2016 №4 (53) Article 20

I.A. Zakharov

The factors of religious and confessional polarization in Ethiopia. P.178-188.

UDC 28(63)

pdf

The paper deals with recent tendencies in religious and confessional polarization in Ethiopia. It analyzes the peculiarities of the confessional structure of Ethiopian population and treats Ethiopian population dynamics in 1970–2010. It focuses on the reasons for unequal growth of Muslim and Christian communities in Ethiopia and analyzes the role of religion in demographic behavior. The author maintains that Ethiopia is a multiconfessional state, with Orthodox Christians living in the North West of the country, Muslims residing in the Eastern territories, and Protestants living in the South. Central Ethiopia is inhabited by Orthodox, Protestant, and Muslim devotees. Each major religious group in Ethiopia has its unique confessional structure. From 1970 up until 2010 Muslims and Protestants outnumbered Orthodox Christians in Central Ethiopia, Protestant population increased in the Southern territories as well. The author analyzes the process of religious and confessional polarization in Ethiopia, which results in intercommunity confrontations. The intercommunity tensions are mostly obvious in Central Ethiopia. The author singles out demographic, social-economic, and social-political factors of religious and confessional polarization. The author maintains that the strategy of settling intercommunity conflicts can be adopted by the countries of tropical Africa.

Islam, confessional space, intercommunity tension, religious and confessional polarization, Christianity, Ethiopia.

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