Yejju Oromo people are a sub clan of the
Barento
Barento ( Oromo: ''Bareentoo'') is one of the two major subgroups of the Oromo people. They live in the West Hararghe Zone, East Hararghe Zone, Arsi zone, of the Oromia Region of Ethiopia while the other subgroup named Borana Oromo inhabiting ...
branch of
Oromo people
The Oromo (pron. Oromo language, Oromo: ''Oromoo'') are a Cushitic people, Cushitic ethnic group native to the Oromia region of Ethiopia and parts of Northern Kenya, who speak the Oromo language (also called ''Afaan Oromoo'' or ''Oromiffa''), ...
. They are one of the northernmost communities of Oromo people residing in
Ethiopia.
During the 17th century, the Yejju dynasty, more specifically, the Warra Sheik, or sons of the Sheikh, ruled much of the
Ethiopian Empire during the
Zemene Mesafint or "Era of the Princes", changing the language in the court of
Gondar to the
Oromo language
Oromo ( or ; Oromo: ''Afaan Oromoo''), in the linguistic literature of the early 20th century also called Galla (a name with a pejorative meaning and therefore rejected by the Oromo people), is an Afroasiatic language that belongs to the Cushiti ...
. Throughout the era, different ethnic groups, clans and communities made short-term alliances to acquire economic advantage and political power.The rulers of the Yejju dynasty were converts to Christianity, but their power base was the powerful Wollo Muslim principalities such as Yejju, Warra Himano, and Raayyaa.
As early as 1890, under the reign of
Menelik II, the homeland of the Yejju was organized into an Ethiopian province (
awrajja
Awrajja ( am, አውራጃ) were the third-level country subdivisions which subdivided the Provinces of Ethiopia prior to 1996. Awrajja roughly translates to "county" or "sub-province", and contained a number of "woreda" or districts, the fourth le ...
) named for them. It was bordered by the Alewuha River to the north, separating it from
Raya Qobbo awrajja, the
Mille River to the south, separating it from
Were Babu district, the
Afar Depression to the east, and the highlands of
Ambassel to the west.
Woldiya served as its capital city. With the adoption of ethnic federalism in 1994 and the abolishment of the awrajja administrative structure, Yejju became divided between the
districts
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
of
Habru,
Woldiya town, and the mid-altitude portion of
Guba Lafto. Due to the assimilation of Yejju Oromos into the dominant Habesha culture beginning at the turn of the 19th century, the Yejju presently found in the
Amhara Region overwhelmingly identify as
Amharas
Amharas ( am, አማራ, Āmara; gez, ዐምሐራ, ʾÄməḥära) are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group which is indigenous to Ethiopia, traditionally inhabiting parts of the northwest Highlands of Ethiopia, particularly inhabiting the Amhara ...
.
Ethiopia Administrative Map as of 2013
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References
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Oromo groups
Ethnic groups in Ethiopia
Ethiopian noble families