However, when the East African country rings in its New Year in a few months, it will technically be 2017, according to the Ethiopian calendar. So why is Ethiopia, Africa’s second most populous country, seven years and eight months “behind” much of the rest of the world? Although much of the rest of the world went on to adopt the Gregorian calendar, Ethiopia has kept its own. Even something as simple as applying for a birth certificate can pose problems when attempting to merge the Ethiopian system and the Western system. Tekle stresses that the traditional Ethiopian calendar, based on the teachings of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, isn’t even the only functioning calendar in the country.

Source: Ethiopian News June 16, 2024 09:05 UTC