Re-Imagining Identity: The Divergent Paths of the Eritrean and Tigrayan Nationalist Struggles
In this bold study of modern ethno-regional nationalism, the author examines the divergent paths taken by the nationalist insurgencies in Tigray and Eritrea. The author argues that Tigrayans, south of the Mereb River, and Kebessa (highlands) Eritreans, north of the Mereb, are ethnically one people, tied by common history, political economy, myth, language and religion. Both fought against a common enemy, an oppressive Amhara ethnic state, for a period of seventeen and thirty years,...
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In this bold study of modern ethno-regional nationalism, the author examines the divergent paths taken by the nationalist insurgencies in Tigray and Eritrea. The author argues that Tigrayans, south of the Mereb River, and Kebessa (highlands) Eritreans, north of the Mereb, are ethnically one people, tied by common history, political economy, myth, language and religion. Both fought against a common enemy, an oppressive Amhara ethnic state, for a period of seventeen and thirty years, respectively. In the process of the armed struggle, however, each evolved separate political identities and, after jointly marching to military victory in 1991, they followed separate political paths - Eritreans created the newest state in Africa and Tigrayans remained within the Ethiopian body politic.
CalendarGlossaryPrefaceCh. 1Introduction1Ch. 2Forces Shaping Identity: Theoretical Framework11Ch. 3Advent of Colonialism and the Bifurcation of an Ethnie21Ch. 4En Route to Insurgency69Ch. 5Mobilization and Identity Construction111Ch. 6Visions of Identity151Ch. 7History: A Chain of Traditions and A Springboard for Identity179Ch. 8Conclusion221Bibliography233Index247
