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Tigray Community San Jose is a nonprofit organization established in October of 2018 in the city of San Jose with the purpose to support and advance the interests of the members of the Tigray Community in San Jose and surroundings. The vision of the organization is to help build a Tigrean community that sustains its heritage while integrating with positive impact to society.


The Tigray Region (Tigrinya: ክልል ትግራይ, kilil Tigrāy; Official name: Tigrinya: ብሄራዊ ክልላዊ መንግስቲ ትግራይ, Bəh̩erawi Kəllelawi Mängəśti Təgray, English: Tigray National Regional State”) is the northernmost of the nine regions (kililat) of Ethiopia. Tigray is the homeland of the Tigrayan, Irob and Kunama peoples. Tigray is also known as Region 1 according to the federal constitution. Its capital and largest city is Mekelle. Tigray is the 6th largest by area, the 5th most populous, and the 5th most densely populated of the 9 Regional States.

Tigray’s official language is Tigrigna. Tigray is situated between 12°–15° N and 36° 30′ – 40° 30′ E and comprises 53,638 square kilometers (20,710 sq mi) Tigray has ca. 5.3 million inhabitants. The greatest part of the population (ca. 80%) are agriculturalists, contributing 46% to the regional gross domestic product (2002/03). The highlands (11.5% dəgʷəa, 40.5% wäyna däga) have the highest population density, specially in eastern and central Tigray. The much less densely populated lowlands of Tigray (qʷälla) comprise 48% of Tigray.

Colorful Celebration of Ashenda 2019

The ‘Ashenda’ Festival

Ashenda is a unique Tigraian traditional festival which takes place in August to mark the ending of fasting called filseta. This event is mostly for girls and young women, which they await very eagerly every year. It is unique to the people in the state of Tigrai in northern Ethiopia. The name of the festival “Ashenda” comes from the name of a tall grass that the girls make in to a skirt and ware it around their waist as a decoration.

The young women and girls dress the best traditional dresses called tilfi which is a cotton dress decorated with amazing embroidery from the neck to toe in front of the dress. The girls also adorned them selves with array of beautiful jewelry.