Megaliths in Ethiopia are large, monumental stones, that exist in Ethiopia.
Megalithic monuments exist in all regions of Ethiopia. Most of the these sites are located in the Southern Nation Nationalities and peoples Regional State (SNNPRS). The major megalithic sites are found in Gedeo Zone, Gurage Zone and Sidama Zone. Tiya is one of the megalithic sites registered by UNESCO. Stelae, tumuli and dolmens are the common megalithic monuments found in Ethiopia.
Megalith is a Greek word meaning big stone. The term megaliths first coined by Algernon Herbert in 1849. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology (2003) describes megaliths as a general term applied to monuments of Neolithic and early Bronze Age in northwest Europe. It is used for tombs and standing stones, forming circles Dolmen, Alignment and Menhir. Megaliths are large stone structures built without mortar.
The existence of stelae, dolmens, tumuli, stone pillar and stone circle/ stone have been reported from North Africa and West Africa East Africa. Megalithic tradition was one of the common practices in most part of Africa. The megaliths have direct or indirect related to ritual activities. The ritual activities conducted by the Bodi peoples in the Omo Valley, southern Ethiopia, can be mentioned as a good example. The Bodi are one of the pastoral peoples who perform ritual activities related to stone platform. It would have a socioeconomic role among the people who practice of such activities. There are different arguments about the evolutionary origin of religions. One of the theories of evolutionary origin of religions is based on the neocortex size. According to this argument human social complexity is related to brain size. Human brain evolved through time, and religion is assumed to be part of this process. But recent studies show that some hominin could have religious behaviors. Another theory of evolutionary origin of religions is based on theory of mind. Theory of mind is related to imagination. Imagination is the mental ability to produce images, thoughts, and feelings. The human perception and feeling might have connected to various things. Human imagination might evolve through time. The ritual concept among human might not easy to analyze. Because religion believes to be supernatural.
Classification
Megaliths can be classified in different way. Scholars use a different approach to categorize megaliths. Mostly megaliths can be classified based on their forms and styles of techniques of building. Lewis and Daniel classified megaliths into four different categories. But Fergusson classified them into five groups. These are Tumuli (small stone chambers, megalithic chambers), Dolmen (without tumuli), Circles (surrounding tumuli and dolmen; circle without tumuli), Avenues (stones circle and without the circle) and menhir (Single or in groups). The Megaliths can be classified in a distinct way. In Ethiopian megaliths are classified into three groups dolmens, tumuli, and stelae. Stelae in Gurage and Silti are classified based on the engravings. The first type consists of flat stelae which depicting daggers, arc, and geometric and human representations. The second type of stelae is anthropomorphic stelae. In this group human chest and reversed “X” and “W” and two circles are depicted. The third groups are cylindrical stelae. The height of these group ranges between 0.5m and 1.80m. The fourth types are Phallic stelae. These groups are few compared to others. Their height ranges between 60 cm and 1.80 m. and the fifth types are hemispherical and conical respectively.
In a few sites, there are symbols engraved on stelae seems to be similar. Compared to other decorated stelae are not many. But they exist in most stelae sites in the southern region. Still, symbolism in megaliths seems to be the most challenging and some of the symbols are hard to understand. Azais and Chambard believe that the signs drawn on stelae are "solar stars" and indication of worshiping the sun. Presumably, it is too early to draw into conclusion on symbolism. Sometimes distinct symbols exist at a single site. In general, the stelae of the south are either Anthropomorphic or Phallic.
Stelae of Gurage and Silti have the symbol of sword and other symbols. In Tiya, one of the world heritage sites, many stelae have an engraving of the sword. The symbol of the sword is interpreted identified as the rank of the warrior or the number of enemies killed. Still, the interpretation is dubious and debatable.