Yejju
Yejju Oromo is a sub-group of the Barentu branch of Oromo people. They are one of the northernmost located people of the Oromo ethnic group, which is the largest ethnicity in Ethiopia
The Barentu (also Barento/Barentuma) is one of the two moieties of the Oromo people, the other being the Borana branch. Yejju Oromo is often catagorized inside the Barentu branch and other neighboring sub-groups include the Wallo Oromo and the Raya Oromo. Due to Oromo migration to the north, these northern Oromo communities are minorities and they are found in the ethnic Amhara and Tigray dominated regions of northern Ethiopia.
During the 17th century, the Oromo Yejju dynasty ruled much of the Ethiopian empire during the Zemene Mesafint or "Age of Princes", changing the official language of Amhara people to Afan Oromo, including inside the court of Gondar. [1] Through out the era, different ethnic groups, clans and communities made short-term alliances to acquire economic advantage and political power.
Currently, the territories of these northern tip Oromos is officially located inside Amhara Region and Tigray region [2]while the boundaries are rejected by Oromo nationalists, including Oromo Liberation Front(OLF)[3]
References
- ^ Pankhurst, Richard, The Ethiopian Royal Chronicles, (London:Oxford University Press, 1967), pp. 139–43.
- ^ official map of oromia
- ^ OLF map of Oromia
