Igziabeher

Igziabeher (Amharic: እግዚአብሔር /əgzi'abəher/) means literally "Lord of a nation or tribe", i.e. God, in the Ethiopic or Ge'ez language, as well as modern Ethiosemitic languages including Amharic, the official language of Ethiopia.[1]

Igziabeher in Ge'ez is composed of `əgzi (Lord or ruler), plus a euphonic -'a added to the vowel to signify the possessive construct (i.e., "ruler of"), followed by bihier ("nation, tribe (Today, bihier, when directly translated into English, means tribe)"). Another, more generic Ethiopic word meaning "god" (including the deities of any other religion) is አምላክ (`amlak).

Igziabeher is also used within the Rastafari movement as a name of Jah (God). It may be heard in the reggae music of prominent artists such as Peter Tosh (who recorded a song named "Igziabeher (Let Jah Be Praised)" on his album Legalize It), The Abyssinians, Third World,Midnite and many others.

In the fourth century, King Ezana ruled a large part of modern day Ethiopia. He worshipped several gods called Beher, Meder, and Astar. Igziabeher is possibly a variant of the name Beher. (2), (3), (4).

Notes and references

  1. ↑ AmharicDictionary. "God". SelamSoft. Retrieved 1 October 2013.

2. Mokhtar, G (1990). Ancient Civilizations of Africa, page 376. California: University of California Press.

3. Milkias, P (2011). Ethiopia, page 170. ABC-CLIO: Westport, CT.

4. Phillipson, DW (2014). Foundations of an African Civilisation, page 96.New York: Boydell and Brewer, Ltd.

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