The origin of the word(name) ”Ethiopia” and it’s meaning
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The origin of the word(name) ”Ethiopia” and it’s meaning
The word “Ethiopia” is derived from the ancient Sabaean language “Enkopazion” and over time when the Geez language became widely spoken in Ethiopia, it became known as ‘’Etyopgion’’, et-means ‘’Gift’’ ,yop-means ‘’Yellow Gold, Dimond’’, Gion -means ‘’River’’ together it gives a meaning Gion’s gift of gold. .
The name of Ethiopia was different during different ruling periods of the ancient emperors.
So ethiopia was first called Cush, named after the grandson of Noah cush(the son of Ham).
Next, Ethiopian was called Abyssinia named after Nimrod’s son Abis (Cush’s grandson).
Then, in the time of Sabanoba, it was also called “Nubia”, the term sabanoba is used because there are two kings named Saba in Noah’s lineage, the first of whom was Noah’s grandson Cush (son of Ham) which is called saba the 1st or saba noba.
The second saba is called saba Sheba, which is the son of Joktan, who is the son of Ham’s brother Shem, and they call him Sheba the second, or “Sabashaba.”
Then she was named Ethiopia after king Ethiopis the 1st who was one of the Agazian tribe of the shem people that came to Ethiopia.
Once again, when the Habesa tribe (those who came to northern Ethiopia from western Yemen) came to Ethiopia. The Sabaean alphabet’’sa’’ in the Arabic alphabet is ‘’sha’’ and the people were called ‘’habesha’’
However, the word Habesha became popular in Ethiopia later in the Axumite period.
The first written form of the word Habesha in the horn of Africa was found in the 4th century during the reign of King Izana.
Punt, Nubia, Habesha, Abyssinia, Cush are all mentioned in various books by different historians reffering to Ethiopians and the Ethiopian Empire.
What is the origin of Ethiopia’s first name?
Despite the fact that Ethiopia is called by different writers by different pronunciations and names, most prominently Ethiopia is being called “Cush” in the Torah.
After this, when 70 scholars jointly translated the old testament from Hebrew into Syriac (Greek) in 282 BC., “Cush” was translated to (“Aito Pia” or “Aithio – Pia”), as the name of a tribe which is used to refer to the whole country south of Egypt.
When they translated this into Geez, they wrote the word just as it was translated “Ethiopia” and again when it was translated from Geez to Amharic, they only took the previous word without knowing the definition and called the country “Ethiopia” and the people “Ethiopians.”
Based on this, many historians say that the word Ethiopia comes from the Greek word ” Aithio-Pia,”. Aithio- translates “black” as “black, burnt” and “opia” or “opus” as face.
And conclude that Aithio-Pia mean “those with a dark, sun-burnt face.”
However there are different proofs that show us this translation is not correct?
Because the Great poet homer who is Greek him self worte this
Murray, Augustus Taber translation 1924
The gods visit this special place, as does one Mycenaean Greek king, Menelaus.
For yesterday Zeus went to Oceanus,
for a feast with the blameless Ethiopians.
The gods all journeyed with him. Iliad 1.423-4
[The goddess Iris speaking] “No seat for me, for I must go back to the streams of Oceanus and the land of the Ethiopians who are offering hecatombs to the immortals, and I would have my share. Iliad 23.205-7
But he [the god Poseidon] was visiting the Ethiopians who are far-away,
The Ethiopians, divided in two places, the farthest of men,
Some, where Hyperion [the sun] sets and some where he rises
Offering hecatombs both of bulls and of sheep.
And he enjoyed partaking in the feast. Odyssey 1.22-262
Fagles,Robert 1990 translation
Iliad 1.423-4 (Thetis is speaking to Achilles.)
Only yesterday Zeus went off to the Ocean River
to feast with the Aethiopians, loyal, lordly men,
and all of the gods went with him.
Iliad 23.205-207 (Iris is speaking to the winds.)
No time for sitting now. No, I must return
to the Ocean’s running stream, the Aethiopians’ land.
They are making a splendid sacrifice to the gods—
I must not miss my share of the sacred feast.
Odyssey 1.21-25
But now
Poseidon had gone to visit the Ethiopians worlds away,
Ethiopians off at the farthest limits of mankind,
a people split in two, one part where the Sungod sets
and part where the Sungod rises. There Poseidon went
to receive an offering, bulls and rams by the hundred—
far away at the feast the Sea-lord sat and took his pleasure.
Another Great man Herodouts wrote this
Where south inclines westwards, the part of the world stretching farthest towards the sunset is Ethiopia; this produces gold in abundance, and huge elephants, and all sorts of wild trees, and ebony, and the tallest and handsomest and longest-lived people. Herodouts,The Histories, Book 3,chapter 20, number 115
Therefore since the words ethiopis the 1st and ethiopis the 2nd existed in ethopia which were the names of kings of Ethiopia which ruled from 1856 – 1800 and 1730 – 1700 BC, respectively. way before the cush in the old tastement was translated as Aito Pia” in 282 BC. This makes the claim that the word Ethiopia originated from Greek unacceptable.
Ethiopis the 1st and 2nd were kings of the agazian tribe in Ethiopia and The Geez language existed during the Agazi period; many documents written in Geez is also complete. They also had a number, This concludes that the word ‘’Ethiopia’’ existed in ethiopia way before it was known by the greeks and it had a definite meaning.
“et Gift, Yop Yellow Gold or dimond, Gion River, Translated as” Gion’s gift of Gold “in Suba (Saba).
Ethiopia means “Etyop’’ia in Amharic ‘
‘’Etyopgion’’ by Geez, the father of Amharic.
And Before the division of the language,before the classification of noah and his family as cushtic and semetic She was called “Enkopazion” by the Sabaean language the father of Geez.
Frequently Asked Questions(FAQ)
The meaning and origin of the word Ethiopia?
The word “Ethiopia” is derived from the ancient Sabaean language “Enkopazion” and over time when the Geez language became widely spoken in Ethiopia, it became known as ‘’Etyopgion’’, et-means ‘’Gift’’ ,yop-means ‘’Yellow Gold, Dimond’’, Gion -means ‘’River’’ together it gives a meaning Gion’s gift of gold. .
Does Ethiopia translate to those with a dark, sun-burnt face?
No, Because the Great poet homer who is Greek him self worte this
Murray, Augustus Taber translation 1924
The gods visit this special place, as does one Mycenaean Greek king, Menelaus.
For yesterday Zeus went to Oceanus,
for a feast with the blameless Ethiopians.
The gods all
[The goddess Iris speaking] “No seat for me, for I must go back to the streams of Oceanus and the land of the Ethiopians who are offering hecatombs to the immortals, and I would have my share. Iliad 23.205-7
But he [the god Poseidon] was visiting the Ethiopians who are far-away,
The Ethiopians, divided in two places, the farthest of men,
Some, where Hyperion [the sun] sets and some where he rises
Offering hecatombs both of bulls and of sheep.
And he enjoyed partaking in the feast. Odyssey 1.22-262
References
Homer. The Iliad with an English Translation by A.T. Murray, Ph.D. in two volumes. Cambridge, MA., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1924.
https://journals.bdu.edu.et/index.php/ejss/article/view/69/125
The Odyssey. Fagles, R.. New York,Viking., Penguin Books.1997.
https://department.monm.edu/classics/courses/clas240/Africa/homeronethiopians.htm
ፍስሃ ያዜ ካሳ። (2003 አ.ም)። የኢትዮጵያ የ5 ሺ አመት ታሪክ ከኖህ እስከ ኢህአዴግ መጽሃፍ 1። አዲስ አበባ፣ አልፋ አሳታሚዎች።
Herodotus, with an English translation by A. D. Godley. Cambridge. Harvard University Press. 1920.
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0126%3Abook%3D3&force=y
