Ashendye is festival celebrated in August in the Amahara and Tigray region of Ethiopia. Ashendye marks the end of a two-week-long fast known as Filseta (tome Filseta) when adherents of Ethiopian orthodox Tewahedo church gather to honour the Virgin Mary.
The word “Ashendye” is currently used both in Amharic and Tigrigna language to denote a vertical sewerage channel that passes water down to the ground from the top of a roof. In the Khimra sect of Agew, Ashendye means the “tall green grass”, estimated at around 80-90 cm minimum height that girls wear around their waists during the holiday. In the tradition of this religious festival, blades of grass are strewn on the floors of homes and shops as a kind of welcome mat. The festivity of Ashendye has no common name throughout the country. For instance, In Enderta, historically it is known as Ashendye, and is colorfully celebrated on August 16-21 E.C.
