Facts About Oromo People
A lot of things have gone wrong with the world. Sure, we have a lot going for us today. We have the latest smartphones and the internet which can connect us to people anywhere in the world within seconds. We also have smart devices in our home and our TVs and washing machines are intelligent too. Our air conditioners know when it is time for them to shut down. But technology will never come close to the things humans can do or should do and that’s why if we are falling behind in something, it is totally our fault. The world may have gotten better in one aspect but if we are ignoring our duties, we are making it worse in some way too.
Today, we don’t read up about cultures but we do look up famous trends to follow them. Most of the time, cultures don’t get accurately depicted in TV shows and movies. And more often than not, the people writing those traditions have no idea about the truth. This is how we hurt each other and put distance between communities. A lot can be accomplished if we learn to appreciate each other for who we are, and not for internet points.
As long as we continue to see different cultures as an opportunity to talk about something unique for point-scoring or introduce new characters in a story, we will never get to know how people live in the world. We can’t get closer to people if we don’t know all aspects of their lives. In today’s world, we don’t have time to read up all about different cultures and so we end up focusing only on the shining aspects that can be used in conversations for point-scoring. We forget that sometimes people do suffer because of the traditions of their society. We ignore the fact that not all good things about a culture should be shown on the big screen. There are many unique aspects of every culture which make them fascinating to study, if only we focus on the right details.
Ethnic Groups and The Oromo People:
African ethnic groups are known for having beautiful cultures. Cultural diversity can be seen in almost every African state where more than one ethnic group resides. Each of these groups also has fascinating histories that connect them with ancient traditions, humans, and cultures. Many ethnicities make up the majority of the population in different African states. That’s how their way of living, their language, and their Oromo culture end up becoming the dominant lifestyle in that country.
The Oromo language, also known as Afaan Oromoo, is spoken as a first language by 87% of Oromia’s 27 million people.
What is the population of Oromo in Ethiopia?
The Oromo people are the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia and make up 34.5% of the country’s population. The current population of the Oromo people in Ethiopia is 37 million. Although native to Ethiopia, some Oromo communities can also be found in Kenya and Somalia. Diaspora communities can be found in Canada and Australia.
What is the culture of Oromo?
The Oromo people are known for their Gadaa system. It is a democratic system of governance in which a leader is elected for 8 years. The Gadaa council was responsible for the regulation of every aspect of life and not just the political side of things. The Oromo people also made their own calendar which is similar to ones made by the Chinese and Mayans.
Who is the father of Oromo?
Oromo is the largest ethnic group that is native to Ethiopia. According to oral history, Orma is the father of all Oromos. Orma had two sons, Borana and Barentu. The Oromo people of today are divided into two major religions known as Borana Oromo and Barentu Oromo. They are named after the two sons of Orma.
Borana Oromo are a subethnic section of the Oromo people who live in southern Ethiopia and northern Kenya. Thousands of people of Borana Oromo speak Oromo, which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic large languages family.
How many ethnic groups are there in Ethiopia?
Ethiopia is known for its ethnic and linguistic diversity. Ethiopian society is home to 80 different ethnic groups. Out of them, the largest ethnic group is the Oromo people. Amhara and Somali are the second and third largest ethnic groups in Ethiopia. The majority of the Ethiopian population speaks an Afro-Asiatic language.
Who is the father of Oromo?
The father of the Oromo people was Orma, according to the Oromo oral history. Today, the ethnic group of the Oromo people, which is native to Ethiopia, is divided into two branches: Borana Oromo and Barentu Oromo. The branches are named after two brothers Borana and Barentu, who were the sons of Orma.
How old is the Oromo language?
Although the Oromo people are one of the oldest ethnic groups in Africa, not much attention has been given to the historical study of their language. The Oromo people have been around since the 15th century, so one can assume that their language has also been around for a few centuries now.
What is the population of Oromo in Ethiopia?
Ethiopia is an ethnically diverse country. 80 different ethnic groups call Ethiopia their home. Oromo is the largest ethnic group in the country. The total number of Oromo people living in the country is 37 million. They make up 34.5% of the population of Ethiopia. A small percentage of Oromos can be found in other African countries too.
What does Oromo means?
The name Oromo was derived from “Ilm Orma,” which means “children of Oromo.” “Ilm Orma” also means “children of Men.” Since Orma is considered the father of all Oromos, this is why the people were named after him. The Oromo people are one of the most prominent ethnic groups in Ethiopian society.
Facts About Oromo People:
Here are some interesting facts about the Oromo people:
- Oromo beliefs: They follow their traditional religion Waaqeffanna since ancient times. It is a monotheistic religion and this religious conversion is actively practiced by three percent of the current Oromo population living in Ethiopia. In this religion, Waaqa Tokkicha is the supreme God. The rest of the population follows either Christianity or Islam.
- The language of these people is called the Oromo language. It has a few grammatical similarities with English but has very complicated phonology. It is spoken in other countries of Africa too, including Kenya and South Africa. It is an Afroasiatic language that is written in the Latin alphabet. For a long time, the language was banned and could not be studied in school. That’s why the Oromos speak it proudly today as an act of resistance.
- The majority of the Oromo people are farmers. Almost 90% of them live in rural areas and work in agriculture. They are known for producing coffee and pulses. A small percentage of the Oromos live as nomads and keep traveling while tending to their animals at the same time.
- Ethnic conflict has disturbed the lives of many Oromos. Some of them have even moved out of Ethiopia because of it. Those who have started living in first-world countries like the UK and the US actively participated in protests against the ruling regime of Ethiopia.
- They have their own system of governance called the Gadaa. The Gadaa council is based on eight years of tenure, after which elections are held to elect new officials. It is one of the earliest examples of a fully developed democratic system. The Oromos continued to follow this system in northern Ethiopia during the time when there was no central authority.
- This ethnic group has its own calendar. It is completely different from the calendar that the rest of the world follows. In this calendar, each day of the month is given a name and the new year falls in October. This sophisticated calendar is somewhat like the ones found among the Mayans and the Hindus. This lunar-stellar calendar has no weeks. There are twelve months in a year and 29.5 days in each month. But there are only 27 names for the days of the month which is why the first two or three names are repeated. The months are identified by the phase of the moon.
- Around the eighteenth century, the Macha Oromo crossed the Gojeb river and led an invasion of the Kingdom of Kaffa. Here they found formidable natural barriers that opposed their advance toward Kaffa. The mountainous jungle terrain made rapid cavalry attack and retreat virtually impossible and their advance was halted by the Kafficho. They were however able to conquer all of the territories north of the Gojeb including the city of Jimma.
- The Oromo Liberation Front is an Ethiopian political party established in 1973 by Oromo nationalists to promote self-determination for the Oromo people inhabiting today’s Oromia Region and Oromia Zone in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. The OLF has offices in Addis Ababa, Washington, D.C., and Berlin from where it operates Amharic and Oromo radio stations.
- Political movement: Oromo national movement has been challenging and transforming Ethiopian imperial politics, tracks the different forms and phases of the movement, and maps out its future direction.
- The majority of Oromos have refused to join Ethiopian political organization and have opted for an independent Oromo organization.
The Oromo are a Cushitic ethnic group and nation native to the Oromia region of Ethiopia, who speak the Oromo language as their mother tongue (also called Afaan Oromoo or Oromiffa), which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afroasiatic language family.
Oromo and Somali belong to the eastern Cushitic linguistic family.
They are one of the largest ethnic groups in Africa, known as the horn of Africa since ancient times. Oromo society is under Gadaa council. The major religions of Oromo are Borana Oromo and Barentu Oromo.
The interesting culture and customs of the Oromo people make them the ideal topic for study for anyone who wants to get to know the world a little more. These people have been on the earth for quite some time and can provide us with some fascinating information about the past.
