DOCTOR KEBEDE MICHAEL                                                                                         Nominated by Seifu
Kebede Michael was one of the giants in the field f education and literature in Ethiopia.  He wrote a total of 26 books including a wide range of translations from various languages.  From 1940 to1970, he wrote Amharic school textbooks in which he provided generations of Ethiopian students with enlightening ideas about a wide range of issues and disciplines.  His writings were in both prose and poetry and his poems follow rhyming and writing styles of his own.  He also translated - among many - Romeo and Juliet, as well as Macbeth of William Shakespeare.  Kebede Michael’s literary works reflect many shades of character and behavior of the Ethiopian society.  The contents of many of his books are on history, education, development, philosophy, religion, science and so on. 

He worked as an inspector in the Ministry of Education, as Deputy Director in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1942), as Director of the National Library (1944), as Director General of the Ministry of Education, and as a Cabinet Minster in the Imperial Palace.  He was also delegated to many international conferences including at the United Nations in New York.  He received the first Prize for Literature from Emperor Haileselassie.  He also received awards from governments of France, Germany, Italy, USSR and Mexico.  And in 1990, he received an Honorary Doctorate Degree from Addis Ababa University for his unparalleled excellence in literature as well as for inspiring generations of Ethiopian authors and writers.   

Dr. Kebede Michael died on 12 November 1998 at the age of 82.  No other Ethiopian in the country’s history so far has been able to write as extensively on a wide variety of disciplines as did Kebede Michael.  His contributions are enormous to the development of education and literature.  And he may be deceased, yet his legacy will live on forever; and Ethiopians are greatly thankful to him.       

LAUREATE TSEGAYE GEBRE MEDHIN                                                               Nominated by Dawit Kebede
Tsegaye Gebre Medhin was one of Africa's leading poets, playwrights and intellectuals who wrote an extensive list of original literatures and translated some of Shakespeare's greatest works from English to Amharic. He is most known for his own distinctive style of poetry and some of his poem books have been used in high schools in Ethiopia as Amharic textbooks. In 1959, Tsegaye was awarded a UNESCO scholarship to study theatre arts in Europe . He studied at the Royal Court Theatre in London, at the Comedie Francaise in Paris, and at the Opera Theatre in Rome. He translated Shakespeare's Othello, which was first staged in Ethiopia in 1963 and later published by Oxford University Press. Among the most popular of his translation works, which have also been staged, are Macbeth and Hamlet. He also wrote several books in English and his first English book – The Oda Oak – was published in 1965. This book was staged at universities in several African countries and was translated into French, Italian, Danish and Romanian.

Through his brilliant writings and plays, Tsegaye made Ethiopians aware of their historical past, the inspiring stories of Ethiopia 's past political and religious leaders and their actions of unparalleled heroism. He also brought to Ethiopians, the best in literature of the outside world from the works of Shakespeare to Moliere. And most of all, he gave generations of Ethiopians his own distinctive style of verse and other forms of literature that many other Ethiopian poets after him have come to adapt. Laureate Tsegaye Gebre Medhin died in February 2006 at the age of 69.

PROFESSOR EPHRAIM ISAAC                                                                             Nominated by Tigist Mekonen
PROFESSOR EPHRAIM ISAAC is the founder of Afro-American Studies at Harvard University and was the first professor when the department was created in 1969.  He is widely known in Ethiopia as the founder and mastermind of the National Literacy Campaign that made millions of Ethiopians literate in the late sixties. 

Born in Ethiopia where he got his early education, Professor Ephraim Isaac holds a B.A. degree in philosophy, chemistry and music from Concordia College, an M.Div., a Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages from Harvard University, a D.H.L. honorary from John J. Colleage of CUNY, and a Litt. D. Honorary from Addis Ababa University.  He has also received many honors including the Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding’s 2002 Peacemaker in Action Award. Professor Ephraim Isaac lectures widely on the subject of Religion and society and sits Boards of some twenty-five international religious, educational and cultural organizations.  And he is author of numerous articles and books on Jewish and Ancient Ethiopic literatures. 

He is currently Director of the Institute of Semitic Studies at Princeton in New Jersey; Chair of the Board of the Horn of Africa Peace & Development Committee and President of the Yemenite Jewish Federation of America.  He has taught at Princeton University, Hebrew University, University of Pennsylvania, Bard College and other institutions of higher learning.

Professor Ephraim Isaac is also famous for knowing at least seven languages.  But more importantly, he is known to wear traditional Ethiopian outfits all the time which has come to be his hallmark.  Among the many contributions he has made to Ethiopia over the years, his vigorous campaign to eradicate illiteracy from Ethiopia was by far the most far-reaching and revolutionary and it should always be remembered.      

HADDIS ALEMAYEHU                                     Nominated by Fekadu Teshale - PHD, Sinishaw Deresse & Zemzem Belachew
Haddis Alemayehu was a true all-rounder who contributed to Ethiopia in many number of disciplines. First and foremost, he was arguably the single most talented Ethiopian novelist who wrote some of the most loved and admired novels to date in Ethiopia. He wrote from the heart and the stories in his novels have touched the hearts of many Ethiopians. Among his great works, his 1968 novel - Love unto crypt - which is the Ethiopian equivalent of Romeo & Juliet is by far the most talked-about and admired Ethiopian novels ever. This masterpiece is now being read by English readers after its translation recently by Sisay Ayenew. The novel hit the shelves of numerous book stores worldwide in 2005. It was put at best book sections in New York Times' August 14 issue.

The other Haddis Alemayehu was a true patriot who defended his country from the invasion of fascist Italy in the 1930s. After vigorously fighting the Italians, he was held in captivity for seven years in Italy. He went back to an independent Ethiopia in 1944, three years after Italy was decisively defeated at the Battle of Adwa. The young Haddis Alemayehu - prior to his fame as a novelist and a patriot – was a passionate teacher who believed in the power of education. Mr. Haddis also served his country as a Foreign Minister from 1960 – 61 under the government of Emperor Haile Selassie. Haddis was a dignified selfless man that contributed to his country from defending Ethiopia at the frontline to protecting the country's interests through remarkable diplomacy, and from educating Ethiopians to writing novels of highest standards. He was awarded the Special and Gold Mercury Prizes of Emperor Haile Selassie Award Trust and also an Honorary Doctoral Degree by Addis Ababa University. He died on 6th December 2003 at the age of 94 and was laid to rest on 7th December 2003 at the the Trinity Cathedral in Addis Ababa.

HAILE GERIMA                                                                                                            Nominated by Ashenafi Semu
Haile Gerima is an Ethiopian filmmaker who has been living in the United States since 1968. He went to the US from his native Ethiopia, to study acting and directing at the Goodman Theater in Chicago, Illinois. He later transferred to the Theater Department at UCLA where he completed the Master's Program in Film. He then relocated to Washington, DC, to teach at Howard University's Department of Radio, Television, and Film where he influenced young filmmakers for over twenty-five years. Inspired by UCLA classmate and filmmaker Charles Burnett, and by the celebrated Black poet and educator - Sterling Brown - Haile's films are noted for their exploration of the issues and history pertinent to members of the African Diaspora, from the continent itself to the Americas and Western Hemisphere. Often corrective of Hollywood versions of slave stories, his films comment on the physical, cultural, and psychological dislocation of Black peoples during and after slavery. What distinguishes his films are that the narratives are told from the perspectives of Africans and members of the African Diaspora itself, rather than being sanitized and misinterpreted by more commercially oriented filmmakers. His unique filmmaking aesthetic is coupled with a personal mission to correct long-held misconceptions about Black peoples' varied histories throughout the world; for this reason, he is considered by colleagues and students alike to be a master teacher in the classroom and behind the camera.

He directed, produced, wrote and edited several films.  His best known film – many say – is Sankofa - which is about slavery and was produced in 1993.  His most recent film is Adwa release in 1999 which is a documentary about the Battle of Adwa - the important battle in which Ethiopians defeated the Italian colonial force.  His films are more about education than entertainment, and substance than style.  He is perhaps the only Ethiopian to have reached the level that he has in the international filmmaking industry.  And many generations of Ethiopians will no doubt follow his lead to tell the many aspects of Ethiopian stories using the medium of film. 

ABABA TESFAYE SAHLU                                                                                              Nominated by Hassen Seid
Ababa Tesfaye is a renowned children story-teller on Ethiopian national television. Every night at the beginning of the popular children's show, he presents folk-tales to children accompanied by his hallmark conspicuous passion and enthusiasm. He is a fascinating character for generations of Ethiopian children and his unique zeal is always intact. He has been putting smiles on the faces of children while providing them with complete grounding in Ethiopian history, cultural practices and etiquette. His stories and the way they are told are among most Ethiopians' favorite childhood memories for they are unique, quite telling, and most of all, enjoyable.

He is a pioneer in his field as children's story-teller and his continued contribution to the fruitful upbringing of Ethiopian children needs to be commended. He has been and still is telling inspiring stories to create wonderful citizens for tomorrow out of the children of today, and it is with great admiration and pleasure that we tell his wonderful story just to say ‘thank you'.