Yega Orutooro
Our Language. Our Heritage. Our Future.
A cultural education initiative connecting children, families and diaspora communities to the Rutooro language and the living heritage of Tooro.
Why Yega Orutooro exists
Across the diaspora, many Batooro children are growing up without the language of their grandparents. When a language fades from the home, stories, proverbs, greetings and the values they carry fade with it. Yega Orutooro was created to change that, one family at a time.
Preserving our language
Clear, structured Rutooro lessons for complete beginners, created with native speakers.
Connecting generations
Resources that help parents, grandparents and children learn and speak together at home.
Celebrating Tooro heritage
Language taught alongside the culture it belongs to, including the Empaako naming tradition.
Empaako: a heritage worth carrying forward
Empaako is the Batooro tradition of giving a child one of a small set of praise names, used in greeting to express respect, affection and belonging. It is recognised by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding.
Our work helps diaspora families understand Empaako and keep using it, so the next generation can greet their elders the way their elders were greeted.
Learn Rutooro with us
Our Beginner Rutooro Video Course takes you step by step through the foundations of the language, at your own pace, from anywhere in the world.
Work with us
We welcome schools, churches, diaspora associations, cultural institutions, researchers and funders who share our commitment to keeping Rutooro alive.