Abstract:
This thesis is an attempt to reconstruct the history of the Arsi Oromo from 16th century to 19th centuries that has not yet been studied. Geographically, Arsi is located in the southeastern Ethiopia. Its territory extends from the Regional State of Somalia in the west to Sidama Zone in the east and Borana in south. It constitutes an extensive demographic and geographic section of Oromo. Arsi land has long been a home for Arsi Oromo groups, particularly, for Sikko. The majority of these people settled there in the late sixteenth and sevetenth centuries and soon became dominant society of the region. After they established themselves in Arsi, they continued their socio-political and cultural identity until the end of nineteenth century by keeping their interaction with different non-Arsi peoples living within Arsi land and its neighbors. One of the centers of Arsi Oromo socio-cultural was the gadaa system. The gadaa system and other sociocultural expressions of Arsi had begun to decline with the expansion of Islam and the expansion of the empire of Ethiopia in 1886. Thus, this thesis attempts to propose a better understanding on the social, economic and political developments of Arsi Oromo from late 16th century to 19th century. The data collection method of the study considered the use of primary and secondary sources relating to the Oromo in general and Arsi Oromo in particular. Close examination both for written sources and oral accounts of the Arsi people were consulted. Among primary sources the traveler account and Chronicle were consulted. Secondary sources from books and Articles were covered to reconstruct the history of this period. The result of the sources has come up with the main finding of which can be considered as central themes of this thesis, that were the sociocultural, economic and religious activity of Arsi Oromo from 16th century to 19th centuries.
