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Beth Rachlin

Dr. Immaculate Kizza

UHON 3000

16 April 2018

The Gurage Peoples of Ethiopia

The Gurage Peoples of Ethiopia, although making up only 2.5% of Ethiopia’s

population, are a culturally rich and diverse people who have long since maintained

their respected reputation as hard workers (Ford). As with many cultures, their history is

muddled, and their roots are controversial. Some historians are in agreement that the

Gurage resulted from the military colonies that were left behind by the Aksumite empire.

However, others assert that viewing Gurage Peoples as one group is doing them a

disservice and oversimplifying their past. Backing this rebuttal is the argument that

perhaps the Gurage People are descendants of the Harla, who also inhabited Ethiopia

(“Gurage People”). Despite disagreements on their cultural origin, it is widely accepted

that the Gurage People are comprised of three subgroups based on region: Northern,

Eastern, and Western Gurage. A group of people known as the Silte was formerly

categorized under the “Eastern Gurage” umbrella, however, they now self-identify as

being independent of the Gurage People (Rose 2003). The Gurage Peoples speak a

Semitic language, but, the languages of the subgroups are not necessarily mutually

intelligible as some have been shaped by neighboring Cushitic languages (Britannica

2015).

Not only does the Gurage Peoples’ culture involve multiple languages, but also

numerous religions. The 2007 census revealed that over half identify as Christian and
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40% as Islamic. However, this does not prevent them from participating in “traditional

religious practices such as offerings to a deity called “Waq” and hanging of fetishes in

their houses to ward off evil spirits” (Ford). Religion and religious practices are an

integral aspect of the Gurage People’s daily life.

A unique characteristic of the Gurage Peoples is their houses. Infamous for being

visually minimalistic and symmetrical, their homes are circular in shape. A thatched roof

covers wooden spokes which extend from a center pole. Arguably, the most impressive

aspect of their homes is not the aesthetically pleasing shape, rather, their homes are

constructed without the use of a single nail. Traditionally decorations often incorporate

hand-made pottery which is hung inside, in orderly rows. Quite often, an adjacent area

of the house is sectioned off to provide shelter for livestock during unideal weather

(Ford). This is unsurprising since the Gurage Peoples’ lives revolve around agriculture

(Britannica 2015).

Agriculture is central to the economic, daily, and social lives of the Gurage

Peoples. Two of their cash crops are stimulants: coffee and khat. Khat is a flowering

plant whose leaves are chewed, similarly to tobacco, for stimulant effects (Parker).

However, its use is becoming controversial and is now banned in most of Europe and

North America but remains legal in Ethiopia (“Legal Status of Khat in Selected

Jurisdictions”). Additionally, cattle, more specifically zebu, are an important facet of the

Gurage Peoples’ agricultural profile. Zebu are raised predominantly for their milk and

fertilizer, but occasionally serve as a source of protein or are eaten during a ceremony

or ritual. Their milk is made into butter, which is traditionally spiced and stored in the

clay pots that neatly line the walls of their homes. The Gurage Peoples view butter as
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both being both a source of sustenance and as having medicinal properties. In fact,

there is a proverb about butter: “A sickness that has the upper hand over butter is

destined for death” (“Gurage People”). The Gurage People’s agricultural-based life is

exemplified by their cultivation of coffee, khat, and cattle and it is clear that agriculture is

intimately woven into their culture and identity.

Although the aforementioned crops play a large role in the Gurage People’s lives,

they are overshadowed by a single staple crop: enset. This plant is fitting and

advantageous for the Gurage Peoples and Ethiopia’s environment partly due to its

impressive resilience to droughts and heavy rains- both of which are increasing in

frequency and intensity due to climate change (Stern 2015). Furthermore, it is a

perennial crop, meaning it does not have to be planted annually. With its expansive

leaves, it shelters the underlying soil from the heavy rain, limiting erosion. Additionally,

the roots plunge deep into the soil, reducing runoff while simultaneously increasing

water infiltration. Research shows that soil surrounding enset plants was more fertile

than soil found in other fields (Heuze, Thiollet, Hassoun, & Lebas 2017). Not only do

enset plants benefit the land they are growing in more than cereal crops (e.g. maize),

but they also have a “small ecological footprint, producing 2.3 times more food per unit

of land than cereal crops” (Stern 2015). In sum, the enset plant serves as a reliable

source of nourishment for both the people and the land of Ethiopia.

Enset is often dubbed the “Ethiopian Banana” or less affectionally referred to as

the “false banana plant”. Unlike the common banana plant, the fruit of the enset is

inedible, however, the rest of the plant is either edible or useful. The Gurage Peoples

are impressively innovative in their methods for finding ways to use each part of the
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plant. No part of the plant is wasted and even the inedible parts are put to use. A few

examples of the clever ways the Gurage Peoples transform this plant into everyday

items are: the bark is used as insulation for thatched roofs, dried leaves can double as

plates, leaves serve as wrappings or are bundled and used as head pads, and coarse

fibers can be woven into rope and sacks (which are usually used to transport coffee)

(“Lost Crops of Africa…”).

The root, leaf, stem, and inner bark are edible, and the Gurage Peoples have

devised intricate methods for making tasty food out of these parts. Perhaps the most

well-known traditional food made from enset is kocho. Kocho is made by scraping the

corm (bottom section) and the large leaves to collect the starchy pulp and fibers. The

pulp is placed in a pit, 2 meters deep, and is left to ferment for anywhere from a month

to two years (the longer this dough is left to ferment, the better it tastes). The pit is

covered with rocks and enset leaves, being opened only a handful of times to stir the

contents. Making kocho is traditionally done by women, and their secret to knowing

when the dough is fermented is the shift in color from green to white. After deciding the

dough is ready, the women knead spices and butter into it, then shape it into a

“flatbread” shape. The flatbread is baked over a fire or in a clay pan and served with

cabbage or kitfo (a dish made of raw beef) (Oulton 2010).

Another way enset is eaten is by making a powder, bula, and mixing water into it.

Bula is made by a process similar to the one used when making kocho, however, the

powder is not fermented. After being combined with water, bula can be made into

porridge, pancakes, dumplings, or even a drink (Stern 2015). Many of the Gurage

Peoples’ traditional and most frequently eaten foods stem from enset.
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The Gurage Peoples understand and appreciate the seemingly endless list of

ways enset helps them survive. As such, enset plays a cultural role and is entwined in

many of their rituals, including practices surrounding birth. As soon as a child is born,

the umbilical cord is tied with enset fibers and the mother is fed enset. The Gurage

Peoples also incorporate enset into the rituals they perform when a loved one dies.

Women pound on the stems during funeral ceremonies and corpses are wrapped in

enset leaves before being buried (“Trip Down Memory Lane…”). Symbolically and

literally, enset is part of the Gurage People’s lives from the day they are born until the

day they die.

Despite all of the advantages stemming from prioritizing enset as a crop, there

are some societal stigmas revolving around it. For example, some of the younger

generation associates the plant with the traditional way of life and views it as “old-

fashioned”. Others believe it is more difficult to cultivate than other cereals, however the

impressive ‘food per unit of land’ ratio neutralizes the legitimacy of this argument.

Another factor deterring individuals from growing enset is that where land scarcity is not

an issue, people are more interested in farming maize for commercial and domestic

production than relying on enset (Stern 2015). The food crisis in 2011 and 2012 served

as a harsh reminder of how beneficial enset is. Scientists, economists, and Ethiopians

alike began a movement to “cast the enset in a more modern light and emphasize its

importance” (Stern 2015). As part of this movement, a university in southern Ethiopia

built ‘Enset Park’, which helps local farmers stock up on seeds and supplies needed to

plant the crop. The Enset Festival is another way people are working to re-popularize

this crop. This event features food carts (“Enset on Wheels”) each with a different enset
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meal in hopes of displaying both its versatility and as a way to remind people of enset’s

societal role.

Reading, researching, and writing this paper was an interesting experience for

me. My grandfather was born in 1919 and grew up on a family farm in Connecticut with

corn and dairy cows. I remember listening as he emphatically explained why agriculture

was a way of life and how important it was to understand the effort “farm to table” food

takes. The only experience I have farming was my first summer job: my best friend and I

worked weeding and harvesting crops under the scorching sun. Long hours in the field

humbled me and catching a glimpse into the Gurage People’s lives was both heartening

and, again, humbling, as I realized how much effort and thoughtfulness these people

put into cultivating and respecting this plant. Unfortunately, I do not see the same level

of respect for agriculture in America (though this is painting with broad brushstrokes).

With mass production and profits as motivators, integrity and respect are oftentimes

shoved to the backburner in American farming practices in ways unparalleled by the

Gurage Peoples.
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Works Cited

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Gurage.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia

Britannica, Inc., 3 Aug. 2015, www.britannica.com/topic/Gurage.

Ford , Carolyn. “The Gurage People.” The Gurage People ,

www.carolynford.org/ethiopia/gurage/.

“Gurage People.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 14 Apr. 2018,

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gurage_people.

Heuze, V., et al. “Enset (Ensete Ventricosum) Corms and Pseudostems.” Enset (Ensete

Ventricosum) Corms and Pseudostems | Feedipedia, 5 Apr. 2017,

www.feedipedia.org/node/21251.

“Legal Status of Khat in Selected Jurisdictions .” Legal Status of Khat in Selected Jurisdictions,

1 May 2015, www.loc.gov/law/help/legal-status-of-khat/index.php.

“‘Lost Crops of Africa: Volume II: Vegetables’ at NAP.edu.” National Academies Press:

OpenBook, www.nap.edu/read/11763/chapter/11#178.

Oulton, Randal. “Kocho.” CooksInfo.com, CooksInfo.com, 14 Oct. 2010,

www.cooksinfo.com/kocho.

Parker , Ben. “Everything about Qat/Khat/Kat.” University of Pennsylvania- African Studies

Center , www.africa.upenn.edu/Hornet/qat.html.

Rose , Sharon. “Gurage and Silte Research Group.” Gurage Background, 15 Mar. 2003,

idiom.ucsd.edu/~rose/GSRG/gurage_background.htm.

Stern , Rachel. “Faced with Climate Change, Ethiopia Rediscovers an Ancient Staple Crop | DW

| 03.11.2015.” DW.COM, 11 Mar. 2015, www.dw.com/en/ethiopia-rediscovers-ancient

staple-crop/a-18823060.
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“Trip Down Memory Lane.” Gurage People: Ethiopia`S Afro-Asiaticpeople With Rich Culture

And Diversity, 17 Feb. 2014, kwekudee

tripdownmemorylane.blogspot.com/2014/02/gurage-people-ethiopias-afro-asiatic.html.