This is the localisation, language & ICT profile for Ethiopia.
For the ET-L10n wikigroup, click on the flag.
On this page/Sur cette page... (hide)
According to Article 5 of the constitution (as shown in Aménagement linguistique) Amharic is the "working language" of government. In the same article, all languages are equally acknowledged by the state. (Technically then there is no "official language" but apparently Amharic serves this role de facto since it is the working language of government.)
Each state may choose a working language (Amharic, Tigrinya, Oromo, Afar, Somali, Harar). Aménagement linguistique features a table showing which languages have been chosen where.
Over 80 languages are spoken. Ethnologue has an extensive list at http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=ET
Linguistic and Ethnic Groups as Percentages of Population (Dutcher 2004):
Amharic, Tigrinya, Oromo, Sidamo, Gurage, Somali, Nuer
The site L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde has a page on Ethiopia at http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/ethiopie.htm
Ethnologue says that Amharic is used in "education to seventh grade in many areas."
According to Dutcher (2004), "Regional languages are the media of instruction for primary education. English is the medium of instruction for secondary and higher education. Both English and Amharic are taught as subjects from Grade 1."
UNDP (2006) gives a literacy figure (without reference to which language[s]) of: 42%
Ethiopic (also called Ge'ez in Eritrea is used for Amharic and Tigrinya. The Arabic script is used for Arabic. The Latin script is used for other languages. [verify and also if it uses extended characters]
Ethnologue notes that there is a "wide variety of literature (fiction, poetry, plays, magazines)" in Amharic.
UNESCO (1985) reported the following periodicals (name, frequency of publication, circulation, language). Updated information is needed:
"Access to the Internet is partly hampered by lack of computers at household levels but is also due to limited telephone penetration. Only 2.2% of those surveyed said that a member of the household had access to computers. The principal point of access of the Internet was the workplace, followed by cyber cafés." (Towards an African e-Index)
"Ethiopia’s monopoly market structure and a policy where a sole operator provides fixed, mobile and Internet services has been a major stumbling block for innovation and widespread access to communication services. Although access to telecommunications has improved over the last two years, it trails far behind the levels of access in other countries." (Towards an African e-Index)
Ethiopian Telecommunications Corporation (ETC) is the telecommunications company.
The APC page, "ICT Policy in Ethiopia" has some information and links: http://rights.apc.org/africa/index.shtml?apc=s21841e_1
(See also specific language pages.)
(See also specific language pages.)
Adam, Lishan, with Kifle Woldekidan. 2005. "Ethiopia." In Gillwald, Alison (ed.), Towards an African e-Index: Household and individual ICT Access and Usage Across 10 African Countries. (Research ICT Africa!, http://www.researchictafrica.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=504 )
APC, "ICT Policy in Ethiopia," Africa ICT Policy Monitor, http://rights.apc.org/africa/index.shtml?apc=s21841e_1
Dutcher, Nadine. 2004. Expanding Educational Opportunity in Linguistically Diverse Societies, 2nd. ed. Washington, DC: Center for Applied Linguistics. http://www.cal.org/resources/pubs/expand.html
International Telecommunications Union (ITU). 2006. World Information Society Report 2006. Geneva: ITU. http://www.itu.int/osg/spu/publications/worldinformationsociety/2006/wisr-web.pdf
______. 2004. African Telecommunication Indicators 2004. Geneva: ITU.
Internet World Stats: Africa. 2006. http://internetworldstats.com/africa.htm
Leclerc, Jacques. L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde, "Éthiopie," http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/ethiopie.htm
Research ICT Africa! "E-Access & Usage Index: Ethiopia Report," http://www.researchictafrica.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=496
SIL International, Ethnologue: Languages of the World, "Languages of Ethiopia," http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=ET
__________, "Amharic," http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=amh
UNDP. 2006. ''Beyond scarcity: Power, poverty and the global water crisis. Human Development Report 2006.'' New York: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). [Human development index Adult literacy rate (% ages 15 and older) (HDI) http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/statistics/indicators/3.html ]
UNESCO Regional Office for Education in Africa. 1985. African Community Languages and Their Use in Literacy and Education: A Regional Survey. Dakar: UNESCO.
Vodafone. 2005. "Africa: The Impact of Mobile Phones." The Vodafone Policy Paper Series, Number 3, March 2005. http://www.vodafone.com/assets/files/en/GPP%20SIM%20paper.pdf
Wikipedia, "Languages of Ethiopia," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_Ethiopia