Where is Eritrea located?

Eritrea is located in North East Africa (between 12° and 18° north, and 36° and 44° east) and includes the Dahlak Archipelago and other islands along the Red Sea coast. It is bordered by Sudan to the North and West, Ethiopia to the South, Dijibouti to the Southeast and the Read Sea to the North and Northeast.

With a land area of about 125,000 km2, Eritrea is about the size of England, or the state of Pennsylvania in the USA. The coastline measures around 1,200 km and off it there are over 350 islands, of which 210 comprise the area of the Dahlak Archipelago.

The name "Eritrea" is of foreign origin and has been attributed to a derivative of the ancient Greek cartographic designation, Mare Erythrean ("Red Sea"), fragment 67 of Aeschylus.

The People of Eritrea

The population of Eritrea is approximately 6,233,682 (2012 estimate). The country is comprised of nine diverse ethno-linguistic groups: Afar, Bilen, Hidareb, Kunama, Nara, Rashaida, Saho, Tigre and Tigrinya

The population of Eritrea is equally divided between Christian (Orthodox Church, Roman Catholic and Lutheran Protestants) and Muslim religions. The population of the high plateau (Asmara) is predominantly Christian, whereas that of the lowlands and the coast are predominantly Muslim. Despite contrasts between the Muslim and Christian religions and the potential for conflict, both religious groups have managed to live together in harmony and in peace.

The History of Eritrea

Building on a series of acquisitions, starting in the 1860s and extending through to 1890, the Kingdom of Italy declared the colony of Eritrea. Italian involvement in WWII in the 1940’s was influential to the eventual fall of Italian colonial rule in Eritrea. In 1941, the British attacked Italy in Eritrea from the West, near Sudan and Eritrea shortly fell under British rule.

The Eritrean war for Independence, commonly referred to as the Struggle, was fought primarily between Eritreans and Ethiopians from September 1st, 1961 to May 24, 1991. Throughout the thirty year Struggle, Ethiopia was alternately supported in its war against Eritreans by the United States and the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union brought troops to bear in combat operations, as well as that of their allies. Ultimately, with the support of its growing Diaspora and the liberated territories, the Eritreans were victorious over the Ethiopians.

The Languages of Eritrea

There are nine languages in Eritrea. Tigrinya and Arabic are the working languages. The other languages are Tigre, Afar, Saho, Beja, Bilen, Nara and Kunama. Eritrea is a multilingual country. The nation has no official language, as the Constitution establishes the "equality of all Eritrean languages.” Tigrinya, however, serves as one de facto language of national identity.

The use and development of all nine of Eritrea's languages are encouraged at the local level, and children attend primary school through the fifth grade in their mother tongue. The policy of the Eritrean government is for all elementary education to be carried out in the language of the area.

The story of Eritrea leading up to May 24th is one of veneration, inspiration, and exception. A 30-year struggle taking the lives of 65,000, finally coming to end. Independence finally achieved. The only African nation to liberate itself from another African state.