Oromia is named for the Oromo people, who settled along the edge of the Ethiopian Highlands that form this Zone.
Oromia Zone is bordered on the southwest by North Shewa Zone, on the northwest by South Wollo and Argobba special woreda, and on the east by the Afar Region.
The Zone consists of 7 Woredas which are Artuma Fursi, Bati, Bati Town, Dewa Cheffa, Dewa Harewa, Jilye Tumuga and Kemisie town.
The Oromia Zone was created in the late summer of 1994, according to one account in response to pressure from the Oromo Liberation Front, which was actively agitating for autonomy for Wollo Oromo during late 1991 and early 1992.
Based on the 2007 Census conducted by the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia (CSA), this Zone has a total population of 457,278, a decrease of -1.23% from the 1994 census, of whom 227,328 are men and 229,950 women; with an area of 3,470.04 square kilometers, Oromia has a population density of 131.78.