In the West, people tend not to call their friends nicknames that pick on negative physical traits. But in Somalia, people have a love of such nicknames.

[Admin]

The Somali love of 'rude' nicknames

In the West, people tend not to call their friends and colleagues nicknames that pick on negative physical traits. But in Somalia, people have a love of such nicknames.

When I got my ID badge for the president's office in Mogadishu the other day, I knew I had finally been accepted.

 

It had taken a year.

 

There it was - International Media Advisor, Office of the President, and next to my name the two Somali words in brackets, Timo Cadde, which literally translates as White Hair.

 

At last, I had a nickname.

 

Somalis are inveterate givers of nicknames but for the past 12 months the closest thing I had to one was Gaal - or Infidel - and, let's face it, there is little distinction in that.

 

It is routinely used to refer to any non-Muslim, black or white.

 

Gaal, come here. Where is the gaal, and so on.

 

Now Timo Cadde, or White Hair, may not be the most flattering nickname in the world, but I will take it any day over Infidel.

 

The first time I came across Somalis' love of nicknames was when the cleaning lady in our house asked where was Faroole, the young man who delivered our lunch.

"His name's Abdifata," I said, thinking she had made a mistake.

She shook her head vigorously and held up a couple of fingers. "No, Faroole," she said stubbornly.

 

Now Faroole means No Fingers. Abdifata lost two fingers a few years ago during a mortar attack on the presidential compound by al-Shabab, the local al-Qaeda franchise.

 

So much for sympathy.

 

A word of explanation - Somalis are no shrinking violets as a rule and certainly do not hold back when it comes to giving nicknames.

 

My predecessor in the president's office, another Brit, had a harelip. He was always known as Farurey, or Harelip.

 

Somalis would helpfully put a finger to their upper lip just to make sure you understood.

 

Direct physical observations - generally negative - are the order of the day when it comes to choosing someone's nickname.

 

Dentistry here is not what it could be, so there are plenty of Somalis called Genay, meaning Missing Tooth or Chipped Tooth.

 

Suffer from hair loss and chances are you will be called Bidar - or Baldy.

 

Somalis can be quite a xenophobic lot and foreigners are frequently given short shrift.

 

The Chinese are known as Indha Yare (Small Eyes), while Arabs are Dhega Cas (Red Ears).

 

Since I have been in Mogadishu I have met a Jilbo Weyne (Knock Knees) Shigshigaaye (Stutterer), Yare (Shorty) and Yarisow (Tiny).

Yarisow (Tiny), the president's spokesman and senior advisor, in front of a portrait of Madaxweyne (literally Big Head, or The President)

Before he was busted in a sensational sting in Belgium, I had a rooftop lobster dinner with the notorious Somali pirate Afweyne - Big Mouth. Boy did he live up to that one.

 

One of my best friends, a senior official in the prime minister's office, is Indhaade - White Eyes.

 

Somalis also do a good line in schadenfreude.

 

A while back some of my colleagues went to Uganda. They returned with the story - told with huge delight - about one of our team chasing a Somali girl.

He is a good-looking young man with a large scar on one cheek. He was starting to chat up the girl when she suddenly caught sight of his scar. At which point her whole demeanour changed instantly.

She looked at him contemptuously, snarled "Get lost, Canjeh!" (Scarface), and turned on her heels. Romantic encounter over.

 

After more than two decades of fighting in Somalia, there is no shortage of people with war injuries. So you will come across men - and most nicknames are reserved for men - called Langare (Limpy) or Coryaan (Handicapped).

 

An amputee is Lugay, or One Leg.

 

A fairly high incidence of eye defects accounts for people called Wershe (Cross-Eyed).

 

Those without sight are Indhole (Blind) and if you lose your hearing you are Dhagole (Deaf).

 

In a regrettably unchivalrous move, women with larger than average behinds have been known to be called Foto Weyne (Big Bottom).

 

But women are generally spared the abuse.

 

Lul, or Diamond, is a common nickname for ladies.

 

Then there is Macanay (Sweet), Cod Weyne (Rich Voiced), Dahable (Golden) and Indho Daraleey (Gazelle Eyes).

 

My favourite nickname?

He is 'Mr President' to you

It has got to be the Somali-American I heard about recently with a large gap between his front teeth. Only one possible nickname for him: "Field Goal".

 

I was talking to my Somali friend Sheikh Mohamed about nicknames the other day.

 

In the UK, I said, some of these could get you in trouble with the police if someone objected. He snorted.

 

"Puh! You know what would happen if someone called the police? The policeman would come, he'd look at the guy and say, what's the problem? He called you Lugay, or One Leg? So what? You have got one leg, that was Allah's decision. Now stop wasting my time!"

 

Source: BBC

http://www.somaliaonline.com/the-somali-love-of-rude-nicknames/

[Alpha Blondy]

e.g -

ina lax was = sheepshagger.

 

as the example above illustrates, Somali nicknames and the reer galbeed nicknames are incomparable. our's is metaphorical, their's is a disease.

 

the westerns have failed at the nicknaming culture because they emphasis the race/colour of the person. for the western folks, race/colour is the ultimate marker of difference. marka, for whites, everything is implicitly relative to/contra-distinct to the difference between them and other folks. see below for examples.

 

e.g -

Western = a white man.

Somali = gaal cad oo uskaag ah

 

Western = a chinese woman

Somali = gabadh bila indho ah

 

cala kuli xaal because they contrast the different of things, they are unable to use nicknames without being racist or xenophobic.

 

ta kale, because many of us accept the nicknames set by whites, we're actually a cause of white bunbuunis. there are not many stereotypical nicknames for whites because whites are too busy making nicknames for everyone else. by accepting and proportioning white nicknames to each other we fight each other, abtiyaal. sida wa laga ficanyahay.

 

 

 

 

[Nin-Yaaban]

Aniga waxaan aqaanay mid aan saaxibo aheen oo la dhihi jiray CAATO. This guy was anything but CAATO...he was 240lbs solid. Somalida waxeey jecel yihiin naa neesta bil cagsiga ah.

 

 

[Holac]

I was surprised the author didn't mention the President's own nicknames.

[Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar]

Waagaa dalkaan imaaday dugsiga sare waxaa isla dhigan jirnay magacyadaan hoos ku qoran kuwa la dhaho oo isla ciyaalka iskoolka u bixiyeen: Afsiil, Laxwase, Tacbaan/Sakaraad, Afloow, Dhimbil (markii dambe Abtigiis maadaama gabar marka bareegga ah uu shukaansan jiray, taasoo waliba uu abti u ahaa). Kuwa kale inaa iloowaa jeclahay.

 

Xaafadeena Xamarna dhalinyaradaan ayaa deganaa oo ugu caansanaa:

 

Cabdicasiis Madaxeey

Qaloowqaloow

Abaloota

Cumar Galeey

Ismaaciil Dooro

Mahad Huunyo

Buunshe

Cabdi Sanbuur

Xuseen Afeey

Wardheere

Dhuub

Shooble

Axmedeey Aalkolo

Maxamed Faruureey

Amad Jiiji

Cali Aash

Caloow

Isbaryoon

Cuti

Niinoow

Abuunyoow

Jameyka (muxuu shukaansi dhameeye. Mid walba qatar ah suuqa Bakaaraha u socoto waala sii dhaweyn jiray. Marka lasoo noqonaayana mid kale lasoo dhaweynaa. Habeenkii Jimcaha mida ugu fiican lala balamaa).

 

Rabi ha u raxmado inta geeriyootay.

 

[Nin-Yaaban]

MMA, sxb, war ileen ciyaalka xaafada ayaad aheed yaraantaadi? Nairobi markaan joogay, ayaan kuwaas saaxibo aheen. Ayaga dhanba waa shactiro iyo shaxaaarinimo socota.

 

LoL its funny i use to know a guy called TACBAAN back in OHIO.

[Hawdian]

This author do not understand somali culture but once again a white man is writing about africa and africans. Sick and tired of them and their arrogant ways. If I can correct him , nobody in somaliya call eacother nick names only close friends and people who have know-ed you for life can call you by your nick name. Also most nicknames are positive example: Ducayse( praiseworthy ) noorow ( enligthen one) qalbi safi ( pure heart) Banadri ( from Ancient Bandiri region ) Zelacyi( from Old city of Zeylac and so on. Also note the nickname you have been given Timco Cade ( White hair) characterizes you having blond hair . To the Author instead of assuming that you know somali culture ask before you write this gabberish stuff again, because nobody will take serious except the bloody colonialist institution of the BBC.