Qene

The defining characteristic of qene is a literary device known as sem-ena-werq ({{Langx|am|ሰምና ወርቅ|säməna wärq|wax and gold|links=no}}), which uses ambiguity to layer hidden meanings within the text; the term refers to an obvious meaning (the wax) above a deeper meaning (the gold).{{cite book |last= Levine|first= Donald N.|date= 1965|title= Wax & gold : tradition and innovation in Ethiopian culture|location= Chicago|publisher= University of Chicago Press|page= 5|lccn= 65018340}} In the process of goldsmithing, a clay cast is made around wax, after which the wax is drained and molten gold is poured into the cast. This device is similar to a double entendre, and is predicated on multiple meanings of individual words or sentences.

Wista weira ({{Langx|am|ውስጥ ወይራ|wəsṭə wäyra|inside the olive|links=no}}) is a literary device similar to sem-ena-werq, though less common. While it also uses ambiguity to provide hidden meanings, its ambiguity comes from interpretation of the qene as a whole, rather than words or sentences.

Tradition credits its invention to Tawanay of Gojjam, who is said to have lived in the 14th century and founded the famous Qene school of Gonj.{{cite book |last=Hopfmann |first=Jurgen |date=1992 |title=Altäthiopische Volksweisheiten im historischen Gewand: Legenden, Geschichten, Philosophien |volume=40 |series=Europäische Hochschulschriften: Volkskunde, Ethnologie |publisher=Peter Lang |location= |page=82-85 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i3MZAAAAIAAJ |isbn=9783631449240 |issn=0721-3522}} Other tradition claims further back to Yared, a 6th-century Aksumite composer.{{cite encyclopedia |title=Ethiopia, Poetry of|encyclopedia=The Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics|last=Molvaer|first=R.K.|editor1-last=Greene |editor1-first=Roland |editor2-last=Cushman |editor2-first=Stephen |editor3-last=Cavanagh |editor3-first=Clare |editor4-last=Ramazani |editor4-first=Jahan |editor5-last=Rouzer |editor5-first=Paul F. |date=2012 |edition=4th |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/811002342 |location=Princeton |publisher=Princeton University Press |page=462 |isbn=9781400841424|oclc=811002342 }}

The earliest specimens of qene extant date back to the late 15th century to the reign of Emperor Eskender (1478–94).

Qene has always been associated with Amhara culture and people, although it was originally composed in Ge'ez. The main qene schools have always been located in Amhara areas, such as Gonj and Washara monasteries in Gojjam, at Gondar town in Begemder, Sayint in Wollo and Wadla monastery in Lasta.{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Greene |first1=Ronald |last2=Cushman |first2=Stephen |last3=Cavanagh |first3=Clare |last4=Ramazani |first4=Jahan |last5=Rouzer |first5=Paul F |date=2012 |title=The Princeton encyclopedia of poetry and poetics |encyclopedia=Edition 4 |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/811002342 |location=Princeton |publisher=Princeton University Press |page=462 |isbn=9781400841424|oclc=811002342 }} The rules and style of qene were historically taught as part of religious education in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, in the level of schooling known as qene bet (“house of poetry”).

Well-known modern Ethiopian poets include Tsegaye Gabre-Medhin, Kebede Michael, and Mengistu Lemma.

Sem-ena-werq in religious qene represents the theological dualism of Miaphysitism of the Oriental Orthodox Churches. These poems were composed for religious events and church activities.{{cite journal |last= Haile|first= Getatchew|date= 2006|title= Amharic Poetry of the Ethiopian Diaspora in America: A Sampler|journal= Diaspora: A Journal of Transnational Studies|volume= 15|issue= 2/3|pages= 321–339|doi= 10.1353/dsp.2011.0069|s2cid= 145180381}} Secular qene was historically used to subtly insult and criticize those in positions of authority.

• Ethiopian literature

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Category:Ethiopian poetry

Category:Ethiopian literature

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