An Archaeological Survey Of Islamic Shrines In Jimma Zone South Western Ethiopia

Islamic shrines are a sanctuary devoted to Muslim saints and used for ritual practices. As definedrnby Braukamper.U (2002), shrine is any man made sanctuary (sometimes associated with naturalrnobjects) devoted to a Muslim saint (wali). The custom of venerating saints and visiting theirrnshrines is a common phenomena found in the Muslim world (Ishihara 2009). In Ethiopia, thernpresences of several shrines are typical proofs of the existence of a deep rooted tradition ofrnvenerating saints among the Muslim people. Islamic shrines in Ethiopia are not only a religiousrnplace, but are also important depositors of the pre-Islamic cultures of the indigenousrncommunities (Trimingham 1965; Hussein 1994; Braukamper 2002; Kassaye 2009). Hence,rnIslamic shrines are important heritages used to understand cultural changes and continuities ofrnthe past and the present. However, due to the past socio-political and historical marginalizationrnof Islam in Ethiopia, Islamic shrines have been studied very little. The previous researchesrnconducted on Islamic shrines have been geographically and thematically limited. Consequently,rnshrines in the historically prominent Muslim lands (the five Gibe states) of the present dayrnJimma zone remained unstudied. Therefore, this paper presents archaeological survey researchrnconducted on the Islamic shrine sites of Jimma zone. The study identified and documented twornIslamic shrines namely; shrines of Sadeqiyo and Abba Arabu, located in Sokoru district andrnaround Jimma town respectively. The shrines, being located near the former economic andrnadministrative sites; have great significance to understand the history of Islamic relation with thernpast political and economic scenario of the area. In addition to this, the pre-Islamic Oromorncultural and ritual traditions are well preserved in the two shrines of Jimma zone. Albeit scholarsrnsuch as Terje Ostebo (2009) claimed the ‘Islamaization of the pre-Islamic Oromo cultures’, thernritual performances conducted at the shrines of Arabu and Sadeqiyo, clearly indicates thern‘Oromization of Islamic religion’. Moreover, the shrines have actual and potential economic,rnscholastic, and cultural significances. Despite this fact, the shrines are presently endangered fromrndeliberate anthropogenic actions as well as natural factors

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