Origins, Migration and settlements

[Archdemos]

Somali society by its very nature is an oral society. Coupled with a scarcity of written historical evidence the student of early Somali origins is forced to result to anthropological and archaeological evidence. Such evidence has refuted the mythical origins of the Somalis as a race as a mixed race. Conventional myths in Somali society claim and portray the Somalis as descendants of Arab settlers as a result of the migration of Muslims from the Gulf. It is know known however that the origins of the Somalis is in the Highlands of Ethiopia along with other Cushitic peoples (see Appendix B). Therefore the result of this as claimed by Helen Chapin is;

 

“Scholars now recognise that the Arab factor except for the Somalis conversion to Islam is marginal to understanding the Somali past.”

 

Therefore the Somalis are part of a wider group known as eastern Cushites, they include groups such as the Oromo in Ethipia and the Aweera (Boni) in Lamu Kenya. The Somalis also belong to a sub group of the Cushites known as the Omo-Tana Group and their languages are nearly commonly understandable. Although the Omo and Tana rivers are near Lake Turkana (see Appendix C) the migration of the Sam sub group which Somalis are descended from north eastwards lead to the current pattern of settlement. These migrations lead to the patterns of settlement that included a mixed economy of grazing and sedentary farming. These differences can still be seen in today’s Somalia where the fertile lower Shabelle and Jubba rivers (See Appendix D) are home to agricultural communities and the further north you go the more pastoralists you encounter. This pattern continued until 100 A.D. when it can be argued that the Samaale had colonised the entire Horn of Africa region.

 

Moreover this expansion to the sea leads to the first contact with Arab and Persian traders in the eight century onwards. These lead to profitable trades along the coastal city states such as Seylac in the Gulf of Aden and Mogadishu in the Indian Ocean (appendix C). However the city of Seylac was by far the most prominent due to its trade in Coffee, gold and Abyssinian slaves, with far reaching areas as India, China and the Middle East. This city’s prominence grew and with the emergence of Islam it became a seat of learning in the region and the first capital of the medieval state of Adal. Nevertheless as a result of Jihad against the Christian kingdom of Abyssinia Seylac fell into decline and the city of Berbera on the Gulf of Aden came under the leadership of the Sheriff of Mecca. These city states along the coasts of the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden passed through the dependencies of Mecca and later the Ottoman Turks on the eve of partition.

 

Furthermore the Arab influence in Somalia is just not through trade, it actually based on lineage (see appendix E). The settlement of Sheikh ***** founded the Issaq tribe and Sheikh ****** Jabarti founded the ****** tribe. This was achieved through the intermarrying from the already existing Samaale stock. This second wave of penetration into the Horn lead to the migration of Somalis into the Haud and Harrar (Eastern Ethiopia) and was only stopped with the advent of European colonialism. It is this latter clan based patriarchal system inherited from the Arabs that has been abused and exploited by power elites and other powerbrokers. Whilst analysing the peace processes of Somalia one must keep in mind the conceptual framework of clanism and the increasing role it has played in politics throughout the last four decades.

 

Metz, H,C, (1993) Somalia a country study, Area handbook series Fourth Edition, Government Printing Office, P.4