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Biography of LalibelaName: LalibelaBirth Date: N/A Death Date: N/A Place of Birth: Roha, Ethiopia Nationality: Ethiopian Gender: Male Occupations: king, saint Lalibela Lalibela (reigned ca. 1181-ca. 1221) was an Ethiopian king and saint to whom are attributed the famous monolithic churches of northern Ethiopia.The life of Lalibela is clouded in myth. Almost no documents survive from his life, and we must rely largely on hagiographic literature written centuries later, after he had been canonized by the Ethiopian Church.Lalibela seems to have been born in the town of Roha in northern Ethiopia, which was then the capital of the Zagwe dynasty. This town was later renamed Lalibela in his honor. In the late 14th or early 15th century a monk named Abba Amba wrote a biography of Lalibela. According to Amba, Lalibela was an extremely devout Christian in his youth--even to the point of being an ascetic and recluse. It was with reluctance that Lalibela married and then accepted the crown of Ethiopia, which had previously been held by his brother.…showed first 150 words…
…showed last 150 words…as his saint's day. He also left a reputation as a distinguished poet and orator.The true nature of Lalibela's end as king may never be known, but according to Amba, after he had built the churches and divested himself of his wealth, he tired of the secular duties of rule and abdicated in favor of Naakuto Laab, who may have been his grandson. Laab was to be the last Zagwe king in Ethiopia, as he later seems to have abdicated himself in mysterious circumstances in order to allow the older Solomonic dynasty to regain the rule in Ethiopia. Further Reading The beautiful churches attributed to Lalibela are described and amply illustrated in I. Bidder, Lalibela; The Monolithic Churches of Ethiopia, translated by R. Grabham-Hostmann (1959); some historical comment is also included. Other useful general sources include E. S. Pankhurst, Ethiopia: A Cultural History (1955), and E. Ullendorff, The Ethiopians (1960; 2d ed. 1965). |