Ethiopian Orthodox fasting, or tsom, means going without all animal products (meat, milk, butter, cheese and eggs) on set days, and for devout people often not eating at all until the afternoon. Fast days include most Wednesdays and Fridays plus several long seasons, the biggest being the 55-day Great Lent before Fasika (Easter). For a traveller it mostly means brilliant vegan food and a slightly different rhythm to the day. You are not expected to fast yourself.

In the 2007 census, the most recent Ethiopia has held, 43.5% of people identified as Ethiopian Orthodox, with Muslims at about 34% and Protestants at about 19%. So not everyone around you will be fasting. But in Addis Ababa and much of the highlands, the Orthodox fasting calendar shapes menus, markets and holidays.

If you travel with a private driver, fasting is easy to work around. Tell your driver whether you want fasting food or meat, and they can take you to a restaurant that serves what you are after, even on a Wednesday or Friday.

What does fasting mean in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church?

The rule is simple: no animal products. The food that follows that rule is called yetsom (fasting food), and it is in effect vegan. Many observant people also eat only one meal on fast days, in the afternoon or evening, and some give up alcohol too. Spices are not restricted, so fasting food is anything but plain.

For believers this is a spiritual discipline, not a diet: it is about prayer, self-control and preparing for the great feasts. Added together, the fasts cover a large part of the year: around 180 obligatory days for lay people and up to about 250 for clergy and the very devout. Devout believers fast on more than 200 days a year.

When are the fasting days and seasons?

Church teaching lists seven fasts. Some sit on fixed dates in the Ethiopian calendar; others move each year with Easter.

• Wednesdays and Fridays, all year round, except in the fifty days after Fasika and when Genna (Christmas) or Timkat (Epiphany) falls on one of those days.
• Great Lent (Abiy Tsom, also called Hudade): 55 days over eight weeks, ending at Fasika. In 2027 Fasika is on Sunday 2 May, so Lent starts in early March.
• Fast of the Prophets (Tsome Nebiyat, the Advent fast): from 15 Hidar (24 November) until Christmas Eve on 6 January. Genna is on 7 January.
• Fast of Nineveh: three days, Monday to Wednesday, in January or February, a couple of weeks before Lent.
• Fast of the Apostles (Tsome Hawaryat): starts the day after Pentecost and runs to 5 Hamle (12 July), so its length changes each year with the date of Easter.
• Fast of the Assumption (Filseta): 15 days at the start of the month of Nehase, roughly 7 to 21 August. Even children commonly keep it.
• Gahad: fasting on the eves of Genna and Timkat.

How does fasting affect travellers?

Food: great for vegans, a little patchier for meat-lovers

On Wednesdays and Fridays, and through the long fasts, traditional restaurants serve yetsom beyaynetu: a platter of lentil and split-pea stews, shiro, greens and tomato salad on injera. Larger restaurants used to foreign visitors often offer it every day; small local places may only have it on fast days. Vegetarians and vegans are especially well looked after in the weeks before Genna and Fasika.

If you love meat, plan a little. Some traditional places cook fewer meat dishes on fast days and during Lent, while hotels and restaurants with a mixed clientele usually still have meat on the menu. Either way, give the fasting food a proper try; it is some of the best cooking in the country.

This is where a car and a local driver help. Our drivers know which restaurants in Addis serve good yetsom and which still grill meat on fast days, so with a driver by the day you can eat what you want, when you want, and combine meals with sightseeing without hunting for taxis.

Timing: meals and church services shift

Because many people don't eat until later on fast days, lunch can be a later, bigger meal. Church timing changes too: on weekday fast days the liturgy is often held in the afternoon rather than the morning. If you hope to watch a service, ask locally what time it starts.

People you travel with

Your driver or hosts may be fasting. It is fine to eat in front of them, and nobody will expect you to join in. A little courtesy goes a long way: ask what they would like when you stop to eat, don't press food on them, and don't be surprised if they order a fasting dish or skip breakfast. Most people are happy to talk about it if you ask with real interest.

What happens when a fast ends?

A long fast ends in a feast. At Fasika, the faithful attend a long vigil on Saturday night. After the midnight announcement of the Resurrection and the service that follows, families go home in the early hours to break the fast, traditionally with chicken, and a sheep may be slaughtered for the Sunday meal. Genna ends the Advent fast in a similar way.

Genna, Timkat and Fasika are all public holidays, so expect busy markets and roads in the days before and quieter streets on the day itself. If you are visiting at one of these times, book accommodation and transport early.

Is anyone else fasting?

About a third of Ethiopians are Muslim and keep the Ramadan fast, whose dates move roughly eleven days earlier each year; in 2027 it is expected to run from around February into early March, overlapping the start of Orthodox Lent. As with Orthodox fasting, visitors are not expected to take part, but being discreet about eating and drinking in public during daylight in mainly Muslim areas is a kind gesture.

Do tourists have to fast?

No. Fasting is a religious practice for members of the church, and nobody expects foreign visitors to keep it. What people do appreciate is respect: don't make fun of the rules, dress modestly if you visit a church, and take the chance to eat yetsom. It is one of the easiest ways to understand everyday life here.