Hachal

uHundessa’
sKuul
leeKoo:I
n-dept
hAnal
ysi
s
i
ntotheLy
ricsandWol
loHist
ory

Takenf
rom:Hacal
uHundesaPhot
oAndDi
ary

Tel
egr
am:Mi
lkaa'
i
naj
ir
eeny
aa
Hachal uHundessa’ spost humousal bum,“ MaalMal lisaa”,i sav ersat i
l
e
album t hatisfullofeuphoni oust racksf ormusi clovers.Fr om anumber s
andpr omot i
onsst andpoint,theal bum hadt rul
yi mpressiveweeksont he
charts,toppingmanyHol lywoodar t
ists’wor kst hatwer er eleasedar ound
thesamet i
me.“ EessaJi rt
a”and“ Goot aKoo”t racksf rom t heal bum hav e
becomepar toft hemusi calcanonf orhi sf ansand Or omo peopl ei n
gener al.Howev er,the thirdt rack int he al bum,“ Kuullee Koo” ,isa
ubiquitoussongt hatseemst ost ayr elevantendl essly.Besidest hemusi cal
arrangement ,structure,andst unninginst rument alsused, thesongi snov el
i
ni tsst ory-t
ell
ingf ormat,pur pose,andmeani ngoft hel yrics.Thet rack
composi ti
onisel ectr
ify
inginnat ure,andt hel yr
icscondensesst oriesfrom
hundr edsofy ear sagowi thasuper jacentmessageofl ov e,maki ngi t
fascinatingnotonl yformusi clovers,butal soforhi st
orophilesl i
kemy self.

Int hesong,Hachal umakesr ef erencest o 19t hcent ur

yst oriesoft he
Oromopeopl eint heWol l
or egionspeci ficall
y.TheWol l
or egion, l
ocat edto
theeast ernpar toft heAmhar ar egionalst ate,todayi soneoft hecul t
urally
diversepl acesi nEt hiopi
a,wi t
hi t
scapi talci t
yatDesse( Dessi e).Yet ,i
tis
oneoft hepl acest hatishi stor i
callyclai medbydi ff
erentet hni cgr oups
suchast heAmhar asandt heOr omos.Ther ef erencesHachal umakesi n
thesong, inreturn,tri
ggerthehi stor yoft heWol loOromosandt hepol it
ical
cultureofEt hiopiaf rom hundr edsofy earsago.Thesongi sgener ally
i
nter esti
ng,buti twoul dbeanev enmor ecommendabl eonewi t
hint he
under standingoft heWol lor egi onandi tshi story,especi all
ydur ingt he
earlyphasesoft hef ormationoft hecur rentEthi opianstate.Assuch, Iseek
toexpl oret hemeani ngbehi ndt hel yri
csof“ Kuul l
eeKoo”andt hehi storyof
theWol l
or egionpr i
ort ot
hef ormat i
onoft hepr esent-dayEt hiopia.

ASenseofBel
ongi
ng
Musichasl ongbeenusedasoneoft hegreatestmechanismstoex press
powerfulstori
esaboutasoci et
yt hatst
rugglest opreserveit
si denti
ty,
hist
ory,andcultureinanincreasingl
yhostil
epol i
ti
calenvir
onment.Most
poetsandmusi ci
ansusel yr
ics,instr
uments,andmel odi
estogett hei
r
messageand gr i
evancesacross.Oneoft heear l
yr ecor
dsdat esback
beforethecommoner aduri
ngt heBabylonianconquestofJer usalem,
knownast heBaby l
onianCapt
ivit
yin586BCE.

Priort oBaby l
oni anCapt i
vity,theKi ngdom ofI sraelwasl ivingpeacef ull
y
untiltheAssy ri
ansconquer edt henor thernpar tofthekingdom i n722BCE,
causi ngdispersionamongt hev arioust r
ibesofI srael
.Thef irstfewv erses
ofPsal m 137i nt hebiblear ef ullofsor rowfulmoment s,asi trecall
st he
dev astatedli
vesoft heIsrael i
tesincapt i
vi
t y
.Inverse1, t
hepsal mi ststates,
“Byt her i
versofBaby lon,t herewesatdown,y ea,wewept ,whenwe
remember edZi on.”Thishi storicalaccountdemonst r
ateshow t hepeopl e
ofI sraellongedf ortheirnat i
v ehomel and,andt heirdesper atecr yshows
thatthel andwasani ntegratedpar toftheiridenti
tyasanat ion.

TheeasternWol l
or egion’shistoricalsi
gnif
icancet otheOromosoci etyand
i
dentit
yisasintegralanddeepr ootedasJer usalem wastot heIsrael i
tes.In
hissong“Kull
eeKoo” ,Hachal ual soseemst oi mplythattheeast ernWol lo
regi
onispartoftheOr omosoci et ythati
sdeepl yrootedwithintheiridentity
;
assuch,itisoneroust oreli
nqui sh.Ast heIsraeli
tesremember edt hel ost
partoftheiridenti
tyatt het i
me,Hachal ual sor emember sWol l
oasan
i
ntegralpar
toft heOr omopeopl eandat t
empt st obringat t
entiont ot his
regi
onespeciall
ysincet heregioni scompl etel
ydissociat
edf rom t hel arge
Oromosocietyculturallyandinpol i
ti
calboundry.

TheOr
omo
The Or omos hav e occupi ed and l i
ved around t he same ar ea atf i
rst
,
howev er,theyst artedtodi spersetodi f
ferentareas.Thi shappenedov er
years;thus,itisimpor t
antt ounder standpriorev entsthatledt othis.The
soci
alandpol i
ti
call andscapeoft hehor nofAf r
icahast akendi ff
erent
shapes t hroughoutt he history.Manyhi stori
ans hav e wr it
ten thatt he
Oromopeopl eusedt olivet ogetherinthesamear ea,sharingacommon
soci
o- poli
ti
calsy stem ofgov er
nancecal l
edt heGadaasy stem ( Hassen&
Haywar d,1990).Al thought hehi stor
yoftheOr omoor igi
nisinconcl usi
vet o
somepeopl einEt hiopi
a,t hepr esenceofOr omoi ncentralandev ent he
southernt i
poft hehi ghlandsofEt hi
opiaisappar entasear lyast heZagwe
dynasty(Hassen, 2015).

Untilthel ate19t hcent ur

y ,Ethiopia,f ormer l
yknownasAby sinnia,was
l
imitedt ot heNor t hernpartsthati ncludedChr i
stianandSemi t
ic-speaking
peoplesinat err
itor ycomprisi
ngpr esent -dayEr i
tr
ea, Ti
gray ,
Gonder ,Gojam,
and par t
s ofShewa and Wol lo( Mel aku,2019) .Int he 15th and 16t h
centuri
es, t
heAdalsul t
anatewasanot herst r
ongI slam kingdom totheeast
ofAby ssiniathathadbeenataconst antwarf ormanyy earssi
ncet he14t h
century.The host il
it
y between t he t wo ki ngdoms st ar
ted because of
terr
it
orialex pansi onism,howev erov ert i
me,i tcont i
nuedasar eli
gious
confli
ctunt ilthel at e16thcent ury .Thehost il
it
ybet weenAby ssiniaand
Adalbr okeouti ntoanal l
-outwari n1529CEbet weenI mam Ahmadi bn
Ibr
ahim al -Ghazi,knownasAhmed Gr agn,ofAdaland Emper orLi bne
DingelofAby ssi
nia.

Asthewarhost i
lit
yincr
easedintheregion,amongmanyot herreasonsdue
topopulat
ionpr essur
e,theOromopeopl ewer einfl
uencedtospr eadinto
di
ffer
entdirecti
ons.Manyclaimt hi
swasasur v
ivalstr
ategyforOr omos,
whichinreturn,stemmedt heirdiv
isionintodif
ferentmoieti
esandsub-
moieti
es.TheOr omosmai nl
yquest ednorthandwest wardasAdalt othe
easthad the upperhand int he aforementi
oned warand wasnotas
v
ulner
abl
etoext
ernal
for
ces.

Accor dingtonumer oushi stori

calrecords,t heear l
i
estknownmoi eti
esof
theOr omoar et heBor anaandt heBar entu( Barentuma) .Fr om thesub-
moi eti
esf or med,t heWol l
oandYej juset t
ledi npar tsoft hepr esent -
day
Amhar aregi on whi leot herslike Raya-Azebo cont inued t heirmi grati
on
furtherintot heLast aandRay aar easinTi gr
ay( Pol uha&Fel eke,2016) .
Ov erthey ears,theWol l
o,Ray a,
andAzebopeopl eadopt edI slam duet othe
geogr aphicalpr oxi
mi tybetweent heirhost-l
andandt hel andofAdal( part
s
oft hepr esent -dayAf arr egionmai nl
y).Inaddi t
ion,t heYej juandWol l
o
Oromobecamepr edomi nantlyAmhar i
cspeaki ngsoci ety(Pol uha&Fel eke,
2016) .Intheabov econt ext,iti
simpor tantt onotet hatmanyofEt hiopia’
s
histori
ographyandar chivesdealwi ththecent ralandwest ernWol loregion
most ly,andt herehav enotbeenadequat edocument st hatassur et he
presenceofi nhabitantsint heeast er
npar tsoft heWol l
or egionpr iorto
Oromoset tlement .

Wol
l
o

The name Wol lo( “Walloo”i n Oromo;der i

ved f rom “ waloo”meani ng
“together”or“togetherness”)isofOr omoor igi
n.Thus, i
tissafet oconcl ude
thatt heregionwasnamedbyt heOr omosaf tert heyset tl
ed.Today ,the
Wol loprovincehasf or
medanewcol l
ectiveidentit
yofsor tsasar esultof
the intermingl
ing and i ntermarri
age bet ween t he Af ar,Amhar a,Agaw,
Or omo,andTi graypeopl eov erthey ears.Thought heyhav eassi mil
atedt o
suchanex t
entthatmuchoft hei
roriginalcult
uralandsoci alcohesi v
eness
wasl ost
,theOr omosoci etyhaspr eservedsomeoft heirOromoher itage
suchasnames, thelanguage, cult
ure,etc.Forex ampl e,muchoft hepl aces
l
ocat ed int he eastWol lo provi
ncesar e st
il
lcal led byOr omo names,
i
ncl udingthenameoft hesev en‘houses’ oftheWol loOr omogr oupsuchas
War raQaal l
uu,Warr aHeebanoo, War raBaabboo, War r
aI l
uu,etc.
Kuul
l
eeKoo

Kuullee was or i
ginal
lymeantt or eferto“ a gir
lwho wear s eyeli
ner”
.
Howev er,ov ertime,t he term’s usage has ev olved int
o descr i
bing or
refer
ringt oanybeaut i
fulgirlthataguyi sattractedt o.Furthermor e,i
t
evolvedi ntoanamet hatpar ent
suset ocallt
hei
rf emal echil
d(s).It
susei s
mor ewi despr eadintheWol loprovincethananyot herr egi
onsaccor dingto
oralhistories.Kull
eekoo, si
mplyput ,means,“mykul lee”—anequi valentof
“myl ov e.”Also,ithasbecomet henor mf orext ernalobserverst ouse
“Kuullee”asagener alnicknameofOr omogi r
lsf
rom t heWol l
oregion.

Thecor emessageoft hetrack,“ Kuul leeKoo” ,i

saboutOr omo’ shi storical
connect i
ont oWol l
or egion,cont raryt ot hepopul arbelieft hatitissol elya
l
ov esong.Whi leHachal ut al
ksaboutl ov eont hesur face,i fyoul isten
closel
y, thesonghasamor epr of oundmeani ngt hanj ustfal l
i
ngi nlovewi t
h
aWol logi rl
.Forst arter s,t
hesongsummar izeswi thinitselfthebeaut yofa
Wol l
ogi rlwit
hwhom he[ Hachal u]fellinl ove,andi nsightint othehi st
or yof
theWol loOr omos, includinghi storicalci ti
es,rulers,andev entsdat i
ngback
hundredsofy ears.Thi siswhi lewav eringbet weenl oveandf ascinating
stori
esont hel oopedbeatwi t
hbr i
ttle,smoky ,euphoni ous,andmodul ated
vocalst hatar eel ectrifyi
ng fort hehear tand soul ,shapi ng an af f i
nity
betweent hel i
stenerandhi s/her“ kuul lee”.Itisher e,int hepoolofwor ds
withant hemicdi scobeat s,thatonef indst hest oryoft heWol lopeopl eand
Oromo’ shi stori
calconnect iont otheeast ernWol l
or egion,whi chi sof ten
neglectedi nthear chiv esandhi storiogr aphyoft heEt hiopianst ate.

Hachalustar
tst
hesongbyconf essi
ngtot hegir
lthathethinksofher
const
antl
yandasaresul
t,hei
shav i
ngahardtimesleepi
ng.Hethengoes
on aski
ng herfora sol
uti
on showing hi
s str
ong att
achmentto her
emoti
onall
y.​
Yaadaaf
iyaaddookeet
ii
n

Hal
kanci
isadhabe

Waanumakeey
aadut
ti

Maafhi
rr
ibadhaba

Keegar
aanakkami
i

Kankooammasdi
de

Kunoonat
tigama

Maalnaafway
yakuul
leekoo

Egaamaal
innif
all
ikoo

Il
osemysl
eepi
ntheni
ght

Becauseoft
hought
sabouty
ou.

WhydoIl
osemysl
eep

Justbecauseofy
ou?

Myhear
tconst
ant
lyachesf
ory
ou,

Doesy
our
sachef
orme?

What
'
sthesol
uti
on,

Tel
lmet
henKuul
l
ee

Whatshoul
dIdomyl
ove?

HowcanIescapef
rom t
his?

MaddaWal aabuu,anarealocat
edinthepresentBalezone,wasapoli
tical
andreligi
ousor i
ginoft heOromosocietywher etheGadaasy st
em was
fi
rstf
or medandemer gedasanent i
ty(Hi
new,2012) .I
tiswher
ethelaws,
tr
adit
ions,celebrat
ions,ri
tual
s,and governi
ng pri
ncipl
es ofthe Gadaa
system werelaiddownbyt heGadaaparli
amentknownas“ Caffee”.Duri
ng
the heightoft he Gadaa syst
em,Or omo peopl e were saidt o hav ea
prosperousl
ifeandpeopleliv
edinpeace,harmony ,andunityi
nt herepubl i
c
(Hinew,2012) .Today,the term Walaabuu has ev olved i
nto a sacr ed
conceptofcosmol ogyandar eminderoft hegr eatnessoft heOr omo
societyinhistor
y.Inthenextpar t
soft hely r
ics,Hachalur ei
teratesthis
conceptandr emindshis“kuull
ee”t
hatshe’sofWal aabuuorigi
n,ascar ed,
unmi xedbei
ng.

Yay
yabaWal
aabuumaddi
te

Yaat
ali
il
abi
shaanganamaa

Li
xeedaakeeba’
uudadhabe

Danbal
i
iyaadakeenr
aaf
ama

Youar
esopur
eandt
ranqui
l
[i
nspi
ri
ts]

Li
​kespr
ingwat
erf
rom t
hemount
aini
nthedawn.

Asacr
​ edor
igi
nofWal
abu.

I
’
m dr
owni
ngi
nmyt
hought
sofy
ou

BecauseIcan’
tswi
m mywayout
.​​
​​
​

Oneoft hemostcommony etunpopul arbel i

efsi nEthiopiaandamong
Ethiopi
ansi st hebeaut yofWol l
ogirl
s.ManyEt hiopi
anshav etesti
fi
ed
Wol logi
rl
st obet hemostnat ur all
ybeaut ifulwomeni nt
her egionbecause
oft hei
runiqueandat tr
activ
ef eatur
essuchast heirhairbraidi
ngst y
les,
facialt
attoos,earr
ings,neckl
aces,andot herdecorativeobjects.Li
kemany
others,Hachalualsoat t
eststot hi
sbelief .Hedescr i
besherchar i
smaand
char m,and claimst hatmanyhav efallenf orit.To descr ibethegi rl
’
s
eleganceandt owi noverher,heal socal lsherqueenofWar r
aHi manoand
queenofWar raQallu,“t
wooft heOr omomonar chiesinthe18t h,19thand
early20thcenturi
es”(Jalat
aet .al,1999).
​
Ay
yaanakeefsaf
uu

Si
mbookankeefsaf
uu

Meeqaj
il
baanoof
ee

Oogdi
​ ijaal
alakee

Li
xeei
nni
tumame

Ut
​ uuhi
nba’
i
nhaf
ee

Si
’
igi
if
ti
inj
alal
aa

Si
’
igi
if
ti
ingoot
tummaa

Lubbuunkoosf
eet
u

Gi
i
fti
iWar
raHi
manoo

Gi
​if
ti
iWar
raQaal
luu

Maal
​ ii
fkankoohi
ntaat
u?

Thewor
​ ldf
ell
inl
ovewi
thy
ou

Fory
ourchar
m andet
her
eal
face.

Becauseofy
ourt
ranqui
lsoul

Andpur
it
y[i
nspi
ri
ts]
,
manyanyar
evy
ing

Under
neat
hthebl
uesky

I
nthi
slov
ezoneofy
our
s.

Andbecauseoft
his,

Ihav
​ enamedy
ouaqueen,

Abr
​ avequeenofl
ove

Thatmysoul
desi
res.
TheQueenofWar
raHi
mano,

ThatofWar
raQal
l
u

Whycan’
tyoubemi
ne?

TheOr omoswer eamor ehomogeneoussoci etybef ore1500CE,andt he

Wol losar eamongt heseveralOromosub- moi etiesthatbr okeawayf rom
thi
suni t
y .Alt
hought heexacty earisnotknown,t heycamei ntomarked
cont actwi t
hAby ssini
ansinthe16t hcentury.Si nce,therealway shasbeen
fl
uct uati
ngr el
ati
onsbet weenthem, especiall
ybet weent heOromosandt he
Amhar asasar esultofanat temptt o homogeni zet heOromo byt he
Aby ssinianruler
soft hepast.WriterBahruZewdenot es,“Et
hiopianhi
story
i
nt hel astfourcenturi
esisnothi
ngbutt hei nt
er actionoft heOromoandt he
Amhar a”(Zewde, 1997).

AfterKi ngYekunoAml akov ert

hrew t heZagwedy nast yar oundt hey ear
1270CE, Abyssiniawasamor ecent ralinstituti
onr uledbymember soft he
l
egendar y“Solomoni cDy nasty”
.TheEt hiopi anOr t
hodoxf ai
t hwast hest ate
reli
gion,andi tsdoct ri
neswer eusedasgui dingpr i
nciplesandt hesupr eme
l
aw oft he land.Howev er,this cent ralizati
on ofpowerdecl ined i n
signi
f i
cancewhenl ocalpr i
ncesandr ulersofEt hiopi
abegant heirst r
uggl e
forgr eateraut onomy( Yates,2010) .Thi s period int i
me i s known as
ZemeneMesaf intort heEr aofPr inces( 1769–1855CE)i nt heEt hi
opi an
chronicle.DuringZemeneMesaf i
nt,manypr ov
incesi ncludingNor t
hShewa
andWol lobecamei ndependenti nthe18t hcent ury.Wol lo,i
npar t
icular,was
domi natedbyt heIslamicOr omosoci et y,andasf arast her elati
onbet ween
thesei ndependentpr ovinceswasconcer ned,theYej j
udy nast yofOr omo
wast hesupr emewar l
ordoft heera( Yates, 2010) .

KassaHai
lu,knownasEmperorTewodr
osII
,whowouldlat
erendZemene
Mesafi
ntandst ar
tthepr
ocessofunify
ingEt
hiopi
aint
oi t
spresent
-day
shape,wasbor nin1818CEdur ingt heYej
juDy nastyinadi st
rictcall
ed
Qwar a.Aft
erhisf atherdied,hishal fbrot
her(Ki
nfuHai l
u)tookcust odyof
hi
m.Ki nfuwasagov ernoroftheQwar aandDembi yadistr
ict
s.Kassal i
ved
adecentl i
feandr eceiv edtr
aditi
onaleducationinal ocalmonasterywhi l
e
assi
st i
ng his custodian intimes ofwarwi th Egypti
ans att he Ethi
o-
Sudanesebor ders(Pol uha&Fel eke,2016;Sil
,2015).Thishelpedhim gain
mili
taryexperi
enceatanear l
yage( Gelgel
oet.al
,2020;Sil
,2015).

Int he“ Sol onomicDy nasty”,powerort hronewasi nheri

tedt hroughbl ood
andusual l
ytransfer
redtot heel destmal echi l
d.Howev er,Kassadi dn’thave
af atherf i
gurewhocoul dpasst het hronet ohim.I naddi tion,muchoft he
distri
ct si ntheareawer eundert hecont r
oloft heYej j
udy nastyofOr omo.
Ther efore,hi s hope of r eigning t o powert hrough t radit
ionalbl ood
i
nher itancewasi mpossible.Uponr eali
zingt hi
s,hebecameashi fta(outl
aw)
andst artedwagi ngwar sagai nstr ulerst oov er
throwt hem t hr
ought heuse
off orce.Manycl aimthatanal ternativemot i
veofhi swast hefactthathe’s
adev otedChr i
sti
anwhobel i
ev edt hatmember soft he“ Solomoni cDy nasty”
shoul dr ule,asopposedt ot heYej judy nastyofOr omowhower eMusl i
m.
Hismai nobj ectiv
esandambi ti
onswer etoov ert
hrowt herul i
ngclassoft he
Yejju dy nasty and restoret he Amhar a hegemony ( t
he super i
orit
y of
Amhar icl anguageandOr thodoxChr isti
anityfaith).Hewoul dev entuall
y
becomepower fulanddef eatt heYej juDy nastyofOr omo, mar kingthest art
ofuni fyingEt hi
opiatoitspresentshape.

Who’
sAmadeLi
banandAl
i
ma?

Thenextpar tsoft helyri

cs,whichincludesqui teabi tofrecognizable
fi
guresassomeoneawar eofEthiopianhistory,arewherereferencest o
hi
storybegin.Asment i
onedinthebegi nning,theIsrael
it
esfeltstri
pped
fr
om theiri
denti
tywhileincapt
ivi
ty.Hachalualsoremember sthehistorical
andsystematicdissoci
ati
onofWol loOromosf rom theiri
dent
it
yaswel las
fr
om theOromosoci
etyasawhol
e.Hethenper
suadest
hegi
rli
ntor
unni
ng
awaywithhiminwhatseemstobeanunder l
yi
ngmessagetotheWoll
o
peopl
etoreuni
tewi
ththeOr
omosociet
y.

Fakki
iAmadeeLi
iban

Tokki
chaAbbaaWaaxoo

Wal
i
rraanudhi
iban

Foont
okkoanaafat
oo

Your
​ emi
ndmeofAmadeLi
ban,

Theoneandonl
y;t
hef
ier
cel
essAbbaWat
o.

Theyt
​ ri
edt
osepar
ateus;

Thoughwe’
​ reonef
lesh.I
nsepar
abl
e.

Amede Li ban,al so known by hi s horse name ‘ ’

Waaxoo” (
i.
e.,Abbaa
Waaxoo),wast hesonofLi banAmede( i.
e.,AmedeLi banAmede) .Abba
Watoi sof t
enr eferr
edt oas“ AbbaWat ew”or“ AbWat ew”inEt hiopian
hi
stori
ography.Hisgr andfather,Amede,wasanI mam andal ocalchi efof
WarraHimanor egionofWol l
oduringZemeneMesaf int
.Itisimportantt o
notethatWar r
aHi manowasr efer
encedint hepr
eviouspar t
soft hel yr
ics
aswell.I
mam AmedeofWar raHimanohadf ourchil
drennamedAmede, Al
i,
Bashir
,andAl ima( l
aterchangedhernamet oMenen) .Alimawasf ir
st
marri
edt oDejazmachAl ulaofYej ju,t
heeldestsonofRasGugssa.Ras
Gugssaruledov erGojjam, Woll
oLast a,
Begemedir(Gonder )
,Yejj
u,wi t
ht he
capi
talci
tybeingDebr eTaborc.1802CEdur ingZemeneMesaf i
nt.

Ali
maAmedeLi banhadasonnamedAl iAlul
awi thRasAlul
a(herfi
rst
husband)who l
aterbecame Ras and r
uled overBegemedi
r(Gonder)
al
ongsidehi
smot heruponhi
sf at
her’
sdeat h(Sil
,2015)
.Hiswidowed
mot her,Ali
maAmedeLi ban,wasr emarriedt oEmperorYohanni sII
Ioft he
Solomoni cdy nast
yf r
om Gonder,andl at erchangedhernamet oMenen
AmedeLi ban.Thus,shebecamet heEmpr essofEt hi
opiawi t
hat i
tl
eof
It
egecl aiminglegi
timacythroughhersecondhusband,Emper orYohanni s
II
I.Atthet i
me, Gonderwasapol i
ticalcent er
;ther
efor
e,whoev ercontrol
led
thecitywasseenast heKingofKi ngsandsuper i
ortootherleaders.Many
argueEmper orYohannisII
Iwassy mboli
conl yashi swife,Menen( Alima)
AmedeLi ban,andhersonRasAl iexerci
sedmuchoft hepower .

WhenKi nfu,hal
f-br
otherofKassaHai l
u,diedin1839CE,t hedistr
ictsof
QwaraandDembi y
awer eseiz
edbyI t
egeMenen( Al
i
ma)AmedeLi ban.
Thishascontri
butedtoKassa’srebel
l
ionagainstherandherrul
i
ngcl assof
theYejj
uOr omo.Hemobi li
zedfor
cesaroundGoj j
am,andshortl
y,became
amaj ort
hreattoherandherhusband’sthrone;thus,
hecamet othenot ice
ofRasAli,andhismot herI
tegeMenen(Ali
ma)Li banAmede(Sil
,2015).

Asanat t
emptt obi ndhi m andpot enti
allyhalthisr evolt
,I tegeMenen
(Ali
ma)Li ban Amedear ranged f orKassa t o mar ryhergr anddaught er,
TawabechAl iAlulaGugssa( RasAl i
’sdaughter)
.Nar asinghawr i
tes,“asthe
i
mper i
algr andson- i
n-law,Kassar ecei
vedt hegov er
nor shi pofQwar awi t
h
thet i
tl
eofDej azmach, ”af tert hemar r
iage.Thisagr eementt ookpl acein
theear ly1840’ s.Howev er,Kassa’ sdev oti
ont otheagr eementwasshor t-
l
ived.Kassawentont oat tackt hecityofDembi yaandDebr eTabor( hi
s
father-
in-l
aw’ s capi tal)i n 1848 CE by successf ully def eati
ng hi s
grandmot her -in-l
aw’sf orces( Sil,2015).Fur t
hermore,bet ween1848–1854
CE,KassaHai ludef eat edI tegeMenen( Ali
ma),RasAl i,andt hei rall
iesat
variousbat tles, f
inal
lysei zi
ngt hei mperialthr
oneatt hecapi t
al cit
y,Gondar .
I
nAugust1854CE,Kassadecl ar edhimsel fEmperor( At se)Tewodr osIIof
Ethiopiathr ought hebl essi ngsoft heOr t
hodoxChur ch.Heal sosanct i
fi
ed
his mar ri
age wi th Tewabech Al iAlula Gugssa,and hi s wi fe became
Empr essofEt hiopi
a,I tegeTewabechAl i.ThisofficiallyendedZemene
Mesafi
nt,aper
iodofOr
omopol
i
ticaldomi
nancei
ntheAby
ssi
niant
err
it
ory
(
Sil
,2015).

Hachal umakesanot herreferencetot heabov e-ment i

onedst oryi nhissong
saying,“gowwummaanAl ii
maakar aaf oddaahaabaat u,otuuansi i
fji
ruu
ormaafsoddaahi nt aatu”.Thi si
mpl iesthatt hemar ri
ageI tegeMenen
(Ali
ma)ar r
anged between Tewodr os and Tewabech was r atherher
fooli
shnessorami st
aket hatcont ributedt ot hef alloft heYej juOr omo
rul
ing class.This seems t r
ue as Tewabech f ound her sel
fcompl et
ely
i
mmer sedi ntheplansofherhusband,andf orgetti
ngherf ami ly,andher
peopleaf ter1855CE.Becauseoft hisbet r
ayal,Hachal umakesapr omise
tothegi rl(hi
s“kul
lee”)thatshewi llnotmaket hesamemi st
akeagai nso
l
ongashe’ sar
oundher .Here,itisi
mpor t
antt onot ethatHachal u,formost
ofhi scareer,hadbeenf i
ercelyadv ocatingfort her ightsandagai nstthe
repressionofWolloOromosi nt heAmhar aregion.

GowwummaanAl
ii
maa

Kar
aaf
oddaahaabaat
u

Ot
uuansi
ifj
ir
uu

Or
maafsoddaahi
ntaat
u

Al
i
mawasgul
l
ibl
e,

Wemustnotr
epeathermi
stake.

Pr
omi
semey
ouwi
l
lbewi
thme;

Forot
her
sar
est
ranger
s,

ButIam cl
oset
oyou.
​

Oneoftheacti
onsAtseTewodrostookaf
terheseizedpowerwast ogo
af
terv
ariouspri
ncesandnoblesthatwerebatt
li
ngandcont endi
ngfor
power ,especi all
yt he Wollo Oromos.Thi swas wi t
h hi sv iew t o unite
Ethiopiaunderonesi ngleimperialaut horityofhi s.Heswepti ntot helands
occupiedbyt heYej juOr omos( Magdal a,Hebano,andKor ab)andsei zed
thei
rpr operti
es.I naddition,heeitherar restedandki l
ledtheout goingr ul
ers.
In1855CE,he“ seizedt heimpregnabl ehillfortr
essofMagdal a( t
heamba
Magdal ar i
sest oahei ghtof9000f eetabov eseal eveli nthepr ovinceof
War raHimanoonWol l
obor der,some180mi lesf r
om Gondar )on12t hof
Sept emberandmadei thistreasur y,defensi v
est r
onghol d,andpr i
sonf or
i
mpor t
antpol i
ticalpr i
soners”(Sil
,2015) .Fur t
her,Tewodr osmadeMagdal a
hiscapi t
al,suppr essinganypot ent ialseedofr ev ol
tsagai nsthi mf r
om the
Yejj
uandWol l
oOr omosoft hear ea.Hebano, Magdal a,andKor abar eaf ew
ofthedi stri
ctsmai nlyoccupiedbyt heOr omosi nt hepast .Howev er,t
oday
Oromosmakeupav er ysmallf ractionoft hepopul ationar oundt hese
areas.Hachal ur emember sthisev entinhi storyas:

HeebanoofMaqdal
laan

Kor
abi
idhaanSadi
i

Ansi
fudheengal
a

Kot
’nawaj
j
ii
nbadi

Let
’sgoaway
!

May
bet
oHebano,
may
bet
oMagdal
a,

Ormay
bet
oKor
ab,

Fort
hey
'r
eyourf
oref
ather
s'her
it
age.

Iwi
l
ltakey
ouhomewi
thme,

Pl
easecomer
unawaywi
thme

The pol
it
icalgeni
us of t
he “
Solomoni
c Dynast
y”r ul
i
ng cl
ass was
assi
mil
ati
on.Int
helat
e19thandearl
y20t
hcenturi
es,Emper
orMenel
ikI
I
startedt heterri
torialexpansi onf r
om t henor thernhi ghlandst ocent r
al,
sout h,eastern and west ern directi
ons,f ormi ng pr esent-day Et hi
opia.
Followingthisexpansi on,thesubsequentEt hiopiarulersoft he“ Solomoni c
Dy nasty”,notabl
y Emper orHai l
e Sel assie,used di fferentassi mi l
ati
on
strategiestoexter minatet heOr omosandot heret hnicgr oups’i denti
ti
es
and cul tur
e as t hey consi dered themsel ves and t heiret hnici
tyt o be
super i
ort o others.Regar ding thi
s,hi storian Col i
n Dar ch wr i
tes,“ t
he
Amhar as either si mply ext erminated l ocal Or omo popul ations or
somet imes,assimi l
atedt hem.Theassi milatedOr omosadopt edAmhar ic
names,usedAmhar i
gna,embr acedOr t
hodoxChr i
st i
anity,andabsor bed
Amhar acult
uralvalues”(Dar ch,1977).

In gener al,the sy stem f avor ed Amhar ic speaker s and those oft he

OrthodoxChr istianf ait
hov eranyot hergroupsofsoci ety
,especi all
yi nthe
gov ernmentbur eaucr acysuchasenr ol
lmenti nschool .I
naddi tion,nat i
ve
Oromonamesf orci tiesandar easwer echangedt onamest hatref l
ectthat
oft he Aby ssinian l anguage,v al
ues,culture and way s ofl i
fe.Thi si s
deliberatelyexecut edt oensur et hedomi nationoft heAby ssi
niancul t
ure
andgr aduall
yext ermi natethei ndigi
onouspeopl e,suchast heOr omos, and
theiri dentity.As such,“ Bi
shoof t
uu” was r enamed t o“ Debr e Zeit”,
“Fi
nf innee”was r enamed t o“ Addis Ababa” ,“Baatuu”wasr enamed t o
“Ziway ”,“Deessee”wasr enamedt o“ Dessi
e”,etc.In“KuulleeKoo” , Hachalu
remember sandgi vesanexampl eoft hi
sunf airandsy st
emi ci njusti
ces
agai nsttheOr omosandt heirident i
tyas:

DeesseenDaseet
aat
ee

Magar
ii
tuunDi
rr
ee

Di
rr
eit
tiwalar
ii
tu

Far
deennimaar
iyy
ee
Keessaqaxxamur
​ ree

Dal
ant
aandar
binaa

Kami
seet
tibuunee

Si
daameesi
rbi
na

DeesseehadbecomeDessi
e.

ODessi
e!Agr
eenerandpr
osper
ousl
and

Wher
eMar
iye’
shor
sespl
ay.

We’
l
lpassbyDel
ant
a,

Andar
ri
veatKami
se,

Todance/
singSi
dame[
eski
sta]

DelantaandKami seint heabovecont extar epopularci

ti
eslocatedalong
themaj orandconv enientrout
e(i
nterstate)thattakestoDessi eandt he
norther
npar tofEthiopia(i.eTigrayr egion),f
rom thecapit
alFi nf
innee.
Further
more,t heyoft
enser veasar estar eaoral ear
ningplacewher e
trav
elersi
nteractwi
ththelocalpeopletol earnaboutWoll
ocultureandway
ofli
fe.

Perhapsthebestpartof“
Kuul
leeKoo”i
sHachalu’sr
endit
ionofthecl
assi
c
Wollosongbyt helat
eTadesseAlemuti
tl
ed,“
Erikum”inthenextpar
tsof
thesong:

Qabi
​ iqabi
iqabi
i
ka

Qabi
iqabi
iqabi
i
ka

Qabi
iqabi
iqabi
i
ka

Come,
let
’sdance!Let
’sdance!Let
’sdance!
Becauseoft hehi st ori
calhost i
l
er el
at i
onshi pandi nteractionsbet weent he
Wol loOr omor ulersandEmper orTewodr osI I,theTewodr osI Ihadf or cibly
attempt edt oi ncor poratet heWol l
or egionunderhi sdi rectr uledur inghi s
reign.Howev er,hehadf acedst if
fr esist ancef rom t heWol lo Or omos,
not ablyundert hel eader shipofQueenWor kituWadaj o.Manyhi storians
est i
mat ethisr esistancel ast edf ormor et han10y ears,inwhi chTewodr os
wentonav engeancecampai gnagai nsttheWol loOr omosbydev ast ating,
bur ning,and l oot ing t he east ern Wol l
or egi on.Howev er,he t oo was
ov erwhelmedbyt her esist anceofQueenWor kitu,whi chcont ributedt ohi s
demi sein1868CEashebecameanOr omopr isoneri nt hemount ai
n
fortressofMagdal a and commi tt
ed sui cide.I tisnot ewor thyt hatt he
Ethiopianst atenar rativeandhi storiographydoesn’ tacknowl edget hef act
thatt hemai nr easonhecommi ttedasui ci dewasnotbecausehi sescape
from QueenWor kituofOr omowasi mpossi ble, butrat heritemphasi zeson
theassumpt i
ont hathedi dnotwantt of alli ntoBr iti
shhandsasacapt iv
e
king.Cont r
ar yt oEt hiopianar chivesandhi st oriography ,whi chof t
ennegl ect
Or omo’ shistoricalgl ory,Hachal uacknowl edgesQueenWor kitu’
sbr av eryin
thesecondv erseof“ Kuul leeKoo” :

Bar
eedi
i
nakeessaan

Goot
ummaai
sheear
gee

Yammukor
aafbaat
u

Goot
asany
iigoot
a

Gadaammeessaabbaakee

Yaasany
iiWar
qit
uu

Sidaangaanj
aal
alaa

Sidaangaangoot
ummaa

Lubbuunkoosi
feet
uu
Gi
ft
iiWar
raYej
juu

Gi
​ft
iiWar
raBaabboo

Maal
ii
fkankoohi
ntaat
u?

Inot
icedherf
ear
lessness

Thr
oughherbeaut
y

Asshel
​ eav
esf
orgat
her
ings.

Awar
ri
orl
i
keherancest
ors.

She'
sasgal
l
antasQueenWor
kit
u,

Herf
ather
'sof
fspr
ing[
legacy
].

Af
ear
lessguar
dianofl
ove,

Theonemysoul
desi
res.

TheQueenofWar
raYej
j
u,

TheQueenofWar
raBabbo

Whycan’
tyoubemi
ne?

WarraYejj
uandWar r
aBabboar eanot
herOromomonarchi
esinthe18t
h,
19thandear l
y20thcent
uri
es.However
,today
,theyar
ejustnamesofa
quart
ers/
areasinWol
lozone.

I
nconcl usi
on,Kuull
eeKooi sindeedauni quesongt hatseemst ostay
relevantasday spass,makingitmor efascinati
ngf ormusi candhi st
ory
l
ov ers.Thesepoeticlyri
csconti
nuetobenotonl ylovedandenj oyedby
Oromopeopl eacr
osst heworl
d,butal
sosignifi
esandshedsl i
ghtupont he
historyofoneoft heneglect
edr egi
onsi nEt hi
opia.Howev er,t
hemost
not abl
epurposeofitistoenabletheOromost olearnpartofthei
rhistory
,
whi ch i
sof t
en brushed,negl
ected,and/ordeni ed apl acein Ethi
opian
ar
chi
vesandhi
stor
iogr
aphy
.

Ref
erences

Assaf
a,J.(1999)A Shor
tHi
storyofOromoCol
oni
alExper
ience1870’
s-
1990’
s.JournalofOr
omosSt
udies,
6(1/
2).

Si
l,N.(
2015)TewodrosandTi
pusasWar r
iorAgainstI
mper
ial
i
stBr
it
ain:A
Comparat
iveSt
udy.Asi
anandAfr
icanSt
udi
es,24(1).

DARCH,C.( 1977)
.TheRiseoftheAmharaState.TheAf r
icanReview:A
JournalofAfri
canPol
it
ics,Dev
elopmentandInter
nat
ionalAffai
rs,
7(3/
4),
106–109.

Ti
bebu, T. Et
hiopi
a in the Ni
net
eent
h Cent
ury
. Oxf
ord Resear
ch
Ency
clopedi
aofAfri
canHi
stor
y.

Melaku,M.(2019) .Socialand Poli

ti
calHi
storyofWollo Pr
ovi
nce i
n
Et
hiopia:
1769–1916.Ph.
D.Univer
sit
yoftheWester
nCape.

Zewde,
B.(
1997)
.Jour
nal
ofEt
hiopi
anSt
udi
es,
30(
2),
89–95.

Hassen,M.,& Haywar
d,R.(1980)
.Lingui
sti
cEvidencei
nanAspectof
Oromo Histor
y:Some Innov
ati
ons I
nvolv
ing Gl
i
des.NortheastAf
ri
can
St
udies,
2(2)
,53–63.

Poluha,E.
,&Feleke,E.
(2016)
.Thinki
ngOutsi
deTheBox:Essay
sOnThe
Histor
yAnd(Under)Dev
elopmentOfEthi
opi
a.

HASSEN,M.( 2015).AbbaBahr ey’sZenahuleGallaandi t

sImpacton
EmperorZa-Dengel’sWaragainsttheOromo,1603–1604.TheOromoand
theChri
sti
anKi ngdom ofEthi
opia:1300–1700(
pp.222–258)
.Woodbri
dge,
Suff
olk;
Rochest er
,NY:Boydel
l&Br ewer.

Hi
new,D.(
2012)
.Hi
stor
icalSi
gni
fi
cancesofOdaawi
thSpeci
alRef
erence
t
oWal
aabuu.Sci
ence,
Technol
ogyandAr
tsResear
chJour
nal
.

Yates,B.(2010)
.Accul turati
on int he Däga:LocalNegot
iat
ions in
Amhara/Or
omoRel at
ions.Internat
ionalJour
nalofEt
hiopi
anSt
udies,
5(2)
,
91–113.

Zewde,Bahru.AHist
oryofModer
nEt
hiopi
a1855–1991(
1993)
.2ndEd.
Athens:
OhioUni
ver
sit
yPress.

Gel
gel
o,S.
,Debu,D.,Hi
new,D.,Worku,M.(2020).Hi
stor
yofEt
hiopi
aand
t
heHorn.Mi
nist
ryofSci
enceandHigherEducati
on.