The Eritrean national identity began to develop during the Scramble for Africa, when Italy claimed Eritrea as one of its colonies.

[23] Following Italy's defeat in World War II and the subsequent British administration of Eritrea, the former colony was federated with Ethiopia in 1952.

[27] The 3rd century Iranian prophet Mani wrote that Aksum was one of four great powers of the world, along with Persia, Rome, and China.

[31] Following the fall of Aksum, the land of present-day Eritrea was part of Medri Bahri.

The kingdom lasted until Italian colonization in 1889,[32] however the coastal regions were ruled by other polities during this time.

[38] Eritrea officially gained independence in 1993; since then it has been governed by Isaias Afwerki, whose regime has been defined by an extremely poor human rights record.

[41] The majority of the Tigrinya inhabit the highlands of Eritrea; however, migration to other parts of the country has occurred.

They are 96% Christians, (of which 90% are of the Eritrean Orthodox faith, 5% Roman Catholic and Eastern Catholic (whose mass is held in Ge'ez as opposed to Latin), and 5% belonging to various Protestant and other Christian denominations, the majority of which belong to the (Lutheran) Evangelical Church of Eritrea).

They are a predominantly Muslim nomadic people who inhabit the northern, western, and coastal lowlands of Eritrea, where they constitute 30% of local residents.

The Jeberti people in Eritrea trace descent from early Muslim adherents.

Afars in Eritrea number about 397,000 individuals, the smallest population out of the countries they reside in.

[42] They are primarily concentrated in the north-central areas, in and around the city of Keren, and south towards Asmara, the nation's capital.

Many of them entered Eritrea from Kush (central Sudan) in the 8th century and settled at Merara, after which they went to Lalibela and Lasta.

Although some Kunama still practice traditional beliefs, most are converts to either Christianity (Roman Catholic and Protestant) or Islam.

They are predominantly Muslim and are the only ethnic group in Eritrea to have Arabic as their mother tongue, specifically the Hejazi dialect.