Podocarpus tree
The Gurage people are an Habesha Ethio-semitic ethnic group traditionally inhabiting a rural, semi-mountainous region of southwest Ethiopia. While the Gurage region is still densely populated, the Gurage people also reside in many other regions in Ethiopia and all over the world today.
At the center of Gurage culture is Yejoka, the high-level general assembly, or “high court,” of elders responsible for resolving inter-clan and inter-tribe disputes. It is made up of seven assemblymen, or “judges,” from each of the seven “houses” of the Sebat Bet Gurage. For over three hundred years, the Gurage have relied on Yejoka to oversee disputes and implement laws.
The Gurage term “Yejoka” comes from the famously resilient Podocarpus tree in the region of Chaha under which the elders gather for proceedings. The tree’s branches (yaj), over time, were bent and buried into the ground (yoka), then sprouted back up again.
It is in this spirit of resilience and moral guidance that Gurda seeks to bring about opportunities and support those who have been met with adversity. Together, we can leave a lasting impact on their lives and the future of the Gurage people.
At the center of Gurage culture is Yejoka, the high-level general assembly, or “high court,” of elders responsible for resolving inter-clan and inter-tribe disputes. It is made up of seven assemblymen, or “judges,” from each of the seven “houses” of the Sebat Bet Gurage. For over three hundred years, the Gurage have relied on Yejoka to oversee disputes and implement laws.
The Gurage term “Yejoka” comes from the famously resilient Podocarpus tree in the region of Chaha under which the elders gather for proceedings. The tree’s branches (yaj), over time, were bent and buried into the ground (yoka), then sprouted back up again.
It is in this spirit of resilience and moral guidance that Gurda seeks to bring about opportunities and support those who have been met with adversity. Together, we can leave a lasting impact on their lives and the future of the Gurage people.
Podocarpus tree
የጆካ ማለት፣ የጉራጌ ባህላዊ የአስተዳደር ማዕከል እና ስርዓት ማለት ነው ፡፡ ቤተ ጉራጌ ከተመሰረተበት ጊዜ አንስቶ፣ ለሶስት መቶ አመታት ያህል ጉራጌ ይመራበት የነበረው እና እየተመራበት ያለው፣ ባህላዊ የአስተዳደር ህጎች የሚወጡት፣ እና ተግባራዊነታቸውም የሚረጋገጠውም በእዚሁ የአስተዳር ማዕከል ነው ፡፡
የጆካ አንድ የበላይ ሸንጎ የአለው ሲሆን፣ በስሩ ደግሞ ሌሎች ሰባት ሸንጎዎች አሉት ፡፡
የጆካ የተባለው መጠሪያ የተወሰደውም ከሁለት እድሜ ጠገብ ዝግባዎች አበቃቀል ነው፡፡ እድሜ ጠገቦቹ ዝግባዎች፣ ቅርንጫፋቸው መሬት ነክቶ እንደገና በቅለው ይታያል፡፡ በዚሁ ምክንያት ነው በወቅቱ የነበሩት አዛውንት በጉራግኛ (ኧጅ ወካ) (እጁን ተደገፈ) በማለት ስያሜውን የጆካ የአሉት፡፡
ከእዚያ በኋላ የሚካሄዱትም ሸንጎዎች የጆካ ሸንጎዎች ተባሉ፣ ስፍራውም የጆካ ቀበሌ ተባለ፡፡
የጆካ አንድ የበላይ ሸንጎ የአለው ሲሆን፣ በስሩ ደግሞ ሌሎች ሰባት ሸንጎዎች አሉት ፡፡
የጆካ የተባለው መጠሪያ የተወሰደውም ከሁለት እድሜ ጠገብ ዝግባዎች አበቃቀል ነው፡፡ እድሜ ጠገቦቹ ዝግባዎች፣ ቅርንጫፋቸው መሬት ነክቶ እንደገና በቅለው ይታያል፡፡ በዚሁ ምክንያት ነው በወቅቱ የነበሩት አዛውንት በጉራግኛ (ኧጅ ወካ) (እጁን ተደገፈ) በማለት ስያሜውን የጆካ የአሉት፡፡
ከእዚያ በኋላ የሚካሄዱትም ሸንጎዎች የጆካ ሸንጎዎች ተባሉ፣ ስፍራውም የጆካ ቀበሌ ተባለ፡፡
Read more about Gurage culture in the blog post, Maya Haile Samuelsson: My people, the Gurage.
And check out the music video below, which showcases traditional Gurage dancing and music, and encourages unity.
And check out the music video below, which showcases traditional Gurage dancing and music, and encourages unity.