CFEE Seminar – The Survival of Madbét System in Wolaita to 1937: Against the Established Historiography

CFEE Seminar – The Survival of Madbét System in Wolaita to 1937: Against the Established Historiography

15th of May 2026, 2:00pm (UTC+3), at the French Center for Ethiopian Studies, Addis Ababa

By Bisrat Lema Bergene, Assistant Professor of History, Wolaita Sodo University & PhD Fellow, Aix-Marseille University (IMAF)

Bisrat Lema Bergene’s current research examines the relationship between the Ethiopian imperial state and local society in Wolaita, Southern Ethiopia, between 1894 and 1974. Moving beyond polarized debates that reduce Ethiopian history to nation-building versus domination and oppression, his work explores how imperial rule actually functioned at the local level. Focusing on land, taxation, and tribute, it examines how ordinary people, especially peasants, experienced, negotiated, and responded to state power.

Following imperial expansion, the Ethiopian state organized its newly incorporated territories into three broad administrative categories: madbét, näfṭäñña–gäbbar, and the fringe territories. The case of Wolaita complicates this general framework. Despite strong resistance to the Shewan conquest, the region was initially incorporated as a madbét after its defeat in 1894, rather than being immediately subjected to the näfṭäñña–gäbbar system.

Between roughly 1894 and 1903, Wolaita functioned as a direct tributary territory of the crown. After 1903, however, a dual structure of rule emerged. While large parts of the region were reorganised under the näfṭäñña–gäbbar system, a significant number of Wolaita peasants continued to live under the madbét arrangement until around 1937.

Drawing on previously underused archival materials, this paper argues that the coexistence of these two systems challenges simplified interpretations of imperial governance. Rather than a single uniform system, authority often operated through layered and overlapping institutions. By examining these dynamics from a local perspective, the study contributes to broader debates about state formation and governance in imperial Ethiopia.

The seminar is open to all.

Date: Friday, May 15, 2026
Time: 2:00 p.m.
Venue: French Centre for Ethiopian Studies, Addis Ababa
Language: English

French Center for Ethiopian Studies’ location:
The French Center for Ethiopian Studies is located in the Jan Meda neighborhood (Arada sub city, Kebele 11/12, house no. 1907), between Menelik Hospital and Sidist Kilo (50m before the entrance of Jan Meda)

View on Google Maps: Here

Secrétaire Scientifique

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