Nilo-Ethiopian Studies No.16 (2011)

HIROKI ISHIKAWA

Northern Ethiopian Historiography during the Second Half of the Solomonic Period (1540-1769)
The Christian kingdom of northern Ethiopia lost almost half its territory to the Oromo during the second half of the 16th century. “The History of the Galla” (Zenahu la Galla) written by Bahrey in 1593 is the most important work on this Oromo invasion. The chronicle of Sarsa Dengel (r. 1563-1597) was contemporaneous with “The History of the Galla” and is one of the royal chronicles that represent the nucleus of the historiography related to this region. The present paper considers the characteristics of historiography in northern Ethiopia during the second half of the Solomonic Period (1540-1769) by examining why Bahrey had to defend his writing of “The History of the Galla” and why the authors of the royal chronicles devoted so many pages to
the monarchs’ military victories.
The following hypotheses are proposed:
1. Bahrey wrote “The History of the Galla” to assert that the Oromo frequendy defeated the Christian armies because the social institutions and customs of the Oromo were better suited for warfare. On the other hand, intellectuals thought that historical accounts should be written to praise deeds of “good Christians.” Therefore, Bahrey justified his writing about the history of the Oromo, who were non-Christians, by citing the works of the famous Coptic historian al-Makin, who had devoted many pages to Muslim history.
2. The author of “The Chronicle of Sarsa Dengel” criticized al-Makin’s work and did not describe in detail the damage caused by the Oromo because his purpose was to reveal the miracles of God, which he found in the monarchs’ deeds, especially their military successes. The authors of the royal chronicles during the 17th and 18th centuries continued this policy. The impact of the Oromo incursion was addressed in 1he History of the Galla. However, the impact of these events on historiography was transient. The defense of Christianity continued to be a characteristic of the historiography of northern Ethiopia throughout the second half of the Solomonic Period.

Keywords: Ethiopia, Amhara, Oromo, Solomonic dynasty, historiography, Christianity

TORU SOGA

Refugee Life as an Extension of Pastoral Life: Survival Strategies of the Gabra Miigo Pastoralists in Southern Ethiopia
This paper explores the refugee life of the Gabra Miigo based on life history data collected from 54 informants. The Gabra Miigo are pastoralists in southern Ethiopia and have often become refugees since the 1960s due to international conflicts. When they became refugees, they applied subsistence strategies developed for the harsh arid environment to manage the difficulties of their lives. This paper evaluates such applications as a major contributor to rebuilding their pastoral life after repatriation. This paper also explains the modern political situation in Ethiopia that causes ethnic conflicts, characterized as the ‘new war’ according to Kaldor (1999). We then discuss the importance of subsistence strategies for pastoralist survival during the ‘new war.’

Key words: Gabra Miigo, refugee, subsistence strategy, rebuilding, survival, new war

Nilo-Ethiopian Studies No.15 (2011)

MAKOTO NISHI

Information Sharing, Local Knowledge, and Development Practices: Community-based HIV/AIDS Initiatives among the Gurage in Southern Ethiopia
by making such information accessible not only to health and academic professionals but also to the wider population of the country, including those who are living with HIV. At the same time, the extant information has certain limitations, particularly with respect to the promotion of community involvement in the support of households affected by HIV I AIDS. Although health experts often assume that community members do not have the appropriate knowledge to cope with HIV I AIDS, rural households affected by HIV I AIDS often rely on local communal practices, which are based on popular knowledge. This paper examines the initiatives undertaken by the Gurage, a people in Southern Ethiopia, in their efforts to cope with HIVI AIDS. Local leaders and health experts among the Gurage have focused on the popular knowledge and practices that have been used to cope with HIV/AIDS. Traditional labour-exchange groups have played vital roles in these efforts. Indeed, their initiatives to improve the livelihoods of households affected by the virus are firmly associated with local labour and production practices in Gurage society.

Keywords: HIVIAIDS, local knowledge, livelihood, development, community-based initiatives

KYOKO NAKAMURA

Representation of the Maasai by the Maasai: Information Sharing between Scholars and Local People
“wild,” “primitive,” “traditional,” “brave,” “beautiful,” “tall and slender,” “physically powerful,” and “excellent jumpers.” The Maasai are aware of these stereotypes and sometimes perform accordingly. This paper addresses the ways in which scholars and local people can share in the fruits of academic endeavors with respect not only to the accessibility of the work but also to the significance of the information. I argue that the significance of information shared by scholars and local people always differs according to the context of each recipient. Thus, careful attention must be paid to the context in which shared information is interpreted and to the nature of the interpretations. I clarify the experience of Maasai representations by the Maasai people and examine the significance that these representations hold for this group.

Keywords: Maasai representation, Samburu, anthropological output, local interpretation,decontextualization of information

HIROFUMI IWATANI

Building Relationships with Local People during Anthropological Research: Filming the Lion Dance in Japan
With advances in digital technology and techniques, digital archives have been created in Japan to provide digitised texts, photographs, and videos to the general public. However, as digital recording has become common, various issues have arisen. For example, the process of creating a digital archive and determining who owns its contents requires discussion among interested parties. Since 2002, I have studied groups involved in the traditional ‘lion dance’ (shishimai) in Akashi City, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan, and have collected video recordings of their dance. Initially, my purpose was to help preserve local culture by recording it on video. I then gave the videos to the local people in the form of a digital archive. At this stage, the shishimai groups were merely the subjects of the film. However, as the research progressed, both my relationship with the shishimai group members and the process of filming changed. This paper uses the case of filming the lion dance to discuss the researcher-subject relationship and the benefits of forming relationships and working cooperatively with local people.

Key words: digital archive, cooperation, lion dance, local people, video