History of Eritrea

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Part of a series on the
History of Eritrea
Pre-colonial Prehistory Land of Punt (c. 2500–980 BC) Kingdom of Dəmot (c. 980–400 BC) Aksumite Empire (c. 150 BC–AD 960) Sultanate of Dahlak (960–1557) Zagwe Dynasty (c. 1137–1270) Ethiopian Empire (1270–1974) Dankali Sultanate (c. Late 13th century–18th century) Sultanate of Aussa (1734–1936)
Colonial Eyalet-i Habeş (1554–1872) Italian Eritrea (1882–1936) Eritrea Governorate of Italian East Africa (1936–1941) East African Campaign of World War II (1940–1941) British Military Administration (1941–1952)
Post-Colonial Autonomy within Ethiopia (1952–1962) Eritrean War of Independence (1961–1991) Annexation as the Eritrea Province (1962–1993) Ethiopian Civil War (1974–1991)
State of Eritrea 1990s in Eritrea Eritrean–Ethiopian War (1998–2000) 2000s in Eritrea 2010s in Eritrea
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Eritrea is an ancient name, associated in the past with its Greek form Erythraia, Ἐρυθραία, and its derived Latin form Erythræa. This name relates to that of the Red Sea, then called the Erythræan Sea, from the Greek for "red", ἐρυθρός, erythros. But earlier Eritrea was called Mdre Bahri.^[1] The Italians created the colony of Eritrea in the 19th century around Asmara and named it with its current name. After World War II, Eritrea annexed to Ethiopia. Following the communist Ethiopian government's defeat in 1991 by the coalition created by armed groups notably the EPLF, Eritrea declared its independence. Eritrea officially celebrated its 1st anniversary of independence on May 24, 1993.