Tigray is home to more than five million people, mostly farmers, who inherit a history spanning three millennia.
Once the seat of a global civilization (Axum), Christianity and Islam were adopted here in the 4 th and 7 th century respectively. Its history, geographic location, and cultural wealth has long made it the center of geopolitics, serving as a seat for political movements that define the national identity of Ethiopia.
However, this came at a cost. Almost all Ethiopian wars are fought in this region. The battle of Adwa in the 19 th century, a symbol of Pan-Africanism, was fought on the same battlefields that children today still walk on to school and back.