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Ancient rock art is widely distributed throughout the world and is tangible evidence of human
behavior in the past. It can provide socio-cultural information that is not generally available
to the archaeologist in other forms of material culture. This paper explores the distribution of
rock art sites in the vicinity of Addi Keyih. The primary objective of this article is to create
a database and catalogue of the rock art sites in the area of Addi Keyih. I have also attempted
to make some preliminary interpretation of the rock art of this area in terms of its temporal,
spatial, functional, and symbolic meaning.
A common goal in higher education is to teach the value of research by engaging students directly in
research programs so they gain a deeper appreciation for scientific inquiry and its applications.
Too often this goal is held out as a rhetorical claim that is rarely realized. At the University of
Asmara researchers and students have come together in a remarkable experiment that illustrates the
practical value of research and how it can contribute to the development and well being of a young
country. The story of archaeological research and training in the greater Asmara area illustrates
how both teaching and research can lead to better trained students while it simultaneously delivers
research that significantly alters how ancient history in Eritrea is perceived and contributes to
the developmental process. This is a story about how four training/research programs held during
1998 and 1999 have led to major discoveries that change the way that the rise of urbanism is seen
in the Horn of Africa. We highlight research showing that between 800 BC and 400 BC the highlands
around Asmara supported the earliest settled pastoral and agricultural communities known in the Horn.
These communities predate and are also contemporaneous with Pre-Aksumite settlements in the
highlands of southern Eritrea and northern Ethiopia during the middle of the first millennium BC.
Permanent villages and towns around Asmara were vital precursors to the later urban developments in
the southern highlands of Eritrea and northern Ethiopia in the later first millennium BC.
These remarkable ancient communities are now under severe threat, with many sites facing destruction.
To conserve and learn from these historical repositories, a major heritage conservation and
management campaign needs to be mounted in the greater Asmara area. The key ingredient to a
successful campaign to locate and to assess "Ona" and other sites is an effective on-site Museum
at Sembel. Using well-protected and well-interpreted remains, an open excavation will allow
visitors to understand architecture, lifeways, foodways-including dietary preferences, and everyday
activities such as stock keeping, animal meat processing, cooking, and beer brewing. A popular and
financially successful on-site museum will provide the impetus for further public support for the
protection and study of other "Ona" heritage sites in a series of historic parks, natural areas,
and light recreation areas that will afford protection to these priceless resources as well as
sustain upkeep and further study through a management approach that uses archeotourism.
The Commercial Bank of Eritrea (CBE) deploys only 29% of the funds collected from its depositors.
At the same time a lack of finance for small firms in Eritrea is an important obstacle in the
development of the country. The paradox of the concomitant existence of ample money in the bank
and scarcity of money with small firm owners can be explained by asymmetric information.
Six mechanisms to overcome asymmetric information are presented. Interviews revealed that
the sole relevant mechanism in reducing asymmetric information in Eritrea was collateral,
and that the collateral requirements were high. The other mechanisms had little impact.
We, moreover, found that the scope of the problem was wider than asymmetric information
theory suggests. Mutual mistrust, conservatism and rigid credit policies of the CBE,
a lack of accounting knowledge within small firms, and general development related problems
also played a role.
At a given time, language can be used in different situations for different purposes. Language
like a mirror reflects the culture of its speakers. Language and culture, in fact, are
inseparable. That is why linguists and sociologists say that language is flesh and culture
is blood. This paper deals with the situational use of Tigrinya on the eve of
'K'udus Yohannes', the Hoya Hoye day. The study focuses on the activities and songs
performed during 'K'udus Yohannes' as reflecting the economic, religious, and political
life of the Eritrean people.
In the main, the discussion reveals that the Eritreans were victims of famine and aggression,
and that they relied very much on themselves to overcome their problems. They depended
on God and their saints for protection, and, in the face of political aggressors and economic
hardships, they believed in the idea of resilience throughout their history.
Culture and development are two important issues that draw the attention of individuals, groups, and states. Culture is important because it is crucial in the formation of individual and collective identity. The importance of development lies in that it contributes to the well being of a society. This paper examines the approaches to development in the fields of economics and anthropology. The two independent disciplines have their own methods and theoretical frameworks. It also briefly outlines the discourse on culture and development under different colonial regimes in Eritrea, and offers a description of the post-independence discourse on culture and development in Eritrea, with a special emphasis in relation to the Kunama ethnic group.