The Sidama Nation: An Introduction Seyoum Hameso
Small holder farmers coping strategies to household food insecurity and hunger in Sidama Small holder farmers coping strategies to household food insecurity and hunger in Sidama To appreciate a people’s explanation of life and misfortune, one needs to have a general picture of the wider framework of their existence (Brøgger 1986:21) L ittle is known about the Sidama nation, its people, its history and culture. Sidama studies were virtually non-existent even for academic purposes. Th ere are many reasons for this. First and foremost, the emergence of enlightened nationalists and the promotion of Sidama nationalism were late and slow in comparison to other regions. Secondly, the Ethiopian historiography had no room for the promotion or development of non-Habasha cultures and peoples. Worse, still, it had circumvented and undermined knowledge production and dissemination of the latter. Th e combination of these factors engendered ambiguity about the