Muslim Hadramis in "Christian Ethiopia": Reflections on boundary making processes

Abstract

The migration and diasporic formation of Hadramis in the Indian Ocean regionhas received due consideration lately from the academic community. Despite therecent attention however, scholarly works regarding Hadramis in East Africaremain scant. This article is aimed to redress the imbalance. Based on ethnographicresearch that was conducted in the East African country of Ethiopia which is traditionally considered as a Christian nation and adopting a historical perspective,the article explores the interactions of Hadramis with the Ethiopian state and thehistorically dominant Orthodox Christian population. As most Hadramis havereturned from Ethiopia to their homeland, this article also explores the experienceof second and third generation Hadramis, who upon their return from Africa totheir country, Hadramut, have been given a minority status as a result of theirmixed ethnic background. © 2010 Institute of Muslim Minority Affairs.