The depiction of motherhood in wolaita and arsioromo proverbs

The objective of this study is to examine and analyze the representations of women in Wolaita and Arsi Oromoproverbs. The study analyzed Wolaita and Arsi Oromo proverbs by using theories from feminism and hermeneutic interpretations. Qualitative research design was used for the study. This is because it was believed to be suitable to interpret and thematically explicate the existing gender related issues in the proverbs of the two societies in Ethiopia. Textual analyses were chosen as a method of analyzing the proverbs. The result shows that in the selected proverbs mothers were represented positively. The result revealed that it is at odds with most of the representations of women in Ethiopian folklore that usually represented women negatively. Based on this result, the study recommends a balanced representation of women to be incorporated in the study of women in gender related issues.