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Some people say Argobba came to Ethiopia from Arabia and are descendants of the Prophet Muhammad, others say they came from Persia and Iraq. According to another version the Argobba are not immigrants, but an ancient and indigenous people who accepted Islam very early from religious leaders who came from Arabia. No-one can assert definitively the date of the coming of the Argobba, the direction they came from, or the reason why. A Muslim community, they are spread out through isolated villages all located on hills where outsiders are usually not allowed. The Argobba are very conservative and have no contact with the outside world. Koromi, the oldest argobba settlement in Ethiopia, sits on a remote hilltop several miles away from Harar and it is a labyrinth of stone houses and many of them are hundred of years old. Farmers, traders, breeders, the Argobba use sophisticated methods of terracing to grow cash crop such as coffe and khat. Children learn the Quran from early age and help the family in farm work.
Traditional Argobba stone house
Argobba woman in her house
Children in a courtyard
Back home
The grocery shop, the only one in the village