Kingdom of Kaffa

Common card · No. 484510

The Kingdom of Kaffa existed from 1390 to 1897 in what is today Ethiopia, with its first capital at Bonga. It was bounded to the north by the Gojeb River, beyond which lay the Gibe kingdoms; to the east by the territory of the Konta and Kullo peoples and, beyond, the Omo River; to the south by numerous subgroups of the Gimira people; and to the west by the Majangir people. The native language, also known as Kaffa, is one of the Omotic group of languages. Kaffa was divided into four subgroups that spoke a common language, Kefficho, one of the Gonga/Kefoid group of Omotic languages. The kingdom was also home to groups of foreigners, Ethiopian Muslim traders, and members of the Ethiopian Church. A number of socioeconomic groups, "but with the status of submerged status", existed; these included the manjo (hunters), manne (leatherworkers), and qemmo (blacksmiths). The manjo had their own king, appointed by the King of Kaffa, and were given the duties of guarding the royal compounds and the...

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