Journal of Oromo Studies

The Journal of Oromo Studies (JOS), is a leading scholarly publication of the Oromo Studies Association (OSA). Issued twice a year, the journal publishes articles pertaining to all areas of Oromo Studies past, present and future, including topics related to the Oromo Diaspora worldwide. Its interdisciplinary scope and visionary approach offers readers a critical view of the socioeconomic, political and cultural achievements of the Oromo people in their interactions with the people of the Horn of Africa.

Reflecting the diverse interests of OSA members, the journal emphasizes multidisciplinary and embraces variety by publishing articles that allow both the specialist and the general reader gain far-reaching insights and a thorough understanding of the Oromo people and the Horn of Africa region.

Subscription Information

Please add $5.00 for mailing cost.

For subscription and payment contact:
Tsehay Silga, Oromo Studies Association
P.O. Box 32391
Fridley, MN 55432, USA
E-mail: tsilgaa@hotmail.com

Editorial Staff

Editor in Chief
Ezekiel Gebissa, Kettering University, Flint, Michigan

Contributing Editors
Getahun Benti, Southern Illinois University
Taddesse Beriso, Addis Ababa University
Asfaw Beyene, San Diego State University
Bahru Duguma, USAID, USA
Demissew Ejera, University of New Haven, USA
Mohammed Hassen, Georgia State University, USA
Asafa Jalata. University of Tennessee-Knoxville, USA

Editorial Advisory Board
Seifudein Adem, Binghamton University
Mario Aguilar, University of St. Andrews, UK
Baissa Lemmu, SUNY Institute of Technology, USA
Paul Baxter, University of Manchester, UK
Mekuria Bulcha, Malardlen University, Sweden
Bichaka Faysissa, Middle Tennessee State University, USA
Bonnie Holcomb, George Washington University, USA
Jan Hultin, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
Tesema Ta’a, Addis Ababa Univeristy, USA

Editorial Policy

The Journal of Oromo Studies accepts articles that examine aspects of the Oromo language, history, literature, politics, philosophy, folklore, culture, economy, and the role of the Oromo in the broader Horn of Africa region. It also includes studies on interactions, interdependence, and influence of the Oromo with other societies and forces and vice versa.

At least two scholars who are experts in the field of the submitted article evaluate all submissions to the Journal of Oromo Studies. The editorial team of the journal is committed to communicating the reports or extracts of reports of evaluators to the author within a reasonable period.

All manuscripts submitted for publication consideration must be original work that have not been published previously and is currently not being considered by any other publication outlet.

Articles must be written in English, though occasionally permissions are granted to those written in Afaan Oromo. Authors are encouraged to avoid jargons and complexities in favor of clarity, brevity, and simplicity of expression.

Format and Style

Manuscripts should be typed on one side of the paper, double-spaced, with ample margins and bear the title of the contribution and the name(s) of the author(s) on a separate sheet of paper. The full postal address/phone/fax/email details of author(s) should also be included. All pages should be numbered.

The journal uses the both versions of the Chicago Manual of Style 15th Edition. The Author-Date style of citation is recommended for submissions on social sciences subjects and the Notes-Bibliography style for the humanities, including history. In either case, authors must be consistent. and do not give footnotes. Reference list items are listed alphabetically at the end of the research paper for authors following Style II. Authors using the author-date style do not need to submit bibliographic references.

Tables should be typed on separate sheets and their position indicated by a marginal note in the text. All tables should indicate their source(s) typed below the tables.

Diagrams and photographs or 'Figures' as they are known generally, should be referred to as such in the manuscript and numbered consecutively.

The Review Process

Upon receipt of a manuscript, the editorial team will send an acknowledgment to the author (s). The Editor reads the essay and decides either to go forward with a peer review or to decline further consideration if the submission does not meet the OSA mission or JOS standards.

If the manuscript is to be reviewed, the editorial team assigns two reviewers whose expertise matches the content of the manuscript. Under normal circumstances, reviewers are given 45 days to return their reports.

Based on the reviewer’s report, the editor decides on whether to accept, decline, or request revision of the manuscript for resubmission.

The editor informs the decision, and in all cases, sends the reviewers' comments to the  author(s) upon request.

For those manuscripts that are accepted, the Associate Editor(s) checks the consistency and concordance of citations and references, and improves expression, and copy edits the manuscript for publication. The JOS does not send the copyedited text for final approval to the authors.

Previous Editions

Volume 1, No. 1 & 2, 1994

Gada Values: The Building Block of a Democratic Polity
Lammu Baissa

Aspects of Oromo Political Culture
Herbert S. Lewis

Oromo Literature: Gerarsa and the Liberation Struggle
Addisu Tolesa

Distribution of Letters in Oromiffa Text
Demissie G. Yahii

Some Aspects of the Vision and Effectiveness of Oromo Organizations
Bichaka Fayissa

Some Aspects of Oromo History That Have Been Misunderstood
Mohammed Hassen

The Language Policies of Ethiopian Regimes and the History of Written Afaan Oromoo, 1844-1994
Mekuria Bulcha

Book Reviews

Volume 2, Nos. 1 & 2, 1995

Volume 3, Nos. 1 & 2, 1996

Historical and Cultural Interaction, Symbiosis and Clientage: Waso Boorana and Somali in Eastern Kenya, 1932-1992
Mario I. Aguilar

Historical challenges in the Development of the Oromo Language and Some Agenda for Future Research
Feyissa Damie

A preliminary Survey of the elements of Oromo Verbs
Tilahun Gamta

Aspects of Oromo Cultural Endowments and Their Implications for Economic Development
Bichaka Fayissa

Protecting Environmental Resources of Oromia
Gobana Huluka

Conquest and Resistance in the Gibe Region, 1881-1900
Guluma Gemeda

Symbolic Integration to Oromia: Boorana Traditional Practice, Language, and God in Eastern Kenya
Mario I. Aguilar

Book Reviews

Volume 4, Nos. 1 & 2, 1997

Volume 5, Nos. 1 & 2, 1998

The Ideological Foundations of Current US Foreign Policy: The 'Promotion of Democracy' and its Impact on the Oromo National Movement
Sisai Ibssa

Changes and Continutties in Oromo Studies
P.T.W. Baxter

Consonant Clusters in Afaan Oromo
Tilahun Gamta

The Coalition of Colonized Nations: The Sidama Perspective
Seyoum Hameso

Poltical Domination and Exploitation of the Mineral Resources of Oromia: From Menelik to Meles
Guluma Gemeda

The Origin of the Oromo: A Reconstruction of the Theory of the Cushitic Roots
Feyissa Demie

Book Reviews

Volume 6, Nos. 1 & 2, 1999

Oromo in the World Community Bonnie Holcomb
The Impact of aRacist U.S. Foreign Policy on the Oromo National Struggle
Asafa Jalata

Western Foreign Policy, Profits and Human Rights: The Case of Ethiopia

Trevor Trueman

A Short History of Oromo Colonial Experience, 1870s - 1990s: Part One, 1870s to 1935
Mohammed Hassen

Environmental Impacts of Gold Mining in Oromia
Goben Huluka

Structural and Word Stress Patterns in Afaan Oromo
Tilahun Gamta

Book Reviews

Volume 7, Nos. 1 & 2, 2000

The Politicization of My Oromo-English Dictionary: The Writer's Reflections
Tilahun Gamta

Discourse on Human Rights and Peoples' Rights in Oromo Quest for National Liberation
Kuwee Kumsa

Intermediate Technology for Underdeveloped Nations
Asfaw Beyene

Where the Bulls Fight, It is the Grass that Suffers: Impact of Border Administration on Drought Coping Strategies of the Oboo Booran During the 20th Century
Gufu Oba

A Short History of Oromo Colonial Experience: Part Two, Colonial Consolidation and Resistance, 1935-2000
Mohammed Hassen

Book Reviews

Volume 8, Nos. 1 & 2, 2001

The Lesser of Two Evils Paradigm of Colonial Rule: A Comparative Study of Colonialism in the Sudan and Ethiopia
Ezekiel Gebissa

Understanding Oromo Nationalism: An Historical Perspective
Okbazghi Yohannes

Forms of Subject and Object in Afaan Oromo
Tilahun Gamta

Some Features of Traditional Oromo Education
Melaku Makonnen

Famine as an Instrument for Nation-building and State Consolidation: Ethiopia's Resettlement and Villagization Programs of 1978-1991 in Retrospect
Mekuria Bulcha

Volume 9, Nos. 1 & 2, 2002

Victims of the Ethiopian Government Raids on the Kenya (Moyale)/Ethiopian Border
Dido G. Kotile

Causes and Consequences of Forced Oromo Migration: An Over-view Mekuria Bulcha
Domestic and Regional Implications of State-Sponsored Violence: The Case of the Ethiopian State Terrorism against the Oromo
Bichaka Fayissa

Intrusions into Oromuma (Oromoness) and the Oromo People's Struggle for Freedom
Benti Getahun

Forest Fires in Ethiopia: Reflections on Socio-Economic and Environmental Effects of the Fires in 2000: An Assessment Study, June-September 2001
Dechassa Lemessa and Matthew Perault

A Comparison of Methods for Calculating Rainfall Erosion from Daily Rainfall Amounts in Hararghe Highlands
Shibru Daba

What Should Be Done to Enhance Maize Technology Adoption in Orormia? Strategy Options
Bedassa Tadesse

The Livestock of Oromia: An Industry
Assefa Regassa Geleta

Review Essays and Book Reviews

Volume 10, Nos. 1 & 2, 2003

NGOs, Social Movements, and Development: A Case Study from the Ethiopian Regional Stage of Oromia
Aneesa Kassam

Powerlessness and the HIV/AIDS Epidemics in the Ethiopian Empire
Begna Dugassa

OLF and TPLF: Major Issues and Outcomes of A Decade of Negotiations since 1991
Abiyu Gelata

Contesting Marginality in Jest: The Voice of Boorana Women in Oral Tradition
Fugich Wako

Transition from Oral to Written Oromo Poetry
Zelealem Aberra

Shaykh Bakrii Saphalo (1895-1980): A prolific Scholar and Great Oromo Nationalist
Mohammed Hassen

Book Reviews

Volume 11, Nos. 1 & 2, 2004

The Place of the Oromo in Ethiopian History: 2003 OSA Conference Key Note Address
Tesema Ta'a

The pride of the Gujii Oromo: An Essay on Cultural Contact and Self-Esteem
Taddesse Berisso

Pluralization in Afaan Oromo
Tilahun Gamta

Human Rights Violations and Famine in Ethiopia
Began Dugassa

Some Medical Si de Effects of Khat Addiction: A Review of Literature
Tesema Taye

Book Reviews

Volume 12, Nos. 1 & 2, 2005

Special Issue: Dedicated to the Memory of Father Lambert Bartels (1915-2000)

Introduction: Performing the Soodduu Ritual
Aneesa Kassam and Paul T.W. Baxter

"Innocently Dateless": Lambert Bartels and the Making of Oromo Religion
Paul T.W. Baxter

"Mutual Inculturation": the Missionary Approach of Lambert Bartels and its Influence on Catholic Missionaries
Paul Tablino

The "God of the Oromo": A Religious Paradigm in the Work of Lambert Bartels
Mario Aguilar

The Oromo World View
Gemetchu Megerssa

Oromo Religion, Ayyaana and the Possibility of a Sufi Legacy
Thomas Zitlemann

Religious Syncretism in a Gabra Ritual
Aneesa Kassam

Buttaa Rituals of the Sayyoo Oromo
Alessandro Triulzi and Tamene Bitima

Pilgrimage to the Abba Muudaa
Mohammed Hassen

Realpolitik in the Realm of the Sacred: Notes on the Succession of the Qaallu Karrayyu of the Boorana
Jan Hultin and Abdullahi Shongolo

The Oromo Eschatology: the Prophecy of Areeroo Boosaroo, Narrated by Borbor Bulee and Guyyoo Dambii
Marco Bassi and Boku Tache

Volume 13, Numbers 1 & 2, July 2006

A Comparative Welfare Analysis of Ethiopian Regions: The Case of Oromia
Abebe Adugna

The Impact of Ethiopian State Terrorism and Globalization on the Oromo National Movement
Asafa Jalata

Knowledge, Identity and Power: The Case of Ethiopia and Ethiopianess
Begna F. Dugassa

Historical and Political Orogins of Conflict in the Gambella Region
Bizuneh Beyene

The Human Rights Predicament: A Criticak Gender-Based Analysis of the Somali Region (Ogaden), Ethiopia
Fowsia Abdulkadir

Jalqabdoota Bifaa fi Sagalee Qubee Afaan Oromoo
(Qubee Afaan Oromo for Beginners)
Tilahun Gamta

Looga Oromoo Walloo (Wallo Oromo Dialect)
Tamane Bitima

Review Essay: Islamism and Its Enemies in the Horn of Africa, edited Alex de Waal Reviewed by Mohammed Hassen

Book Reviews

Sweetness in the Belly, by Camilla Gibb
Reviewed by Mohammed Hassen

The Horn of Africa as a Common Homeland: The State and Self-Determination in the Era of heightned Globalization by Leenco Lata

Reviewed by Ezekiel Gebissa