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abet – a greeting call, used to attract attention, or to acknowledge such a call

abun, abune – the head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, at this time always a Copt

adarash – meeting hall

afe-negus – literally ‘mouth of the king’, royal spokesman

aleqa – chief or head

alga – bed, wooden-framed and sprung with a lattice of leather straps; also means throne

amba – a flat-topped mountain peak, often surrounded by cliffs, a natural fortress or isolated site for a monastic community

ato – Mister

Ayzore! – ‘Be strong!’ Comradely call of encouragement in battle, travel or labour

azmari – minstrel, composer and singer of witty verses, accompanied by masenqo, single-stringed fiddle

balderada – a chaperon and translator appointed to assist foreign visitors at the Ethiopian court

basha – from the Turkish ‘pasha’, used for high officials, and with irony in the case of Captain Speedy (‘Basha Felika’)

belg – the ‘small’ rains, usually occurring between late January and early March

bitwedded – ‘favourite’, court title, used often as qualifier to other titles like ras

debtera – a non-ordained rank of the Ethiopian Church, responsible for singing and dancing, and often possessed of peripheral religious powers, as herbalist and spell-maker

dejazmach – literally ‘commander of the gate’, a military and noble rank just below ras

doomfata –the recital of heroic deeds

falasha –an Ethiopian Jew

farenj –foreigner (adjectival form – farenji)

Fekkare Iyesus –The Interpretation of Jesus, Ethiopian sacred text

Fetha Negest – ‘laws of the kings’, the book of Ethiopian law

fitawrari – ‘commander of the front’or ‘vanguard’

Galla –former name of the Oromo people, originally pastoralists from the southern and eastern highlands

giraf –hippo-hide whip

godjo –stone-built hut typical of Tigray and the north of Ethiopia

grazmach –literally ‘leader of the left’, military and noble rank below dejazmach

gugs –a game of mock combat, involving two teams of horsemen charging each other: beautiful to watch, hazardous to play

Habesh –the name Ethiopians often use for themselves, from the Arabic ‘mixed’, and the basis of the name ‘Abyssinia’

hakim –doctor

hudaddie –Lenten fast, fifty-six days long

ichege –head monk of Ethiopia, and being native often more powerful than the Coptic abun

ika-bet – ‘thing house’, repository of church treasures

injera – flat bread

isshi – ubiquitous Amharic expression, meaning OK/of course/ very well

itege – empress or queen

Jan Hoi –Your Majesty

kebbero – large church drum

Kebre Negest – ‘the glory of the kings’, Ethiopia’s mythical charter dating to about the thirteenth century, drawing together many myths including the story of Solomon, Sheba and Menelik their son, and the Ethiopian inheritance of Mosaic law and the Ark of the Covenant

kegnazmach – literally ‘leader of the right’, military and noble rank below dejazmach

kentiba – mayor

kiddus – saint or holy man

kinkob – ceremonial robe

koso – a purgative against intestinal worms, used regularly by Ethiopian highlanders

lemd – cape or tunic

lij – ‘son’ or ‘child’, used as title for young noble males

liqemekwas – high court official

margaf – cotton scarf or small shawl

mekdes – the sanctuary of a church, the section in which is housed the tabot

mesob – free-standing flat-topped basket, on which is spread injera

naib – a Turkish name for the local rulers of the coastal region around Massawa

negarit – war drum, used to call men to arms, as well as acting as a symbol of authority

negus – king

shamma – large cotton shawl

shifta – bandit

shum – regional ruler, military chief

tabot – the sacred object at the heart of each Ethiopian church, never seen by laymen, representing both the Ark of the Covenant and the church’s given saint

tankwa – boat of lashed-together papyrus, used on Lake Tana

teff – indigenous Ethiopian wheat used to make injera

tej – mead

tella bet – beer house

thaler – the Maria Theresa thaler, common currency of the highlands, minted without alloy, and equivalent to about six shillings at this time

Tigrigna – the language of Tigray, northern Ethiopia, derived as Amharic from Ge’ez and the Semitic family of languages

timtim – white turban worn by priests

wat – sauce

weyzero – Mrs