Cultural Post #5

[Berhaun Fesshaye]

A vital part Eritrean and Ethiopian culture is religion. The two most practiced religions are Orthodox Christianity and Islam. Orthodox Christianity is practiced the most, and Ethiopia is even said to be the first country in the world to adopt Christianity as its official religion. Religion is important in everyday life with people and it is even reflected in language. For example, there is a way to say thank you, but people prefer to say “God thanks you.” Also many names come from religion and the Bible. My sister’s name means Hallelujah while my brother’s name means resurrection. Almost all babies born into Orthodox Christian families are baptized in a church at a very young and it is a huge celebration. My siblings and I were all baptized in Orthodox churches before the age of one. People practice religion daily by praying and attending church weekly. Religious images and figures are present everywhere, in people’s houses, on the streets, and of course in the vast number of churches around the country. Fasting is also common for various religious holidays, with the largest being for Easter. Orthodox Easter is not the same day as the Easter that is celebrated in America and next to Orthodox Christmas, it is the biggest celebration of the year. My learning goals for the topic of religion are to understand the commonly used phrases by religion and the influence of religion in everyday language. I already know how to say God thanks you, but I’m sure that I will soon come across more religious based sayings. My grandma is very religious as well, so it would be nice to be able to communicate with her about her religion.