Politics, again.
Yes you are correct; politics.
Eritrea and Ethiopian are the same exact human beings and share a common faith and history. You may say that Eritreans and Ethiopians are "ethnically" and or socio-politically divers. But even that is a stretch.
Consider the fact that both the terms "Ethiopia" and "Eritrea" are NOT indigenous terms we can see that as proof of the socio-poltical nature of these so called "two" groups of people.
The word "Ethiopia" (Ae-yi-te-o-peya) is Greek more specifically ancient Greek.
The word has no etymological meaning in the Ethiopic Languages but means "blackened by the sun which never sets" in ancient Greek. Some people have simply said that the meaning is "burnt face people". This is a mediocre overly simplistic approach to the meaning. However; the ancient Greeks (the first afro-centrics) had a deeper point buried in the term "Aeyiteopeya". They likened the "Ethiopians" to the oldest of mankind having a history far beyond reckoning (read Herodotus). The sun "never set" implies not the "sun specifically persay but more inclined to be a metaphor for a civilzation of varying cultural elements so vast and so divers and so ancient that its is likened to the "sun" (light of civilization) "that has no end" and thus its beginning can not be verified. This is hard to explain. So the ancient Greeks used the 'peya' infinitive at the end of the word to stress the vastness under consideration.
Most of us may have experienced this same unexplainable vastness which the ancient Greeks called 'pi' (3.1416 etc.). If you divide 22 by 7 you will get a number that is infinite in value or 'pi' ('peya').
'Aeyi' is likended to blackness but not the hidious, dead, bad, awfulness we find with the Germanic word 'black' (Bleck) which we are acustomed to today. Quite the contrary. 'Aeyi' implied wisdom, mystery, high spituality, holiness. God- like-ness. So while the ancient Greeks did see the deep ebony skin of the Ethiopian they did not have any other choice but to respect the grace given to human beings which have the tone of "holiness" upon them. A pious people as well in character as seen by the Greeks only helped to reinforce this view of blackness and 'holy grace'... God-like-ness. Greeks on the scene at the time maintained that the "Ethiopians" are the pious of all men and live in a land "where the Gods dwell' in various books and poetry. This was the "golden age" for Greece when she began her advance into eastern cultures and learning. This was a time when "blackness" was the highest symbol of Godliness and goodness, the highest symbol of power throughout the east and the the mediteranian world. Even in the far east. We still see remnants of this in the Orthodox Church.
Notice how the high arts of the far east still consider 'white' as inferior and 'black' as masterful. Compare a black belt to a white belt in the matial arts.
This a world dominated by eastern thought.
The west today has all but desimated this view of 'black' and reconfigured it to mean something awful and discusting and so on.
So we are dealing with a very special word "Ethiopia".
It was used first to describe all the people of what we now call Africans, blacks, negroes (archaic), colored(archaic), etc..before any of these desriptions were even in existence. These discriptions are very unsophisticated and racist designed by the worlds foremost bigots to disenfranchise and entire nation of peoples form their common link of brotherhood and heritage and their place as a people on the world stage. The results of this diabolical scheme has its greatest effects and success among the worlds university elite and the annals of academia; which of course has its impact on the masses as the "teachers" of "knowledge".
I dought I find one person on this site who believes anything I wrote here. This is my point.
There are people who want people to not associate some blacks as having anything to do with other blacks. They want to have "blacks" where they think it is most comfortable for them. Many "blacks" have also fallen into feeling and thinking this way. Especially those blacks that whites have selected to recieve a certain "honor". Some blacks in this catagory have learned to be more racist and bigoted than whites towards blacks that whites have placed in lower levels of esteem. I know this first hand; even in my own family. Its shameful.
This is behind a lot of rhe termoil among the psueso African nations. So we fight each other on the continent and off the continent. We are a troubled race; extricated from each other by the enemies of God. This is the full essence of what happened in that God foresakened 35 year war between Ethiopia the country against Ethiopians and the country of Eritrea. It is a unfortunate dicotemy.
Eritrea is a place.
The word is Latin (Italian) which has more to do with the description of the Land than any particular people who live on the Land. Like Puerto Rico (Land of riches). This phrase is not describing people but a Land.
Eritreans are Ethiopians....period.
In a broader more Orthodox since all black people on earth are Ethiopians. This is what the Greeks were saying and is the absolute meaning. It is a fact that the country known today is the Ethiopia of Scripture. This can not be confused. This is the remanant albeit very significant remanent of the once vast empire known in the old testament scriptures (biblical Ethiopia). This is geographical not racial. The people of biblical Ethiopia are the same as all other human beings on the African Continent.
Eritrea though....
If you look carefully at the culture and language they pocess the most ancient of "Ethiopian" way.
There is more to the term Eritrean that I will get into at another time.
I may have caused more confusion here; but I want all to think out of the box of what we all already think we know.
The truth is much more unblievable and harder to except.
Good thing is the ancient Greeks have a very good record that is open and available to all who choose to search out the points I made here. It is so much more I have not mentioned.
Greek names:
Aegyptos and Egypt = Khemet (KMT) indigenous word for "Egypt"
Aeyiteyopeya and Ethiopia = Khush (KSH) indigenous word for "Ethiopia" and the entire African continent including Yemen and Southern India (See Hindu-Kush mountains). Khush (KSH) is also the geographical area "Ethiopia" we know today and is the remanent of biblical Ethiopia.
Your Servant
Deacon Amde