Critical analyses on women’s sexuality in omotic proverbs

This study analyzed Omotic proverbs to examine whether any gender biases exist in the way women’s sexuality is portrayed. Primary and secondary data were used for the study. The proverbs were collected with an interview with ten informants from Omotic languages speaking areas and from two published sources on Omotic proverbs. Then the collected proverbs were analyzed qualitatively. The theoretical apparatus for the study has been drawn from a combination of approaches including patriarchy, hegemonic masculinity, and feminism. The selected proverbs were grouped based on their themes. The study revealed that in the selected Omotic proverbs, women’s sexuality was portrayed inappropriately. Even though there is changing images of women’s sexuality in the Omotic languages speaking family, it is wise to note that these changes are sometimes hampered by entrenched male centered societal views about women. Therefore, to bring radical change on the Omotic languages speaking people an extensive training and education about women’s sexuality must be implemented by all concerned bodies.