Argobba people

Argobba
Total population
140,134 (2007 census)[1]
Regions with significant populations
Ethiopia
Languages
Argobba, Oromo, Amharic, Harari, Arabic, Afar
Religion
Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
Amhara • Gurage • Harari • Tigrayans • Tigrinya • Zay • other Ethiopian Semitic peoples[2]

The Argobba are an ethnic group inhabiting Ethiopia. A Muslim community, they spread out through isolated village networks and towns in the north-eastern and eastern parts of the country. Group members have typically been astute traders and merchants, and have adjusted to the economic trends in their area. These factors have led to a decline in usage of the Argobba language.[3][4] Argobba are considered endangered today due to exogamy and destitution as well as ethnic cleansing by the Abyssinian state over the centuries.[5][6]

History

Main door of the Argoba gate of Harar named in honor of those who fled Ifat.

According to Girma Demeke, some time after the 9th century AD, the Argobba diverged from their closest relative, the Amharas, probably due to religious differences as the Argobba adopted Islam.[7] According to scholars, the Kingdom of Aksum's army moved south beyond Angot, encountering a nomadic people named Galab in eastern Shewa, who are supposedly the precursors to Argobba.[8] This ethnic group would become known as Argobba after their conversion to Islam in the 10th century. Modern Argobba claim they originate from the Arabian Peninsula through Zeila in what is now Somaliland and before settling in Ifat.[9] Argobba have historical links with Harari and Harla people.[10] Argobba people consider the inhabitants of Doba their ancestors.[11]

After the collapse of Aksum, the southward shift of the Christian Ethiopian state saw the rise of the political importance of Ifat. Ifat became an economic powerhouse as it sat on the trade routes between Zeila and the interior hinterlands, developing significant ties to the Muslim world. The Argobba are associated with the Walashma dynasty of Ifat, which would become the rulers of the Sultanate of Ifat and Adal Sultanate.[12][13] According to Harari tradition numerous Argobba had fled Ifat and settled around Harar in the Aw Abdal lowlands during their conflict with Abyssinia in the fifteenth century, a gate was thus named after them called the gate of Argobba.[14]

The Argobba and the Harla people seem to have relied on each other in the Islamic period.[15] A power struggle erupted between the Abadir dynasty of Harari and the Walashma dynasty of Argobba throughout the Islamic period until Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi took control of Adal Sultanate by executing the Walashma sultan Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad in the 16th century.[16][17][18][19]

Due to the wars between the Ifat Sultanate and Ethiopia, the region of Ifat was incorporated into Ethiopia having been an integral part of the empire for over a century since early medieval times.[20][21] During this period of incorporation, large sections of the local Argobba population embraced Christianity.[22] According to French explorer, Charles-Xavier Rochet d'Héricourt, who had visited the region of Ifat. He stated that in 1517, an invasion from a formidable force suddenly fell upon the eastern provinces of the Kingdom of Shewa. An army of Somalis and Hararis, led by a bold and fanatical chief named Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi, entered the province of Ifat-Argobba and had already forced the inhabitants to embrace Islam again.[23]

In the late sixteenth century, Argobba were involved in several conflicts with the Oromo during the Oromo migrations, and due to the withdrawal of Adal from Ethiopia, came partially under Ethiopian Empire rule losing land rights.[24][25]

In the nineteenth century, Emperor Yohannes IV ordered the forced displacement of Argobba for refusing to convert to Christianity.[26][27] Many Argobba were forcibly baptized in Shewa by Menelik II.[28] Due to expansions from two dominant ethnic groups, many Argobba speak either Amharic or Oromo in Wollo Province; however, those who self-identify as originally Argobba are substantial in the region. The last remaining villages of a once larger Argobba-speaking territory are Shonke and Ṭollaḥa.[29]

In 1902 upon visiting an Argobba inhabited town in the Harari region, German traveler Oscar Neumann describes the people:[30]

"It is remarkable that, in spite of their proximity to Harar, next to nothing was known of the interesting Argobba people and their old stone buildings. The remains of this probably once powerful nation dwell on the eastern slopes of the Hakim, a mountain ridge situated to the south of Harar. Their houses were built of stone, had high watchtowers in the centre, and were surrounded by strong walls; they are now mostly fallen into decay, and are only partly inhabited. The old ruins overlooking the Erer valley resemble medieval castles, and present a picturesque appearance. Scattered amongst them are the straw huts of the Ala Galla, who form the greater part of the population of today."

Under the new government of Ethiopia, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front, ushered in the early 90s the Argobba obtained regional political power after launching Argoba Nationality Democratic Organization.[31]

Distribution

Argobba communities can be found in the Afar, Harari, Amhara, and Oromia Regions, in and along the Great Rift Valley. They include Yimlawo, Gusa, Shonke, Berehet, Khayr Amba, Melka Jilo, Aliyu Amba, Metehara, Shewa Robit, and the surrounding rural villages.[32]

Abyssinian religious persecutions forced numerous Argobba to flee Ifat region in the 1800s, and migrate to the Emirate of Harar however the townsman were unwilling to accommodate them leading to Argobba people settling outside the walled city of Harar.[33] Argobba suffered from stigma in Harar. Harari children believe that the Argobba are were-hyenas and chant at Argobba women as they come to town, "Argobba, Argobba, night-time hyena, day-time human".[34] Urban legends regarding the Argobba exist among the Harari and Oromo in Harar region. It is said by them that the Argobba participate in cannibalism.[35]

Religion

Argobba are exclusive adherents to the Muslim faith.[36] They are also widely believed to be the first to accept Islam collectively, in the Horn of Africa and vanguards for early Islamic expansion.[37] The Shonke Argobba reportedly forbid their children from attending school due to the possible unislamic influence it might have on them.[38]

Language

The Argobba traditionally speak Argobba, an Ethiopian Semitic language within the Afroasiatic language family. According to Getahun Amare, Argobba is not a dialect of Amharic as previous linguists believed, but a separate language.[39] Argobba language evolved from proto Amharic and Argobba.[40] In other areas, the people have shifted to neighboring languages for economic reasons. At this time there are only a few areas left where the Argobba are not at least bilingual in Amharic, Oromo or Afar.[4][dead link‍]

Notable Argobba

See also

References

  1. ^ "Census 2007" Archived March 5, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, first draft, Table 5.
  2. ^ Joireman, Sandra F. (1997). Institutional Change in the Horn of Africa: The Allocation of Property Rights and Implications for Development. Universal-Publishers. p. 1. ISBN 1581120001. The Horn of Africa encompasses the countries of Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia. These countries share similar peoples, languages, and geographical endowments.
  3. ^ "Argobba of Ethiopia". Ethnic people profile. Joshua Project. Retrieved 6 February 2013.
  4. ^ a b Leyew, Zelealem and Ralph Siebert. (2001) "Sociolinguistic survey report of the Argobba language of Ethiopia", SIL International (accessed 25 May 2009)
  5. ^ Olson, James (1996). The Peoples of Africa: An Ethnohistorical Dictionary. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 37. ISBN 9780313279188.
  6. ^ Ancel, Stephane (2015). "A Muslim Prophecy Justifying the Conversion of Ethiopian Muslims to Christianity during Yoḥannəs IV's Reign". Annales d'Éthiopie. 30 (1): 321–328. doi:10.3406/ethio.2015.1592.
  7. ^ Demeke, Girma (2014). The Origin of Amharic. The Red Sea Press. pp. 33, 131–137. ISBN 978-1-56902-379-2. OCLC 824502290.
  8. ^ A short history on Argobba. p. 174.
  9. ^ A short history on Argobba. p. 174.
  10. ^ Tait, Nicholas (2021). "Local Ceramics from the Islamic Trade Center of Harlaa, Eastern Ethiopia: Markers of Chronology and Contacts". African Archaeological Review. 38 (3). Springer link: 419–442. doi:10.1007/s10437-021-09435-9.
  11. ^ Asfaw, Aklilu. A short History of the Argobba. Annales d'Éthiopie. p. 179.
  12. ^ Kifleyesus, Abbebe (2006). Tradition and Transformation: The Argobba of Ethiopia. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 84. ISBN 978-3-447-05341-9.
  13. ^ Mohammed, Abdul Kader Saleh (2013). The Saho of Eritrea: Ethnic Identity and National Consciousness. LIT Verlag Münster. p. 174. ISBN 978-3-643-90332-7.
  14. ^ Abubaker, Abdulmalik. The Relevancy of Harari Values in Self Regulation and as a Mechanism of Behavioral Control: Historical Aspects (PDF). The University of Alabama. p. 44. Archived (PDF) from the original on Jun 6, 2023.
  15. ^ Braukämper, Ulrich (1977). "Islamic Principalities in Southeast Ethiopia Between the Thirteenth and Sixteenth Centuries (Part 1)". Ethiopianist Notes. 1 (1): 27. JSTOR 42731359.
  16. ^ Begashaw, Kassaye. The Archaeology of Islam in North East Shoa (PDF). Proceedings of the 16th International Conference of Ethiopian Studies. p. 14. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-03.
  17. ^ History of Harar and Hararis (PDF). Harar Tourism. p. 48.
  18. ^ Hassen, Mohammed. The Oromo of Ethiopia (PDF). University of London. p. 27.
  19. ^ Shack, William A. (2017). The Central Ethiopians, Amhara, Tigriňa and Related Peoples: North Eastern Africa Part IV. Taylor & Francis. p. 224. ISBN 978-1-315-30769-5.
  20. ^ Pankhurst, Richard (1997). The Ethiopian Borderlands: Essays in Regional History from Ancient Times to the End of the 18th Century. The Red Sea Press. p. 39. ISBN 978-0-932415-19-6.
  21. ^ Pankhurst, Richard (1997). The Ethiopian Borderlands: Essays in Regional History from Ancient Times to the End of the 18th Century. The Red Sea Press. p. 190. ISBN 978-0-932415-19-6.
  22. ^ Pankhurst, Richard (1997). The Ethiopian Borderlands: Essays in Regional History from Ancient Times to the End of the 18th Century. The Red Sea Press. p. 115. ISBN 978-0-932415-19-6. large sections of the local Amhara, Argobba and Afar population embraced Christianity
  23. ^ d'Héricourt, Charles E. Xavier Rochet (1841). Voyage sur le côte orientale de la mer Rouge: dans le pays d'Adel et le royaume de Choa (in French). A. Bertrand. pp. 206–207.
  24. ^ Vernacular Architecture of Argobba, Ethiopia. p. 41.
  25. ^ Enyew, Mehari. vernacular Architecture of Argobba, Ethiopia: The Case of Shonke Amba. Addis Ababa University. p. 43.
  26. ^ Ancel, Stephane. A Muslim Prophecy Justifying the Conversion of Ethiopian Muslims to Christianity during Yoḥannəs IV's Reign. A Text Found in a Manuscript in Eastern Tigray. p. 328.
  27. ^ Hailu, Tesfaye. History and culture of the Argobba : recent investigations. p. 197.
  28. ^ Gnamo, Abbas (2014). Conquest and Resistance in the Ethiopian Empire, 1880 - 1974: The Case of the Arsi Oromo. BRILL. p. 180. ISBN 978-90-04-26548-6.
  29. ^ Wetter, Andreas. Two Argobba manuscripts from Wällo. Humboldt Universität zu Berlin. p. 297.
  30. ^ NEUMANN, OSCAR. FROM THE SOMALI COAST THROUGH SOUTHjERN ETHIOPIA TO THE SUDAN (PDF). The Geographical Journal. p. 374.
  31. ^ Alemu, Getnet; Yoseph, Getachew (2007). Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on the Ethiopian Economy. Ethiopian Economic Association. ISBN 978-99944-54-03-7.
  32. ^ "Argobba: A language of Ethiopia", Ethnologue website (accessed 25 May 2009)
  33. ^ Hecht, E.D. (1987). "HARAR AND LAMU — A COMPARISON OF TWO EAST AFRICAN MUSLIM SOCIETIES". Transafrican Journal of History. 16. Gideon Were Publications: 18. JSTOR 24328618.
  34. ^ Weekes, Richard V. (1984). Muslim Peoples: Acehnese. Greenwood Press. p. 53. ISBN 978-0-313-24639-5.
  35. ^ Neumann, Oscar (1904). From the Somali Coast Through Southern Ethiopia to the Sudan. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 776.
  36. ^ Naim, Abdullah (11 October 2002). Islamic Family Law in A Changing World: A Global Resource Book. Zed Books. p. 71. ISBN 9781842770931.
  37. ^ Begashaw, Kassaye. The Archaeology of Islam in North East Shoa (PDF). p. 15. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2020-02-13.
  38. ^ Sociolinguistic Survey Report of the Argobba Language of Ethiopia (PDF). SIL International. pp. 30–31.
  39. ^ Amare, Getahun (2017). Argobba and Amharic: Putting a Stop to a Quandary. Addis Ababa University.
  40. ^ Hudson, Grover. Reviewed Work: Ethiopic Documents: Argobba Grammar and Dictionary by Wolf Leslau. Trustees of Indiana University. p. 406. JSTOR 30028766.

Further reading

  • Abebe Kifleyesus, Tradition and Transformation: The Argobba of Ethiopia. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2006. ISBN 978-3-447-05341-9
  • Richard Wilding, The Arla, the Argobba and Links between the Coast and the Highlands. A Preliminary Archeological Survey. Addis Ababa University, Faculty of Arts, 1975