The volume at hand is a modest effort to share with the outside world the wit and wisdom of Ethiopia, which is too good to be kept bottled up in the native language of one land. Now that Ethiopia is the original locus and habitat of the earliest homonids â€” homo afarensis/ramidus â€”every human being is in effect an Ethiopian and can therefore proudly claim the heritage of Wit and Wisdom presented in this volume.

"Wit and Wisdom Of Ethiopia has succeeded to express thoughtfully and elegantly the Ethiopian way of thinking. The proverbs encompass all aspects of everyday life and, as a result, the book will prove to be of great interest to Ethiopians and non-Ethiopians alike.”
— Professor Emeritus Wolf Leslau, UCLA

“Wit And Wisdom Of Ethiopia reflects the amazing genius and the wonderful soul of the people of Ethiopia. It is of great value to Ethiopian parents and their children, as well as friends of Ethiopia.”
— Dr Fikre Tolossa, Playwright 

“…a singularly important book on the folk wisdom of an ancient people whose gift to humanity is unparalleled. It is a mansion of wisdom with many rooms.”
— Professor Robert Hill, UCLA 

“Wit and Wisdom of Ethiopia is the first book in English of Amharic Ethiopian proverbs. As such, it is a significant contribution not only to the growing number of books about Ethiopia, but also to the world at large, which can only benefit from knowing Ethiopia.”
— Dr. Wendy Belcher, UCLA 

“…a marvel of linguistic adaptation, composed with a glittering literary style and double entendre.”
— Dr Paulos Milkias, Concordia College

Negussay Ayele is a Professor of Political Science in the Bunche Center for African-American Studies at the University of California Los Angeles. He is an Ethiopian scholar of renown and author of a multitude of works on Ethiopia.