Special Programs

ESI – Amharic Language Lessons

Amharic is the official language of Ethiopia written in the Ge’ez/Ethiopic alphabet. It has its own numbering system and over 50% of the population in Ethiopia speaks Amharic. Ge’ez is for Amharic as Latin is for French or Spanish. The Ethiopian Orthodox Church uses Ge’ez in its liturgy and most of the religious books are written in Ge’ez.

The Amharic language has a very rich literary tradition. The use of the ‘wax and gold’ technique in poetry illustrates not only the linguistic beauty of Amharic but also the richness of the Ethiopian cultural and literary heritage.

Unit I & II: Amharic for Beginners

Objective: Amharic for beginners has two parts; Unit I and Unit II – both designed for all ages and levels with little or no knowledge of Amharic. While Unit I covers Conversational Amharic, Unit II covers Cultural Literacy.

Program Duration: Unit I and Unit II have 12 sessions each.

Schedule: The lessons are regularly offered on Saturdays in the Fall, Winter, Spring and also as part of a special Summer program.

Children class: 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM

Unit III: Amharic Language

Objective: The Amharic language lesson is designed for all ages and levels that have completed Unit I and Unit II or have basic skills in speaking Amharic. The Ge’ez/Ethiopic script is introduced in a simple and systematic manner with an emphasis on reading, writing and grammar along with the Ethiopian numbering system.

The main goal is to enable the learner to master the Ethiopic alphabet, to read and write simple sentences, while building upon the learner’s conversational Amharic knowledge.

Program Duration: Unit III has 12 sessions.

Schedule: The Amharic language lesson is regularly offered on Saturdays in the Fall, Winter, Spring and also as part of a special Summer program.

Children class: 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM

Prerequisites: Unit I Conversational Amharic and Unit II Cultural literacy.