Guest: Prof. Mammo Muchie - Renowned Pan Africanist scholar, and research chair at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT)
A gap of seven to eight years between the Ethiopian and Gregorian calendars results from an alternative calculation in determining the date of the Annunciation. The Ethiopian calendar has twelve months of thirty days plus five or six epagomenal days, which form a thirteenth month.
"Enkutatash, which can be translated as 'gift of jewels,' marks the end of the rainy season and the beginning of a new year according to the Ethiopian calendar," "As such, it is a celebration of renewal and hope. Bright yellow flowers blanket the landscape, symbolizing a new cycle of life and prosperity."
Ethiopia's calendar takes its inspiration from the idea that Adam and Eve lived in the Garden of Eden for seven years before they were expelled for their sins. After they repented, God promised to save them after 5,500 years. And, that explains why Ethiopians are seven years behind us.