Do you think Amharic gospel songs helped the spread of the gospel? Gospel music has evolved in Ethiopia

Amharic, the national language of Ethiopia, is one of the numerous indigenous languages spoken in the country. As studies show Ethiopia has around 84 spoken languages which are grouped into Afro-Asiatic, Cushitic, Omotic and Nilo-Saharan languages. Amharic language is the most developed of all the languages in that it has its own latter, numbers and calendars. When Christianity came to Ethiopia it came to a place where Amharic language was spoken. As Christianity came so early, 4th century, so was the translation of scriptures to one of the languages, Geez.

Geez is close to Amharic and it is believed that Amharic was derived from Geez. There are very ancient Geez holy scriptures for exhibit in some museums in the capital. The country's history is interrelated with religious leaders involvement in every area like social life, politics, foreign affairs and wars. The holy scriptures have arrived so early in Ethiopia and were translated to Geez then to Amharic and other languages too. Coptic orthodox Christianity was the religion of the state for centuries but the outreaches of missionaries which mainly focused on opening hospitals and schools in some parts of the country made its way for evangelical Christianity and hence Amharic gospel preachers and singers flourished. Amharic gospel songs are so loved, even by unbelievers, and still are the best tool to spread the truth of the gospel.


One of the challenges of missionaries in any given country or location other than their country is communication. They may have all the zeal and enthusiasm to the work but if they can't speak the local language it just doesn't work. I have met some missionaries that were working in Ethiopia and from what they said i have understood that it is better to have a local missionary that speaks the language and knows all the social values than one who is a complete stranger to everything. Some of the missionaries have managed to learn Amharic or other local language just to blend in the society and be accepted. Speaking the language is one tough struggle and knowing all the social values and cultural activities is a whole lot of trouble to many. So if one is thinking of doing a missionary work in Ethiopia, Many foreigners still do, learning the state language is at least the first step into blending in. There are some programs on the net that teach Amharic. I can't comment about them because i have never evaluated them but would suggest they could be considered. The other step would be to know the culture. I would suggest books on Amazon that may give some help here. Learning Amharic gospel songs will be a bonus to this effort. I am not sure if the songs are subtitled in English but if they are they could be more meaningful.

Ethiopian gospel singers are so many these days that it is very difficult to list them all. There are some contemporary singers though. If one is planing an evangelistic outreach in the country it is wise to find these gospel singers for an ecstatic worship and praise. Their CDs and DVDs are all over the country and it is no wonder the lyrics are very well known to many believers and some unbelievers too. Evangelistic outreaches and church worship programs in Ethiopia are well saturated with lots of stomping, dancing and shouting for joy. The gospel singer never sings on his own because the whole congregation knows the lyrics and sings with him/her.