Kingdom of Jimma

The Kingdom of Jimma was one of the kingdoms in the Gibe region of Ethiopia that emerged in the 19th century. It shared its western border with Limmu-Ennarea, its eastern border with the Sidamo kingdom of Janjero, and was separated from the Kingdom of Kaffa to the south by the Gojeb River. Jimma was considered the most powerful, militarily, of the Gibe kingdoms. Dawro, an Ometo dialect, was the native language but is losing ground to Oromo.

Although the king can be described as a despot, the citizens of Jimma were otherwise considered his equals: all could own property, there was no nobility, and the other citizens addressed him as an equal and not as a superior.