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This article proposes to consider some of the problems of interpretation of historical sources relating to late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Ethiopia. I will focus on one author, the Tegrean intellectual Blatta Gabra Egzi'abeher, and one document, his letter to Menilek. The analysis of author and text will permit me to examine the cultural milieu of Menilek's Ethiopia during the crucial period of Italian colonial rule in Eritrea. The letter to Menilek, written in 1899, is of considerable importance in historical and intellectual terms, while Blatta Gabra Egzi'abeher's own life is of interest given the unusual intellectual itinerary which he followed during the period of Italian colonialism and Ethiopian expansion. I have also provided a translation of the Ge'ez and Amharic text as well as a comment on its historical significance. To read the whole article click here |
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By Irma Taddia - The Journal of African History |