User:Jaxsonthornton/sandbox

Sub-heading Practice
I am writing a regular sentence for practice in my sandbox page. I am linking to another Wiki page about How Giraffes Fight one another. Weird, eh?

The Gada and Luba system
The 'gada' and 'Luba' systems are important to understand when taking the Oromo Migrations of the 1500s into consideration because they define the different time periods of expansion. The gada and Luba systems are defined by Mohammed Hassen as "a regiment of a generation that assumes power for a period of eight years" (239). The key difference between gada and Luba is that the gada refers to "term of office", while Luba refers to the group of Oromo people during the given time period of a gada's leadership (239).

The Institution of Moggaasaa
One of the most prevalent reasons for the success of the Oromo people's expansions into greater Ethiopia was the institution of 'Moggaasaa', which essentially equates to a modern understanding of adoption. 'Moggaasaa' was an important cultural practice that persisted with each new gada over the course of the 16th century. The systems of adoption that made up Moggaasaa were two pronged; the first prong was a broad system of cultural adoption that allowed for non-Oromo peoples to assimilate into Oromo clans with ease and facilitate growth. The system was so effective that even when Oromo clans were conquered by non-Oromos, the two peoples often became integrated in a relatively short time frame through the system of Moggaasaa. The other form of adoption was that of foster parents adopting children, which is still prevalent in Oromo society today. The adopted child was considered to be the natural child of the parent, and lineage and inheritance would pass through the male line of the family. Even if parents were to have a natural born child after adopting a child, the adopted child would still hold priority in inheritance. The adoption of children helped to integrate peoples conquered by Oromo pastoralists within a generation.

Moggaasaa adoption policies also lead to massive diversification within Oromo populations as they expanded during the 16th century.

The legend of Liqimssa
The legend of Liqimssa is an ancient legend stemming from the Borana sect of the Oromo peoples that is credited as having been one of the main motivations for the beginning of the Oromo expansions. Liqimssa roughly translates to "The Swallower", and the Liqimssa was told to be a beast that consumed people one by one until there was nobody left to fight against it. It is meant to embody "hunger", and the story represents how a powerful entity will consume all there is around it until the "land of plenty" (in reference to the Borana homeland) is left barren and empty. The legend is interpreted by Mohammed Hassen to be the embodiment of the Christian Kingdom's growing power and influence in the regions directly south of the Oromo homelands. As Christians military colonists continued to bump up against the Oromo from the south, Oromo pastoralists, in response, began their expansions northward.

Addition to Mélbah (1522–1530) and Mudena (1530–1538)[edit]
The reason for the Oromo's returning after their short conquests is because the Christian and Muslim kingdoms that surrounded Oromo pastoralists were deeply embroiled in jihadic wars. Instead of engaging with either kingdom directly, they targeted isolated communities that would go unnoticed, and allowed their enemies to destroy each other without Oromo intervention.

Three Stages of Oromo Movements
By the 1530s, the Oromo pastoralists had developed a three-staged method for territorial expansion; "scouting, night time surprise attack and settlement" (159). The introduction of scouting teams shows that the Oromo pastoralists had quickly become accustomed to border warfare. The night time attacks that would come to follow were unceasing and relentless, stripping the community of their "booty" and killing a large amount of the warrior class, then escaping before dawn as to avoid being followed back to their basecamps. Once the community under siege was broken down enough to be settled without resistance, the remaining peoples would quickly be integrated through Moggaasaa, having their status', material goods and general livelihoods returned to them. The remaining warriors would join the Oromo gada's troops. With each period of adoption into the fighting class, the Oromo's knowledge of the local terrain would increase drastically.