Exotic and Timeless
By AklileTsige
As the Ethiopian New Year gets closer it’s common to see people shopping at markets, malls and bazaars, looking for different kinds of goods and holiday items. The famous “Shiro Meda” market is the one visited by huge number of traditional apparel lovers; it’s a hot spot where varieties of Ethiopian traditional clothing are sold, and highly congested by holiday shoppers coming from all corners of the city. Abigiya and her mother, Selam are looking for newly designed traditional cloths for 2012 Ethiopian New Year holiday, and “Shiro Meda” has always been their choice to find their need of the apparel they love.
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Abyssinia Business Nework
“I have developed passion for cultural clothing since my childhood, I used to mimic the design of tiny rags on my toys, uniquely design my school uniform.”
መስከረም 2012 / September 2019
“I usually prefer to wear Ethiopian traditional apparels during major holidays and special occasions,” Selam continues, “what’s so amazing here is that year in year out, the designs and the styles of our traditional dress are changing in an amazing rate.” A country with over eighty nations and nationalities, Ethiopia still appears to be a mosaic of culture; the country’s varied climate clearly influences Ethiopians’ style of dress. Traditional dresses of Ethiopia vary from one part of the country to another on the basis of geographical, climatic, ethnic, and cultural differences. Cool temperatures in Ethiopia’s highlands dictate heavier clothing such as wraparound blankets, while the country’s lowlands residents combat the heat with light cotton outfits. Yet while the clothing worn in Ethiopia reflects the traditions of the different ethnic groups in various regions of the country, there are certain similarities. Over time, factory-made materials are commonly substituted for those once produced by hand in the home. Hand embroidery is reproduced by machine.
