Hyatt, Harry Middleton
thor of The Church of Abyssinia. H. studied at a
number of colleges before graduating from Bex-
ley Hall, Kenyon College, Ohio in 1920. He was
ordained in the Episcopal Church (Deacon 1920;
Priest 1921) and held appointments in Cincinnati
and Columbus. In 1924 he married Alma Egan
Altenberg and, after travelling in Europe and
North Africa, studied at Oxford University for
two years, gaining an M.A. in 1926. On his re-
turn to the United States, H. and his wife settled
in New York City, where H. served as Associ-
ate Rector of the Church of the Holy Spirit from
1930 to 1965. In 1972 his research in the field of
American folklore was honoured by the Ameri-
can Folklore Society.
Despite an ambition to do so, H. never vis-
ited Ethiopia, and his The Church of Abyssinia
(1928) was based primarily on secondary litera-
ture; it offers a basic introduction to the history
and the institutions of the Ethiopian Orthodox
Church. Together with Samuel A. B. Mercer,
H. provided financial support for the journal
÷Aethiops, founded by Sylvain ÷Grébaut, from
1930 to 1932, both being listed as editors along-
side Grébaut for that period. H. was also the
Director of the Alma Egan Hyatt Foundation,
which published the journal ÷Aethiopica which
replaced Aethiops from 1933 until it ceased pub-
lication in 1936.
Src.: Harry Middleton Hyatt, The Church of Abys-
sinia, London 1928 [review by Geneviève Nollet, Ae-
thiops 3, 1, 1930, 15–16].
Lit.: Michael Edward Bell, “Harry Middleton Hy-
att’s Quest for the Essence of Human Spirit”, Journal of
the Folklore Institute (Indiana University) 16, 1–2, 1979,
1–27; “Hyatt, Harry Middleton”, in: Who Was Who in
America [Chicago] 8, 1982–85.
Michael A. Knibb
Hyena(s)
The spotted H. (Amh. H- géb, Tgr. w-# zébýi,
Orom. waraabessa), Crocuta crocuta [habessyn-
ica] of the Hyaenidae family is, after the ÷lion,
the second largest carnivore in Ethiopia and
Eritrea. A large female H. (up to 120 cm) can
be bigger than a male (up to 110 cm). The col-
our (reddish brown to light brown) and the dark
spotting of the coat changes with age, growing
lighter and less spotted. Characteristic are large
ears set high on top of the head. The distinction
between female and male is difficult to observe
until the female has given birth because the fe-
male reproductive organs appear nearly similar
96
to those of the male. The elongated clitoris can
be erected and the openings of the vaginal and
urinary tracts are situated within it (Kruuk 1972:
210f.).
The striped H. (Hyaena hyaena dubbah) is
less common than the spotted H. It lives singly
or in pairs and is exclusively nocturnal. Its size
is smaller and its tail longer. The coat is longer,
with black stripes on the sides. H. are adapted
to nearly all ecological conditions in the Horn
of Africa up to 4,000 m A.S.L. and during the
night even include human settlements and towns
within their territory.
Zoologists describe the social life of H. in meta-
phors taken from social anthropology. According
to researchers H. are organized in “matriarchal
clans” comprising up to 100 individuals. Such
“clans” have a territory defined by scent-marks
made by both sexes with an anal secretion. H. are
organized around communal dens of cubs and
their mothers, who mainly care for them. The
dominant animals are the females. In competition
over food with males they usually are successful.
H. command a high variety of eleven inter-
grading calls (e.g. example, whooping, grunt-
ing, giggling, growling, whining; Amh.: &v3 ,
émmuñ, onomatopoetic for the ‘sound of a H.’;
&v3y !n , émmuñ alä, ‘to produce the sound
of a H.’). H. keep their social relations by visit-
ing each other throughout the night. They greet
each other by sniffing and licking the face and
the genital area (Kruuk 1972:220ff.).
H. are most active at night. During daytime
they sleep in earths or caves in cliffs, e.g., in the
river valleys. In areas less populated by man, e.g.,
in the ŸAfar savannahs, they can be active in day-
time as well. H. hunt individually or in packs led
by a leader. Their prey (weak or injured mam-
mals, especially ungulates, organic waste; ca. 14.5
kg per meal) is attacked by all members at once
and often killed by ripping out the bowel. H. are
most effective carrion-eaters. With their large
and heavy teeth and extremely strong jaws they
are able to crush all kinds of remains. Sometimes
carcasses are carried away or even stored (Kruuk
1972:63ff.).
The importance of H. in urban refuse removal
is reported in many traveller’s reports (com-
piled in PankEcon 619, 715). Till today H. play
a significant role as scavengers in rural as well as
semi-urban dwellings and even towns. H. can
be dangerous to man and livestock. To prevent
them from attacking, during night-time people

walk in groups or armed with spears and keep
their livestock in the house or within thick thorn
bush fences.
Hyenas: cultural aspects
The GéŸéz translation of the Physiologus (÷Fisalgos)
interprets the H. as hermaphrodite (s. above for
the physical appearance of the female genitals)
and impure animal. It warns not to “be like the
hyena, but follow the Law”. This argues against
women who “left their nature” practising “sin-
ful” sexual intercourse or behaving “like a man”
(Hommel 1877:70; cp. Sumner 1982:77, 90, 166f.,
199; cp. also VSAe II, 632).
The Egyptian saint abba Matewos of Asfoni is
associated with H., for he saved a H. cub which
fell into a hole. This legend, in theological terms,
is probably meant to demonstrate the over-
whelming compassion of the Saint or Christian-
ity in general, which is said to teach the love even
for the most sinful being. Matewos’s prestige was
raised by his ability to control the dangers of na-
ture; in the legend a mother H. even licks his feet
(BudSaint 334–37).
The H. plays a significant role in many socio-
religious systems, as well as in folk literature.
Most commonly, impurity, danger and a vora-
cious character are ascribed to the H. Conse-
quently, eating the flesh of a H. is considered a
taboo. According to Haberland (VSAe II, 505,
630ff.) an Oromo who killed a H. and feared the
spirit of the animal, had to go through a special
purification ceremony. In fables the H. is often
the outlaw counterpart of the more splendid lion
and other predators (cf. Jensen 1936:36, 48, 90,
106, 557f.; VSAe I, 327, 382, 384; Leslau 1982, s.
index). In folklore an albino H. is called “King
of H.” and an extraordinary magical power is as-
cribed to it. Occasionally food is laid out for it to
calm their temper (von Rosen 1953:23).
A “pan-Ethiopian” feature in folk-religions
is the close relation between ÷buda and H.
Members of different ÷marginalized groups,
such as, e.g., blacksmiths and potters, as well as
certain individuals, are believed to be able tem-
porarily to change their shape into that of a H.
Such “were-hyenas”, e.g., the gooromootióóo in
÷Hadiyya and ÷Kambaata, are said to bring
harm and death, or defile graves and eat the flesh
of the deceased during the night (Braukämper
1983:267). In some cases “possession” by a H./
buda seems to have been an observable altered
state of consciousness or a symptom of mental
Hyena(s)
Young “hyena man” feeding a hyena at Harär; from
Nehberg 2003
illness (s. Parkyns cited in PankSoc 263f.).
Beside such accusations there exists in differ-
ent traditional cultures the idea that certain clans
or persons are related to H. The clan of Gosage
(Azärnät-Bärbäre sub-group, s. ÷Sélti) is said to
have kinship ties with H. and to have migrated
from “Arabia” or “Harär” riding on the back of
H. In Gurage and Sélte (Sélti) H. are, still today,
occasionally fed to maintain “neighbourly rela-
tions” between human society and H. At such
events elders talk to the H. gathered around the
meat offered to them and ask them, not to attack
the livestock (author’s own observation; oral in-
formants). Among the ÷Dorze, the highest de-
musa-priest is reported to have had the power to
control the H. and to send them to punish de-
faulting debtors (VSAe III, 197f.). Jensen docu-
ments in his description of the ÷Aari that there
was a certain ritual-leader with the title of godiri
babi (‘H. king’) who used to carry out ceremonies
to prevent wild animals from entering the fields.
Among the ÷Šangama and the ÷Basketo there
were priests with a similar duty. According to leg-
end, such friendly relations between man and H.
were based on a kind of contract (VSAe, I 47, 129,
219). Such pact, allegedly dating back to a famine
in the 19th cent., is the origin of the tradition of
the “H.-men” of ÷Harär, who are intended to
prevent H. from attacking people and livestock
in times of hunger. The ritual in which flesh is
provided for the H. takes place outside the gates
of Harär after sunset. Some of the “H.-men” dis-
tribute the flesh by holding it between their teeth.
Today the tradition has become a tourist attrac-
tion. According to the Harari “Folk-Islam” the
H. are represented by a supernatural patron, the
waraba šayò (‘šayò of the H.’, Gibb 1996:62).
Often significance as a prophetic sign is as-
cribed to the H. or its sound. Among the Oromo
to hear the sound of H. was a bad omen (÷Ora-
97
Hyena(s)
cles and divination). Haberland (VSAe II, 405,
504) records the belief among the Arsi that if a H.
howls twice, it is a good sign, while a H. howling
three times meant mischief. The members of the
magically skilled Kallaóóum clan of the Yäm were
said to turn into H. or dogs and to prophesy the
imminent death of people by howling in front
of their houses (VSAe III, 306). In Basketo and
neighbouring groups, a H. sleeping in the house
of a candidate for kingship was seen as a sign that
he should be chosen (VSAe I, 202, 204ff.).
Taking into account all said here, the H. sym-
bolizes the danger and power of nature. It stands
for death and decay and is an ambivalent and hy-
brid counterpart of the human order.
Src.: interviews with abägaz Yassin Muhammäd, Mugo
(Sélte Zone), 23. 10. 2005 and Abdälla Oumer, Mugo and
Addis Abäba, 20.11. 2005; authors own observation in
Wuriro (Sélte Zone).
Lit.: Ulrich Braukämper, Die Kambata: Geschich-
te und Gesellschaft eines Südäthiopischen Bauernvolkes,
Wiesbaden 1983, 267; Francisco Javier Gozálbez Este-
ve – Dulce María Cebrián Flores, Touching Ethiopia,
Addis Ababa 2004, 354ff.; Genevrière Calame-Griau-
le – Ziedonis Ligers, “L‘homme-hyène dans la tradi-
tion soudanaise”, L‘Homme, 1961, vol. 2, no. 2, 89–118;
Theodor von Heuglin, “Systematische Übersicht der
Säugethiere Nordost-Afrikas …”, Sitzungsberichte der
kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Erste Abthei-
lung 54, December 1866, 1–75, here 17f.; Kay E. Hole-
kamp, “Mechanisms of Maternal Rank ‘Inheritance’ in
the Spotted Hyena, Crocuta crocuta”, Animal Behavior
Journal 60, 3, 2000, 323–32; Fritz Hommel (ed., tr.), Die
äthiopische Uebersetzung des Physiologus, nach je einer
Londoner, Pariser und Wiener Handschrift, Leipzig 1877,
70; Susan M. Jenks – Mary L. Weldele – Laurence
G. Frank, “Acquisition of Matrilineal Rank in Captive
Spotted Hyenas: Emergence of a Natural Social System
in Peer-reared Animals and their Offspring”, Animal Be-
haviour 50, 1995, 893–904; Adolf Ellegard Jensen, Im
Lande des Gada: Wanderungen zwischen Volkstrümmern
Süd­abessiniens, Stuttgart 1936, 36, 48, 90, 106, 557f.; Hans
Kruuk, The Spotted Hyena: a Study of Predation and
Social Behavior, Chicago, IL 1972, 63ff., 119, 144, 210f.,
220ff.; PankEcon 619, 715; Wolf Leslau, Gurage Folk-
lore, Wiesbaden 1982 (SKK 63), s. index; Rüdiger Neh-
berg, Abenteuer am Blauen Nil: Drei Mann, ein Boot, zum
Rudolfsee, München 2003 (ill.); PankSoc 223, 263f.; John
Pickrell, “Rebranding the Hyena: Researchers Unravel
the Private Life of this Weird, Wonderful Carnivore”, Sci-
ence News, 161, 17, 2002, 267; Björn von Rosen, Game
Animals of Ethiopia: a Short Guide for Hunters and Ani-
mal Lovers …, Addis Abeba 1953, 22f.; Hagar Salamon,
The Hyena People: Ethiopian Jews in Christian Ethiopia,
Berkeley, CA – Los Angeles, CA 1999, 35–39; Claude
Sumner, Ethiopian Philosophy, Addis Ababa 1982, vol. 5,
77, 90, 166f., 199; Id., Classical Ethiopian Philosophy, Ad-
dis Ababa 1985, 36; VSAe I, 47, 129, 202, 204ff., 219, 327,
382, 384; VSAe II, 405, 504f., 630ff.; VSAe III, 197f., 306.
Dirk Bustorf
98
Hylander, Fride
H. (b. 2 February 1898, Raus, Helsingborg, d.
21 December 1988, Sörby Runtuna, Nyköping)
belonged to a three-generation family of Ethio–
Swedes (÷Sweden, relations with). Parents Nils
and Edla Hylander (b. 1861 and 1860) had started
an ÷Oromo mission in ÷Harär (÷Swedish Evan-
gelical Mission), from where they were expelled in
1896 in the context of the battle of ÷ŸAdwa. Out
of a dozen of “Ethio-Hylanders”, H. was sec-
ond generation. Most representative of the third
is his son Nils-Olof Hylander who was Provin-
cial Medical Officer in Wälläga 1965–71. Even a
fourth generation was involved in Ethiopia.
H. got his medical doctor’s certificate (med.
lic.) in 1926, married Naemi née Helgstrand (b.
1890) and then immediately went to Harär for
the Bibeltrogna Vänner (‘Friends True to the Bi-
ble’) mission. Doctors H. and Gunnar Agge to-
gether built the mission station and hospital. H.
put in his own share of manual labour and even
painted the altar picture in the church.
During 1931 H. and Naemi, with their small
twins and Nils-Olof being born during the “year
in tent”, travelled exploring new mission fields,
resulting in the decision to settle at Munässa and
Kofälä towards Lake ÷Zway. H. gathered much
information about Oromo culture and beliefs
and discussed with Muslims at ÷Šayò Husayn
(cp. especially Hylander 1934, 25–66, 122–85,
198–207, 233–92). German researchers like Eike
÷Haberland later acknowledged what they had
learnt orally from H. by dedicating his book
Galla Süd-Äthiopiens (1963) to him.
In late 1935 H. was selected as leader of the
Swedish ÷Red Cross Ambulance in late 1935.
When the Italians bombed it on 30 December,
H.’ stomach was wounded. After an operation in
Addis Abäba, he worked again in a field hospital
on the southern front by April 1936. Their es-
cape to Kenya in July to August was difficult.
As a civilian, after involvement in war ambu-
lance work in Finland until 1940, H. took part
in planning the maternity ward in the large new
Södersjukhuset in Stockholm. In 1945–46 he served
as Ethiopian consul in Stockholm while Swedish
experts were recruited. He was then appointed
General Inspector and soon Principal Medical Ad-
viser in the Ethiopian Ministry of Public Health
in 1947–65. Ase Òaylä Íéllase I reserved for him-
self to be Head of that Ministry and sometimes
communicated directly with H., without any in-
termediary. H. tried to make health services reach