Gebre Hanna - His Wit

His Wit

As Simon Messing explains,

The Amharic language lends itself readily to puns and hidden meanings, since many verbs have double or triple interpretations due to the hidden variations in the basic verbal stem and the absence or presence of gemination of some consonants. The listener must pay close attention. If he misinterprets the context and fails to discern the pun, he is often made the butt of the next tricky joke by those who have heard it before. The more a storyteller and wit masters the sowaso 'grammar' of the Amharic language, the better he can manipulate the humor. Alaqa Gabra Hanna was a master of the sowaso grammar, as demonstrated by one of his best-known stories. One day the Alaqa encountered a peasant with his donkey, and bowing low asked greeted him with Endet adaratchu? ("How did you sleep?") Only afterwards, as the man told of the encounter did he realize that the Alaqa had used the plural form of "you", not the singular: Alaqa Gabra Hanna spoke to the donkey and its owner as equals.

Tales involving Aleqa Gebre Hanna are numerous. Levine notes that in a published collection of 300 old folktales and anecdotes, no less than one quarter are devoted to stories about the Alaqa. Other stories involving the Alaqa include:

• One time, travelling through the valley of the Abay River with a purse full of Maria Theresa thalers, he spotted a band of shiftas or bandits waiting to waylay travallers. He quickly hid his purse in a gourd containing linseed, wrapped them both in a piece of colorful imported silk, arranging them to resemble a tabot, which he then placed on his head—the traditional manner how Ethiopian priests carry them. Borrowing the largest cross his conpanions had, he passed himself as a priest. When asked to which saint the tabot had been consecrated, the Aleqa told them Qeddus Giyorgis -- Saint George, the most common saint in Ethiopia. When asked which one, without missing a beat he replied, "St. George of the linseed paste."

The outlaws not only believed him, but escorted him to the top of the valley, explaining that the area was full of gangs of bandits. Days later they learned the truth.

• Homesick for his native Gondar, Aleqa Gebre obtained permission to leave the court of Emperor Menelik, and had organized his party to leave that morning when he saw two fat cows being led to slaughter. Mindful of the long trip ahead of him without fresh beef, he decided to wait to obtain a good share of the meat, which was being parcelled out. Having meat, he now needed drink and obtained a jugful of tej, and spent the day feasting.

Late afternoon found the Aleqa still in the capital, when the Emperor Menelik happened upon him. Surprised to find the homesick man still in the capital, Menelik addressed him: "I gave you permission to go, and you are still here?" Aleqa Gebre Hanna's wit did not fail him: "The cows were entering, your majesty." (The pun is lost in translation: as Messing explains, the Amharic phrase "the cows were entering" is often used to indicate night has fallen, when the cows come home and a time too late to begin a journey. "The cows had indeed 'entered', i.e. into the stomach of Alaqa Gabre Hanna; and no one could accuse him later of having told a lie to the Emperor.")

• At one point while he was in Gondar, Aleqa Gebre Hanna found himself without any money. So he sent a messenger to tell Emperor Menelik II that the Aleqa was dead, and his family had no money to give him a proper tazkar or wake. When the Empress Taitu heard this report, she went to the Emperor and wailed and berated the man until he sent money to Gondar.

Eventually, Aleqa Gebre Hanna found need to return to Menelik's capital. There are a number of variants of how he explained the fact he had not died to his imperial patrons. One tells that, the Emperor saw him and after recovering from the shock asked sarcastically, "How is it that the dead arise form the dead?" The Aleqa replied, with a deep bow, "Your majesty, it is not uncommon in our Christian religion to arise from the dead." Another has him explaining, "Your majesty, I so longed to see the faces of your Majesties again that I was not at peace in the earth and had to so return." A third gives his explanation that "they had so many rules and regulations up there that I preferred to return and live under the rules of your Majesty."

• One day, his wife left Aleqa Gebre Hanna home with their baby on a lengthy errand. Taking the infant with him, he used this opportunity to visit his current girl friend who had a child of about the same age, and spent the afternoon with her. However upon leaving her, he took the wrong child home with him. Before he could exchange the infants, his wife returned home and recognized the baby of her current rival. Becoming angry, she said, "This thing is not my baby! Shall I throw it in the fire?" Quite calmly Aleqa Gebre Hanna replied, "There is also a fire in the house of his mother."