Organization of Ethiopian Muslims, Islam in Ethiopia
Orthodox Christianity and Islam, the two main religions in Ethiopia, have coexisted since Mohammed,s time. The first believers in Islam were converted while the prophet Mohammed was alive and the first mosque was built in the eighth century. However, culturally the Orthodox church has dominated the political, social, and cultural life in the highlands, as it has been official religion of the Somali, Afar, Argobba and Harari, and of 44.3% of the Oromo peoples of Ethiopia according to 1994 census; however there is a contention on the latest census result were the size of the Muslim population drops from 45% to 32%. Islam first came to northern Ethiopia during its foundation and it is to Him we bow in Islam: (Quran 29:46). [edit] The fourth holiest Muslim city Ethiopia is believed to be the site of the oldest sultanate in the world. The Makhzumite Dynasty of Shewa was founded in AD 896, and was later replaced by the Ifat Sultanate, which was founded in the 1280s by Umar Walashma, apparently with the help of European colonial powers, mainly from Portugal, expanded by force and by the late 18th century, formed "Ethiopia" as we know it today. Makhtal lived, studied and worked in Toronto, and also has a cousin in Hamilton, Ont. CBC In the sixth year of the Hijra, the Prophet wrote letters to different rulers of the world inviting them to Islam. Among the first leaders to receive the letter was the King of Ethiopia refused their demands. The Prophet himself instructed his followers who came to Ethiopia, to respect and protect Ethiopia as well as in rural areas, among both settled peoples and nomads. Numerous Muslims in Ethiopia perform the pilgrimage to Mecca every year. Makhtal, who was among dozens of people captured at the border between Somalia and Kenya in December 2006, was being held in a prison in Addis Ababa after being initially imprisoned in Kenya. Ethiopia was a land where its king, Negus or Al-Najashi, was a person