Sidamo Province
Encyclopedia
Sidamo was a province in the southern part of Ethiopia
, with its capital city at Irgalem, and after 1978 at Awasa
. It was named after an ethnic group native to Ethiopia, called the Sidamo, or more particularly, Sidama, who are located in the south-central part of that country. Their major political state was the ancient Kingdom of Kaffa
.
According to the old political division, Sidamo was bordered on the west by Gamu-Gofa
, on the north by Shewa
, on the north and east by Bale
, a small portion on the southeast by Somalia
, and on the south by Kenya
.
plantations, Sidamo was a province with abundant revenues and assigned to its rule was given to nobles loyal to the Emperor, such as Dejazmach Balcha Safo
, who governed it at different times before the Italian occupation
.
Following the liberation of Ethiopia from Italy in 1942, the provinces of Borana and Welayta
, created from conquered states of that name, were merged into Sidamo.
Sidamo was the location of a revolt of the Gedeo people
in 1960, who objected to a reorganization of the taxation system, which they believed was oppressive. The revolt was brutally suppressed; as Bahru Zewde notes, "Armed mostly with spears and swords, the peasants confronted a well-equipped enemy composed of land-lords and government troops." The Gedeo rebels were crushed in several engagements, and an arbitration commission headed by Afa Negus Eshate Gada not only found for the land lords, but fined the elders of the Gedeo who had led the revolt.
With the adoption of a new constitution in 1995
, Sidamo was divided amongst the Southern Peoples and Oromia regions of Ethiopia.
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
, with its capital city at Irgalem, and after 1978 at Awasa
Awasa
Awasa is a city in Ethiopia, on the shores of Lake Awasa in the Great Rift Valley. Located in the Sidama Zone 270 km south of Addis Ababa via Debre Zeit, 130 km east of Sodo, 75 km north of Dilla and 1125 km north of Nairobi, Awasa is the capital of the Southern Nations,...
. It was named after an ethnic group native to Ethiopia, called the Sidamo, or more particularly, Sidama, who are located in the south-central part of that country. Their major political state was the ancient Kingdom of Kaffa
Kingdom of Kaffa
The Kingdom of Kaffa was an early modern state located in what is now Ethiopia, with its capital at Bonga. The Gojeb River formed its northern border, beyond which lay the Gibe kingdoms; to the east the territory of the Konta and Kullo peoples lay between Kaffa and the Omo River; to the south...
.
According to the old political division, Sidamo was bordered on the west by Gamu-Gofa
Gamu-Gofa
Gamu-Gofa was a province in the southern part of Ethiopia, named after two of the ethnic groups living within its boundaries, the Gamo and the Goffa. First incorporated into Ethiopia by Emperor Menelik II in the 1880s , its capital was first at Chencha, then around 1965 the capital was moved to...
, on the north by Shewa
Shewa
Shewa is a historical region of Ethiopia, formerly an autonomous kingdom within the Ethiopian Empire...
, on the north and east by Bale
Bale Province, Ethiopia
Bale is the name of two former polities located in the southeastern part of modern Ethiopia.- The medieval dependency of Bale :...
, a small portion on the southeast by Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
, and on the south by Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
.
History
With its extensive coffeeCoffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
plantations, Sidamo was a province with abundant revenues and assigned to its rule was given to nobles loyal to the Emperor, such as Dejazmach Balcha Safo
Balcha Safo
Balcha Safo , also known by his title as Dejazmach Balcha, was an accomplished Ethiopian general, who served in both the First and Second Italo-Ethiopian Wars. He came from a non-aristocratic background...
, who governed it at different times before the Italian occupation
Italian East Africa
Italian East Africa was an Italian colonial administrative subdivision established in 1936, resulting from the merger of the Ethiopian Empire with the old colonies of Italian Somaliland and Italian Eritrea. In August 1940, British Somaliland was conquered and annexed to Italian East Africa...
.
Following the liberation of Ethiopia from Italy in 1942, the provinces of Borana and Welayta
Welayta people
Wolayta is the name of an ethnic group and its former kingdom, located in southern Ethiopia. According to the most recent census , they number 1.7 million people or 2.31 percent of the country's population, of whom 289,707 are urban inhabitants...
, created from conquered states of that name, were merged into Sidamo.
Sidamo was the location of a revolt of the Gedeo people
Gedeo people
The Gedeo are an ethnic group in southern Ethiopia. The Gedeo Zone in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People's Region is named for this people...
in 1960, who objected to a reorganization of the taxation system, which they believed was oppressive. The revolt was brutally suppressed; as Bahru Zewde notes, "Armed mostly with spears and swords, the peasants confronted a well-equipped enemy composed of land-lords and government troops." The Gedeo rebels were crushed in several engagements, and an arbitration commission headed by Afa Negus Eshate Gada not only found for the land lords, but fined the elders of the Gedeo who had led the revolt.
With the adoption of a new constitution in 1995
1995 Constitution of Ethiopia
The current Constitution of Ethiopia, which is the supreme law of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia, was adopted by the Transitional Government of Ethiopia in December 1994 and came into force in August 1995. The constitution was drawn up by the Constituent Assembly elected in June of that year.The...
, Sidamo was divided amongst the Southern Peoples and Oromia regions of Ethiopia.
See also
- Sidamo languageSidamo languageSidamo is an Afro-Asiatic language, belonging to the Cushitic branch, part of the Highland East Cushitic group. It is spoken in parts of southern Ethiopia....
- Ethiopian Sidamo (coffee)