1. Homeland
2. Culture
3. Language
4. Religion
5. Living Conditions
6. Education
7. Cultural Heritage
8. Sport
9. Entertainment and Recreation
10. Major Holidays
LOCATION: Horn of Africa
POPULATION: 30 million (approximately)
LANGUAGE: Afaan Oromo (Oromiffa)
RELIGION: Original Oromo religion (Waaqa); Islam; Christianity
1. Homeland
Oromo call their nation and country Oromia. They have been living in the Horn of Africa for all of their known history. They are one of the largest ethno nations in Africa with a population estimated at about 30 million people in the mid-1990s. Oromia is bordering with Djibouti, Kenya, Somalia, and Sudan mainly within the Ethiopian Empire and covers an area of 600,000 sq km (232,000 sq mi). The 3.5 million-year-old fossilized human skeleton known as "Lucy," or 'Chaltu" in Oromo, was found in Oromia. Present-day Oromo also live in Kenya and Somalia. During the last decades of the 19th century, Oromo were colonized, incorporated to Ethiopia and lost their independent institutional and cultural development. Great Britain, France, and Italy supported the Ethiopian colonization of Oromo. Oromia is considered the richest region of the Horn of Africa because of its agricultural and natural resources. It is considered by many to be the "bread basket" of the Horn. Agricultural resources including barley, wheat, sorghum, xaafii (a grain), maize, coffee, oil seeds, chat, oranges, and cattle are abundant in Oromia. Oromia is also rich in gold, silver, platinum, marble, uranium, nickel, natural gas, and other minerals. It has several large and small rivers that are necessary for agriculture and to produce hydroelectric power. In spite of all these advantages, a century of colonization by Abyssinia (Ethiopia), a backward nation itself, has meant that the Oromo people have endured a stagnant existence where ignorance and famine have been coupled with ruthless oppression, subjugation, exploitation and above all, extermination. Thus for the last one hundred years under the Ethiopian rule, the Oromo have gained very little, if anything, in the way of political, social and economic progress. Although the Oromo nation is one of the largest in Africa, it is forgotten by or still unknown to the majority of the world today. Unfortunately even the name Oromo is unknown to many, and this should not be allowed to continue. Today, when nearly all of the African peoples have won independence, the Oromo continue to suffer under the most backward and savage Ethiopian settler colonialism. In its attempt to oppress and eliminate the essential elements of Oromo culture, successive Ethiopian regimes have used cover-up words such as development, relief, settlement, villagization, literacy campaign, democracy and peace to mislead the world. In fact most of these programs and projects have been aimed at displacing Oromo people and denying them freedom, justice, human dignity and peace, thereby hastening the process of Amharization or de-Oromization.
The struggle of the Oromo people is nothing more than an attempt to affirm their own place in history. It seeks freedom, peace and democracy. It is not directed against the masses of a particular nation or nationality, nor against individuals, but rather against Ethiopian colonialism.
2. Culture
Oromo have a very rich culture, fostered by the size of the population and large land areas with diverse climatic conditions. Although Oromo have their own unique culture, history, language, and civilization, they are culturally related to Afar, Somalis, Sidamas, Agaws, Bilens, Bejas, Kunamas, and others. In fact, Oromo is one of the most numerous nations in Africa, which enjoys a homogeneous culture and shares a common language, history and descent and once shared common political, religious and legal institutions.
During their long history, the Oromo developed their own cultural, social and political system known as the Gadaa system. It is a uniquely democratic political and social institution that governed the life of every individual in the society from birth to death. Oromo are best known for their egalitarian social system, gada and their military organization that enabled them to emerge as one of the strongest ethno nations in the Horn of Africa between the 12th and 19th centuries. Gada was a form of constitutional government; it was also a social system. Politically it was practiced through the election of political leaders by adult male suffrage every eight years; corrupt or dictatorial leaders would be removed from power through buqqisu, or recall before their official tenure. In the Gada system, there is an institution known as siqqee to protect the rights of Oromo women. This institution promoted gender equality in Oromo society.
Gada closely connected social and political structures. Male Oromo were organized according to age and generation for both social and political activities. The gada government was based on democratic principles: the abbaa bokku was an elected "chairman" who presided over the assembly, and the abbaa duula (the defence minister) was one of the leading figures in the government. The abba boku presided over the assembly and proclaimed the laws, and the abbaa duula was the leader of the army. A council known as shanee or salgee and retired gada officials also assisted the abba boku in running the government. Gada laws were passed by the chaffee (assembly) and implemented by officials.
All gada officials were elected for eight years by universal adult male suffrage; the main criteria for election to office included bravery, knowledge, honesty, demonstrated ability, and courage. The gada government worked on local, regional, and central levels. The political philosophy of the gada system was manifested in three main principles of checks and balances created to avoid subordination and exploitation: periodic succession of eight years, balanced opposition between different parties, and power sharing between higher and lower political organs. The gada government was based on popular democracy and equal representation for adult males. This government had independent executive, legislative, and judicial branches for balancing and checking the power of political leaders to avoid corruption and misuse of power. Some elements of gada are still practiced in several parts of Oromia. The gada system was the pillar of Oromo culture and civilization, and it helped Oromo develop democratic political, economic, social, and religious institutions for many centuries. The gada political system and military organization enabled Oromo to defend themselves against enemies who were competence with them for land, water, and power for many centuries. Today Oromia is a colony and Oromo are engaged in a national liberation movement to achieve their independence. Oromo support liberation organizations and the Oromo Liberation Army. There are many Oromo organizations in North America, Europe and Africa that support the Oromo national movement. Oromo are struggling for self-determination and to form an Oromian State that will reflect the gada system of popular and representative democracy
3. Language
The Oromo nation has a single common mother tongue and basic common culture. The Oromo language, afaan Oromo or Oromiffa, belongs to the eastern Cushetic group of languages and is the most extensive of the forty or so Cushetic languages. The Oromo language is very closely related to Konso, with more than fifty percent of the words in common, closely related to Somali and distantly related to Afar and Saho.
Oromiffa is considered one of the five most widely spoken languages from among the approximately 1000 languages of Africa, (Gragg, 1982). Taking into consideration the number of speakers and the geographic area it covers, Oromiffa, most probably rates second among the African indigenous languages. It is the third most widely spoken language in Africa, after Arabic and Hausa. It is the mother tongue of about 30 million Oromo people living in the Ethiopian Empire and neighbouring countries. Perhaps not less than two million non-Oromo speak Oromiffa as a second language. In fact Oromiffa is a lingua franca in the whole of Ethiopian Empire except for the northern part. It is a language spoken in common by several members of many of the nationalities like Harari, Anuak, Barta, Sidama, Gurage, etc., who are neighbours to Oromo.
Before colonization, the Oromo people had their own social, political and legal system. Trade and various kinds of skills such as wood and metal works, weaving, pottery and tannery flourished. Pastorals and agriculture were well developed. Oromo have an extraordinarily rich heritage of proverbs, stories, songs and riddles. They have very comprehensive plant and animal names. The various customs pertaining to marriage, paternity, dress, etc. have elaborate descriptions. All these activities and experiences have enriched Oromiffa. Foreigners who visited or lived in Oromia, particularly European missionaries, have written much about Oromiffa. Several works have been written in Oromiffa using Roman, Sabean and Arabic scripts. Printed material in Oromiffa include the Bible, religious and non-religious songs, dictionaries, short stories, proverbs, poems, school books, grammar, etc. The Bible itself was translated into Oromiffa in Sabean script about a century ago by an Oromo slave called Onesimos Nasib, alias Hiikaa, (Gustave, 1978).
Roman, Arabic and Sabean scripts are all foreign to Oromiffa. None of them fit well the peculiar features of the sounds (phonology), in Oromiffa. The main deficiency of the Arabic script is the problem of vowel differentiation. The Sabean script does not differentiate gemination of consonants and glottal stops. Moreover, it has seven vowels against ten for Oromiffa. Hence, the Roman script is relatively best suited for transcription of Oromiffa. An Italian scholar, Cerulli (1922), who attempted to write in Oromiffa using both Sabean and Roman, expressed the short comings of the language with letters of the Ethiopic (Sabean) alphabet, which express very imperfectly even the sounds of the Ethiopian language, is very near impossible "reading Galla language written in Ethiopic alphabet is very like deciphering a secret writing.? With the development of the Oromo national movement, Oromo intellectuals, linguists, political and cultural groups have strongly advocated the use of Roman alphabet with necessary modifications The Latin script was adopted for this language in the early l970s. Every Oromo word has historical or contextual meanings. A number of Oromo scholars in the past attempted to discover scripts suited for writing Oromiffa. The work of Sheikh Bakri Saphalo is one such attempt. His scripts were different in form but followed the symbol-sounds forming patterns of the Sabean system. Even though his scripts had serious shortcomings and could not be considered for writing Oromiffa now, it had gained popularity in some parts of eastern Oromia in the 1950s, before it was discovered by the colonial authorities and suppressed.
Oromiffa has been not only completely neglected but also ruthlessly suppressed by the Ethiopian authorities; a determined effort for almost a century to destroy and replace it with the Amharic language has been mostly ineffectual. Thus, the Etherisation and the destruction of the Oromo national identity have partially failed.
4. Religion
Oromo recognize the existence of a Supreme Being or Creator that they call Waaqa. They have three major religions: original Oromo religion (Waaqa), Islam, and Christianity. The original religion considers the organization of human, spiritual, and physical worlds to be interconnected phenomena whose existence and functions are regulated by their creator, God or Waaqa. Through each person's ayaana (spiritual connection), Waaqa acts in the person's life. There are three Oromo concepts that explain the organization and interconnection of human, spiritual, and physical worlds: ayyaana, uuma (nature), and saffu (the ethical and moral code).
Uuma includes everything created by Waaqa, including ayaana. Saffu is a moral and ethical code that Oromo use to differentiate bad from good and wrong from right. The Oromo religious institution is called the qallu; the qallu is the centre of the Oromo religious view. QalIu leaders traditionally played important religious roles in Oromo society. The Ethiopian colonizing structure suppressed the Oromo system of thought and worldview by eliminating Oromo cultural experts such as the raa gas (Oromo prophets), the ayaantus (time reckoners), and oral historians. Today Islam and Christianity play important religious roles in Oromo society. In some Oromo regions, Orthodox Christianity was imposed on the Oromo by the Ethiopian colonizing structure; in other areas, Oromo accepted Protestant Christianity to resist Orthodox Christianity. Some Oromo accepted Islam to resist Ethiopian colonialism and Orthodox Christianity. Islam was imposed on other Oromo by Turko-Egyptian colonialism. However, some Oromo have continued to practice their original religion. Both Christianity and Islam have been greatly influenced by the original Oromo religion.
5. Living Conditions
Since Oromo are colonial subjects, Ethiopian elites and their supporters mainly extract their resources. The majority of Oromo are rural people who lack social amenities, such as school and health services. They do not have basic services such as clean water, electricity, appropriate housing, transportation facilities, clinics, and hospitals. Ethiopians mainly use electricity that is produced by Oromian Rivers.
Because Oromo have been denied education by successive Ethiopian regimes, the size of the Oromo middle class is very small. The living condition of this class is better than that of the Oromo majority. Members of this class mainly live in urban areas.
Currently, because of the military conflict between the Oromo and the Ethiopian government, Oromo peasants are constantly harassed, murdered, or imprisoned by the government. The Ethiopian government robs their properties, claiming that they are harbouring guerrilla fighters. Because of poverty, war, lack of modern agricultural technology, lack of education, and exploitation, the living standard of the Oromo people is very low. They live in overcrowded huts; most huts house large, extended families consisting of parents and grandparents, brothers and their wives, unmarried brothers and sisters, and other relatives. Oromo use human labour and animals such as donkeys and horses for transportation in rural areas. They use cars, wagons, buses, and trucks for transportation in cities.
6. Education
Literacy is very low in Oromo society, probably less than 5%. Oromo mainly depend on family and community education to transmit knowledge to the younger generation since they do not have control over modern education. Older family and community members have a social responsibility to teach children about Oromo culture, history, tradition, values, etc. When some children go to colonial school to learn what the colonial government wants to teach them, oral historians and cultural experts make sure that these children properly learn about Oromo society.
Although their numbers are very limited, there are three kinds of schools in Oromia: missionary, madarasa (Islamic), and government schools. Islamic schools teach through sixth grade, and the other schools teach until twelfth grade. Oromo do not have control over these schools; hence, these schools constantly attack Oromo culture and values. Despite all these problems, Oromo parents have very high expectations for education. If they can afford it, they do not hesitate to send their children to school.
7. Cultural Heritage
Respect and social equality are expected among members of the Oromo community. These values are expressed in geerarsa or mirisa (singing), storytelling, poems, proverbs, etc. Geerarsa is used to praise good behaviour and discourage behaviour that is not approved by the community. Respect for elders, social responsibility for the community and individuals, helping others, bravery, hard work, and work excellence are all appreciated. Historical and cultural knowledge is admired. Oromo can count their family trees through 10 generations or more.
Oromo cultural heritages are expressed through mirisa, weedu, and different cultural activities. There are different kinds of weedu, such as weedufuudha (marriage song), weedu lola (war song), and weedu hoji (work song) etc. Oromo women have their own song called helee that they use to express their love for their country, children, husbands, etc. Young boys sing to call girls to marriage ceremonies by singing hurmiso. Men do dhichisa (a men's dance to celebrate the marriage ceremony) and girls do shagoyee (singing and dancing) during marriage ceremonies. There are prayer songs called shubisu and deedisu.
8. Sports
Hunting and military skills were important sports in pre-colonial Oromia. Oromo men used to hunt large animals for a test of manhood; they also used products of the game, such as hides, ivory, and horns. Hunting was seen as a school of warfare for young Oromo; it helped them learn how to handle their weapons and prepare themselves for difficult conditions.
Popular sports played by children and young adults in Oromo society include gugssa (horseback riding), qillee or kiliti (field hockey), darboo (throwing spears), qabso or waldhaansso (wrestling), utaalu (jumping), running, and (dakki) swimming. Oromo society has produced athletes who have competed and won in international sports events. Wami Biratttu. An Oromo soldier serving in the Ethiopian colonial army was the first Oromo athlete to participate in the Olympic games, in 1956, and he became a source of inspiration for other Oromo athletes.
Ababa Biqila, another Oromo soldier, won the 1960 Rome Olympic Marathon and set a new world record by running barefoot. Ababa baqila repeated Marathon victory in 1964 in Tokyo. Another Oromo soldier, Mamo Wolde, became the 1968 Olympic Marathon Champion. Other Oromo soldiers had also succeeded in international competitions, including Mohammed Kedir, 10,000-meter bronze medallist, and Kebede Balcha Bakala Daballe, Daraje Nadhi, Wadajo Bulti, Eshetu Tura. Adunya Lama, and Challa Urgeesa who were international cross-country champions. Their Oromo coach, Nugussie Roba. Won three consecutive international cross-country titles.
In 1988, Ababa Makonnen, Ababa Biqila's nephew, won the Tokyo Marathon, and Wadajo Bulti and Kabada Balcha came in second and third Daraje Nadhi and Kalacha Mataferia won first and second place, respectively, in the World Cup marathon in 1989. In 1992, Daraartu Tullu, an Oromo woman, won the gold medal for her victory in the 10,000-meter race in the Barcelona Olympic Games. In 1996, another Oromo woman, Fatuma Roba, became a women's marathon gold-medalist; she was the first from Africa to win this kind of victory, and she was the fastest marathon runner in the world. The successes of these Oromo athletes demonstrate the rich cultural heritage of athleticism in Oromo society. Unfortunately, the victories of these athletes went to Ethiopia, not Oromia.
9. Entertainments and Recreation
Oromo come together and enjoy themselves during ceremonies such as weddings, holidays, and harvest festivals. During these events they eat, drink, sing, dance, talk, etc. Boys and young adults use jumping, running, swimming, wrestling, and other sports activities for recreation. Oromo adults like to come together and sit and chat during weekends, after work, and on holidays.
10. Major Holidays
Oromo original holidays, such as Ireecha or buuta, gubaa and Islamic and Christian holidays are celebrated in Oromo society. Since 1978, Oromo have started to celebrate an Oromo national day to remember Oromo heroines and heroes who have sacrificed their lives for the liberation of their people and country from Ethiopian colonialism.
Adopted from: Oromia by Gada Melba
(World mark Encyclopaedia of Cultures and Daily life volume 1- Africa)
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