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|ዩ| UTHIOPIA: Ethiopia in Utopia

  • The Book of Ethiopia
    • The Book of Ethiopia
    • Ethiopia in a Blue and White Nutshell
    • SYLLABARY EXPO @THE ALLIANCE ETHIO-FRANÇAISE
    • PODCAST @ THE ABYSSINIAN SYLLABARY
    • Le Syllabaire Abyssin (extraits en français)
    • ኢትዮጵያ በሰማያዊ እና ነጭ አጭር ዕይታ
    • About Yves-Marie Stranger
  • Cornutopia
    • Cor—who?!
    • j’aime / je n’aime pas (Cornu de Lenclos)
    • LinkedIn (‘track under repair, by the old Moulmein Pagoda’)
    • Chiang Maî, Calligraphie capillaire
  • Aethiopica
    • Et in Uthiopia ego
    • Ethiopia through writers’ eyes
    • African Train
    • Ces pas qui trop vite s’effacent
    • Oranges of Prester John
      • Oranges of Prester John
      • Oranges of Prester John – Film stills
    • Galloping Ahead in Ethiopia
    • Prester John: How Many Divisions?
    • People of the Book
    • Confessions of an English Chatt-Chewer
    • Elephants in Ethiopia – The End of the Game
    • The Peaceful Hyenas of Addis Ababa (The Guardian)
  • A Gallop in Ethiopia
    • A Gallop in Ethiopia
    • Un galop en Éthiopie
French artist, Jean Cornu de Lenclos painting with his beard, Thailande

French artist, Jean Cornu de Lenclos painting with his beard, Thailande

https://uthiopia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/French-artist-Jean-Cornu-de-Lenclos-painting-with-his-beard-Thailande-1.mp4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrl2PNKno5U

 

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‘A ground-breaking new book, The Book of Ethiopia, authored by Yves-Marie Stranger, offers a unique lens into the country’s rich tapestry of history through 33 biographical vignettes. Each vignette corresponds to one of the 33 symbols of the Abyssinian syllabary, or Abugida, creating an intricate narrative that intertwines fact and fiction…Read more @Capital

፠ እስክስታ ፠

https://uthiopia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/፠-The-Book-of-Ethiopia-፠-እስክስታ-፠.mp4

A profile by Abraham Tekle in The Reporter:

Ethiopia through the Eyes of Yves-Marie Stranger:

‘Living in Ethiopia for over a decade gave Stranger a nuanced understanding of its history, geography, and culture. His work—whether in literature or tourism—bridges the cultural divide, blending his European heritage with a deep appreciation for Ethiopian values. Reviews of his work often highlight this ability, positioning him as a respected interpreter of Ethiopia for global audiences.’

(Read more @TheReporter.)

 

‘Yves-Marie Stranger still remembers the stunned look on the faces of his guests. They had ridden horses in Mongolia, trekked across Kenya’s savannah, and galloped through the Argentine pampas. But nothing, they said, compared to the highlands of Ethiopia.

For more than two decades, Stranger, a writer and equestrian guide, led horseback expeditions through the rugged hills of Menagesha and Sululta. Along the way, he discovered more than breathtaking views—he uncovered a forgotten past… Continue Abraham Tekle’s article @The Reporter

Read Isaac Samuel’s original essay: The Medieval Knights of Ethiopia

 

A review of A Gallop in Ethiopia in Capital Newspaper

Read a review of A Gallop in Ethiopia @ Ethiopia Observer.

“The great writer, between two gulps of fiery arake to nurse his qat descent (the mirkana), would sometimes concede to make a remark or two, on the rhythm and the number of syllables, of such or such a metric line…”

Continue reading the excerpt @ Ethiopia Observer.

 

Read a review of A Gallop in Ethiopia @ The Worthy House.

(or listen to Charles Haywood reading his review)

 

‘Everything you’ve always wanted to know about Ethiopia (and about Abyssinian ponies)—but never dared to ask’
PRESS RELEASE

 

« Tout ce que vous avez toujours voulu savoir sur l’Éthiopie (et sur les poneys abyssins) — sans jamais oser le demander »
COMMUNIQUÉ DE PRESSE

The Abyssinian Syllabary

Spelling out Ethiopia

in

፴፫  (33) Lives-Letters 

From ሀ…

to ፐ…

And with an introduction by Manuel de Geez…

 

The Church Forests of Ethiopia

Don’t judge a book by its cover, they say – but of course that’s what we all do, and I readily confess that I was attracted to The Church Forests of Ethiopia for its austere (yet vibrant), as well as self-contained (yet potent) cover design – faithfully reflecting the essence of Ethiopian church forests: neatly enclosed spaces bursting with life.

Continue reading the review @Litromagazine

 

The Map Is Not the Terroir

Much like the wines of the country’s terroirs, France, à l’aise dans sa peau (at ease in its own skin), is at once a geographical objet trouvé and a painstakingly contrived concoction – the map is not the territory, the map is the terroirs…

Continue reading the review @ LitroMagazine.

The Amur in the Time of Covid

In their baccalauréat orals, French students have been known to sidestep the open-ended C’est quoi l’amour ? (What is love?), craftily submerging the examiners with a torrent of geographical minutiae: L’Amour est un long fleuve tranquille de Sibérie (‘The Amur is a long calm river in Siberia’)…

Continue reading the review @LitroMagazine

 

Galloping Ahead in Ethiopia 

“I discovered that Ethiopia was an orthodox paradox—a country of individualist conformists…”

Continue reading Galloping Ahead in Ethiopia on Ethiopia Insight.

L’Éthiopie : un emballement confiné

“J’avais installé un cheval chez moi, dans le quartier d’Abo Mazoria, remplissant une des chambres de bottes de foin. C’était un peu excentrique de ma part, mais pas tant que ça. L’Éthiopie était un paradoxe orthodoxe : un pays de conformistes individualistes.” 

Lire la suite d’Un emballement confiné sur Actualitté.

L’ABC de l’Ethiopie sur Radio Alliance Plus, une interview avec Sylviane Wichegrod-Maniette. Un étranger peut-il devenir Ethiopien?

 

‘Ge’ez letters (…) were created from  scratch by visualizing Ethiopians’ day to day social life, Zeradawit explains. For example, looking at the horns of a bull, looking at wheat etc., Zeradawit told Sesina Hailou for The Reporter.’ Read more…

 

Teaser for Oranges of Prester John

The Guardian: A backpackers’ guide to Ethiopia:

 

L’Ethiopie et le Prêtre Jean (en français) on France Culture with @Sébastien de Courtois:

 

Extracts of Ethiopia through Writers’ Eyes is in Ethiopian Airlines’ Selamta Magazine:

 


Geography of Wishful Thinking, a review of ETWE by James Copnall in the Times Literary Supplement (paywall):

 

An interview with Meheret Selassie in The Reporter:

 

An interview with Arefaynie Fantahun on Ethiopia Observer:

“Ethiopians living today have a bit of Portuguese in them“

 

About Amharic (Deutsche Welle, en Français)

Books by Yves-Marie Stranger



Ethiopia Through Writers' Eyes (Also available in BookWorld & Mega Books in Addis Ababa)

African Train (contributing author)

Ces pas qui trop vite s'effacent
The Abyssinian Syllabary. For publishing updates: @ YMStranger or Uthiopia Newsletter
YMS drinking coffee in Uthiopia with Cornu de Lenclos
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