Oromo

Oromo is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afroasiatic language family. Primarily spoken in Ethiopia, Oromo originates in the Oromia region of the country and is the language of the Oromo people.

After Arabic, Hausa and Swahili, Oromo is the most widely spoken African language. Additionally, Oromo is the most widely spoken of all the Cushitic languages. In Ethiopia alone there are 34 million Oromo speakers, with over a third of the country’s population speaking Oromo. Outside of Ethiopia, significant populations of Oromo speakers can be found in Kenya and Somalia. Smaller populations of Oromo speaking emigrants can be found in South Africa, Libya, Egypt, and Sudan.

There are many different dialects of Oromo, with enough variation between them that some cannot be understood by one another. Differences in pronunciation, phonology and vocabulary vary across regions. These dialects have also been influenced by the languages surrounding them, with dialects in Ethiopia receiving influence from Amharic, while dialects in Kenya are influenced by Swahili and English.

Some of the main dialects of Oromo include West Central Oromo, Orma, Waata, Eastern Oromo (also called Harar) and Southern Oromo  (also called Afaan Oromo or Boranaa-Arsii-Gujii Oromo).