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'{{short description|16–17th century northerly expansions of Oromo people}} {{more citations needed|date=March 2021}} The '''Oromo Invasions'''<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hamer |first1=John |title=Humane Development Participation and Change Among the Sadama of Ethiopia |publisher=University of Alabama Press |page=12 |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Humane_Development/qVNi1bMJdtsC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=oromo+invasions&pg=PA12&printsec=frontcover}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Plastow |first1=Jane |title=African Theatre and Politics: The Evolution of Theatre in Ethiopia, Tanzania and Zimbabwe A Comparative Study |publisher=Brill |page=48 |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/African_Theatre_and_Politics_The_evoluti/XICsEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=oromo+invasions&pg=PA48&printsec=frontcover}}</ref> also known as the '''Galla Invasions'''<ref>{{cite book |last1=Oliver |first1=Ronald |title=Africa Since 1800 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=118 |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Africa_Since_1800/G-RDZYPaMtkC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=galla+invasions&pg=PA118&printsec=frontcover}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Mordechai |first1=Abir |title=Ethiopia and the Red Sea The Rise and Decline of the Solomonic Dynasty and Muslim European Rivalry in the Region |publisher=Taylor & Francis |page=169 |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Ethiopia_and_the_Red_Sea/7fArBgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=galla+invasions&pg=PA169&printsec=frontcover}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Levine |first1=Donald |title=Greater Ethiopia The Evolution of a Multiethnic Society |publisher=University of Chicago Press |page=175 |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Greater_Ethiopia/NZHeBQAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=galla+invasions&pg=PA175&printsec=frontcover}}</ref> were a series of expansions in the 16th and 17th centuries by the [[Oromo people|Oromo]]. Prior to their great expansion in the 16th century, the Oromo inhabited only the area of what is now modern-day southern [[Ethiopia]] and northern [[Kenya]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Library (U.S.) |first=Army |url=https://books.google.co.il/books?id=29oyAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA49&dq=galla+northern+kenya+and+southern+Ethiopia&hl=iw&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&ovdme=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiSz6W1-KmBAxX8gP0HHfQtDZsQ6AF6BAgOEAM |title=Africa: Its Problems and Prospects; a Bibliographic Survey |date=1967 |publisher=Headquarters, Department of the Army. |pages=49 |language=en}}</ref> For the most part the Oromo lived in northern Kenya prior to their migration in the 16th century.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=279}} Over the centuries due to many factors, mostly the wars between [[Adal Sultanate]] and Ethiopia would further encourage the numerous Oromo tribes to expand towards central and eastern modern Ethiopia.<ref name=":02" /> ==Historiography== {{unreferenced section|date=March 2021}} Because the [[Oromo people|Oromo]] did not keep a written record of the expansion, this article must refer to Ethiopian, Portuguese and Arabic sources for the reasons behind the expansion. In particular, a 16th-century Ethiopian monk, named [[Bahrey]], is the foremost source on the expansion. Written in [[Ge'ez]], his book was called the ''History of the Galla '' ([[Ge'ez script|Ge'ez]]: ዜናሁ ፡ ለጋላ ''zēnahu legalla''), "Galla" being an older name by which the Abyssinians and Portuguese and Italians referred to Oromos, but it is now considered as pejorative. The book was written in 1593 and detailed the expansions from 1522 to his age. Further information can be gleaned from other contemporaries such as the Ethiopian monk [[Abba Paulos]], [[Shihab ed-Din]]'s ''[[Futuh al-Habasha]]'' "Conquest of Abyssinia", [[João Bermudes]], [[Francisco de Almeida]], [[Jerónimo Lobo]], and various Abyssinian royal chronicles (e.g. those of [[Gelawdewos]], [[Sarsa Dengel]] and [[Susenyos I]] though that of Sarsa Dengel may have been written by Bahrey).{{citation needed|date=March 2021}} ==History== Gudifecha adoption tradition also lead to massive diversification within Oromo populations as they expanded during the 16th century. <ref name=":02" /> === Legend of Liqimssa === The legend of Liqimssa is an ancient legend stemming from the Borana sect of the Oromo peoples that is credited as having been one of the main motivations for the beginning of the Oromo expansions. The Liqimssa roughly translates to "The Swallower" and was told to be a beast that consumed people one by one until there was nobody left to fight against it. It is meant to embody "hunger", and the story represents how a powerful entity will consume all there is around it until the "land of plenty" (in reference to the Borana homeland) is left barren and empty. The legend is interpreted by Mohammed Hassen to be the embodiment of the Christian kingdom's growing power and influence in the regions directly south of the Oromo homelands. As Christians military colonists continued to bump up against the Oromo from the south, Oromo pastoralists responded by beginning their expansions northward. <ref>{{Cite book|last=Ghassan|first=Kanafani|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/833729428|title=Palestine's children : returning to Haifa & other stories|date=2000|publisher=Lynne Rienner|isbn=0-89410-865-4|oclc=833729428}}</ref> ===Early expansions=== [[File:Southern and Eastern Ethiopia in the middle ages.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Oromo territory located south of present day Ethiopia on the eve of the Oromo invasions]] The early expansions were characterized by sporadic raids by the Oromo on the frontiers of the Ethiopian kingdom. After capturing cattle and other booty, the raiding parties would quickly return to their homelands. Actual settlement of new territories would not begin until the ''[[Gadaa]]'' of Meslé.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=301}} ====Mélbah (1522–1530) and Mudena (1530–1538)==== According to Bahrey, the earliest Oromo expansion occurred under the Oromo ''luba'' Melbah, during the time of Emperor [[Dawit II|Lebna Dengel]]. He states that they invaded the neighbouring [[Bale Province, Ethiopia|Bale]], in the southeast, just before the invasions of [[Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi]] of [[Adal (historical_region)|Adal]] in the north. These early incursions ([[Oromo language|Oromo]]: ''razzia'') were limited, however, as the encroaching groups returned to their homeland near the [[Shebelle River]] after each raid. Raids continued under Mudena past the Wabi Shebelle, but these groups also returned home shortly.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=281–282}} The reason for the Oromo's returning after their short conquests is that the Christian and Muslim kingdoms that surrounded Oromo pastoralists were deeply embroiled in wars. Instead of engaging with either kingdom directly, they targeted isolated communities that would go unnoticed and allowed their enemies to destroy each other without Oromo intervention. <ref name=":02" /> ===== Three Stages of Oromo Movements ===== By the 1530s, the Oromo pastoralists had developed a three-staged method for territorial expansion; "scouting, night time surprise attack and settlement" (159).<ref name=":02">{{Cite book|last=Mohammed|first=Hassen|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/962017017|title=The Oromo and the Christian Kingdom of Ethiopia, 1300-1700|date=19 May 2017|isbn=978-1-84701-161-9|oclc=962017017}}</ref> The introduction of scouting teams shows that the Oromo pastoralists had quickly become accustomed to border warfare. The night time attacks that would come to follow were unceasing and relentless, stripping the community of their "booty" and killing a large amount of the warrior class, then escaping before dawn as to avoid being followed back to their basecamps. Once the community under siege was broken down enough to be settled without resistance, the remaining peoples would quickly be integrated through Moggaasaa, having their status', material goods and general livelihoods returned to them. The remaining warriors would join the Oromo gada's troops. With each period of adoption into the fighting class, the Oromo's knowledge of the local terrain would increase drastically. ====Kilolé (1538–1546)==== After the death of Ahmed Gragn, Kilolé resumed his predecessor's raids and pierced further into Ethiopian territory. Aided by the weakening of both the [[Ethiopian Empire]] and [[Adal Sultanate|Adal]], he raided as far as the province of Dawaro, north of Bali. Again, however, after each raid, the parties returned to their villages. Bahrey's dating might, however, be off, as Shihab ad-din, who had written a decade before Ahmed Gragn's death, noted a locality named Werre Qallu, an Oromo name, in the province of Dawaro. Francisco de Almeida, however, agreed with Bahrey's dating, by affirming that the Oromo first began migrating around the time of Ahmed Gragn's invasion (1527).{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=282}} ===Bifolé (1546–1554)=== During the time of ''luba'' Bifolé, the Oromo migration achieved its first major success. All previous movements had been minor raids on neighbouring provinces, but under Bifolé, new raids were undertaken that began to weaken Ethiopian control. All of Dewaro was pillaged, and [[Fatagar]] to its north was attacked for the first time.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=282-283}} Furthermore, according to Bahrey, the inhabitants of the pillaged areas were enslaved to become ''gebr''s ([[Ge'ez]]: ገብር ''gabr''; [[Amharic language|Amh.]] ግብር ''gebr'', [[Tigrinya language|Tgn.]] ግብሪ ''gebri''), a term referring more precisely to "tax-paying serfs", similar to the serfs in Ethiopia during feudal times. Emperor Gelawdewos, however, campaigned in the south as a result of those attacks. According to his chronicle, the Emperor defeated the Oromo incursions and made subject to his rule those he captured, which prevented further attacks for some time, with further incursions reduced to skirmishes. The initial attacks were significant, however, on a much larger and more devastating scale to the Ethiopian dynasty. Despite his reprisals, Gelawdewos was troubled and was forced to settle refugees in a town of [[Wej province|Wej]], north of [[Lake Zway]], around 1550-1.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=283}} ===Settlement=== ====Meslé (1554–1562)<!--aka Michelle (???) - see pg. 283 in Borderlands -->==== [[File:Street Scene outside Walls of Old City (Jugal) - Harar - Ethiopia (8749426763).jpg|thumb|right|300px|[[Harar]] city fortifications originally erected in the sixteenth century following the Oromo invasions]] Meslé's time represent a fundamental change in the expansion of the Oromo. Newly-taken territories were permanently settled by Oromo for the first time, and mules and horses began to be ridden by the first time. The adoption of horseback riding from the north greatly increased the Oromo fighting power and put them on par with Ethiopian troops, who were largely equipped with firearms.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=283-284}} In the new phase of migration adopted under Meslé, the Oromo defeated Emperor Gelawdewos's Jan Amora corps, allowing them to pillage a number of towns. Instead of returning to their homelands, however, they stayed in the new territories. Gelawdewos campaigned against the Oromo as a result, defeating them at 'Asa Zeneb (yet unidentified), but he was nevertheless unable to drive them from the frontier provinces and continued to build the new town in Wej for new refugees.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=283}} Oromo expansions were not restricted to Ethiopian territories either, as activities against [[Adal Sultanate|Adal]] were also pursued. The forces of [[Nur ibn Mujahid]] (r. 1551/2–1567/8), the Amir of [[Harar]], for instance, were soundly defeated by the Oromo in an ambush at the [[Battle of Hazalo]]. According to Bahrey, there had been "no such slaughter since the Oromo first invaded".{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=283}} ====Harmufa (1562–1570) and Robalé (1570–1578)==== During the ''luba'' of Harmufa rule, the Oromo advanced even deeper into Ethiopian territory. With the use of horses, they were able to attack the province [[Amhara Province|Amhara]], and [[Angot]]. Further advances were made under Robalé during whose time [[Shewa]] was pillaged and [[Gojjam]] attacked. For the first time, Oromo advances were devastating core Ethiopian provinces, but their earlier incursions had been simply against frontier provinces. Despite the deeper attacks, the core provinces remained under Ethiopian control, and Emperor Sarsa Dengel carried out punitive expeditions in return. One such reprisal in 1573 involved the engagement of the Oromo near Lake Zway in a frontier province. He defeated them, took their cattle and distributed the herd among his subjects, who were described in his chronicle as "becoming rich" as a result.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=285}} ====Michelle [[Gadaa]] Invasion of [[Adal (historical region)|Adal]] period (1562–1579)==== At the same time, Barentu Oromo groups attacked [[Adal Sultanate]], which was greatly weakened by its wars with the Christian Ethiopians leading to no potential resistance. In the sixteenth century the Oromo began their invasion of Harar region which forced the [[Adal Sultanate]] to erect a wall around [[Harar]] the capital city of the principality.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Woldekiros |first1=Helina |title=The Boundaries of Ancient Trade Kings, Commoners, and the Aksumite Salt Trade of Ethiopia |publisher=University Press of Colorado |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/The_Boundaries_of_Ancient_Trade/NwrHEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=constructed+the+wall+to+protect+the+city+from+Oromo+incursions+in+the+mid-sixteenth+century&pg=PT48&printsec=frontcover}}</ref> By the late sixteenth century other Adalite towns in the Harar region also began to construct ramparts such as [[Gidaya]], and [[Dakkar]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Mercier |first1=Héloïse |title=Writing and rewriting history from Harar to Awsa : a reappraisal of the Taʾrīkh al-mulūk |year=2022 |journal=Annales d'Éthiopie |volume=34 |page=55 |doi=10.3406/ethio.2022.1711 |s2cid=259459914 |url=https://www.persee.fr/doc/ethio_0066-2127_2022_num_34_1_1711}}</ref> According to [[Harari language|Harari]] chronicles the combination of the Oromo invasion which followed drought led to the destruction of several towns including Sim, Shewa, Negeb, [[Hargaya]] and Dakkar.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Zekaria |first1=Ahmed |title=SOME NOTES ON THE ACCOUNT-BOOK OF AMĪR ʿABD AL-SHAKŪR B. YŪSUF (1783-1794) OF HARAR |journal=Sudanic Africa |year=1997 |volume=8 |publisher=Brill |page=18 |jstor=25653296 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25653296}}</ref> Its presumed the last remaining pre Oromo invasion inhabitants the [[Harla people]] were able to survive due to the fortification of the city of Harar.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gebissa |first1=Ezekiel |title=Leaf of Allah Khat & Agricultural Transformation in Harerge, Ethiopia 1875-1991 |publisher=James Currey |page=34 |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Leaf_of_Allah/ga91oPVFb5MC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=remnants+of+the+semitic-speaking+Harla,+an+autochthonous+population+that+existed+in+the+region&pg=PA36&printsec=frontcover}}</ref> Oromo invasions in the Harar region were followed by epidemic and food shortages in Adal's capital Harar leading to massive loss of life which included Adal leader [[Nur ibn Mujahid]] among the casualties in 1567.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Milkias |first1=Paulos |title=Ethiopia |publisher=ABC-CLIO |page=213 |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Ethiopia/GkzEEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=harar+wall+oromo&pg=PA213&printsec=frontcover}}</ref> The greater part of the [[Adal (historical region)|Adal]] Muslim population were assimilated by the [[Oromos]].<ref name="Reference">{{Cite web|title=Oromo: Migration and Expansion: Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries|url=https://www.worldhistory.biz/sundries/32403-oromo-migration-and-expansion-sixteenth-and-seventeenth-centuries.html|access-date=2022-02-14|website=World history}}</ref> According to historian Mohammed Hassen, the Oromo invasions were devastating for the [[Harari people]] and is one of the major reasons for their diminished populace.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hassen |first1=Mohammed |title=Reviewed Work: Afocha: A Link between Community and Administration in Harar, Ethiopia by Peter Koehn, Sidney R. Waldron-Maxwell |publisher=Michigan State University Press |page=66 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/43660080}}</ref> The Oromo attacks on the Harar plateau did not let up in 1572 as [[British people|British]] historian recounts a Harari chronicle.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Pankhurst |first1=Richard |title=Ethiopian borderlands |publisher=Red Sea Press |page=375 |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/The_Ethiopian_Borderlands/zpYBD3bzW1wC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=full+of+corpses+ethiopian+borderlands&pg=PA375&printsec=frontcover}}</ref> {{Blockquote |text=While [[Muhammad ibn Nasir|Amir Muhammad]] was away on campaign the Oromos devestated the region. They are said to have destroyed a hundred Muslim villages, and advancing to the city's very walls, besieged Harar. Fierce fightings took place at one of the gates, which was soon full of corpses. [[Vizier|Wazir]] Hamid was reportedly struck by twenty spears, but, though seriously wounded, succeeded in returning to the city alive. The invaders were later repulsed. |author=[[Richard Pankhurst (historian)|Richard Pankhurst]] |title=The Ethiopian Borderlands: Essays in Regional History from Ancient Times to the End of the 18th Century }} The greater part of the [[Adal (historical region)|Adal]] Muslim population were assimilated by the [[Oromos]].<ref name="Reference">{{Cite web|title=Oromo: Migration and Expansion: Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries|url=https://www.worldhistory.biz/sundries/32403-oromo-migration-and-expansion-sixteenth-and-seventeenth-centuries.html|access-date=2022-02-14|website=World history}}</ref> In the [[Chercher province|Chercher]] region of Harar, [[Ittu Oromo]] would incorporate the [[Harari people|Harari]] and plausibly the [[Harla people]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Ittuu |publisher=Encyclopedia Aethiopica |url=https://en.sewasew.com/p/ittuu}}</ref> Adal Sultanate would move its capital to [[Asaita|Aussa]] due to the Oromo provocation in 1577 however Adal leader imam [[Muhammad Gasa]] would be killed in battle against the Oromo in 1583.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Markakis |first1=John |title=Ethiopia The Last Two Frontiers |publisher=James Currey |page=49 |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Ethiopia/yckMyLVh3oYC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Adal+oromo+Aussa&pg=PA49&printsec=frontcover}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Cerulli |first1=Enrico |title=Islam yesterday and today |page=212 |url=https://drive.google.com/file/d/1g-LkxaXWZopjLCFEuWm8wnly2lh4WvFp/view}}</ref> The city [[Dire Dawa]] was part of Adal during the medieval times. After the weakening of Adal, it was exclusively settled by [[Dir (clan)|Dir]], which is a major Somali clan. The [[Oromos]] were able to penetrate through the city and settle into those areas and to assimilate some of the local [[Gurgura]] clan.<ref>{{Cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=YgIwAQAAIAAJ |title=The conquest of Abyssinia: 16th century|last=ʻArabfaqīh|first=Shihāb al-Dīn Aḥmad ibn ʻAbd al-Qādir |date=2003-01-01 |publisher=Tsehai Publishers & Distributors |others=Annotation: Dir, According to Huntingford a settlement which may be modern Dire Dawa. |page=24 |isbn=9780972317269|language=en}}</ref> The Hawiye and the Dir clans were the predominant inhabitants of Harar Highlands (land of the [[Harari people|Hararis]]) in the 16th century after the weakening of Adal. The [[Oromos]] took advantage of the crippling state and decided to also invade and to occupy the Hararghe Highlands and assimilate with [[Somali clan]] population of [[Jarso (Hararge)|Jarso]], [[Akisho]], [[Gurgura]], Nole, Metta, Oborra and [[Bursuk]]. All were sub-clans of [[Dir (clan)|Dir]], a major Somali clan, and were later confederated into Oromo tribe, the Afran Qallo clan.<ref name="Encyamer">{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia Americana, Volume 25|year=1965|publisher=Americana Corporation|page=255|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OP5LAAAAMAAJ}}</ref> ===Reprisals under Sarsa Dengel=== Forced to fight the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottomans]] in the north of his Empire, [[Sarsa Dengel]] turned to curb the spread of the Oromo in the south in the 1570s. The first mention of his actions is in his short Royal Chronicle, which states that he fought a force of [[Borana Oromo people|Borana]] Oromo at [[Lake Zway]] under a ''luba'' named Ambissa. After the 1572 rains, the Oromo had taken [[Wej province|Wej]], and the Emperor gathered his forces from throughout Ethiopia to form an army at Gind Beret. From there, Sarsa Dengel headed south, where he found that the Oromo had also taken [[Maya (Ethiopia)|Maya]].{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=285}} Despite the small size of his army, he was able to defeat the Oromo in the area, push them back to [[Fatagar]], and capture a large number of cattle. Sarsa Dengel again learned in 1574 of Oromo incursions in [[Shewa]] and of the pillaging of cattle in lowland [[Zéma]]. The Emperor sent ''[[Azzaj]]'' [[Halibo]] with only 50 cavalry to the area, who forced the Oromo to flee and sent the heads of 80 Gallas to the Emperor as trophies. Sarsa Dengel was again forced to head north with his army to crush the Ottoman-backed [[Bahr Negus]] [[Bahr negus Yeshaq|Yeshaq]], but later returned to Wej in 1577-8 to fend off Oromo advances in the area.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=286}} As a result of the battle in the [[Mojjo Valley]] (just east of modern [[Addis Ababa]]) against the Borana Oromo, corpses were strewn all over the surrounding countryside. The Emperor then fended off an attack in [[Dembiya]] by the [[Abati Oromo|Abati]] Oromo at a place called [[Weyne Deg'a]]. As a result of the battle, according to [[Bahrey]], less than ten Oromo survived.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=287}} ====Birmajé [[Gadaa]] (1578–1586)==== Despite Sarsa Dengel's military campaigns, the Oromo expansion continued to spread northward during this time. It was under ''luba'' Birmajé that the Oromo first began to use body-length ox-hide shields. The shields allowed the Oromo to resist arrows and therefore to defeat the Mayas. The Oromo often came into conflict with [[Daharagot]], one of Sarsa Dengel's commanders, who was often successful. Nevertheless, during this time, the Oromo pillaged Ar'ine in Wej, killing Ethiopian couriers in the process. Further advances were made around [[Lake Tana]], [[Dembiya]], and (old) [[Kingdm of Damot|Damot]], which was surrounded, and some of its inhabitants were enslaved.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=287}} ====Mul'eta (1586–1594)==== Under ''luba'' Mul'eta a large raid ([[Oromo language|Oromo]]: ''dulaguto'') was made on [[Gojjam]] south of Lake Tana. With the Ottoman situation in the north largely under control, Sarsa Dengel again took the initiative against the Oromo in the south, where he forced the Dawé (or Jawé) Oromo in Wej to flight.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=287}} Bahrey praised Sarsa Dengel's campaign by stating that he "did not act according to the custom of the kings his ancestors, who, when making war were in the habit of sending their troops ahead, remaining themselves in the rear with the pick of their cavalry and infantry, praising those who went forward bravely and punishing those who lagged behind.l".{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=287–288}} Despite Bahrey's praise, Sarsa Dengel was forced to use coercion to draw troops, and decreed that anyone who failed to heed his call to arms would have his house pillaged and property confiscated.{{sfn|Pankhurst|1997|p=288}} ===17th century=== ====Ethiopian Empire==== During the first half of the 17th century, invasions by different Oromo groups were a permanent menace to the [[Ethiopian Empire]]. About 1617, the [[Oromo people|Oromos]] attacked [[Begemder]] and [[Gojjam]], which were central regions of the empire. Between 1620 and 1660, the Ethiopian emperors had to defend different parts of their territory but could not stop to the waves of advancing Oromo groups. The Tulama expanded from [[Shewa]] into Amhara and the Wallo and Azebo overran Angot, parts of Amhara and Waj, Begemder, and Tigre. In 1642 the eastern Oromo nearly annihilated the Ethiopian army from [[Tigray Region|Tigray]]. Under the reign of emperors [[Fasiladas]] and [[Yohannes II]], the Oromo seem to have been virtually unrestrained in their expansion. [[Iyasu I]] the Great (1682-1706) resumed the offensive against the Oromo and recruited battalions of Oromo which pledged their allegiance, whom he settled in conquered areas. Tulama and Liban Oromo were settled in northern [[Gojjam]] and [[Begemder]] and were encouraged to convert to Christianity. Some of their authorities were appointed to high offices in the army and in the administration of the provinces. In 1684-1685, Oromo groups fought against Emperor [[Iyasu I]] in [[Wollo]] and [[Gojjam]]. In 1694, the Gugru-Oromo attacked [[Gojjam]] and [[Begemder]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.worldhistory.biz/sundries/32403-oromo-migration-and-expansion-sixteenth-and-seventeenth-centuries.html|title=Oromo: Migration and Expansion: Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries}}</ref> Although the military expansion of the Oromo continued, many Oromo groups started to settle in Ethiopian territory and developed into a political power, which was used by the different secular and ecclesiastical groupings. By the late 18th century, they were taking an active part in the political formation of the Ethiopian state. The process of mutual assimilation between the Oromo newcomers and other inhabitants of the empire was well under way.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.worldhistory.biz/sundries/32403-oromo-migration-and-expansion-sixteenth-and-seventeenth-centuries.html|title=Oromo: Migration and Expansion: Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries}}</ref> ====Ajuran Empire==== In the mid-17th century, the [[Oromo people|Oromos]] began expanding from their homeland around [[Lake Abaya]] in southern [[Ethiopia]] towards the southern Somali coast while the [[Ajuran Empire]] was at the height of its power.{{sfnp|Cassanelli|1982|p=114}}<ref>Cerulli, Somalia 1: 65–67</ref> The Garen rulers conducted several military expeditions, known as the ''Gaal Madow'' wars, against the Oromo warriors, who converted those that were captured to [[Islam]]. The Ajuran with their guns forced the Oromo conquerors to reverse their migrations towards the war-ravaged [[Muslim]] [[Adal Sultanate|Adalites]]. ===18th century=== Around 1710, the Macha Oromo reached to the [[Gonga languages|Gonga]] kingdom of [[Ennarea]] in the [[Gibe region]] that had a king by name of Shisafotchi. He tried to come to terms with the situation by absorbing into his administration the energy of ambitious Macha individuals. That proved to be the cause of his destruction. By favouring the Oromo at his courts, Shisafotchi alienated his own people. The ambitious Oromo individuals at his court harnessed the popular fury to their own advantage by overthrowing the king and taking over the kingdom.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/29226/1/10731321.pdf|title=The Oromo of Ethiopia 1500-1800}}</ref> Also around the 18th century, the Macha Oromo crossed the Gojeb river and led an invasion of the [[Kingdom of Kaffa]]. They found formidable natural barriers, which opposed their advance towards Kaffa. The mountainous jungle terrain made rapid cavalry attack and retreat virtually impossible, and their advance was halted by the Kafficho. They, however, conquered all territories north of the Gojeb, including the city of [[Jimma]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/A-historical-glimpse-of-Hiriyoo%3A-Rethinking-the-and-Ambo/97f248958b5d7f78561feddb59a36058afa1db9c|title=Hisotorical glimpse of Hiriyoo|s2cid=234070093 }}</ref> ==See also== *[[History of Ethiopia]] *[[Oromo people]] *[[Human migration]] *[[List of Oromo subgroups and clans]] == Citations == {{Reflist|20em}} == References == {{refbegin}} * {{cite book |first=Lee V. |last=Cassanelli |title=The Shaping of Somali Society: Reconstructing the History of a Pastoral People, 1600–1900 |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |year=1982 |isbn=978-0-8122-7832-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mlhyAAAAMAAJ}} * {{Cite journal|last=Ishikawa|first=Hiroki|year=2011|title=Northern Ethiopian Historiography during the Second Half of the Solomonic Period (1540–1769)|url=http://www.janestudies.org/drupal-jp/sites/default/files/NES_no16(2011)_Ishikawa.pdf|journal=Nilo-Ethiopian Studies|volume=16|pages=1–12|via=janesstudies.org}} * {{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zpYBD3bzW1wC|title=The Ethiopian Borderlands: Essays in Regional History from Ancient Times to the End of the 18th Century|last=Pankhurst|first=Richard|year=1997|publisher=The Red Sea Press|isbn=9780932415196|language=en}} * {{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=umyHqvAErOAC|title=Encyclopedia of African History 3-Volume Set|last=Shillington|first=Kevin|year=2013|publisher=[[Routledge]]|isbn=9781135456702|language=en}} {{refend}} ==Further reading== * Mohammed Hassan, ''The Oromo of Ethiopia: A History 1570–1860'' * G. W. B. Huntingford, "The Galla of Ethiopia; The Kingdoms of Kafa and Janjero North Eastern Africa Part II" [[Category:16th century in Ethiopia]] [[Category:17th century in Ethiopia]] [[Category:Internal migrations in Africa]] [[Category:Historical migrations]] [[Category:Society of Ethiopia]]'