Anbessa Teferra: First Ethiopian Immigrant Full Professor in Israel











In August 2025, Tel Aviv University quietly marked a milestone that deserves more than a passing headline: the promotion of Dr. Anbessa Teferra, an Ethiopian-born linguist, to full professor.

It is a personal victory for a man who left Addis Ababa in the late 1980s with advanced degrees in linguistics and an unshakable belief in the power of education. It is also a national milestone: Teferra was already the first Ethiopian immigrant to be appointed senior lecturer at any Israeli university, back in 2015. Now, with this promotion, he has broken another barrier in a system where Ethiopian-Israelis remain vastly underrepresented in the highest ranks of academia.

The hard truth about representation

Israel has no shortage of ceremonial “firsts.” But they too often function as photo opportunities, untethered from systemic change. Teferra’s achievement is different. It was not bestowed; it was earned, over decades of work that bridged two worlds.

Born in Ethiopia in 1962, he completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in linguistics at Addis Ababa University, where he taught for five years before immigrating to Israel in 1989. He mastered Hebrew, earned his PhD in linguistics from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem—becoming the first Ethiopian immigrant to do so—and methodically climbed the academic ladder at Tel Aviv University.

A record of scholarship and leadership

Teferra has published widely on Amharic linguistics, the influence of Hebrew on Ethiopian languages, and the preservation of Ethiopian Jewish textual traditions. His more than a dozen academic publications include Hebraized Amharic in Israel and studies of Semitic grammar and vocabulary contact.

At Tel Aviv University, he heads the Semitic Linguistics Program, one of the few in Israel where students can study Amharic, Geʿez, and Sidama at an advanced level. His classes attract Ethiopians and non-Ethiopians alike, reflecting his ability to make the study of Ethiopian languages relevant to a broader audience.

Beyond the campus, Teferra serves as national supervisor for Amharic studies in Israel’s high schools, shaping curricula and overseeing matriculation standards. This role ensures that younger generations of Ethiopian-Israelis have structured access to their heritage language, turning cultural pride into academic capital.

Protecting a heritage

Teferra’s most impactful work may be in heritage preservation. He co-leads the Orit Guardians initiative, a master’s program at TAU dedicated to the sacred literature of Ethiopian Jewry. The program trains students to document, interpret, and teach from ancient Ethiopian Jewish texts.

In 2024–25, his team helped identify two 15th-century Ethiopian Jewish manuscripts—among the oldest documented—linking centuries-old tradition to modern scholarship. Such discoveries are more than historical curiosities; they are proof that Ethiopian Jewry’s contributions are integral to Jewish civilization.

The lesson for Israel’s universities

Teferra’s rise shows what is possible when institutions recognize and invest in talent that does not fit their historical mold. But it also exposes how rare that recognition remains. A single full professor of Ethiopian origin is not a sign that the system works; it is a sign of how far the system still has to go.

If Israel’s universities are serious about inclusion, they must create pathways that make Teferra’s story less exceptional. That means identifying talent early, mentoring aggressively, funding research in fields that reflect the full diversity of Israeli society, and holding themselves accountable for who gets hired and promoted.

Beyond the milestone

Titles matter. They confer authority over hiring, budgets, and curriculum. But the deeper work is in the programs he has built, the manuscripts he has preserved, and the students he has mentored—work that will outlast any headline.

Israel does not just need “firsts.” It needs “manys.” And it needs them not for diversity’s sake alone, but because the knowledge they carry enriches the whole.

Dr. Anbessa Teferra’s career is a reminder that when a university opens its doors to the margins, it doesn’t lower its standards—it raises the ceiling for everyone.