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Ethiopia, landlocked country on the Horn of Africa.

The country lies completely within the tropical latitudes and is
relatively compact, with similar north-south and east-
west dimensions. The capital is Addis Ababa (“New Flower”),
located almost at the centre of the country. Ethiopia is the largest
and most populated country in the Horn of Africa. With the 1993
secession of Eritrea, its former province along the Red Sea,
Ethiopia became landlocked.

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Ethiopia

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Ethiopia: Chapel of the TabletChapel of the Tablet, near the Church of St. Mary of
Zion, Aksum, Ethiopia.
Ethiopia is one of the world’s oldest countries, its territorial extent
having varied over the millennia of its existence. In ancient times it
remained centred on Aksum, an imperial capital located in the
northern part of the modern state, about 100 miles (160 km) from
the Red Sea coast. The present territory was consolidated during
the 19th and 20th centuries as European powers encroached into
Ethiopia’s historical domain. Ethiopia became prominent in modern
world affairs first in 1896, when it defeated colonial Italy in
the Battle of Adwa, and again in 1935–36, when it was invaded and
occupied by fascist Italy. Liberation during World War II by
the Allied powers set the stage for Ethiopia to play a more
prominent role in world affairs. Ethiopia was among the first
independent nations to sign the Charter of the United Nations, and
it gave moral and material support to the decolonization of Africa
and to the growth of Pan-African cooperation. These efforts
culminated in the establishment of the Organization of African
Unity (since 2002, the African Union) and the United Nations
Economic Commission for Africa, both of which have their
headquarters in Addis Ababa.
Quick Facts
 See article: flag of Ethiopia
Audio File: National anthem of Ethiopia
Head Of Government:
 Prime Minister: Abiy Ahmed
Capital:

Addis Ababa
Population:

(2025 est.) 111,702,000

Head Of State:

President: Taye Atske Selassie

Form Of Government:

federal republic with two legislative houses (House of the Federation [153]; House of Peoples’
Representatives [547])
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Land
Relief of Ethiopia

Physical features of Ethiopia

Ethiopia is bounded by Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the

northeast, Somalia to the east, Kenya to the south, and South
Sudan and Sudan to the west.

Ethiopia’s topography, one of the most rugged in Africa, is built on

four geologic formations. Rocks of Precambrian origin (more than
540 million years in age) form the oldest basal complex of Ethiopia,
as they do in most of Africa. The Precambrian layer is buried under
more recent geologic formations—except in parts of northern,
western, and southern Ethiopia, where there are exposed rock
layers of granite and schist. Geologic processes of the Mesozoic
Era (about 250 to 65 million years ago) contributed sedimentary
layers of limestone and sandstone, most of which have been either
eroded or covered by volcanic rocks. Younger sedimentary layers
are found in northern Ethiopia and on the floors of the Rift Valley.
Lava flows from the Cenozoic Era (i.e., the past 65 million years)
have formed basaltic layers that now cover two-thirds of Ethiopia’s
land surface with a thickness ranging from about 1,000 feet (300
metres) to almost 10,000 feet (3,000 metres). The Rift Valley forms
a spectacular graben (a massive tectonic trough) running right
down the middle of the country from the northern frontier with
Eritrea to the southern border with Kenya.

Ethiopia: Lake TanaLake Tana, near Gaigora, Ethiopia.

Although Ethiopia’s complex relief defies easy classification, five

topographic features are discernible. These are the Western
Highlands, the Western Lowlands, the Eastern Highlands,
the Eastern Lowlands, and the Rift Valley. The Western Highlands
are the most extensive and rugged topographic component of
Ethiopia. The most spectacular portion is the North Central
massifs; these form the roof of Ethiopia, with elevations ranging
from 14,872 feet (4,533 metres) for Mount Ras Dejen (or Dashen),
the highest point in Ethiopia, to the Blue Nile and Tekeze river
channels 10,000 feet below. Lake Tana—Ethiopia’s largest inland
lake and the main reservoir for the Blue Nile River—is located in
this region, at an elevation of about 6,000 feet (1,800 metres).
The Western Lowlands stretch north-south along the border
with Sudan and South Sudan and include the lower valleys of the
Blue Nile, Tekeze, and Baro rivers. With elevations of about 3,300
feet (1,000 metres), these lowlands become too hot to attract dense
settlement.

The Rift Valley is part of the larger East African Rift System.
Hemmed in by the escarpments of the Western and Eastern
Highlands, it has two distinct sections. The first part is in the
northeast, where the valley floor widens into a funnel shape as it
approaches the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. This is a relatively
flat area interrupted only by occasional volcanic cones, some of
which are active. The Denakil Plain, in which a depression known
as the Kobar Sink drops as low as 380 feet (116 metres) below sea
level, is found here. High temperatures and lack of moisture make
the northeastern Rift Valley unattractive for settlement. The
southwestern section, on the other hand, is a narrow depression of
much higher elevation. It contains Ethiopia’s Lakes Region, an
internal drainage basin of many small rivers that drain into Lakes
Abaya, Abiyata, Awasa, Langano, Shala, Chamo, and Ziway.
Together these lakes have more than 1,200 square miles (3,108
square km) of water surface. The upper Rift Valley is one of the
most productive and most settled parts of Ethiopia.

The Eastern Highlands are much smaller in extent than the

Western Highlands, but they offer equally impressive contrast in
topography. The highest peaks are Tullu Deemtu (Tulu Dīmtu), at
14,360 feet (4,377 metres), and Mount Batu, at 14,127 feet (4,305
metres). The Eastern Lowlands resemble the long train of a bridal
gown suddenly dipping from the narrow band of the Eastern
Highlands and gently rolling for hundreds of miles to the Somalian
border. Two important regions here are the Ogaden and the Hawd.
The Shebele and Genale rivers cross the lowlands, moderating the
desert ecology.
Drainage
Blue Nile RiverBlue Nile Falls, on the Blue Nile River, Ethiopia.

Ethiopia has three principal drainage systems. The first and largest
is the western drainage system, which includes the watersheds of
the Blue Nile (known as the Abay in Ethiopia), the Tekeze, and
the Baro rivers. All three rivers flow west to the White Nile in South
Sudan and Sudan. The second is the Rift Valley internal drainage
system, composed of the Awash River, the Lakes Region, and
the Omo River. The Awash flows northeast to the Denakil Plain
before it dissipates into a series of swamps and Lake Abe at the
border with Djibouti. The Lakes Region is a self-contained drainage
basin, and the Omo flows south into Lake Turkana (Rudolf), on the
border with Kenya. The third system is that of
the Shebele and Genale rivers. Both of these rivers originate in the
Eastern Highlands and flow southeast toward Somalia and
the Indian Ocean. Only the Genale (known as the Jubba in Somalia)
makes it to the sea; the Shebele (in Somali, Shabeelle) disappears
in sand just inside the coastline.
Soils of Ethiopia
The soils of Ethiopia can be classified into five principal types. The
first type is composed of euritic nitosols and andosols and is found
on portions of the Western and Eastern highlands. These soils are
formed from volcanic material and, with proper management, have
medium to high potential for rain-fed agriculture. The second group
of soils, eutric cambisols and ferric and orthic luvisols, are found in
the Simien plateau of the Western Highlands. They are highly
weathered with a subsurface accumulation of clay and are
characterized by low nutrient retention, surface crusting, and
erosion hazards. With proper management, they are of medium
agricultural potential.
The third group of soils is the dark clay found in the Western
Lowlands and at the foothills of the Western Highlands. Composed
of vertisols, they have medium to high potential for both food and
agriculture but pose tillage problems because they harden when
dry and become sticky when wet. Some of the rich coffee-growing
regions of Ethiopia are found on these soils.

The fourth group is composed of yermosols, xerosols, and other

saline soils that cover desert areas of the Eastern Lowlands and
the Denakil Plain. Because of moisture deficiency and coarse
texture, they lack potential for rain-fed agriculture. However, the
wetter margins are excellent for livestock, and even the drier
margins respond well to irrigation. The fifth soil group is lithosols
found primarily in the Denakil Plain. Lack of moisture and shallow
profile preclude cultivation of these soils.

Soil erosion is a serious problem in Ethiopia. Particularly in the

northern provinces, which have been settled with sedentary
agriculture for millennia, population density has caused major
damage to the soil’s physical base, to its organic and chemical
nutrients, and to the natural vegetation cover. Even on the cool
plateaus, where good volcanic soils are found in abundance, crude
means of cultivation have exposed the soils to heavy seasonal rain,
causing extensive gully and sheet erosion.
Climate
Because Ethiopia is located in the tropical latitudes, its areas of
lower elevation experience climatic conditions typical of tropical
savanna or desert. However, relief plays a significant role in
moderating temperature, so higher elevations experience weather
typical of temperate zones. Thus, average annual temperatures in
the highlands are in the low 60s F (mid-10s C), while the lowlands
average in the low 80s F (upper 20s C).

Britannica Quiz
 Guess the Country by Its Neighbors Quiz

There are three seasons in Ethiopia. From September to February

is the long dry season known as the bega; this is followed by a short
rainy season, the belg, in March and April. May is a hot and dry
month preceding the long rainy season (kremt) in June, July, and
August. The coldest temperatures generally occur in December or
January (bega) and the hottest in March, April, or May (belg).
However, in many localities July has the coldest temperatures
because of the moderating influence of rainfall.

Ethiopia can be divided into four rainfall regimes. Rain falls year-
round in the southern portions of the Western Highlands, where
annual precipitation may reach 80 inches (2,000 mm). Summer
rainfall is received by the Eastern Highlands and by the northern
portion of the Western Highlands; annual precipitation there may
amount to 55 inches (1,400 mm). The Eastern Lowlands get rain
twice a year, in April–May and October–November, with two dry
periods in between. Total annual precipitation varies from 20 to 40
inches (500 to 1,000 mm). The driest of all regions is the Denakil
Plain, which receives less than 20 inches (500 mm) and sometimes
none at all.
Plant and animal life

Awash National ParkWaterfall at Awash National Park, Ethiopia.

Ethiopia’s natural vegetation is influenced by four biomes. The first

is savanna, which, in wetter portions of the Western highlands,
consists of montane tropical vegetation with dense, luxuriant
forests and rich undergrowth. Drier sections of savanna found at
lower elevations of the Western and Eastern Highlands contain
tropical dry forests mixed with grassland. The second biome is
mountain vegetation; it comprises montane and temperate
grasslands and covers the higher altitudes of the Western and
Eastern highlands. The third biome, tropical thickets and
wooded steppe, is found in the Rift Valley and Eastern Lowlands.
The fourth biome is desert steppe vegetation, which covers portions
of the Denakil Plain.

Ethiopia: Omo River valleyOmo River valley, Ethiopia.

Ethiopia has had a rich variety of wildlife that in some cases has
been reduced to a few endangered remnants. Lions, leopards,
elephants, giraffes, rhinoceroses, and wild buffalo are rarities,
especially in northern Ethiopia. The Rift Valley, the Omo River
valley, and the Western Lowlands contain remnants of big-game
varieties. Smaller game varieties such as foxes, jackals, wild dogs,
and hyenas are found abundantly throughout the country.

Uniquely Ethiopian and among the most endangered species are

the walia ibex of the Simien Mountains, the mountain nyala (a kind
of antelope), and the Simien jackal. In addition, the gelada monkey
is under threat. All four species are found in the Western and
Eastern highlands in numbers ranging from a few hundred for
the walia ibex to a few thousand for the others. More-abundant
varieties found in the lowlands include such antelopes as the oryx,
the greater kudu, and the waterbuck, various types of monkeys
including the black-and-white colobus (known as guereza in
Ethiopia and hunted for its beautiful long-haired pelt), and varieties
of wild pig. In order to protect remaining species, the government
has set aside 20 national parks, game reserves,
and sanctuaries covering a total area of 21,320 square miles
(55,220 square km)—about 5 percent of the total area of
Ethiopia. Simien Mountains National Park, home to several
endangered species, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage
site in 1978.