Boorana

This article is about East African ethnic group. For the South American sub-language, see Bora–Witoto languages.

Borana

Borana Oromo Child from Ethiopia (1960)
Regions with significant populations
874,000 Ethiopia, 276,236 Kenya
Languages
Oromo
Religion
Majority Sunni Islam with minorities of Christianity and Waaqeffanna
Related ethnic groups
Barento Oromo

The Boorana (also known as Borana) are one of the two major subgroups of the Oromo people. A Cushitic ethnic group, they primarily inhabit the Borena Zone of the Oromia Region of Ethiopia and the former Eastern Province in northern Kenya, specifically Marsabit County. They speak a distinct dialect of the Oromo language by the same name, Boorana. The Boorana people are notable for practicing the Gadaa system without interruption.

Demography and language

Borana children near the town of Yabelo in Borena Zone, Ethiopia

Through the Gadha system, the Boranas are believed to have conquered and protected their territories until the second world war when they were overpowered by colonial policies. Since they were semi-nomadic, their population growth did not match that of their neighbors both in Kenya and Ethiopia, which put them at risk of losing much of their territory. Today, they make up the majority of the population in Moyale and the surrounding region.

For generations, Borana men have dedicated themselves to extracting salt from the crater of an extinct volcano called "Chew Bet" located in southern Ethiopia. After having extracted the salt in a very hard way, the salt is sold at a good price since it is a highly appreciated commodity in this region.

Those in Kenya and Ethiopia speak the Borana language that is closely related to the Oromo, which is part of the Cushitic branch of the large Afro-Asiatic language family. In the border regions of Ethiopia-Kenya and southwestern Somalia, one estimate places about 1,094,000 people as Boranas. Another estimate in 2019 suggests 874,000 Boranas in Ethiopia, 210,000 in Kenya and 10,000 in Somalia.

Society

Borana Gadaa system- a form of government that has been in existence for the last 567 years

Main article: Gadaa

The Borana have had their own form of government system for the last 568 years, recognized by UNESCO as a heritage that needs to be protected. The system covers political, social, economic and spiritual ways of life.

Politically, it has a system of government where the overall leader is God himself and many unknown things are referred as 'Waqa Bekh', a sentence that can be equated to a Supreme Being knows. The second in command who is also the supreme leader of the whole Borana community is referred to as Abagadha. The Abagadha is the person in charge of all affairs of the Borana community and answerable to the Gumi Gayo (parliament).

Abagadha is anointed at an early age of 1-8 years. The Abagadha and others of his age pass through an education system that will last for forty years after which he will take over the leadership as Abagadha. He and his team will vote from 17 sub-clans of Borana, one parliament member from each sub-clan. The parliament, called Gumi Gayo, functions just like a present day senate with the same roles.

Economically from time immemorial up to the present, the Borana have laws that are passed in the Gumi Gayo covering Borana traditional land and natural resources. Since Boranas were mixed farmers rearing cattle, camels, goats and planting food crops; farming land, grazing land, water sources and their traditional boundaries are paramount to them and in many cases fights broke out between Borana and their neighbors who take advantage of Borana kindness and forcefully rear their animals in Borana grazing land and take over some of the Borana water sources, traditionally called Tula Saglan. Presently the Borana boundaries have been infiltrated by the three governments surrounding Borana territory, these include Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia.

Due to this the Borana have lost much of their top grazing land far from their central area where they used to take their animals during the drought. They are economically affected and politically caught between these colonial governments and many struggles between them. As of today the nine wells of Borana (Tulla Saglan), traditional settlements and their traditional grazing land are scattered across these colonial boundaries and others are inaccessible to the larger Boranas.

Socially, Boranas were known to be very kind people especially to the visitors, a weakness that all these three colonial governments used to strip off them most of their ancestral heritages not limited to land, water sources, natural resources and top grazing areas. Boranas harmoniously lived with their neighbors through sharing and helping during hard times like prolonged drought seasons, till colonial powers set in and instigated colonial wars and redrew the African territories into colonial boundaries.

Spiritually, Boranas believe that there is a supreme Being in charge of their worldly affairs and upper dominion, they believe that there is a creator called 'WAQ'. Many Borana people prefer to be Muslims rather than Christians since the religion of Islam concurs in many ways with their tradition. Years ago Boranas became Muslims, three time of three consecutive Abagadhas and goes back to fully to their tradition three consecutive Abagadhas after this. Since then their system remains full tradition. But still, there are Boranas who are Muslims and others who are Christians as well and they all value their system as an asset.

Spiritually, Boranas have a supreme spiritual leader known as Fite Qalu. Besides being a supreme spirituality in charge of prayer in all Borana gatherings, including the Borana parliament, he is also in charge of administration, who appoints other Qalu, putting them in charge of smaller administration units, which can be equated to a present state president, a Qalu who in turn appoints other smaller administrators in his jurisdiction called Jalab (governor) who are respectively in charge of smaller administration, meaning one Qalu is in charge of many Jalab under his state. Accordingly, the Jalab appoints Qae (village) in charge of villages under him. Qae is answerable to Jalab, Jalab is answerable to Qalu, and Qalu is answerable to Fite Qalu. Only Fite Qalu and Qalu have an authority to make a prayer in all gatherings, Jalab and Qae are deprived of that role. No Borana gatherings are recognized without the presence of either Fite Qalu or Qalu who opens the gatherings with a prayer.

The Boranas also have special warriors that defend the community from any enemies. They are in the last stage to the Gadaa stage and are in one part of stages of the Borana system. Only those between 32-40 years are allowed to be part of this special Borana Defense Forces. They are all in an immediate stage to the Gadaa stage called Dori. They serve their community for eight years and meet three times in those years. The first meeting takes place before they depart to different regions of Borana for community protection. The second meeting is after four years. And they meet a last time, again, at the end of their eight years making a ceremony of giving the roles and power of protection to other upcoming members of that age of Dori who were in Raba before. Their time cuts across two consecutive supreme leaders and they serve and take instructions from both.

See also

• Oromia
• Borena Zone
• Oromo people

References

• Appiah, Kwame Anthony; Gates, Henry Louis Jr., eds. (2010), Encyclopedia of Africa, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-533770-9

Further reading

• Asmarom Legesse. Gada Three Approaches to the Study of African Society. The Free Press A Division of McMillan Co. Inc, 1973
• Beckingham and G.W.B. Huntingford, Some records of Ethiopia Hakluyt Society, 1954
• Bassi Marco, Decisions in the Shade. Political and juridical processes among the Oromo-Borana Red Sea Press, 2005
• Clifford H F Plowman CMG OBE, Notes On The Gedamoch Ceremonies Among The Boran, Journal of the Royal African Society, Vol. 18, No. 70 (Jan 1919), pp. 114–121