Yejju Oromo tribe
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Yejju Oromo people are a sub clan of the Barento branch of Oromo people. They are one of the northernmost communities of Oromo people residing in
Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
. During the 17th century, the Yejju dynasty, more specifically, the Warra Sheik, or sons of the Sheikh, ruled much of the
Ethiopian Empire The Ethiopian Empire (), also formerly known by the exonym Abyssinia, or just simply known as Ethiopia (; Amharic and Tigrinya: ኢትዮጵያ , , Oromo: Itoophiyaa, Somali: Itoobiya, Afar: ''Itiyoophiyaa''), was an empire that histori ...
during the
Zemene Mesafint The Zemene Mesafint ( gez, ዘመነ መሳፍንት ''zamana masāfint'', modern: ''zemene mesāfint'', variously translated "Era of Judges," "Era of the Princes," "Age of Princes," etc.; named after the Book of Judges) was a period in Ethiop ...
or "Era of the Princes", changing the language in the court of
Gondar Gondar, also spelled Gonder (Amharic: ጎንደር, ''Gonder'' or ''Gondär''; formerly , ''Gʷandar'' or ''Gʷender''), is a city and woreda in Ethiopia. Located in the North Gondar Zone of the Amhara Region, Gondar is north of Lake Tana on t ...
to the Oromo language. 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 , spoken = ; ''djānhoi'', lit. ''"O steemedroyal"'' , alternative = ; ''getochu'', lit. ''"Our master"'' (pl.) Menelik II ( gez, ዳግማዊ ምኒልክ ; horse name Abba Dagnew ( Amharic: አባ ዳኘው ''abba daññäw''); 17 ...
, the homeland of the Yejju was organized into an Ethiopian province ( awrajja) named for them. It was bordered by the Alewuha River to the north, separating it from Raya Qobbo awrajja, the
Mille River The Mille River is a river of Ethiopia and a tributary of the Awash. It drains parts of the Semien (North) Wollo and Debub (South) Wollo Zones of the Amhara Region, as well as Administrative Zone 4 of the Afar Region. The explorer L.M. Nesbitt ...
to the south, separating it from Were Babu district, the
Afar Depression The Afar Triangle (also called the Afar Depression) is a geological depression caused by the Afar Triple Junction, which is part of the Great Rift Valley in East Africa. The region has disclosed fossil specimens of the very earliest hominins; th ...
to the east, and the highlands of
Ambassel Ambassel (Amharic: ዐምባሰል) is a woreda in Amhara Region, Ethiopia, and an ''amba'', or mountain fortress, located in the woreda. The word Ambasel is derived from two words "Amba" from the Amharic word for plateau, and “Asel” from the ...
to the west.
Woldiya Weldiya or Woldia () is a town, woreda, and capital of the North Wollo Zone in northern Ethiopia. Located north of Dessie and southeast of Lalibela in the Amhara Region, this town has an elevation of 2112 meters above sea level. A notable landm ...
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 of
Habru Habru ( Amharic: ሀብሩ) is a woreda in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Semien Wollo Zone, Habru is bordered on the south by the Mille River which separates it from the Debub Wollo Zone, on the west by Guba Lafto, on the north by t ...
, Woldiya town, and the mid-altitude portion of
Guba Lafto Guba Lafto (Amharic: ጉባ ላፍቶ) is one of the woredas in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Semien Wollo Zone, Guba Lafto is bordered on the south by the Debub Wollo Zone, on the west by Delanta and Wadla, on the northwest by Meket, ...
. 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 The Amhara Region ( am, አማራ ክልል, Åmara Kilil), officially the Amhara National Regional State (), is a regional state in northern Ethiopia and the homeland of the Amhara people. Its capital is Bahir Dar which is the seat of the Re ...
overwhelmingly identify as Amharas.Ethiopia Administrative Map as of 2013
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References

{{authority control Oromo groups Ethnic groups in Ethiopia Ethiopian noble families