Oromo Oromo Organization of the Communist Party of the USSR Category="Articles lacking sources"Category="Ethnic groups of Ethiopia"Category="Ethnic groups of Kenya"The Oromo are an African ethnic group found in Ethiopia and to a lesser extent Kenya. They are the largest single ethnic group in Ethiopia, numbering over 30 million or approximately 40% of the population. Their native language is the Oromo language.

History

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The Oromo developed as a distinct political and ethnic group some time in the 16th century in what is now southern Ethiopia and northern Kenya, after having migrated from present-day Somalia. They came to the wider notice of the world when they invaded, and nearly overthrew, the Abyssinian Kingdom in the late 1500s.

Society and culture

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Oromo society was traditionally structured in accordance with Gadaa, a Social stratification system partially based on an eight-year cycle of age sets, but over the centuries the age sets grew out-of-alignment with the actual ages of their members, and some time in the 1800s another age set system was instituted. Under gadaa, every eight years the Oromo would hold a popular assembly called the Gumi Gayo, at which laws were established for the following eight years. A king, the Abba Gada, presided over the system for an eight-year term. Gadaa is no longer in wide practice but remains influential.

Religion

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The majority of Oromo people are Sunni Muslims, though there is a substantial number of Oromo Christians. The Christians in the Shewa region of Ethiopia (and other nearby northern parts) are mainly members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, while those in the western Welega region are largely members of the Protestant Mekane Yesus Church (see also P'ent'ay). There are also those who follow the traditional Oromo religion which focuses on the worship of Waaqa Tokkichaa (One God) and is presided over by a high priest, the Qallu. Many Christians and Muslims incorporate aspects of traditional Oromo religion into their faiths.

Politics

A number of political organizations have been formed by the Oromo. These groups include the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), the United Liberation Forces of Oromia (ULFO), the Islamic Front for the Liberation of Oromia (IFLO), the Oromia Liberation Council (OLC), the Oromo National Congress (ONC) and others. Another group, the Oromo People's Democratic Organization (OPDO), is one of the four parties that form the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) coalition. However, these Oromo groups do not all pursue similar agendas: the ONC, for example, was part of the United Ethiopian Democratic Forces coalition that challenged the EPRDF in the Ethiopian general elections of 2005.

Several of these groups seek to create an independent Oromo nation, some using armed force. The proposed nation would share its name and borders with the current Ethiopian region of Oromia where the majority of Oromo people live.

The Oromo were historically called Galla (Amharic origin), therefore one may encounter this name in older texts. However, the Oromo do not use this term to refer to themselves. The name has fallen into disfavor and is now considered to be Pejorative, possibly because of a Folk etymology for "Galla" (Kal la, pronounced Gal la, "he said no") that implies that they refused Muhammad's offer to convert to Islam.

Bibliography

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See also