arsi

Arsi is a term used for several related geographic, ethnic, and historical references in eastern Ethiopia.

The Arsi Zone is an administrative zone of the Oromia Region, located in the eastern central highlands; its capital is Asella. It is named for the Arsi Oromo, who inhabit the area and contribute to its cultural and linguistic landscape.

The Arsi Mountains form a prominent highland range in eastern central Ethiopia, part of the Ethiopian Highlands. The range influences local climate, ecosystems, and settlement patterns across the region.

The Arsi Oromo are a major subgroup of the Oromo people. They traditionally inhabit the Arsi area and speak the Oromo language, with the Arsi dialect being a notable variant. They have historically interacted with neighboring groups and have played a significant role in the region’s social and political history.

Historically, the term Arsi was used for Arsi Province, a former province of the Ethiopian Empire. The province’s territory roughly corresponded to what is now the Arsi Zone and adjacent areas, before the country’s administrative reorganization into regional states.

In contemporary usage, “Arsi” appears in Ethiopian administrative and ethnographic contexts and in scholarly works about the Oromo. The term thus reflects a combination of geographic, cultural, and historical identities in central and eastern Ethiopia.