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Eritrea Overview
- Officially known as the State of Eritrea
- Located in the Horn of Africa; capital city is Asmara
- Bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, and Djibouti; has a coastline along the Red Sea
- Total area is about 117,600 km²; includes Dahlak Archipelago and Hanish Islands
Historical Background
- Hominid remains suggest human evolution presence for 1 million years
- Kingdom of Aksum, a major historical empire, established in 1st-2nd century AD
- Christianity adopted in the 4th century
- Controlled by Zagwe and Solomonid dynasties from the 12th century
- Ottoman failure to conquer highlands led to peace treaty limiting them to the coast
Colonial History
- Coastal areas passed to Egyptian control in 1865, then to Italy in 1885
- Italian Eritrea formed in 1889; lasted until 1942
- British Military Administration followed WWII; federal union with Ethiopia from 1952
- Ethiopia annexed Eritrea in 1962; the Eritrean Liberation Front formed in 1961
- Eritrea gained independence in 1993 after a referendum
Current Situation
- Multi-ethnic country with nine recognized ethnic groups
- Notable languages include Tigrinya, Arabic, and English; Tigrinya is the most spoken
- Unitary one-party presidential republic under Isaias Afwerki since 1993
- Human rights concerns exist; Eritrea is part of the African Union and UN
- Asmara was designated a World Heritage Site in 2017 for its architecture