The Gabra migrated to Northern Kenya around the 15th century due to their pastoralism nature. Gabra is an Oromo. They settled in present day Moyale, Marsabit, North Horr and the vast Chalbi Desert and southern part of ethiopia.
Culture
The name "Gabra" have roots in the Somali word ”GABBR" meaning an evergreen plant that grows on the desert. The Gabra's ornamentation and physical culture is similar to many other Cushitic-speaking camel herders. The latter include other Somalis in Southern Somalia, Rendille, Afar and Sakuye, all of whom the Gabra describe as warra dassee, in reference to the mat-covered, portable tents, which accompany their nomadic lifestyle. The Borana, on the other hand, are described by the Gabbra as warra buyyoo, in reference to the grass huts that characterize their sedentary lifestyle. Gabra homes, called mindasse, are light, dome-shaped tents made of acacia roots, and covered with sisal grass mats, textiles, and camel hides. Each mindasse is divided into four quarters; a public quadrant each for male visitors, female visitors, and a private quadrant each for parents and children. A mindasse can be completely disassembled and converted into a camel-carried palanquin in which children and the elderly travel. Gabra live in small villages, or ola, made up of several mindasse. Ola move short distances as many as twelve times per year in search of better grazing for the camels and other animals the Gabra rely on.
Society
Gabra society is broadly divided into the lowland Gabra on the Kenyan side of the border and the highland Gabra. Gabra society is further divided into several semi-exogamous groups called the "five drums". In Kenya, each of the "drums" generally resides in a particular grazing area which is historically tied to the region assigned them by the British colonial government in the early 1900s, though their previous territory appears to have been larger. The territory of the Ethiopian Gabra is said to comprise a "sixth drum".
Religion
The Gabra are predominantly Sunni Muslims. A smaller percentage still hold true to their ancient traditional oromo -waqi beliefs and the camel oriented rituals with nominal Sufi Islamic practices. They make pilgrimages to sacred sites, most of which are located in the mountainous such as Hesi-Nabo and Agal.Today, both of these holy sites are located within Gabra's traditional territories. The religious activities include animal sacrifices and ritual prayers and were presided over by Dabela, the religious leaders.
Genetics
According to Y-DNA analysis by Hirbo, around 82.6% of Gabra in Kenya carry the paternal E1b1b haplogroup, with most belonging to the V12 or E3b1a subclade. This lineage is most common among local Afroasiatic-speaking populations. The remaining Gabra individuals bear the T/K2 and J haplogroups, which are both also associated with Afroasiatic speakers, as well as the E3*/E-P2 clade and E2a lineage. Maternally, Hirbo observed that approximately 58% of the Gabra samples carried derivatives of the Eurasian macrohaplogroups M and N. Of these mtDNA lineages, the M1 subclade was most common, with around 22.58% of the Gabra individuals belonging to it. The remaining ~42% of the analysed Gabra bore various subclades of the Africa-centered macrohaplogroup L. Of these mtDNA lineages, the most frequently borne clade was L3, followed by the L0a, L4, and L2 haplogroups. The Gabra's autosomalDNA has been examined in a comprehensive study by Tishkoff et al. on the genetic affiliations of various populations in Africa. According to Bayesian clustering analysis, the Gabra generally grouped with other Afroasiatic-speaking populations inhabiting Northern Kenya.
