Cultural Astronomy: On the Connection Between the Moon and Gedeo Society

Cultural Astronomy: On the Connection Between the Moon and Gedeo Society | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Cultural Astronomy: On the Connection Between the Moon and Gedeo Society Negessa Shukure, Mekonin Beyene, Solomon Debebe, Girma Degaga, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9441630/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The Gedeo society, indigenous to the Ethiopian Highlands, exhibits a profound cultural connection with lunar phases, integrating celestial observations into their social and agricultural practices. This study explores the multifaceted roles of the Moon within Gedeo traditions, highlighting how lunar cycles influence marriage customs, agricultural activities, and communal rituals. During the Sa’imarroo (new moon), marriage ceremonies are traditionally prohibited, reflecting the society’s adherence to lunar cycles in regulating social events. The Baatii (first quarter moon) phase is associated with hope and marks the commencement of permissible periods for marriage among young men and women, while also serving predictive purposes. As the moon approaches fullness, elders observe ”Konchora,” a signal prompting preparation for the full moon. The Goobana (full moon) holds a pivotal role, serving as an indicator for significant events such as war, peace, rainfall, and disease. These practices exemplify the Gedeo’s sophisticated under- standing of lunar cycles and their application in regulating social, agricultural, and environmental activities. Such indigenous knowledge systems not only pre- serve cultural identity but also offer valuable perspectives on sustainable living and environmental stewardship. Astronomy Caltural astronomy Sa'imarroo (new moon) Baatii (first day moon) Goobana (full Moon) Full Text Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9441630","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":624527982,"identity":"e391f0c9-8438-43e3-9ad7-cd1a61a49f50","order_by":0,"name":"Negessa Shukure","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA70lEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBADOTZm5oMPgAwePmK1GPOztyUbgLSwEaslcWbPGTUJEIugFnP24xcf/vhjx7jhRg5b5dccOxk2BuaHj27g0WLZk1NszNuWzGxwI/fYbdltyUCHsRkb5+DRYnAgJ02asYGZzeBGXtptyW3MQC08bNJ4tZx/k/7zx596HoMbOWbFktvqidByI/0YUM1hCcmeM2aMH7cdJkbLG2Zp3rbjBqBAlmbcdpyHjZmQX86nP/z44091fRswKj/+3FZtz8/e/PAxPi3AuDOAM5l5wCRe5SDA/gDOZPxBUPUoGAWjYBSMRAAAzIRI8SCgMHEAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4816-216X","institution":"Dilla university","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Negessa","middleName":"","lastName":"Shukure","suffix":""},{"id":624527983,"identity":"eb626e22-5ff4-4567-a879-645ca11ff793","order_by":1,"name":"Mekonin Beyene","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Dilla University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Mekonin","middleName":"","lastName":"Beyene","suffix":""},{"id":624527984,"identity":"dff6ffdc-67c2-4e1b-bdf0-2ab056a5688a","order_by":2,"name":"Solomon Debebe","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Dilla University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Solomon","middleName":"","lastName":"Debebe","suffix":""},{"id":624527985,"identity":"5cc4611c-e007-46e5-bc33-8fda37795dd7","order_by":3,"name":"Girma Degaga","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Dilla University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Girma","middleName":"","lastName":"Degaga","suffix":""},{"id":624527986,"identity":"cfe82bec-84de-4026-aea7-e3b0c1faac62","order_by":4,"name":"Eftu Fayuma","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Dilla University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Eftu","middleName":"","lastName":"Fayuma","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-04-16 19:31:41","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":{"humanSubjects":false,"vertebrateSubjects":true,"conflictsOfInterestStatement":false,"humanSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false,"humanSubjectConsent":false,"humanSubjectClinicalTrial":false,"humanSubjectCaseReport":false,"vertebrateSubjectEthicalGuidelines":true},"doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9441630/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9441630/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":107483182,"identity":"dddb8cb4-e5f1-427e-a94d-2b67504ed909","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-22 02:26:41","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1033822,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"snarticle.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9441630/v1_covered_56142192-0f0e-4450-a641-127af7ce8c89.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"The authors declare no competing interests.","formattedTitle":"\u003cp\u003eCultural Astronomy: On the Connection Between\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ethe Moon and Gedeo Society\u003c/p\u003e","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"Dilla University","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Caltural astronomy, Sa'imarroo (new moon), Baatii (first day moon), Goobana (full Moon)","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9441630/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9441630/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThe Gedeo society, indigenous to the Ethiopian Highlands, exhibits a profound cultural connection with lunar phases, integrating celestial observations into their social and agricultural practices. This study explores the multifaceted roles of the Moon within Gedeo traditions, highlighting how lunar cycles influence marriage customs, agricultural activities, and communal rituals. During the Sa’imarroo (new moon), marriage ceremonies are traditionally prohibited, reflecting the society’s adherence to lunar cycles in regulating social events. The Baatii (first quarter moon) phase is associated with hope and marks the commencement of permissible periods for marriage among young men and women, while also serving predictive purposes. As the moon approaches fullness, elders observe ”Konchora,” a signal prompting preparation for the full moon. The Goobana (full moon) holds a pivotal role, serving as an indicator for significant events such as war, peace, rainfall, and disease. These practices exemplify the Gedeo’s sophisticated under- standing of lunar cycles and their application in regulating social, agricultural, and environmental activities. Such indigenous knowledge systems not only pre- serve cultural identity but also offer valuable perspectives on sustainable living and environmental stewardship.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Cultural Astronomy: On the Connection Between\nthe Moon and Gedeo Society","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-04-19 17:44:51","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9441630/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"1395135b-fe93-4189-8540-b89c33579956","owner":[],"postedDate":"April 19th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[{"id":66474375,"name":"Astronomy"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-04-19T17:44:51+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-04-19 17:44:51","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-9441630","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-9441630","identity":"rs-9441630","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}