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The Selale of Ethiopia

The Selale of Ethiopia, numbering approximately 5,620,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are a subgroup of the Tulema (Tulama) Oromo, one of the major branches of the Oromo people of Ethiopia. Their traditional homeland is the Selale/Salaalee region of North Shewa, north of Addis Ababa in present-day Oromia Region. They mostly adhere to Tewahedo Orthodox Christianity and Borana-Arsi-Guji Oromo is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3 Flash: Selale

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Horn of Africa Peoples
Country: Ethiopia
People Cluster: Oromo
Primary Language(s): Borana-Arsi-Guji Oromo (gax)
Primary Religion(s): Tewahedo Orthodox Christianity
Population: 5,620,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG011636

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Pray for the Selale of Ethiopia

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

Pray Now!
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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Tewahedo Orthodox Christianity
Religious Affiliation: Christianity

70%
%
Tewahedo Orthodox Christi… Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Borana-Arsi-Guji Oromo
Language Family: Afro-Asiatic

100%
%
Oromo, Borana-Arsi-Guji Speakers

Media Resources in Borana-Arsi-Guji Oromo:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
JESUSView Film

2 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Borana-Arsi-Guji Oromo:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
1994 Bible Society of Kenya✓
2007 Bible Society of Ethiopia✓

2 entries

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Borana-Arsi-Guji Oromo bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Selale are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Next steps for the Selale:
Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Selale of Ethiopia

Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!
readPsalm 46:10

Pray that those who do not yet worship Jesus will be still and know that He is God, that He will be exalted among them and in all the earth.

"O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me."
readJohn 17:25

Pray that the lost will come to know the Father and Jesus Christ, whom He has sent, and that they will be filled with His love and grace.

I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord, forever; with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations.
readPsalm 89:1

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will declare and record His faithfulness and love to be passed on from generation to generation.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
readEphesians 6:12

Ask God to give those He sends to cross cultures the discernment they need to recognize the spiritual battle they are fighting. Pray God will protect their faith as they abide in Him.

Selale Across Countries (ROP3 - 108807) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDName ▲CountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
SelalePG011636SelaleEthiopia5,620,000No Longer UnreachedBorana-Arsi-Guji OromoTewahedo Orthodox Christianity

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Data Standards section.

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