Front material in Qubee:
Front material in English translation:
Source: Sadirak Taasisaa
On Natna’el Jigo
On the first page of the hymnal is the name of its owner, “Natna’el Jigo”.
Quote from Arén, Evangelical Pioneers:
“[p. 345] After Lundahl had baptized the first converts in 1872, he obtained the promise of the Board to send some young men to Sweden for further education. From 1876 to 1889 five Ethiopians thus got an opportunity to [p. 346] study at Johannelund Theological Training Institute in Stockholm. They were Onesimos Nesib, Tewolde-Medhin Gebre-Medhin, Marqos Girmai, Haile-Mikael Kidanu, and Natnael Hagena Jigo. Unfortunately, the last-named, a highly gifted Tika [sub-group of Kunama], died from pulmonary consumption when he was about to graduate in May 1888.”
On the origin of the hymnal
Quote from Arén, Evangelical Pioneers:
“[p. 302] The first book to be produced at the Imullu Press was printed in Oromo. After his return from Famaka in 1882 Onesimos had set about preparing for new missionary ventures by translating hymns and small books into Oromo. Within a year he had translated one hundred hymns and John Bunyan’s short treatise Man’s Heart and continued with a translation of Luther’s Catechism.*
* fn. 112: Onesimos, 1883.06.18, in SEM Missions-Tidning 1889 179.
When he came back from Shoa in the spring of 1886, his Oromo Hymnbook was just ready* and he put it to use in his teaching at the girls school.
* fn. 113: SEM/E [Letters received] I 44.504: Segerberg, 1886.04.21″
Further reading
Arén, Gustav. Evangelical Pioneers in Ethiopia: Origins of the Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus. Stockholm: EFS; Addis Ababa: Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus, 1978.