Gidaya (Harari language: ጊዳየ Gidayä; Somali language: Gidaaya), also known as Gedaya or Jidaya was a historical Muslim state located around present-day eastern Ethiopia. The state was positioned on the Harar plateau and a district of Adal region alongside Hargaya and Hubat polities. It neighbored other states in the medieval era including Ifat, Mora, Hadiya Sultanate, Fatagar, Biqulzar, Fedis and Kwelgora.
In 1285 Walasma dynasty crushed a rebellion led by Gidaya which allied with Shewa to revive the Makhzumi state. In the fourteenth century it was under the Ifat Sultanate and later the Adal Sultanate with its leader known as the Garad.
According to sixteenth century Adal writer Arab Faqīh, the people of Gidaya were part of the army of Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi during the Ethiopian-Adal war. Ulrich Braukamper suggests that Gidaya may be linked to the Geri Koombe clan, which comprises a diverse population of Somali and Oromo descent referenced in the Futuh al Habasha. This group currently resides in the vicinity of Jigjiga, which is believed to be the historical site of the Gidaya state.
Towns within Gidaya and other states such as Sim were reportedly surrounded by ramparts by the late sixteenth century. The name Gidaya still exists as a surname in Harar, and according to researcher Mahdi Gadid, Gidaya state was primarily inhabited by Harari people before being assimilated by the Oromo people and Somali people. Historian Merid Wolde Aregay deduced that the Gidaya state language was Harari language. According to Harari language records Gidaya state collapsed due to the Oromo migrations and famine.
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