what does assertion mean in ython code example

Example: assert python

x = "hello"

#if condition returns False, AssertionError is raised:
assert x == "goodbye", "x should be 'hello'"
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "demo_ref_keyword_assert2.py", line 4, in <module>
    assert x == "goodbye", "x should be 'hello'"
AssertionError: x should be 'hello'