Speaking of a good dictionary, here is the first dictionary I will be talking about. This is the Oromo-English Dictionary by Tilahun Gamta. Published in 1989, this was one of the earlier dictionaries to see more wide dispersal. This was before the more recent standardization of qubee. The dictionary uses its own transliteration of written afaan Oromoo. Tilahun has a newer version called Galmee Afaan Oromoo fi Afaan Ingilizii Barsiisuu Comprehensive Oromo-English Dictionary that switches to the standard script. That is the dictionary that I most frequently go to when looking for an easy answer.
I was only able to get the newer dictionary online. I actually grabbed this older one at a used book stall while in Addis Ababa. Addis Ababa has many of these little stands throughout the city. It often takes an adventure to find the afaan Oromoo options as many have mostly Amharic or English books. There is better luck at other larger cities in Oromiyaa with picking up odd books that I never knew had been published. I have found some nice books that I wasn’t able to find online at the Addis Ababa stalls.
I picked this one up before I got the newer one, and earlier in my learning afaan Oromoo journey. The different writing system resembles some of the older afaan Oromoo works. It is also similar to early linguistics texts for rhe language. If you are able to read through and do the changing to the most standard qubee this is still a solid dictionary to have on your shelf for reference. It is more thorough and better constructed than many of the more modern dictionaries I have come across, which often give only word for word translations. Here there is more explanation and often, although not always, example sentences. Together with a good grammar book like Griefenow-Mewis and Tameme’s, this would work well. Ultimately the Oromo-English Dictionary by Tilahun Gamta is a good but outdated dictionary that is usuable when you get used to the writing system.