Bright, eye-catching posters were posted all over campus and social media by International Student Organization (ISO), promoting the New Years Celebration for Ethiopian and Eritrean culture. ISO hosts this celebration every year here at EMU, and turns out to be a success every year. The New Years Celebration this year was celebrated within EMU’s Common Grounds, Student Union, and throughout the Hall of Nations on Tuesday, Sept. 8. The space was filled with many students from all different backgrounds as well as those of Habesha (Semitic-speaking peoples of the Ethiopian and Eritrean highlands) background. 

ISO, who hosted the event, had Ethiopian and Eritrean cuisines at the event for everyone to try and made it feel like home for the Habeshas. The student union which had gathered people who ate these delicious cuisines and afterwards took part in dance circles that were celebrating the Ethiopian and Eritrean New Years. ISO had cultural related music playing in the background throughout the event which greatly added to the cultural vibe. ISO had also invited people from JMU to come and celebrate this wonderful time with their Ethiopian & Eritrean friends as well as others. 

Solomon Bhatthacharjee, a sophomore ISO member who had never had Ethiopian cuisine said “the highlight for me was the food, experiencing Ethiopian cuisine for the first time was a wonderful discovery.” The food came from a ethnic Habesha place in Washington, DC that was delivered on time for this New Years Celebration. The food included the Ethiopians’ popular “Injera,” which is a spongy flatbread with a textured surface that acts like a built-in utensil. This Injera was a great mixture with all the other foods that ISO had at the event. 

Dibora Mekonnen, senior Ethiopian who attended the event shares “to me, the New Year is a cherished time to gather with family and friends while envisioning how the year ahead will unfold. I think in EMU celebrating this holiday is important to me because knowing the fact that I am far away from my family, it is a great feeling to celebrate with people here, not only with Ethiopians but also people from different places. Seeing people experience everything, from the food to the Habesha dress to the traditional dance, was definitely rewarding”. 

This New Year Celebration for Ethiopians and Eritreans, also called Enkutatash, is a time for renewal, hope, and the end of the rainy season, as well as a religious observance of the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. This marks the start of a new year on the unique Ethiopian/Eritrean calendar, with the year being 2018 for them. 

Doro wot, red eggs smth  

Kitfo, raw(slightly cooked)  / cooked meat 

Gomen, stewed collard greens 

Aybe, fresh cheese 

Misir wat, spiced red lentils 

Key wet, spicy Ethiopian beef stew