Afaan Oromoo
Oromo
Cushitic
Oromo (Afaan Oromoo) is an East Cushitic language with ~37M speakers — Ethiopia's most-spoken language by L1 (Oromia Region) and a federal working language since 2020. Significant communities in Kenya (Borana) and Somalia. Latin script (Qubee) standardized 1991, replacing Geʽez script under Derg regime; choice was politically symbolic (rejection of Amharic dominance).
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Oromo
Water
bishaan
/biʃaːn/
Fire
ibidda
/ibidːa/
Sun
aduu
/aduː/
Moon
jiʼa
/dʒiʔa/
Mother
haadha
/haːɗa/
Father
abbaa
/abːaː/
Eat
nyaachuu
/ɲaːtʃuː/
Drink
dhuguu
/ɗuɡuː/
Love
jaalala
/dʒaːlala/
Heart
onnee
/onːeː/
Tree
muka
/muka/
House
mana
/mana/
Dog
saree
/saɾeː/
Cat
adurree
/aduɾːeː/
Hand
harka
/haɾka/
Eye
ija
/idʒa/
Hello
akkam
/akːam/
Thank you
galatoomi
/ɡalatoːmi/
One
tokko
/tokːo/
Good
gaarii
/ɡaːriː/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Cushitic languages
| Meaning | Oromo | Konso | Sidamo | Gedeo | Irula | Hausa | Daasanach |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | bishaan /biʃaːn/ | inanta /inanta/ | waayyo /waːjːo/ | woyye /wojːe/ | nīr /niːɾ/ | ruwa /ɾuwaː/ | no /no/ |
| Fire | ibidda /ibidːa/ | iya /ija/ | giiraa /ɡiːraː/ | gira /ɡiɾa/ | tī /tiː/ | wuta /wuta/ | mes /mes/ |
| Sun | aduu /aduː/ | kawa /kawa/ | arrishshe /arːiʃːe/ | ayyaʼne /ajːaʔne/ | čūriyen /tʃuːɾijen/ | rana /ɾaːnaː/ | sicho /sitʃo/ |
| Moon | jiʼa /dʒiʔa/ | ayeena /ajeːna/ | agana /aɡana/ | agina /aɡina/ | niLā /niɭaː/ | wata /wata/ | mar /mar/ |
| Mother | haadha /haːɗa/ | eedda /eːdːa/ | ama /ama/ | aaki /aːki/ | ammā /amːaː/ | uwa /uwaː/ | waana /waːna/ |
| Father | abbaa /abːaː/ | abba /abːa/ | anna /anːa/ | eke /eke/ | ayyā /ajːaː/ | uba /ubaː/ | kaaba /kaːba/ |
| Eat | nyaachuu /ɲaːtʃuː/ | ihaa /ihaː/ | itaa /itaː/ | ittu /itːu/ | činnu /tʃinːu/ | ci /tʃiː/ | icho /itʃo/ |
| Drink | dhuguu /ɗuɡuː/ | inakkaa /inakːaː/ | aguraa /aɡuraː/ | agittu /aɡitːu/ | kuDi /kuɖi/ | sha /ʃaː/ | ʔurro /ʔuro/ |
| Love | jaalala /dʒaːlala/ | jaalla /dʒaːlːa/ | baxa /baxa/ | baxxa /baxːa/ | kāhal /kaːhal/ | ƙauna /kʼauna/ | kashed /kaʃed/ |
| Heart | onnee /onːeː/ | onna /onːa/ | wodanaa /wodanaː/ | mishi /miʃi/ | idayam /idajam/ | zuciya /zutʃija/ | lubeen /lubeːn/ |
| Tree | muka /muka/ | ergaa /erɡaː/ | haqqe /haqːe/ | haqqa /haqːa/ | maram /maɾam/ | bishiya /biʃija/ | hecho /hetʃo/ |
| House | mana /mana/ | mana /mana/ | mine /mine/ | mine /mine/ | vīDu /viːɖu/ | gida /ɡida/ | mar /maɾ/ |
| Dog | saree /saɾeː/ | kareta /kaɾeta/ | minceeti /mintʃeːti/ | kaneessa /kaneːsːa/ | nāyi /naːji/ | kare /kaɾe/ | kashe /kaʃe/ |
| Cat | adurree /aduɾːeː/ | adurree /aduɾːeː/ | adurree /adurːeː/ | adurre /aduɾːe/ | pūne /puːne/ | kyanwa /kʲanwa/ | paka /paka/ |
| Hand | harka /haɾka/ | harka /haɾka/ | anga /anɡa/ | anga /aŋɡa/ | kayyu /kajːu/ | hannu /hanːu/ | hark /haɾk/ |
| Eye | ija /idʒa/ | ila /ila/ | ille /ilːe/ | ille /ilːe/ | kaNN /kaɳː/ | ido /idoː/ | ill /ilː/ |
| Hello | akkam /akːam/ | akkam /akːam/ | nagaa yi'ne /naɡaː jiʔne/ | mooye /moːje/ | vannakkam /vanːakːam/ | sannu /sanːu/ | nagaya /naɡaja/ |
| Thank you | galatoomi /ɡalatoːmi/ | galta /ɡalta/ | gali'ne /ɡaliʔne/ | galaata /ɡalaːta/ | nanri /nanɾi/ | na gode /na ɡode/ | galche /ɡaltʃe/ |
| One | tokko /tokːo/ | takka /takːa/ | mitto /mitːo/ | mitto /mitːo/ | onnu /onːu/ | ɗaya /ɗaja/ | takka /takːa/ |
| Good | gaarii /ɡaːriː/ | fayye /fajːe/ | danchu /dantʃu/ | danee /daneː/ | nalla /nalːa/ | nagari /naɡaɾi/ | ash /aʃ/ |
Word order compared
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