In the March 8, 1944 issue of his weekly newspaper, Woldeab Woldemariam (aka “Welwel”)—a visionary Tigrinya nationalist and exceptional intellectual, educator, writer, patriot and proud Zionist who dedicated his life to the Tigrayan people’s struggle for self-determination—wrote: “Just as the people of Israel believe and expect the resurrection of Zion, so the people of Aga’azian (Tigrayan) believe and expect the resurrection of Aksum.”
Like the Jews, the Tigrinya, a people living in Eritrea and northern Ethiopia, still speak their ancient language and long for the return of their ancient kingdom of Aksum. It is not surprising, then, that Woldemariam’s words anticipated the establishment of the State of Israel by several years. For him, the Jewish aspiration for the resurrection of Zion and the Tigrinya aspiration for the resurrection of Aksum were deeply connected, reflecting historical and cultural ties between the two peoples, including their shared Orit/Torah heritage.
Behind this formative chapter in Tigrinya journalism stood another remarkable figure: Edward Ullendorff, a Jewish scholar, Hebrew nationalist and committed Zionist educated at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. During World War II, he served in British-administered Eritrea and became deeply involved in the development of modern Tigrinya.
Ullendorff brought to Eritrea the methods of the Hebrew linguistic revival in Palestine, applying them to the modernization of written Tigrinya. In Asmara, Ullendorff established the Tigrinya Language Council, founded the first Tigrinya-language newspaper, the Eritrean Weekly News, and recruited Woldeab Woldemariam as its Tigrinya editor. Modern journalism required new vocabulary and concepts that Tigrinya had not yet developed.
To meet this challenge, Ullendorff drew on the experience of Hebrew philologists in Palestine. The Tigrinya Language Council was modeled on the Va’ad HaLashon, the Hebrew language committee in Palestine, and Tigrinya words were revived, adapted and newly created for modern use. The linguistic kinship between Hebrew and the Ge’ez language made these methods particularly suitable for Tigrinya.
Ullendorff later published A Tigrinya Chrestomathy, preserving and studying Tigrinya texts, and described Jerusalem and Ethiopia as the “twin loyalties” of his life. His work represents an overlooked Jewish contribution to the development of modern Tigrinya journalism and political expression—not the creation of the ancient language, but the development of its modern literary and journalistic form.
This historical connection is not merely a story about the past. It points to a strategic choice for Eritrea today: The relationship between Israel and the Tigrinya can become the foundation of a new strategic partnership.
The Tigrinya are a very homogeneous people, with no tribal or clan structure and with strong social trust. We have our own ancient Orit/Torah civilization, written language and a code of written laws more than 400 years old.
Eritrea and Israel are the only Red Sea states outside both the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
Our religion is centered on the Ark of the Covenant (Tabot) and the Law of Moses (Orit). The Orit, preserved in the ancient Semitic language Ge’ez, reflects a religious tradition deeply rooted in the Hebrew Bible and ancient Israelite heritage.
For the Tigrinya, Jerusalem and the Land of Israel are not distant foreign history. They are part of their own ancient religious and cultural heritage. The stories of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Sarah, and the history of the biblical Israelites are embedded in the Orit and in Tigrinya cultural and religious tradition.
Zerazion (“the seed of Zion”), Habtezion (“the wealth of Zion”), Abrahazion (“the light of Zion”) and Tesfazion (“the hope of Zion”) are common Tigrinya names, reflecting the enduring cultural resonance of Zion in Tigrinya society.
Today, however, although Eritrean dictator Isaias Afwerki has not recognized a Palestinian state or entity, nor endorsed the two-state solution, he has turned Eritrea against Israel despite the countries’ historical and cultural ties.
The Tigrinya and the Jewish people share significant economic interests and face common strategic threats. Both are overwhelming majorities in their respective homelands, yet tiny minorities in a predominantly Muslim region. They cannot afford permanent isolation.
The connection is more important than ever. With the Houthis controlling Yemen’s coastal areas overlooking the Bab el-Mandeb strait and Eritrea sitting directly on the African side of the strait, the stakes are no longer merely historical or cultural. Containing Iranian expansion and Islamist armed movements and securing the Red Sea are shared strategic interests of the Tigrinya and the Jewish people.
Yet Afwerki’s hostility to Israel includes opposing Israel at the African Union; voting against Israel at the United Nations; cooperating with Iran in the Red Sea; and maintaining relationships with Islamist actors and armed movements in the region, including forces in Sudan, Al-Shabaab and the Houthis.
Woldeab represented one tradition: Tigrinya nationalism linked to Aksum and Zion. The dictator represents another: an Eritrea isolated from Israel and increasingly exposed to Iran, Turkey and Islamist armed movements.
The dictator is aging, and the country he has ruled for decades has been devastated by isolation, repression and economic stagnation.
But Eritrea will not remain trapped in his destruction. We will industrialize our country, build a prosperous economy, restore our dignity and give our people the future they deserve. Eritrea has a future beyond dictatorship—and we will build it.
To lift our country out of abject poverty, destitution and environmental degradation, we will build a strong strategic partnership with Israel.
Eritrea and Israel are the only Red Sea states outside both the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Eritrea offers Israel an unusually important opportunity to develop meaningful people-to-people ties on the Red Sea.
An official Tigrinya nation-state will need Israel’s technology, expertise, capital, markets and global networks to industrialize, urbanize and digitalize its Red Sea coast. Eritrea will be Israel’s anchor in the Red Sea, a strategic partner in containing Iranian expansion and Israel’s gateway to Africa.
For Israeli businesses, the industrialization, urbanization and digitalization of Eritrea’s vast coastal areas will create major opportunities in technology, infrastructure, energy, logistics, agriculture, tourism and manufacturing—all within a two-hour flight from Israel.
Eritrea’s transformation will not only benefit Eritreans; it will create a new economic and strategic frontier for Israel.
