Addooyyee – Oromo sorority

Addooyyee – Oromo sorority
(Adopted partly from Prof. Muhammed S. Megalommatis's article "Oromo Sorority, Christian Fraternity, and the Homosexualization of History" on Buzzle.com )

Similarly deprived of any same-sex loving relationship is the case of the Oromo sorority (Addooyyee) that was reported to me analytically by the Oromo intellectual Asafa Dibaba.

In Addooyyee, two Oromo Virgins take a vow of lifelong Sisterhood or Sorority. They swear in the name of Ateetee, Atis, the Oromo female goddess of Fecundity. They both pierce their palm sitting by the River and mix the blood with Milk, water and dew of their Tear drop. They dip a long grass in the mix and one smears on the forehead of her Friend of a Common Factor. They say words of promises not to betray in the faces of adversities etc. Here are the words:

yaa dhallaadduu
Addooyyee laliftuu kanaa
hoo'u callee Addooyyee kanaa...

jaalallii keenya akka jabaatu
hiriyyoommi keenyas akka jabaatu
akka luubbuu dheeratu

hoo'u aanan Atee-Loon uni--
afaan kee xobbee kanatti
dhallaadduu loosha waliin

hoo'u dhadhaa Atee-Loon
gubbee kichaa kanarratti

harka irraan nyaadhe

harka koorraa nyaatte

irbuu Addooyyee waliin seenne

Ateeteen walitti nu haa hiitu

nu foon tokko
nu dhiiga tokko

foon kee foon kooti

Ateeteen nama afaan tokkoo,

Ateen nama garaa tokkoo
nu haa gootu. Nu waliin Addooyyee dha

hamtuu nurraa haa qabu

nagaa ta'i

Ateeteen si haa tiksitu
si hinfudhatin

Waaqni si haa tiksu
si hinfudhatin
Waaqni si haa tiksu
hamtuun si hinmudatin....

(in Anaan'yaa, in the poem Aanaaf' Saafoo, pp62-63)

The promises are literally to mean: may Ateetee protect you from all evils, may Waaqa Providence protect you, may you succeed in all your endeavours, may Ateetee help us to keep our promises and to remain men of our words, your flesh is my flesh, your blood is my blood, we are One and only One at Life and Death, your pain is my pain, your success is my success, go in Peace, in Peace etc.

The promises is kept unconditionally to remain sisters-in-vow lifelong.

That is Addooyyee Durbee Oromoo, i.e. Addooyyee of the Oromo Virgins.

By Prof. Dr. Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis Published: 3/24/2008