About Oromo Culture Institute of Minnesota

The Oromo people are the largest Cushitic ethnic group, residing across East Africa and in diaspora communities worldwide. Today, they are found in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Djibouti, Tanzania, Rwanda, as well as in North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Australia. Predominantly, however, the Oromo live in Ethiopia, where they constitute more than half of the country’s population. They speak Afaan Oromo, the 3rd widely spoken language in Africa, and their religious affiliations include Christianity, Islam, and the traditional Oromo faith known as Waaqeffanna (or Waaqefata), which predates the introduction of the major world religions, Islam and Christianity. The Oromo also maintain an indigenous democratic governance system known as the Gadaa system—a distinctive institution in which leaders are elected every eight years from among five political leadership groups.