SUMMARY

The Konso (sometimes spelled Konzo) are a Cushitic people that live in the arid mountains of southwestern Ethiopia. There are about 250,000 Konso. The people have no memory of where their ancestors originated but assume that they have always lived in the small territory, considerably less than 1000 square kilometres, completely surrounded by the land of the Oromo. Here, they have lived in near isolation, with the exception of some trading with the Borena people for salt or cowrie shells.

Unlike most Ethiopian peoples, the Konso live in large towns, each governed by an independent council of elders and divided into smaller administrative neighbourhoods. Each village is surrounded by a wall as they have always been very defensive of their territory. For centuries they have lived in compact towns built out of the local stone. In the past these were independent communities, and they still keep a strong sense of identity. The Konso today are, in theory at least, a semi-independent unit within the Ethiopian state.

The Konsos are farmers and their economy rests on an exceptionally intensive agriculture involving irrigation, fertilization, and terracing of mountain slopes. Claims over grazing and farmlands have sparked clashes with their neighbouring groups.

The Konso have been involved in the non-state category of UCDP organised violence.