Paper short abstract:

The paper's objective is to dismantle the myth of a unique Eritrean national identity: It explains how Eritrean nationalism emerged during the British Military Administration (1941 – 1952), and why it was inconsistent and conflict-ridden.

Paper long abstract:

Eritrea is a multi-lingual and multi-cultural state located in the Horn of Africa. This paper investigates the historical and socio-political background of Eritrean nationalism and evaluates the contradicting and competing identities among the Eritrean population groups.

Nationalism in the Horn first arose as a protest against Abyssinian regional hegemony and against external colonial domination. Eritrean nationalism developed after World War II following the demise of Italian rule, when the territory came under the British Military Administration (BMA) in 1941. Before that time, the concept of nationalism had been alien to large parts of Eritrean society. Contrary to the claims of many scholars that nationalism was a product of modernization and urbanization induced by the Italians, this process affected only limited segments of the society (highlanders), while the majority, especially the pastoral and agro-pastoral groups were marginalized and excluded. Only during the BMA, nationalism developed due to the liberal environment which allowed the establishment of political parties and the expansion of media. However, ethnic, religious and regional differences had produced competing and contradicting identities.

It became evident that Eritrean society was divided into two opposed groups. One group, mostly Tigrinya-speaking, under the leadership of the Unionist Party backed by Haile Selassie and the Orthodox Church demanded unconditional unification with Ethiopia due to religious and historical ties. The other ethnic groups under the leadership of the Muslim League favoured the independence of Eritrea. Their relations were, however, controversial and they failed to constitute a unique national vision towards Eritrean independence.