Ethiopian Heritage Month Act, 2025 — Bill 38 (44th Parliament, 1st Session)

Bill 38, 44-1

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Bill 38, Ethiopian Heritage Month Act, 2025

Begum, Doly

Wong-Tam, Kristyn

Current status:

Royal Assent received. Statutes of Ontario 2025,

chapter 21

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Bill 38 Royal Assent (PDF)

EXPLANATORY

NOTE

This Explanatory Note was written as a reader’s

aid to Bill 38 and does not form part of the law.

Bill 38 has been enacted as

Chapter 21 of the Statutes of Ontario, 2025.

The

Bill proclaims the month of September in each year as Ethiopian Heritage Month.

Bill 38 2025

Act to proclaim the month of September as Ethiopian Heritage Month

Preamble

While

Ethiopians began migrating to Canada as early as the 1960s, significant numbers

of Ethiopians only began arriving in Canada in the mid-1980s. Currently, Canada

is home to more than 40,000 Ethiopian Canadians, many of whom have made Ontario

their home. In particular, the Greater Toronto Area, Ottawa, Kitchener-Waterloo

region, London and Windsor are home to large numbers of Ethiopian Canadians.

Ethiopia

is an ancient country with a rich heritage and history extending as far back as

around 1250 BC. It is a multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-lingual state

with over 80 different languages, including Amharic, Afaan Oromo, Tigrinya,

Somali, Sidama, Wolaytta, Gurage, Afar, Hadiyya, Gamo, Gedeo, Kafa, Harari,

Silt’e, Agaw and Argobba.

is the only country in Africa never to have been brought under colonial control

by Western European powers in the 19 th century. During Emperor

Menilik II’s reign, Ethiopia defeated the Italian colonial forces at the Battle

of Adwa on March 2, 1896. Ethiopia is home to devotees of the three Abrahamic

religions — Judaism, Christianity and Islam, as well as other indigenous

beliefs. In fact, in 615 AD during the Kingdom of Aksum (100 BC to 960 AD),

which was ruled by a Christian King (the Negus or Najashi), it was the nation

to which the first followers of Islam fled due to prosecution in Mecca — the

first migration (Hijra) of Muslims. The King granted them protection and

freedom to practice their religion in peace and to establish the Al Nejashi

mosque. Located in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, Al Nejashi is the first

mosque in Africa, and Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha have been observed there

since its establishment.

Ethiopia

boasts many distinctions:

is home to some of the oldest sites of human remains, including the famous “Lucy”

or “Dinkinesh”, a 3.2 million-year-old fossil;

The

Arc of the Covenant is found there, preserved in the Church of Our Lady, Mary

of Zion in the city of Aksum;

is home to one of the world’s earliest illustrated Bibles, written in Ge’ez and

carbon dated to between the 4 th and 7 th centuries;

is the oldest independent country in Africa;

During

the rule of Emperor Haile Selassie I, Ethiopia became a member of the League of

Nations (the predecessor to the United Nations), initiated the establishment of

the Organization of African Unity (a precursor to the African Union), which had

its headquarters in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, and provided material

support for the decolonization of Africa and to the Pan-Africanism movement

across Africa and internationally;

is the birthplace of coffee and the place of origin of Teff, a grain used to

make the flatbread injera;

has its own calendar system, consisting of a 13-month year, as well as its own

alphabet;

unique system for measuring time is used in Ethiopia, consisting of a daytime

cycle that begins at dawn and ends at dusk and a nighttime cycle that begins at

dusk and ends at dawn;

is home to hundreds of endemic flora and fauna, such as enset (false banana),

Walia Ibex (a variety of mountain goat), Mountain Nyala (a large spiral-horned

antelope) and the Gelada Baboon;

Among

other African countries, it is home to one of the largest number of UNESCO

World Heritage Sites and of practices recognized by UNESCO as Intangible

Cultural Heritage. These include Lalibela (13 th century rock-hewn

churches constructed during the Kingdom of Abyssinia), Aksum (monolithic

obelisks and stelae), Fasil Ghebbi (a fortress dating from the 16 th century),

Harar Jugol (a fortified historic Muslim town built between the 13 th

and 16 th centuries) and Tiya (a famed archaeological site dated to

between the 11 th and 13 th centuries), many festivals such

as Maskel, Fichee-Chambalaalla, Timiket (epiphany), Shuwalid, Ashenda, Ashendye,

Shaday and Solel, as well as an indigenous socio-political system known as Gada

and the Sof Omar Cave System, which hosts an 11 th century Islamic

shrine;

is the birthplace of Captain Abebe Bikila, a member of the Ethiopian Imperial

Guard and a marathon runner, who became the first Black African to win gold at

the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, Italy.

for the month of September, it is an important month for Ethiopian Canadians as

it ushers in the Ethiopian new year, Enkutatash (gift of jewels), and features

significant religious, spiritual and traditional celebrations.

The

celebration of Enkutatash dates back thousands of years to the time of Makeda, the

Queen of Sheba. It is a vibrant and joyous holiday celebrated either on

September 11 th or 12 th of the Ethiopian calendar. This

holiday holds a great cultural significance for the people of Ethiopia and

Ethiopian Canadians as it marks the season for renewing bonds and unity among

family and friends, and the community at large. It is marked by the exchange of

gifts and bouquets of Adey Abeba, a seasonal flowering plant native to Ethiopia,

as well as the wearing of elaborate traditional clothes (habesha libs) and

attending religious ceremonies. It is also marked by the performance of the

traditional song, Abebayehosh, by a group of young girls, which is intended to

convey gratefulness for the blessings of the past year and offer prayers for

the new year.

Moreover,

the festival of Maskel, recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage,

is celebrated across Ethiopia and in Canada either on September 27 th

or 28 th by devotees of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church to

commemorate the unearthing of the True Holy Cross of Christ.

The

month of September also hosts the annual thanksgiving celebration, Irreechaa, which

serves to welcome the new season of harvest following the rainy winter season and

is often celebrated at sacred lakes, including at the Bishoftu’s Hora Harsadii/Arsadi.

proclaiming the month of September as Ethiopian Heritage Month, the Province of

Ontario recognizes the valuable contributions that Ethiopian Canadians have

made and continue to make towards Ontario’s social, economic, political,

religious and cultural fabric and to Canadian society at large. Ethiopian

Heritage Month is an opportunity for Ethiopian Canadians to celebrate their

customs, traditions and proud history and to showcase their heritage to fellow

Canadians. In doing so, they help preserve this heritage for future

generations. Ethiopian Heritage Month will also provide an opportunity to

celebrate and create awareness of the inspirational role that Ethiopian

Canadians have played and continue to play in communities across Ontario.

Therefore,

His Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of

the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Ethiopian

Heritage Month

The

month of September in each year is proclaimed as Ethiopian Heritage Month.

Commencement

This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Short

title

The

short title of this Act is the Ethiopian Heritage

Month Act, 2025 .

Bill 38 Original (PDF)