Pensieri sull’Etiopia?

We have a very friendly history together, largely thanks to sharing the same Miaphysite faith. From Bournoutian’s “a concise history of the Armenian people”:

> Armenians had traded with Ethiopia from the first century AD. Armenians began to settle there, however, during the Arab invasions of the Middle East in the seventh century. The Armenian community of Ethiopia continued to be connected to the Arab world, both economically and culturally. The Ethiopian Church, following the Coptic Church of Egypt, also welcomed the Armenians for their anti-Chalcedonian stand. They established good relations with the Ethiopian royal family and some were raised to high posts. The Ethiopian Church, in particular, was grateful to the Armenian Church for permitting them to hold services in the Armenian-controlled churches in Jerusalem. [By the sixteenth century an Ethiopian Armenian named Matevos was an envoy to Portugal](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mateus_(ambassador)) and another named Murad negotiated agreements in the Netherlands on behalf of the Ethiopians.

Then there were also of course the Arba Lijoch:

> a group of 40 Armenian orphans who had escaped from the atrocities in Ottoman Empire, and were afterwards adopted by Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia, then Crown Prince Ras Tafari. He had met them while visiting the Armenian monastery in Jerusalem.

[They ended up becoming the official orchestra of the Ethiopian government, and even performed its national anthem (composed by Nalbandian).](https://www.okayafrica.com/amp/documentary-armenian-modern-ethiopian-music-2476707740)