The Soddo or Kistane (Gurage: ክስታኔ; endonym: Aymellel, Gordena) are a subgroup of the Gurage who inhabit the south-central part of Ethiopia, considered the northern geographic and linguistic subset of the Gurage and speak the Soddo Gurage language or Kistanigna (ክስታንኛ). They primarily inhabit the Soddo (woreda) in the Gurage Zone, but large amounts also live in various parts of Ethiopia, particularly in Addis Abeba, Nazret, Butajira, and Dire Dawa. They are related to the Sebat Bet Gurage and other Gurage sub-groups, however, in contrast to the Sebat Bet Gurage and Silte, they are exclusively and almost entirely Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Christians. The Soddo Gurage are known for and pride themselves on their Orthodox Christian identity, which they have historically practiced since ancient times, and from which their name Kistane (lit. Christian) derives its name, as it is the traditional and preferred name by locals for the people, although Soddo is still popularly used.
The Soddo or Kistane Gurage are related to their fellow Gurages. Geographically, they almost entirely border the Oromo to the North, West, and East. To the south, they border the Dobi-Gogot to the south, the Meskan and Mareqo to the southeast, and to a small degree with the Wolane or Gedebano to the southwest. They historically shared considerable geographic and linguistic polity with the Gafat, now an extinct group, and once encompassed territory that stretched widely to Gojjam and Kingdom of Damot in the west before the incursions of the Oromo migrations.
History
The earliest reference to the Kistane dates back nearly a thousand years to the early twelfth century in the Chronicle of the Sultanate of Showa, written in 1120, where the territories of Kebd (i.e., Midre Kebd) and Mount "Hamilah" (Aymellel) were mentioned as lying amid the conflicts between the Muslim Sultanate and the surrounding Christian kingdoms. The Chronicle of Amde Tsion (written in the early 14th century) listed Aymellel (Alamale) as a district and province that was governed by a Mesfin appointed by the Emperor Amda Seyon (1314–1344), serving at times as a military garrison and settlement by him and future emperors. According to religious traditions and the hagiography of Gebre Menfes Kidus, the saint had evangelized heavily in the area approximately during the 11th century (known as "Kebd" in the Gedl) and is largely credited locally for the early Christianization of the people. One of his surviving legacies is the famous Medre Kebd Abo Monastery, one of the oldest Churches in the then-southern peripheries of the country at the time, alongside Ziqualla, and where he was eventually buried. Saint Tekle Haymanot is also credited with converting populations towards the Butajira area.
Gurage oral traditions recount Aymellel as being the first destination where the expeditions of the mythological Azmach Sebhat arrived, who is said to have been sent by Emperor Amda Seyon to settle in the area in the early 14th century. 19th and 20th-century academics and linguists used the term to identify the Kistane, and it continued to be traditionally referred to as them by other Gurages. However, in the present, "Aymellel" is preserved as being only one of the several sub-groups or Agers consisting of the Soddo Kistane, suggesting that the Aymellel once represented the historically dominant group amongst them before it lost its political significance. Today, the Kistane are primarily divided into and consisted of the following sub-units: Amawute, Wacho, Gereno, Aymellel, Adele, Aygedo, Endebuyo, Keshte, Gemise, Angetge, Aratge, Kenz, Eshgedye, Dugda, Zemute, Melko, Nurenna, Damu, Wogeram, and others. Some Kistane oral sources claim descendence from the north, such as Eritrea, Axum, Gonder, and Bulga. citing their long-standing links with the historical empire to antiquity.
Kistaneland (which the region is sometimes referred to as), is the site of numerous historical sites, such as the monolithic UNESCO World Heritage site Tiya and the similar Gereno staeles. It also contains several historical monasteries such as Medre Kebd Abo, and the monolithic church Adadi Mariam, a testament to the area's strong and long links with Christianity in the area. The Orthodox Faith is an integral cornerstone in the societal structure, morals, culture, and sub-ethnic identity amongst the Christian Kistane, although there is a small but existent Muslim minority. According to religious hagiography, St. Gebre Menfes Kidus built the Medre Kebd Abo monastery in the 11th century, later being buried there. In local tradition, it is said that the brother of Emperor Ezana of Axum, Saizana founded Adadi Mariam in the 4th century, while some date back its construction to the 12th century under the reign of Lalibela (Emperor of Ethiopia) during the Zagwe dynasty. Both of these are major sites of Christian pilgrimage to thousands around the country today. Other significant and ancient Churches include Kondalditi Monastery near Suten, Melko Mariam, and Jugan Balewold.
That the Kistane's homeland once stretched much further wide is attested in the discoveries of remnants of a Kistane population in Lake Wonchi and the Ambo area known as the Galila when French Explorer Antoine d'Abbadie met with them in Gojjam returning to their home in Wonchi. The Priests identified themselves as Kistane (Christian) Gurages, stating they were led by their hereditary ruler Abegaz Wolle who was constantly at war with the Oromo. Ethnologist Eike Haberland visited the area in 1955 to research further the people who by that time had almost become extinct and were in danger of being assimilated. He also studied the ethnology of the Chebo, another related Gurage people who were already mostly assimilated by the Oromo but whose original name was Kurchase. He noted the Galila and Chebo both were the original inhabitants of the Dandiff mountains in Western Shewa but upon the Oromo migrations, both were forced to be confined in the foothill areas of the mountains and lake edge. Unlike the Chebo, the Galila lived in the higher mountain escarpments and were able to preserve their identity. Haberland agreed with linguist Wolf Leslaus hypothesis of the Kistane language being an extension of Gafat and noted that the presence of the Galila sect of the Kistane in the area, as well as the Kurchase strengthened the argument that the Gurage and Gafat once shared adjacent territories much larger than the land they currently possess. This is further affirmed by Ulrich Braukamper's conclusion of the presence of the Kistane in Waj before the migration of the Hadiya people and the discoveries of Christian relics and artifacts in Mt. Chilalo and the Lake Langano massifs.
During the 15th to 17th centuries, "Aymellel" was listed by some explorers, such as Hiob Ludolf, as an independent district distinct from other Gurages, who were described by some as “Pagans”, in contrast with the Aymellel Christians. By the later centuries, however, for reasons unknown, Aymellel ceased to function as a term applicable to the entirety of the Kistane and was only applied as a geographic term to a district on the mountains west of Bui.
Later in 1841, several subgroups and polities belonging to Christian Gurages (i.e. Kistane) were listed by Ludwig Krapf:
"The Christians are settled in the following places:---1. Aimelelle; 2. Nurreno; 3. Bezanchubu; 4. Manes; 5. Malakdamo; 6. Wogoram; 7. Buiyana; 8. Yudamo; 9. Dachi; 10. Yetanne; 11. Arechat; 12. Heberrer; 13. Arogomane; 14. Dobi; 15. Yawitwi; 16. Yatabona; 17. Zera Zangania; 18. Mohor."
Of these, the most notable belonging to the Sodo Kistane include Aimellele (Aymellel), Nurenno (Nurenna), Buiyana (Buiyema), Wogaram, Dachi and Malakdamo (Damu); while, Heberrer (Sheberrer), Yawitwi (Yawitin), Arechat, Arogame (Argume) are Dobi, Yatabona (Yetebon) belongs to the Meskan and Moher (Muher) are a subgroup of the Sebat Bet which, like the Kistane have been Christian for centuries.
Oromo migrations/invasions and impact Oral and written sources list that the locals of Aymellel aided and fought in the armies of the Christian Kingdom in fighting against the invasion of Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi during the Ethiopian-Adal war in the 16th century and were subsequently attacked and ransacked; Midre Kebd Abo, most notably, was burned, and its treasures were looted by Islamic forces. After the Imam's death in 1541 and the Christian Ethiopian state's narrow victory over them however, in the mid-16th century, the Gurage, like much of the rest of the inhabitants of southern Ethiopia, found themselves victims of long-standing invasions, once more, this time from the Oromo. The Oromo migrations, which started somewhere from the south-eastern peripheries of the country near the Kenyan border, began a series of expansions and incursions northwards which would profoundly and permanently affect the demographics of central, western, and southern Ethiopia today. The Gurage, Amhara, Hadiya, and Sidama were the most successful groups to resist the newcomers. The Chronicle of Emperor Susenyos mentions that the Macca Oromo, expanding their way to the Blue Nile basin, were defeated by Gurages and Hadiyas. The geographic location of the Kistane, however, left them more susceptible to Oromo raids and incursions in contrast to their fellow Gurages, and they were not only separated from the mainland but were encircled and forced to endure centuries of aggressions and conflicts with them, as well as to a lesser extent, the Mareqo and Qabena. From the 17th to 19th centuries, they were successful in repulsing and defeating the Oromo, winning many series of battles, although they conceded much of the land in the north. Most of the battles were fought against the Abado, Malima, and Jida clans of the Tulama Oromo, known as the Seden Sodo. Many local heroes, known as Gotas such as Gacho Zage and Yadutu Dugda of Wacho, Bene Dutu of Aratge, Dama Roge of Damu, and many others continue to be hailed and oral stories of their bravery in battle are recited by elders. However, a reversal of fortune for them came around the early 19th century, and the Seden Sodo began enlisting the aid of neighboring Oromo tribes of Jile, Becho, Gimbitchu, and Liben. With their new allies, they became more successful in infiltrating most of the Kistane mainland, with the exception of Wogeram.
“The Galla first broke into Aymallal territory through Ambare Wargo in Nuranna. Then other Aymallal areas, like Gayat, Gareno, Endabuya, and Amawte, were invaded and sacked. The main Galla tribes that invaded Aymallal were the Abado and Malima from the north, both members of the Tulama branch of the Galla, the Geto, and the Dula. Amawte is said to have been invaded by the Abado, Wacho by the Geto, and Aratge by the Dula. Another, less known, tribe, the Jidda, invaded Gareno. Of these tribes, the one most feared was the Abado, with whom the Aymallal had most of their battles."