Shanqella (Amharic: ሻንቅላ šanqəlla sometimes spelled Shankella, Shangella, Shánkala, Shankalla or Shangalla) is an exonym for a number of ethnic groups that today reside primarily in the westernmost part of Ethiopia near South Sudan (especially Benishangul-Gumuz Region), but are known to have also inhabited more northerly areas until the late nineteenth century.[1] A pejorative, the term was traditionally used by the local Afro-Asiatic-speaking populations to refer in general terms to darker-skinned ethnic groups, particularly to those from communities speaking Nilo-Saharan languages of Western Ethiopia. These were regarded as slave reserves by the highlanders.[2] The etymology of Shanqella is uncertain. It has been suggested that the appellation may stem from an Amharic epithet meaning "black" (or dark-skinned). However, it is likely that the term is instead of more ancient, Agaw derivation given the Agaw substratum in the Amharic language.[3][4] The 1935 League of Nations report detailed the dehumanization of Shanqella under the Ethiopian Empire.[5]
Pankhurst, R. 1977. The history of the Bareya, Shanqella, and other Ethiopian slaves from the borderlands of the Sudan. Sudan Notes and Records 59: 1-43.
