Gamo people

Gamo People
Gamo
Languages
	Gamo
Religion
	Ethiopian Orthodox, Traditional African religion, Protestantism
Related ethnic groups
	Dorze people

The Gamo people are an Ethiopian ethnic group located in the Gamo Highlands of southern Ethiopia. They are found in more than 40 communities, including Chencha, Bonke, Kucha, Garbansa, Zargula, Kamba, Dorze, Birbir, Ochello, Boroda, Ganta, Gacho Baba, Eligo, Shella, Kolle, Dita, Kogo and Daramalo.^[1]

History

The name "Gamo" means lion, which refers to the group's legacy as one of the Omotic people. Along with the Gofa people, they gave their names to the former Gamo-Gofa province of Ethiopia. Gofa broke away from the Gamo-Gofa zone in 2019.

Language

Initially, the word Gamo was thought to be a fruit by foreigners, mainly due to the fact that the Gamo people are known for some of their fruits^{[citation needed]}. The Ethiopian government eventually recognized the language in 2000 to be taught in schools.^[2]

Population

The 2007 Ethiopian national census reported that 1,104,360 people (or 1.56% of the Ethiopian population) identified as Gamo, of whom 139,308 were urban inhabitants and 965,052 rural.^[3]

The Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People's Region are home to the majority of the Gamo people.^[3]

Economy

The Gamo sell fruit in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, including, bananas, mangos, apples, and papayas. The Gamo have developed the ability to conserve crop genetic resources while also practicing effective farming strategies. This has led them to grow over 65 varieties of barley, over 12 varieties of wheat, over 100 varieties of enset, as well as dozens of varieties of cassava, taro, and yam.^[4] Many Gamo people are weavers that make traditional clothes such as Kuta, Gabi, Buluko, and Dunguza.

Religion and history

Originally, their belief system was rooted in traditional African religions, closely tied to nature.^[5] Today most are members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church or Protestantism P'ent'ay. The missionary activities of the Christians brought disturbances and tensions in their traditional society, threatening the old way of life and ecological balance.^[6]

The Gamo's strict social hierarchy offer an example of how a caste system manifests itself in material culture. Artisans, such as ground stone makers and potters, rely primarily on craft production for their livelihood.^[7]

Sport

Arba Minch Town Football Club (The Crocodiles) is playing in Betking Ethiopian premier league and Gamo Chencha Football Club (The Lions) is playing in Ethiopian Super League. Both are from Gamo zone.

References

^ Rave, Thomas (2006). Proceedings of the XVth International Conference of Ethiopian Studies, Hamburg, July 20-25, 2003. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. ISBN 9783447047999.
^ Woldemariam, Hirut (2017). "Language Planning Challenged by Identity Contestation in a Multilingual Setting: The Case of Gamo". Oslo Studies in Language. 8. doi:10.5617/OSLA.4429. S2CID 55925832.
^ ^a ^b "Census 2007, Country Level" Archived November 14, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, Table 3.1
^ Zulch, Alan. "A Thousand Suns: The View From Ethiopia's Gamo Highlands". Our World.
^ "Gamo Highlands – Ethiopia".
^ "A Thousand Suns: The View from Ethiopia's Gamo Highlands - Our World".
^ "Culinary Crafts and Foods in Southwestern Ethiopia: An Ethnoarchaeological Study of Gamo Groundstones and Pottery". ResearchGate. Retrieved 2021-09-09.