Highland East Cushitic peoples on the eastern escarpment of the Rift above Lakes Hawassa and Abaya, growing the false banana (ensete) and coffee in later times; stelae like those of Tiya are found in their country.
Nothing is written of them before the sixteenth century; Taddesse Tamrat used 'Sidama' in the older sense for all the Cushitic peoples of the southern plateau. Drawn as self-governing clans on linguistic and archaeological evidence.
Who holds it
- Title
- Clan elders
- Since
- Not pinned
- Confidence
- low
What it holds
- The escarpment east of Lakes Hawassa and Abaya
How things stand that morning
Self-governing.
Customs
Clans with elders and generation grades (later ethnography).
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Linguistic and archaeological inference only.
On the map: Rough outline.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.