August 10: Ethiopian Jews

The throne of Ethiopia was restored to the Solomonic Dynasty on this date in 1270 following a century-long interruption. This traditional imperial throne claimed descent from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, and would continue to rule in Ethiopia, with few interruptions, until 1974, when Haile Selassie was deposed. Selassie’s coat of arms included a Star of David and a Lion of Judah (which is the central symbol of the Ethiopian flag). When fascist Italy marched into Ethiopia in 1935, Selassie briefly took refuge in Jerusalem. Despite these “Jewish connections,” however, the Jews of Ethiopia (Beta Israel, known as “Falashas,” “the alien ones,” to their neighbors) were an oppressed and impoverished minority for centuries. Their lives and traditions were especially endangered under the rule of Colonel Mengistu Haile Mariam, who replaced Selassie in power. In the 1980s and ’90s, some 36,000 Ethiopian Jews were transported to Israel, where 120,000 of them now live. The Beta Israel are thought to possibly be the lost Israelite tribe of Dan. Other theories hold them to be descendants of ancient Ethiopian Christian and pagans converts to Judaism, or the descendants of Jews who fled Israel for Egypt after the destruction of the First Temple in 586 BCE.

“After 25 years, it’s time we should be [an] integral part of the state of Israel.” —Nigist Mengesha, Ethiopian National Project