Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 16, 2026

Gedeo language

Gedeo is a Highland East Cushitic language of the Afro-Asiatic family spoken in south central Ethiopia. Alternate names for the language include Derasa, Deresa, Darassa, Geddeo, Derasanya, Darasa. It is spoken by the Gedeo people, who live in the highland area, southwest of Dila and east of Lake Abaya.

Last revised
Jul 16, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
Length
172 w
Citations
2
Source
Gedeo
ጌዴኡፈ (gedeʾufä)
Native toEthiopia
RegionGedeo Zone, Guji Zone
EthnicityGedeo
Native speakers
1.4 million (2018)1
Ge'ez script
Language codes
ISO 639-3drs
Glottologgede1246

Gedeo is a Highland East Cushitic language of the Afro-Asiatic family spoken in south central Ethiopia. Alternate names for the language include Derasa, Deresa, Darassa, Geddeo, Derasanya, Darasa. It is spoken by the Gedeo people, who live in the highland area, southwest of Dila and east of Lake Abaya.1

The languages has SOV word order. Verbs are marked for person, number, and gender of subject. Verbs are marked for voice: active, causative, middle, and passive.

The New Testament was published in the Gedeo language in 1986, using the Geʽez script.

References

References

  1. Gedeo at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed access icon
Sources

Sources

  • Wedekind, Klaus. 1980. "Sidamo, Gedeo (Derasa), Burji: Phonological differences and likenesses," Journal of Ethiopian Studies 14: 131–76.
  • Wedekind, Klaus. 1985. "Gedeo (Derasa) verb morphology and morphophonemics," The verb morphophonemics of five highland east Cushitic languages, including Burji. Afrikanistische Arbeitspapiere 2. Cologne: Institut für Afrikanistik. Pages 82–109.
External links