Ashenda

Ashenda is an annual Eritrean & Tigrayan festival which celebrates women and girls.[1] It's believed to have originated in Axum region of Tigray, scholars estimate it began around 400 AD. The festival takes place in August and mainly celebrated in Tigray and has been adopted in bordering regions of Ethiopia and Eritrea.[2] Tigrayan & Eritrean women living throughout the world try to make it to Mekelle or in their respective village within Eritrea where the Ashenda festival takes place. Only women participate in the celebration while the men mostly play the role of gifter in some cases protectors from potential harassment as the younger girls travel door to door singing Ashenda songs and receiving gift like money, traditional food made for the festival. The festival comes after the two weeks of Filseta. During Filseta, people fast, or do not eat, through the day. Filseta and Ashenda honor the Virgin Mary.

Ashenda
Group of Tigrayans girls with Habesha kemis and kebero celebrating Ashenda
Official name	Ashenda
Also called	Girls' Day
Observed by	Primarily Tigray, Sekota, Amhara, Eritrea and SNPPR...
Type	Cultural
Begins	16 August
Ends	26 August
Date	After the end of Filseta
Frequency	Annual
Related to	Filseta

In the festival, young women and girls wear white cotton dresses. These dresses have colorful embroidery, called tilfi. They also wear a lot of jewelry. They weave ashenda grass into a bunch, and wear it where on their backs, or as a skirt.[3] Ashenda, in the Tigrinya language, is a tall green grass that grows on river banks.[4] Girls often wear five cornrow braids in their hair. They wear Kohl eyeliner.[5]

On the first day, the girls gather at the middle of the town or village. Then they break up into groups, and walk through the town. They sing and dance for the people in every house, and also in the village square. The people in each house give them money, food, drinks, or other gifts. The women and girls give these gifts to poor people. They sing and dance all day until sunset. This festival may last for a week or more.

Ashenda is thousands of years old. It existed even before Ethiopia became Christian, in the 4th century AD.[4] as the Tigrayans migrated down south they brought the culture to the southern part of Ethiopia it was adopted reflecting the spirit and culture of the locals developing new name E.g. in Wello region it's called Shadey, Agew Awi Zone they call is Ashendye, in Gojjam and Shewa region they call it Solel, or Mariya.

The stigma of Ashenda: The act of singing going door to door was not always receivd well by all Ethiopians & Eritreans who likened it to act of begging as clashes of culture, it often became a racist and xenophobic attack against Tigrayans labeling them as "Lemange" or "beggers" but since 1991 through EPDRF government education program that focused in cultural tolerance and as Ethiopians & Eritreans became exposed to different cultures around due to the digital revolution there have been a shift in attitude. Even though the stereotypes and racist terms still persist. often used to dehumanize Tigrayans during the Tigray Genocide.[6] Some Ethiopians are trying to get Ashenda listed by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage.[7]