified by buildings such asDebre Damo.^[80] Due to insufficient written records, medieval Ethiopian architecture is more difficult to date than Aksumite. As such, historians use the presence and development of Aksumite architectural characteristics to establish time periods for the construction of medieval buildings.^[81] Rock-hewn churches, particularly those atLalibela, are a noteworthy example of post-Aksumite architecture.^[82]

• History of Ethiopia
• History of Africa

• Kingdom of Aksum
• Medieval history of Ethiopia
• 12th century in Ethiopia
• 13th century in Ethiopia
• 14th century in Ethiopia
• 15th century in Ethiopia

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