Ethiopia
Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
Yeltyop'iya Federalawi
CAPITAL: Addis Ababa
FLAG: The national flag is a tricolor of green, yellow, and red horizontal stripes with a blue disk and a yellow outlined star and rays in the center.
ANTHEM: Traditional "Ityopia, Ityopia" is in use at the present time. A new anthem will be designated in the near future.
MONETARY UNIT: The birr (B) is a paper currency of 100 cents. There are coins of 1, 5, 10, 25, and 50 cents, and notes of 1, 5, 10, 50, and 100 birr. B1 = $0.1164 (or $1 = B8.59) as of March 2003.
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES: The metric system is used, but some local weights and measures also are employed.
HOLIDAYS: Holidays generally follow the Old Style Coptic Church calendar. National holidays include Christmas, 7 January; Epiphany, 19 January; Victory of Adwa (1896), 2 March; Victory Day, 6 April; May Day, 1 May; New Year's Day, 11 September; Feast of the Holy Cross, 27 September. Movable Muslim holidays include 'Id al-Fitr and 'Id al-'Adha'.
TIME: 3 PM = noon GMT.
Location, Size, and Extent
Situated in eastern Africa, Ethiopia (formerly called Abyssinia) has an area of approximately 1,127,127 sq km (435,186 sq mi), with a length of 1,639 km (1,018 mi) E–W and a width of 1,577 km (980 mi) N–S.
