A SURVEY OF SOCIO-CULTURAL HISTORY OF THE AWI AGAW PEOPLE (CA. 1769-1995

Abstract

This thesis investigated the socio-cultural history of the Awi Agäw people (ca. 1769 to 1995). The year 1769 is taken as the landmark in the socio-cultural history of the Awi Agäw people because it marked the onset of the socio-economic and political predicaments that the country faced nationally and regionally. The socio-economic and political crisis of the country had also significantly affected the socio-cultural aspects of the Awi Agäw people. The year 1995 is also a turning point in the history of the Awi Agäw people due to the establishment of the Awi Nationality Administrative Zone which marked a new period in the self-autonomy and reassertion of the socio-cultural identity. The main objective of the thesis is to show predominantly the socio-cultural dynamics and lesser extent intercultural relations of the Awi Agäw people with the major regional and national political developments from 1769 to 1995. This thesis indicated that the centralization of the regional and national political power had further shaped the socio-cultural aspects and inter-cultural relation of the Awi Agäw people. The socio-cultural history comprises broad issues; however, this thesis does not encompass the entire socio-cultural aspects of the Awi Agäw people due to time and financial constraints. The main sources of this thesis come from published and unpublished documents, and archival and oral sources. The thesis argued that the socio-cultural aspects of the Awi Agäw people have shown a great transformation due to regional and national political developments and peoples' interaction which continued for several centuries.