Introduction People’s culture consists of implicit and explicit set of patterns in which they get things done and get their thought expressed to satisfy their biological and social needs. Culture, as a problem solving tool, is not something genetically determined trait. It is a socially determined pattern subjected to changes, as acquired and transmitted at a specific time period.
Hence, Oromo people’s culture is one of the many patterns that has been implicitly and explicitly learned, acquired and transmitted by generations over centuries. As it has some common features with other peoples of this world, it has also its own unique features in expressing itself, in solving the problems of the owners and in adapting them to the natural environment they are living in. It expresses itself in Oromummaa and makes the bearer of this cultural values being “Oromo”. So long, ”being an Oromo” remains a socio-political group by itself, the dynamism of Oromummaa continues to perpetuate in satisfying the unique curiosity of the Oromo people.
There is no any standard scale of measurement which can be used to determine that culture, language, or religion is advanced or backward, superior or inferior to others; better or worse than this one or those ones. However, to those racially motivated individuals or group of individuals, theirs are always superior to others; theirs are always the best while those that are not theirs are the worst, backward or primitive to acknowledge.
A rational person perceives anybody’s culture as cumulative assets that give him a meaning of life in his social environment. Of course, culture changes with time and space for the better or for the worse. Old values can be replaced by new ones as people’s creativity advances on or halts down. Nevertheless, willingly abandoning one’s own workable values in favour of those unworkable alien values cannot redress progressive development except that they are invitations of imprecation for annihilation. Oromo younger generations, in particular, should have a clear understanding and a clear vision on how sustainable cultural development cannot be humanly conceived in the imported and/or imposed cultural wombs. If at all, it is believed to be conceivable, it is only in the unsustainable parts of the imported and/or imposed ones, which is oddly leaning against the fertility of the indigenous culture.
The Oromo people have got important elements of cultural values that are peculiar to them. Since the inception of the Oromos as an ethnic group, these elements have been rendered to portray them as “being “Oromos”, differently from those who possess other cultural traits peculiar to them as well.
Oromo do have varieties of local customs, habits, views and social laws as harboured by various Oromo clans over periods of time. These local customs or values are connected to the splendid aadaa Oromoo as a whole. However, due to sociocultural oppressions, particularly since the annexation of that culturally well furnished, legally best legislated Oromoland to Abyssinian feudal kings, Oromo people’s cultural lives has been polarised in many localities. In some places, it even went beyond polarisation and substituted by the absolute feudal Abyssinian cultures. Western imported and/imposed cultures have mainly been enshrouded in the aid they have been delivering to successive Ethiopian regimes, either through Church organisations or through what they call NGOs or directly handed to the regime itself.
It is obvious that, the polarisation, invasion and/or the unrestricted importation has hindered older generations to re-socialise the new generations, by hindering them to hold on the sustainability of those valued and workable traditions. Parallel to this, also, the younger generations have not been able to be re-socialised within the original tendency of “self-preservation” for self-identification, particularly in Oromo areas where the intensity of the oppressions have been so dense to disperse.
What has been smothered or forgotten, or annihilated in one Oromo locality, however, can be found as original ones in other Oromo localities. Thus, it is incumbent upon the old-timer generations to impart what they have in their granaries to the needy-fresh generations. It should also be the national right of the younger to ask them to teach them. Conversely, it should be the national obligation of the older to re-orient the new ones. Teach-Learn, Learn-Teach for what purpose? Teach-Learn, Learn-Teach are one of the best approaches that can help advance Oromo self-promotion strategy. It enables us to focus our visions on the restoring Oromummaa for national consumptions.
The following cultural features are cited as examples, which can be predominantly so salient in certain Oromia areas but could exist in other forms in other Oromo home regions in north eastern Africa.
Forms of Marriage
Though, marriage as an institution is common to all cultures of the world, its function, its forms and its essence can vary from culture to culture. Even in the same culture, there are patterns of variations in arranging the marriage process, in preparing the wedding festivities, in giving dowries or, in deciding place of residence for the newly married couples, their rights and obligations as a husband and wife etc.
Traditionally, there are different forms of marriage in Oromo culture. What is very important to Oromo marriage institution is the existence of two terms for that express the two opposite sexes. Fuudhuu is for the man. That means the boy is covertly or overtly engaged to a girl, and at one time is ready to take her. Heerumuu is for the girl who is officially or unofficially acquainted or engaged to a boy; and finally taken by him as his wife. Gaa’ila is a venerated general term pertaining to marriage as an institution. It serves both sexes, fuudhaa and heeruma, as marriageable persons. It has a deep social meaning, signifying the establishment of the family and the continuity of generations in the society.
Rakoo
This is an arranged form of marriage whereby the boy’s parent takes the first initiative for engagement. On behave of boy’s parent, elders go to the girl’s parent and ask them to give their daughter (her name is mentioned) to the son (his name is mentioned) of Mr Y for marriage. If the girl’s parent accepts the demand, they pay dowry to the girl’s parent. In some families, a year before the final wedding ceremony takes place; she is officially engaged to him (kaadhimamuu). On the wedding day, the boy comes to the girl’s parent accompanied by horsemen, called hamaamota. On this day, the girl and the boy officially come and sit together. They are blessed by the girl’s parent before she is officially handed to him.
Soon they arrive at the boy’s parent; they are also ceremonially received by his families and get the blessings of his grandparents, fathers, mothers and other relatives. In traditional Oromo marriage, the blessings of the elders at are quite enough. Unlike other religious groups like Christianity, which earnestly requires the involvement of priest or pastor, the involvement of Qaalluu, as believed to be the guardian of the Laws of Waaqa, is undesirable. That of the grandparents, fathers, mothers and other relatives is quite desirable to ritualise the final marriage consummation. Such form of marriage is more stable than other forms of Oromo marriage.
Butii
In this form of marriage, the boy abducts the girl without her consent or out of her consciousness. It is socially not acceptable since it uses force and violence for the benefit of one side, the man. As some people say, the butii form of marriage has come to be rampant as the Gadaa laws have been prohibited or marginalised by those successive Ethiopian rulers’ laws. As a result, the people could not enforce legal or social sanction upon the offenders, as the offenders can easily corrupt and bribe the regimes’ magistrates. It is one of the causes for conflict creation between kin groups belonging to the man and the girl. It builds unstable family relationship and eventually ends with divorce. Waaqeffannaa does not accept nor does it approve marriage by Butii.
Hawwata
This is a marriage by self-selection without prior knowledge of the boy’s and girl’s parents. If the two agrees, the boy can take her at one time when she is ready to do so. In most cases, the girl takes this form of marriage as a final option when her parents want to engage her to another boy whom she does not want.
The stability of this form of marriage depends on the agreement or disagreement of their parents, on both sides, either to accept or to reject the marriage that have undertaken by Ababbalii or Hawwii.
Though Waaqeffannaa accepts self-selection for marriage, it does not endorse if it is conducted out of parents’ consensus and blessings. For example, in Waaqeffannaa belief system, it is a sin to entice, to lure or to seduce a person to commit something, or to make him believe in what he is not convinced to believe in. This is what the word “ababalii” signifies.
In ababbalii marriage, the involvement of a third person, who secretly goes between the boy and girl is often ‘employed’ by the boy to convince the girl for him. If she is not convinced and finally says; “No!”, the boy may use one of the other forms of marriage, in most cases butii is used.
Sabbatmarii or Irra dhaaba
This form of marriage is rarely practised. The root cause for emergence of sabbatmarii marriage is not yet clear. However, poverty on the part of boy’s parent to pay marriage price is cited as one of the causes. Second, if the boy is found to be from uncertain family background or belongs to socially despised groups, or has some physical problems, his relatives are forced to use this forms of marriage, because, as people often say, nobody is willing to give his girl to such boy, nor does she willingly offer herself to him.
The distinguished feature of this form of marriage is that, the girl and her parents do not have any prior knowledge until the boy accompanied by a group of men of different social classes arrive at the gate of the girl’s parent. Soon they arrive, at the gate, usually they call the name of the girl and solemnly appeal to her Parents in the name of Waaqa Who created marriage/Gaa’ila, to give their daughter to the boy for marriage. In case her parents turn down the boy’s request, they can curse this family which is believed to be a bad fortune for the girl. If they accept, the girl is formally given, being blessed by her parents and relatives similar to the rakoo (naqata) marriage.
Aseennaa
In the case of aseennaa form of marriage, the girl takes the lead instead of the boy. She takes this initiative if she goes beyond the standard age of marriage sets for girls, as socially agreed upon. Second, if she is not asked by anybody, either due to problems of beauty or due to her family’s social background.
When she decides, “No more stay with parents”, she leaves her parent at dusk and goes to the boy’s parent that she has already had in her mind. Imagine the time of her departure is not at dawn, or at noon, or at night. It is only at dusk, the time cattle are coming to their enclosure.
She carries with her irreeesa (greeneries), nine hiddii fruits (solanum) and other items which are conventionally known by society as symbols of fertility, prosperity and peace. She directly goes to the house of the boy’s parent and calls his name. Then, she enters the house and leaves those symbolic items under the pillar of the house. Sitting there, she waits for the response of the boy, which, according to the traditions has been concluded with positive result for her. That means, he has to accept her solemn demand, because she comes to marry him by fulfilling all what the laws for aseennaa requires.
A family established by the aseennaa marriage is usually found to be stable. If the question of divorce comes, it cannot be from her side. However, if it comes, the right to marry the second wife is reserved for him.
In the above mentioned forms of marriage, there are many points which need more clarification and further analysis. However, the mentioned points could give hints on how and why Oromos have evolved various cultural mechanism in solving social problems, how and why they give emphasis on alleviating problems confronted by individualsas persons and how interconnected problems are agreed upon and socially resolved for common advantage.
http://waaqeffannaa.org/english/oromo-culture/
