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Ariana Austin Makonnen

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American philanthropist and member of the Ethiopian Imperial Family

Princess Ariana
Princess Ariana at the Seeds of Africa Benefit in New York City
BornAriana Joy Lalita Austin
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Spouse Prince Joel Dawit Makonnen ​ ​(m. 2017)​
Names
Ariana Joy Lalita Austin Makonnen
HouseSolomon (by marriage)
FatherBobby William Austin
MotherJoy Ford
ReligionEthiopian Orthodox
OccupationPhilanthropist, writer, arts manager
Education
Imperial family of Ethiopia
  • Descendants of Princess Ijigayehu:
    • Prince Samson Fikre Selassie
    • Prince Bekere Fikre Selassie
      Princess Donna Fikre Selassie
    • Prince Yisehaq Fikre Selassie
    • Princess Rahel Fikre Selassie
    • Princess Aster Fikre Selassie
    • Princess Meheret Fikre Selassie
  • Princess Maryam Senna
  • Princess Sehin Azebe
  • Princess Sifrash Bizu
Extended familyDescendants of Prince Makonnen:
  • The Dowager Duchess of Harar
  • The Duke of Harar
    The Duchess of Harar
  • Princess Adey-Abeba Makonnen
  • Prince Philip Tafari Makonnen
    Princess Aster Abatow
    • Prince David Tafari Makonnen
    • Prince Isaiah Tafari Makonnen
    • Princess Ayla Tafari Makonnen
  • Prince Baeda Maryam Makonnen
    Princess Mahelate Baeda Mariam
    • Princess Blaine Baeda Mariam

Descendants of Prince Sahle Selassie:

Princess Mahisente Habte Mariam

Extended familyDescendants of Emperor Yohannes IV:

Princess Ariana Austin Makonnen of Ethiopia (née Ariana Joy Lalita Austin) is an American writer, arts manager and philanthropist. She is the founder of the evening arts festival Art All Night and of the creative agency French Thomas. In 2018, she and her husband launched Old World/New World Productions, a media company that produces content focusing on the African diaspora.

Makonnen, who is the granddaughter of Lord Mayor John Meredith Ford of Georgetown, Guyana, serves as the Goodwill Ambassador of Friends of Guyana. In 2019, she spoke at the Third Annual Women's Leadership and Business Conference at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre. She is a member of the Ethiopian imperial family through her marriage to Prince Joel Dawit Makonnen, the great-grandson of Emperor Haile Selassie I.

Family

Makonnen was born in Washington, D.C., to Bobby William Austin, president of the Neighborhood Associates Corporation (NAC) and the first African-American full-time faculty member at Georgetown University, and Joy Ford, the former executive director of Humanities DC, an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. She is of African-American and Indo-Guyanese descent. Her maternal grandfather, John Meredith Ford, was Lord Mayor of Georgetown, Guyana. Her maternal great-grandfather, Thomas Janki, was the first ordained Presbyterian elder for Demerara in British Guiana.

Education and career

Makonnen graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor's degree in English literature from Fisk University. While at Fisk, she was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. As an undergraduate she studied abroad at Magdalen College, Oxford and through Semester at Sea. She has a master's degree in arts education and creative writing from Harvard University. After finishing school she moved to Paris and worked as a teacher and freelance journalist. Inspired by the French art festival Nuit Blanche, she founded and directed Art All Night, an evening arts festival in Washington, D.C. featuring visual arts, live paintings, musical performances, light projections, and poetry readings. Five years after starting Art All Night, Makonnen founded French Thomas, a creative agency that produced cultural and educational experiences in New York City, Camden and Washington, D.C. She works in philanthropy at a division of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors and serves as the Goodwill Ambassador of Friends of Guyana. She has worked as a contributing writer for HuffPost.

In November 2018 Makonnen and her husband launched Old World/New World Productions, a media company that produces documentaries, feature films, and television shows focused on Africa and the African diaspora.

In May 2019 Makonnen was a co-host at a salon dinner for women leaders hosted by German diplomat Emily Haber.

In September 2019 Makonnen was a speaker at the third annual Women's Leadership and Business Conference, PowHERful: Transition from Inspiration to Action at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre in Guyana. She delivered a speech on cultural entrepreneurship.

Personal life

She met Prince Joel Dawit Makonnen, a great-grandson of the last Emperor of Ethiopia, at Pearl nightclub in Washington, D.C. in December 2005. She and Prince Joel Dawit Makonnen were engaged in 2014. The couple were married on 9 September 2017 in an Ethiopian Orthodox ceremony at Debre Genet Medhanealem Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church in Temple Hills, Maryland. Makonnen converted from Presbyterianism to Orthodox Christianity shortly before the wedding. The wedding, which was officiated by thirteen priests, was featured in The New York Times and went viral, receiving international attention. The couple were both crowned during the ceremony per Orthodox matrimony tradition. The reception was held at Foxchase Manor in Manassas, Virginia. There were over three hundred guests at the wedding, including Prince Ermias Sahle Selassie, Prince Paul Makonnen, Prince Phillip Makonnen, Prince Beedemariam Makonnen, Princess Mary Asfaw Wossen, Johnnetta Cole, Sharon Pratt, and Brandon Todd. The wedding festivities lasted five days, from 5 September until 10 September.

Prior to the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, media outlets listed Makonnen along with Princess Angela of Liechtenstein, Princess Keisha Omilana of Ipetu-Ijesha, Princess Sikhanyiso Dlamini of Swaziland, Emma Thynn, Viscountess Weymouth, Cécile de Massy, and Monica von Neumann as modern examples of black royal and noble women. A resurgence of articles about African royalty and nobles of African heritage, including Makonnen, occurred after the British royal wedding.

References

  1. "Royal Wedding : Ethiopian Prince Joel Dawit Makonnen Haile Selassie Married Ms. Ariana Joy Lalita Austin on Sunday 9 September". Little Ethiopia. Archived from the original on 28 November 2020. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  2. ^ "PRINCESS ARIANA AUSTIN MAKONNEN". Meridian. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
  3. Swietek, Wes (26 October 2017). "Royal wedding had Bowling Green link". Kentucky New Era. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  4. ^ Rogers, Katie (13 October 2017). "She Met Her Prince (for Real!) at a D.C. Nightclub". The New York Times.
  5. Hurd, Gordon (14 October 2017). "Bride met her 'Prince Charming' — as in actual royalty – in a Washington, D.C., nightclub". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  6. ^ "Go Inside Prince Yoel of Ethiopia and Ariana Austin's Royal Wedding". 23 October 2017.
  7. "GWYNN GARNETT DIES". 23 November 1995 – via www.washingtonpost.com.
  8. "Sarojini Ford Obituary - Fort Myers, FL".
  9. "Inside Prince Yoel of Ethiopia and Ariana Austin's Royal Wedding". 20 October 2017.
  10. Dawson, James (17 October 2017). "African Prince Finds Himself An American Princess". LADbible. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  11. Boucher, Phil (20 October 2017). "American Woman Marries African Prince She Met in D.C. Bar, Lives the Movie Coming to America". People. Meredith Corporation. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  12. Makonnen, Ariana (20 June 2019). "An American Princess Opens Up About What It's Really Like to Marry Royalty". Town & Country. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
  13. ^ "An American woman married an Ethiopian prince she met in a nightclub – and the photos are magical". 16 October 2017.
  14. "Ariana Austin – HuffPost". www.huffingtonpost.com.
  15. "Ariana Austin Makonnen on Instagram: "We're ready🙌🏽 On Friday night, we held the soft launch of our new production company Old World/New World-which will give a fresh take on…"". Instagram. Archived from the original on 25 December 2021. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
  16. "HIH Prince Joel David Makonnen on Instagram: "Thank you to @neuehouse for hosting us last night at the "soft" launch of our OLD WORLD/NEW WORLD Production company. Thank you to everyone…"". Instagram. Archived from the original on 25 December 2021. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
  17. "POLITICO Playbook: How long can Dems hold back on impeachment?". Politico.
  18. Chabrol, Denis (4 September 2019). "Guyanese-parented Ethiopia princess to participate in Annual Women's Leadership and Business Conference". Demerara Waves. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
  19. "Ethiopian royalty headed to Guyana". 13 September 2019.
  20. Matera, Avery. "Royal Wedding Gowns Through the Years, in Honor of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Wedding". Teen Vogue. Condé Nast. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  21. "Girl Marries Prince: Real Life 'Coming To America' Story". 18 October 2017. Archived from the original on 17 July 2019. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  22. Murphy, Carrie (18 October 2017). "An American Woman Met An Ethiopian Prince at a Bar—And They Had Quite The Lavish Wedding". simplemost. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  23. Masigan, Sammie (25 October 2017). "American Harvard Graduate Is Now Princess of Ethiopia". LifeStyleAsia. Retrieved 6 August 2018./
  24. Thompson, Desire (18 October 2017). "Woman Becomes Princess After Marrying African Prince She Met at a Nightclub". VIBE. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  25. Embury-Dennis, Tom (17 October 2017). "American woman marries Ethiopian prince she met in nightclub". The Independent. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  26. "Wedding of Haile Selassie's great-grandson sees union of Ethiopian, Guyanese heritages". Stabroek News. 14 October 2017. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  27. Mckenzie, Joi-Marie (19 October 2017). "How this bride found out her husband is a real-life Ethiopian prince". ABC News. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  28. Wade, Valerie (29 November 2017). "Does Meghan Markle Need to Be the Black Princess You Want Her to Be?".
  29. "Is the royal wedding a cause for feminist celebration or condemnation? Yes". 15 May 2018.
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