The Oromo people (Oromo: Oromoo) are a
Cushitic ethnic group inhabiting Ethiopia. They are the largest ethnic
group in Ethiopia and represent 34.5% of Ethiopia's population. Oromos
speak the Oromo language as a mother tongue (also called Afaan Oromoo
and Oromiffa), which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic
language family. The word Oromo appeared in European literature for the
first time in 1893 and slowly became common in the second half of the
20th century.
The Galla or Oromo (added by አክሱም ፖስት Aksum Post)
The Oromo people followed their traditional religion Waaqeffanna and used the gadaa system of governance. A leader elected by the gadaa system remains in power only for 8 years, with an election taking place at the end of those 8 years.From the 18th century to the 19th century, Oromos were the dominant influence in northern Ethiopia during the Zemene Mesafint period
The origins and prehistory of the Oromo people prior to the 16th century are based on Oromo oral tradition. Older and subsequent colonial era documents mention the Oromo people as Galla, which has now developed derogatory connotations,[22] but these documents were generally written by members of other ethnic groups. The first verifiable record mentioning the Oromo people by a European cartographer is in the map made by the Italian Fra Mauro in 1460, which uses the term "Galla".
Fra Mauro's term Galla is the most used term, however, until the early 20th century. The term, stated Juxon Barton in 1924, was in use for Oromo people by Abyssinians and Arabs.It was a term for a river and a forest, as well as for the pastoral people established in the highlands of southern Ethiopia. This historical information, according to Mohammed Hassen, is consistent with the written and oral traditions of the Somalis. A journal published by International African Institute suggests it is an Oromo word (adopted by neighbours) for there is a word galla "wandering" or "to go home" in their language.
The Oromo never called themselves "Galla" and resist its use because the term is considered extremely offensive.[28] They traditionally identified themselves by one of their clans (gosas) and now use the common umbrella term of Oromo which connotes "free born people". The word Oromo is derived from Ilm Orma meaning "children of Oromo", or "sons of Men", or "person, stranger".The first known use of the word Oromo to refer to the ethnic group is traceable to 1893.
«ኦሮሞ ጋላ ነው» ኦነግ ለአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅት ከጻፈው የተወሰደ
ከታች የታተመው ታሪካዊ ደብዳቤ ኦነግ ለአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅት እ.ኤ.አ. በሰኔ 1981 ዓ.ም. ከጻፈው ባለ 18 ገጽ ደብዳቤ ውስጥ የተወሰደ ነው። ኦነግ ለአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅት የጻፈው ደብዳቤ ዋና አላማ ድርጅቱ የኦነግን አገር የመመስረት ትግል እንዲደግፍና ኢትዮጵያ የኦሮሞ ቅኝ ገዢ ስለሆነች ከቅኝ ግዛት ነጻ ወጥተው የአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅትን ያቋቋሙ አገሮች ቅኝ ገዢዋን ኢትዮጵያን ከድርጅቱ አባሮ ዋና ጽሕፈት ቤቱን ከአዲስ አበባ ወደ ሌላ የአፍሪካ አገር እንዲያዛውር ለመጠየቅ ነው።
የተሰመረበት የኦነግ ደብዳቤ ክፍል እንደሚያሳየው ኦሮሞ ጋላ እንደሚባል ለአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅት ያስታወቀው ኦነግ ራሱ ነው። ለአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅት በጻፈው ደብዳቤ ኦሮሞ ጋላ እንደሚባል፤ኦሮሞ ማለት ጋላ ማለት እንደሆነ ለአፍሪካውያን በደብዳቤ ሲያስታውቅ የኖረው ኦነግ ለኦሮሞ ልጆች ሲሆን ግን «ጋላ አማራ ያወጣልን ስድብ ነው» እያለ ይዋሻቸዋል።
The Galla or Oromo (added by አክሱም ፖስት Aksum Post)
The Oromo people followed their traditional religion Waaqeffanna and used the gadaa system of governance. A leader elected by the gadaa system remains in power only for 8 years, with an election taking place at the end of those 8 years.From the 18th century to the 19th century, Oromos were the dominant influence in northern Ethiopia during the Zemene Mesafint period
The origins and prehistory of the Oromo people prior to the 16th century are based on Oromo oral tradition. Older and subsequent colonial era documents mention the Oromo people as Galla, which has now developed derogatory connotations,[22] but these documents were generally written by members of other ethnic groups. The first verifiable record mentioning the Oromo people by a European cartographer is in the map made by the Italian Fra Mauro in 1460, which uses the term "Galla".
Fra Mauro's term Galla is the most used term, however, until the early 20th century. The term, stated Juxon Barton in 1924, was in use for Oromo people by Abyssinians and Arabs.It was a term for a river and a forest, as well as for the pastoral people established in the highlands of southern Ethiopia. This historical information, according to Mohammed Hassen, is consistent with the written and oral traditions of the Somalis. A journal published by International African Institute suggests it is an Oromo word (adopted by neighbours) for there is a word galla "wandering" or "to go home" in their language.
The Oromo never called themselves "Galla" and resist its use because the term is considered extremely offensive.[28] They traditionally identified themselves by one of their clans (gosas) and now use the common umbrella term of Oromo which connotes "free born people". The word Oromo is derived from Ilm Orma meaning "children of Oromo", or "sons of Men", or "person, stranger".The first known use of the word Oromo to refer to the ethnic group is traceable to 1893.
«ኦሮሞ ጋላ ነው» ኦነግ ለአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅት ከጻፈው የተወሰደ
ከታች የታተመው ታሪካዊ ደብዳቤ ኦነግ ለአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅት እ.ኤ.አ. በሰኔ 1981 ዓ.ም. ከጻፈው ባለ 18 ገጽ ደብዳቤ ውስጥ የተወሰደ ነው። ኦነግ ለአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅት የጻፈው ደብዳቤ ዋና አላማ ድርጅቱ የኦነግን አገር የመመስረት ትግል እንዲደግፍና ኢትዮጵያ የኦሮሞ ቅኝ ገዢ ስለሆነች ከቅኝ ግዛት ነጻ ወጥተው የአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅትን ያቋቋሙ አገሮች ቅኝ ገዢዋን ኢትዮጵያን ከድርጅቱ አባሮ ዋና ጽሕፈት ቤቱን ከአዲስ አበባ ወደ ሌላ የአፍሪካ አገር እንዲያዛውር ለመጠየቅ ነው።
የተሰመረበት የኦነግ ደብዳቤ ክፍል እንደሚያሳየው ኦሮሞ ጋላ እንደሚባል ለአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅት ያስታወቀው ኦነግ ራሱ ነው። ለአፍሪካ አንድነት ድርጅት በጻፈው ደብዳቤ ኦሮሞ ጋላ እንደሚባል፤ኦሮሞ ማለት ጋላ ማለት እንደሆነ ለአፍሪካውያን በደብዳቤ ሲያስታውቅ የኖረው ኦነግ ለኦሮሞ ልጆች ሲሆን ግን «ጋላ አማራ ያወጣልን ስድብ ነው» እያለ ይዋሻቸዋል።
ከዚህ በፊት እንደተናገርሁት ኦነግ አነግ ከመባሉ በፊት «የጋላ ነጻነት ግንባር» ነበር የሚባለው። ከዚህ በተጨማሪ
ኦነግ ሞቃድሾ የከፈተውን የድርጅቱን የሬዲዮ ጣቢያ «አፋን ጋላ» የሚል ስም ነበር ያወጣለት።
ኦሮሞን ነጻ ለማውጣት ታገልሁ የሚለው ኦነግ ራሱን «ኦሮሞ ጋላ ነው» እያለ ለዓለም አቀፍ ድርጅቶች ሲያስተዋውቅ ኖሮ ነው እንግዲህ «ጋላ አማራ ያወጣልን ስድብ ነው» እያለ የጥንብ አንሳ ፖለቲካውን ሲያካሂድ የኖረው!
Map showing the location of the five Oromo kingdoms in the Gibe region.
Historically, Afaan Oromo-speaking people used their own Gadaa system of governance. Oromos also had a number of independent kingdoms, which they shared with the Sidama people. Among these were the Gibe region kingdoms of Kaffa, Gera, Gomma, Garo, Gumma, Jimma, Leeqa-Nekemte and Limmu-Ennarea.
The earliest known documented and detailed history of the Oromo people was by the Ethiopian monk Abba Bahrey who wrote Zenahu le Galla in 1593, though the synonymous term Gallas was mentioned in mapsor elsewhere much earlier. After the 16th century, they are mentioned more often, such as in the records left by Abba Pawlos, Joao Bermudes, Jerorimo Lobo, Galawdewos, Sarsa Dengel and others. These records suggest that the Oromo were pastoral people in their history, who stayed together. Their animal herds began to expand rapidly and they needed more grazing lands. They began migrating, not together, but after separating. They lacked kings, and had elected leaders called luba based on a gada system of government instead. By the late 16th centuy, two major Oromo confederations emerged: Afre and Sadaqa, which respectively refer to four and three in their language, with Afre emerging from four older clans, and Sadaqa out of three. These Oromo confederations were originally based on southern parts of Ethiopia, but started moving north in the 16th century in what is termed as the "Great Oromo Migration"
According to Richard Pankhurst, an Ethiopia historian, this migration is linked to the first incursions into inland Horn of Africa by Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim. According to historian Marianne Bechhaus-Gerst, the migration was one of the consequences of fierce wars of attrition between Christian and Muslim armies in the Horn of Africa region in the 15th and 16th century which killed a lot of people and depopulated the regions near the Galla lands, but also probably a result of droughts in their traditional homelands. Further, they acquired horses and their gada system helped coordinate well equipped Oromo warriors who enabled fellow Oromos to advance and settle into newer regions starting in the 1520s. This expansion continued through the 17th century.
Both peaceful integration and violent competition between Oromos and other neighboring ethnicities such as the Amhara, Sidama, Afar and the Somali affected politics within the Oromo community. Between 1500 and 1800, there were waves of wars and struggle between highland Christians, coastal Muslim and polytheist population in the Horn of Africa. This caused major redistribution of populations. The northern, eastern and western movement of the Oromos from the south around 1535 mirrored the large-scale expansion by Somalis inland. The 1500–1800 period also saw relocation of the Amhara people, and helped influence contemporary ethnic politics in Ethiopia.
ኦሮሞን ነጻ ለማውጣት ታገልሁ የሚለው ኦነግ ራሱን «ኦሮሞ ጋላ ነው» እያለ ለዓለም አቀፍ ድርጅቶች ሲያስተዋውቅ ኖሮ ነው እንግዲህ «ጋላ አማራ ያወጣልን ስድብ ነው» እያለ የጥንብ አንሳ ፖለቲካውን ሲያካሂድ የኖረው!
Pre-19th Century historical facts
Historically, Afaan Oromo-speaking people used their own Gadaa system of governance. Oromos also had a number of independent kingdoms, which they shared with the Sidama people. Among these were the Gibe region kingdoms of Kaffa, Gera, Gomma, Garo, Gumma, Jimma, Leeqa-Nekemte and Limmu-Ennarea.
The earliest known documented and detailed history of the Oromo people was by the Ethiopian monk Abba Bahrey who wrote Zenahu le Galla in 1593, though the synonymous term Gallas was mentioned in mapsor elsewhere much earlier. After the 16th century, they are mentioned more often, such as in the records left by Abba Pawlos, Joao Bermudes, Jerorimo Lobo, Galawdewos, Sarsa Dengel and others. These records suggest that the Oromo were pastoral people in their history, who stayed together. Their animal herds began to expand rapidly and they needed more grazing lands. They began migrating, not together, but after separating. They lacked kings, and had elected leaders called luba based on a gada system of government instead. By the late 16th centuy, two major Oromo confederations emerged: Afre and Sadaqa, which respectively refer to four and three in their language, with Afre emerging from four older clans, and Sadaqa out of three. These Oromo confederations were originally based on southern parts of Ethiopia, but started moving north in the 16th century in what is termed as the "Great Oromo Migration"
According to Richard Pankhurst, an Ethiopia historian, this migration is linked to the first incursions into inland Horn of Africa by Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim. According to historian Marianne Bechhaus-Gerst, the migration was one of the consequences of fierce wars of attrition between Christian and Muslim armies in the Horn of Africa region in the 15th and 16th century which killed a lot of people and depopulated the regions near the Galla lands, but also probably a result of droughts in their traditional homelands. Further, they acquired horses and their gada system helped coordinate well equipped Oromo warriors who enabled fellow Oromos to advance and settle into newer regions starting in the 1520s. This expansion continued through the 17th century.
Both peaceful integration and violent competition between Oromos and other neighboring ethnicities such as the Amhara, Sidama, Afar and the Somali affected politics within the Oromo community. Between 1500 and 1800, there were waves of wars and struggle between highland Christians, coastal Muslim and polytheist population in the Horn of Africa. This caused major redistribution of populations. The northern, eastern and western movement of the Oromos from the south around 1535 mirrored the large-scale expansion by Somalis inland. The 1500–1800 period also saw relocation of the Amhara people, and helped influence contemporary ethnic politics in Ethiopia.
Video: The Galla invasion of Ethiopia (added by አክሱም ፖስት Aksum Post)
- According to oral and literary evidence, Borana Oromo clan and Garre
Somali clan mutually victimized each other in seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries, particularly near their eastern borders. There were also
periods of relative peace.[ According to Günther Schlee, the Garre
Somali clan replaced the Borana Oromo clan as the dominant ethnic group
in this region. The Borana violence against their neighbors, states
Schlee, was unusual and unlike their behavior inside their community
where violence was considered deviant.
The Oromos are the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia (34.5% of the population), numbering about 25 million.[8] They are predominantly concentrated in Oromia Region in central Ethiopia, the largest region in the country by both population and area. They speak Afan Oromo, the official language of Oromia.Oromos constitute the fifth most populous ethnic group among Africans as a whole and the most populous among Horners specifically.
Oromo also have a notable presence in northern Kenya in the Marsabit County, Isiolo County and Tana River County Totaling to about 470,700: 210,000 Borana 110,500 Gabra 85,000 Orma 45,200 Sakuye and 20,000 Waata.
The Oromo are divided into two major branches that break down into an assortment of clan families. From west to east. The Borana Oromo, also called the Boran, are a pastoralist group living in southern Ethiopia (Oromia) and northern Kenya.[54][55] The Boran inhabit the former provinces of Shewa, Welega, Illubabor, Kafa, Jimma, Sidamo, northern and northeastern Kenya, and a small refugee population in some parts of Somalia.
Barentu/Barentoo or (older) Baraytuma is the other moiety of the Oromo people. The Barentu Oromo inhabit the eastern parts of the Oromia Region in the Zones of Mirab Hararghe or West Hararghe, Arsi Zone, Bale Zone, Debub Mirab Shewa Zone or South West Shewa, Dire Dawa region, the Jijiga Zone of the Somali Region, Administrative Zone 3 of the Afar Region, Oromia Zone of the Amhara Region, and are also found in the Raya Azebo Aanaas in the Tigray Region. (Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica)
