What is the history of the Oromo people?

Oromo, the largest ethnolinguistic group of Ethiopia, constituting more than one-third of the population and speaking a language of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic family. Originally confined to the southeast of the country, the Oromo migrated in waves of invasions in the 16th century ce.

What is the Oromo tribe known for?

It is also the most widely spoken Cushitic language and the fourth-most widely spoken language of Africa, after Arabic, Hausa and Swahili. Oromo is spoken as a first language by more than 37 million Oromo people in Ethiopia and by an additional half-million in parts of northern and eastern Kenya.

Who are the AGEW in Ethiopia?

The Agaw or Agew (Ge’ez: አገው Agäw, modern Agew) are a Cushitic language family and pan-ethnic identity native to the northern highlands of Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea.

Who is the father of Ethiopian history?

Menelik II is argued to be the founder of modern Ethiopia. Before the centralisation process he completed, Ethiopia had been devastated by numerous wars, the most recent of which was fought in the 16th century.

Did Oromo came from Madagascar?

For instance, the Abyssinian court historian, Alaqa Taye (1955), alleged that in the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries the Oromo migrated from Asia and Madagascar, entered Africa via Mombasa and spread north and eastwards.

What percent of Ethiopia is Oromo?

34.4%
Ethiopia is home to various ethnicities, predominantly the Oromo at 34.4% of the country’s population and the Amhara, who account for 27% of the population.

Where do AGAW people live?

Ethiopia
Agew Awi (Amharic: አገው አዊ) is one of 11 Zones in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. It is named for the Awi sub-group of the Agaw people, some of whom live in this Zone….Agew Awi Zone.

Who is Kemant in Ethiopia?

4.2 People and Land The Kemant are the original inhabitants of the north central Ethiopia (Gamst, 1969:1). Their historical land stretched from north of Lake Tana, the origin of Abya River (Blue Nile), to North West rural areas around Gonder town (The Interim Committee, 2004EC: 6).

Who named Ethiopia?

Ethiopia was also historically called Abyssinia, derived from the Arabic form of the Ethiosemitic name “ḤBŚT,” modern Habesha. In some countries, Ethiopia is still called by names cognate with “Abyssinia,” e.g. Turkish Habesistan and Arabic Al Habesh, meaning land of the Habesha people.

What language do Oromo speak?

Afaan Oromoo
Oromo people speak Afaan Oromoo, as well as Amharic, Tigrinya, Gurange and Omotic languages. They are mainly Christian and Muslim, while only 3% still follows the traditional religion based on the worshipping of the god Waaq. Oromo are mainly farmers and cattle herders.

What happened to the Oromo people in Ethiopia?

Since then successions of autocrats from Menelik to Meles Zenawi have systematically suppressed Oromo culture, looted Oromo resources, divided the Oromo people by region, religion, etc. and tried to eradicate the identity of the Oromo people in the idiom of Ethiopian unity, thus fostering instability, war and famine for over one century.

Who were the Oromo?

Bates (1979) contends, “The Gallas (Oromo) were a very ancient race, the indigenous stock, perhaps, on which most other peoples in this part of eastern Africa have been grafted.”

What is the history of Oromia?

Oromia was one of the free nations in the horn of Africa until its colonization and occupation by Abyssinia (Ethiopia) at the end of nineteenth century. The original inhabitants of Oromia, the Oromo people, speak and share one common language known as Afaan Oromoo also known as Oromo Language.

What happened to the Oromo College?

For the first three years, the Oromo College was functional to teach theology and linguistics with the focus on Oromo language under the direction of Fr. Emanuel and Louis de Gonzangue Lassere. However, it was unfortunate that the Oromo students of the College could not acclimatize well with the weather and many of them died (Ibid.).