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Understanding Contemporary Ethiopia. Monarchy, Revolution and the Legacy of Meles Zenawi,Edited by Gérard Prunier and Éloi FicquetDescriptionWhen we think of Ethiopia we tend to think in cliches: Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, the Falasha Jews, the epic reign of Emperor Haile Selassie, the Communist Revolution, famine and civil war. Among the countries of Africa it has a high profile yet is poorly known. How- ever all cliches contain within them a kernel of truth, and occlude much more. Today’s Ethiopia (and its painfully liberated sister state of Eritrea) are largely obscured by these mythical views and a secondary literature that is partial or propagandist. Moreover there have been few attempts to offer readers a comprehensive overview of the country’s recent history, politics and culture that goes beyond the usual guidebook fare. Understanding Contemporary Ethiopia seeks to do just that, presenting a measured, detailed and systematic analysis of the main features of this unique country, now building on the foundations of a magical and tumultuous past as it struggles to emerge in the modern world on its own terms.AuthorGérard Prunier is a renowned historian of contemporary Africa and author of the acclaimed The Rwanda Crisis: History of a Genocide and of Darfur: The Ambiguous Genocide, both published by Hurst.Éloi Ficquet is an anthropologist and historian, professor at the EHESS, and Director of the French Center for Ethiopian Studies in Addis Ababa. He is the author of A French-Amharic Dictionary and of many articles on Ethiopian history and culture.Related TopicsTable of ContentsIntroductionGérard Prunier and Éloi Ficquet1. Ethiopians in the Twenty-First Century: The Structure and Transformation of the PopulationÉloi Ficquet and Dereje Feyissa2. The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (EOTC) and the Challenges of ModernityStéphane Ancel and Éloi Ficquet3. The Ethiopian Muslims: Historical Processes and Ongoing ControversiesÉloi Ficquet4. GO Pente! The Charismatic Renewal of the Evangelical Movement in EthiopiaEmanuele Fantini5. From Pan-Africanism to Rastafari: African American and Caribbean ‘Returns’ to EthiopiaGiulia Bonacci6. Monarchical Restoration and Territorial Expansion: The Ethiopian State in the Second Half of the Nineteenth CenturyShiferaw Bekele7. The Era of Haile SelassieChristopher Clapham8. The Ethiopian Revolution and the Derg RegimeGérard Prunier9. The Eritrean QuestionGérard Prunier10. The Tigray People’a Liberation Front (TPLF)Medhane Tadesse11. Federalism, Revolutionary Democracy and the Developmental State, 1991–2012Sarah Vaughan12. Elections and Politics in Ethiopia Since 2005Patrick Gilkes13. Making Sense of Ethiopia’s Regional InfluenceMedhane Tadesse14. The Ethiopian Economy: The Developmental State vs. the Free MarketRené Lefort15. Addis Ababa and the Urban Renewal in EthiopiaPerrine Duroyaume16. The Meles Zenawi Era: From Revolutionary Marxism to State DevelopmentalismGérard PrunierReviews‘This volume on all things Ethiopian by a group of noted experts is a tour de force. Focussing on the nature of power in Ethiopian state and society, the contributors provide powerful and provocative accounts that chart the process of rapid societal change as Ethiopia assumes its place as a rising regional power. In doing so they uncover a new model of economic development and state-building, pointing to the importance of the Ethiopian state in conditioning violence, social change and economic accumulation. A must-read.’ — Will Reno, Professor, Director of the Program of African Studies, Northwestern University‘Ethiopia can no longer be caricatured or mythologised. No one could have envisioned the extent to which this country would be transformed nearly twenty-five years after the end of its long civil war. To help us make sense of the dynamics shaping contemporary Ethiopia, this much-needed volume brings together important insights from the world’s most notable experts on the country’s culture, history, politics, and society. They offer a comprehensive and accessible account that should be widely read.’ — Leonardo R. Arriola, University of California, Berkeleyhttp://www.hurstpublishers.com/book/understanding-contemporary-ethiopia/