E. Sylvia Pankhurst

Selections from the book

Ethiopia: A Cultural History


First Published: 1955
Trancription Source: 1959 version as published by Lalibela House, Essex
Transcribed/HTML: Mike Bessler
Copyright: © Richard Pankhurst; This text is used by kind permission of Richard Pankhurst


1959 book cover

Transcriber's Note: First published in 1955, Sylvia Pankhurst's Ethiopia: A Cultural History was a formidable undertaking for the author.  At the time of the publication of this book, Sylvia Pankhurst was already established as a renowned activist, an antifascist and something of a political  force in her own right.  Already an accomplished artist and writer, Sylvia demonstrated her expertise as both historian and anthropologist through her work on this volume.

Throughout this extensive historical and cultural survey, Sylvia Pankhurst writes with incredible detail and clarity, demonstrating both her passion for the subject as well as the depth and breadth of her knowledge regarding the language, literature, music, and religions of the Ethiopian people.  

With the kind permission of the text's copyright holder Dr. Richard Pankhurst, who assisted in the compilation of the original publication of Ethiopia, the Marxists Internet Archive is pleased to offer transcriptions of four chapters from this rare book. — Mike Bessler, May 2007


Available chapters

Author's Preface (pp. xiv to xxxviii)

Chapter XIV: The Christian Romance of Alexander the Great (pp. 218 to 231)

Chapter XLIII: Historical Background to Recent Times (pp. 731 to 736)

Forthcoming transcriptions

Chapter XV Traditional Schools of the Church (pp. 232-283)