Overview The Warra Daya were first mentioned in an Arabic source in the 15th century. According to Trenton, they invaded and migrated into the Juba area in the 16th century, where prior to their invasion, the
Garre,
Ajuuraan,
Tunni, and other Somalis lived. In the early 19th century, they were at the height of their power when they inhabited almost all of the Westbank of
Jubba River to their east bordering the powerful
Geledi Sultanate. West Jubaland (roughly Northern and Eastern Kenya and South Western Somalia). In the 19th century the Darod Somali, particularly Ogaden, advanced southwards across the
Dawa River. The first attempt in 1842 failed, but in 1844 they tried again and were allowed to enter as clients (shegats). The usual method of Darod penetration into a new area was to adopt a client relationship with the people already there. In practice, this meant that they became herdsboys who were allowed to keep some animals of their own. Then these clients slowly consolidated their numbers until they had achieved parity with or even superiority over the original inhabitants. Around 1865, when smallpox epidemiology weakened the Warra Daya, they were attacked by Darod from the North and to a lesser extent by the Kamba from the West and Masai from the South. The Darod clients joined the conflict and this explained the severity of the conflict and the heavy defeats of the Warra Daya. In 1867 the Somali invited the Warra Daya elders for a great peace offering, which was accepted by the Warra Daya. However, the feast turned out to be an ambush and thousands of Warra Daya were slaughtered. Extensive Somali raids followed the offering. Most of the remaining Warra Daya were forced to cross the River Tana and sought refuge along the southern and eastern banks of the
Tana River. Large numbers of Orma men were killed and an estimated 8,000 women and children were captured. Women and children were often exploited by the Somali and sold as slaves. Since there was a shortage of women under the Somali, they took Orma women as concubines and some were even married by the Somali. The Somalis managed to push the Orma all the way to the Tana river, this essentially was a
Reconquest of Jubaland. In order to protect the remaining free Warra Daya on the east bank of the Tana from the Somali, in 1909 the few remaining Warra Daya on the east bank of the Tana were moved by the British to the west bank. These Warra Daya on the west bank became known as the Tana Orma. The decimation of the Tana Orma also resulted in their becoming an isolated ethnical group that no longer shared a border with other Oromo-speaking people.
Somali-Oromo agreement and the Wardey Already in the 19th century, there were regularly discussions whether the British should ignore slavery in Juba area or should take action against it. Theoretically, the British were opposed to any form of slavery, but in practice they condoned it, also because they would not be capable to enforce any agreement with the Somali if abolishment of slavery would be a pre-condition. When Kenya became a British protectorate, this discussion resurfaced as it was seen as shameful to have slavery in the British empire. In Tana River District and the North Eastern Province this discussion focused around the position of the clientized Orma amongst the Somali community. It was clear that the Orma clients had not become clients out of their free will, were in fact slaves and could not leave the Somali. Since these Orma clients were, as long as they adhered to paying tribute and ‘symbolic’ submission, often allowed to live in their own villages and keep livestock. An aspect of the 'symbolic' submission was that Orma girls should always have their first sexual intercourse with a Somali. The children of these women were often considered Somali and it enriched the Ogaden with a mixed population. With some pressure of the British the Somali agreed to the Somali-oromo agreement, which stated that the Orma could return to their brothers on the right bank of the Tana, provided they left half of their livestock with the Somali. This agreement also implied clearly that the Somali should remain on the left bank of the Tana. A good number of the enslaved Orma returned, but since the British had limited military power, they were not in a position to guarantee the return of all the Orma who wanted to cross the river. Initially these back-migrants were called Wardey, also written as Waridei Wardeh and Wardei, etc. In 1939 the Somali refuted the Somali-oromo agreement and no clientized Orma crossed the Tana until after Independence.
Independence After the Independence of Kenya (1963), many of the remaining clientized Orma returned and this explains the huge population increase of the Orma. In 1971 President Kenyatta officially welcomed the Wardey. Nowadays the term Wardey is mainly used for the clients who returned after Independence. Most of them do not speak Orma. The ones that migrated back during the colonial time are called Orma. ==Population figures==