Somalia, situated in the Horn of Africa, lies along the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. It is bounded by Djibouti in the northwest, Ethiopia in the west, and Kenya in the southwest. In area it is slightly smaller than Texas. Generally arid and barren, Somalia has two chief rivers, the Shebelle and the Juba.
From the 7th to the 10th century, Arab and Persian trading posts were established along the coast of present-day Somalia. Nomadic tribes occupied the interior, occasionally pushing into Ethiopian territory. In the 16th century, Turkish rule extended to the northern coast, and the Sultans of Zanzibar gained control in the south.
Somalia developed from a string of Arab sultanates along the northeast coast of Africa, which in turn had grown up from trading posts established from the 17th century onwards. As Arab influence waned, the British, French and Italians established protectorates on the Somali coast during the late-19th century. These were the subjects of various treaties, forged amid frequent border clashes between the colonial powers and the neighbouring Ethiopians, and between the European powers themselves.
Modern Somalia was created on 1 July 1960 from British and Italian Somalilands. Inherited tribal rivalries and territorial disputes have dominated the country’s subsequent history. The Somali Youth League held on to power throughout the 1960s, mostly under the leadership of President Shermake.After British occupation of Aden in 1839, the Somali coast became its source of food. The French established a coal-mining station in 1862 at the site of Djibouti, and the Italians planted a settlement in Eritrea. Egypt, which for a time claimed Turkish rights in the area, was succeeded by Britain. By 1920, a British and an Italian protectorate occupied what is now Somalia. The British ruled the entire area after 1941, with Italy returning in 1950 to serve as United Nations trustee for its former territory.
On Oct. 15, 1969, President Abdi Rashid Ali Shermarke was assassinated and the army seized power. Maj. Gen. Mohamed Siad Barre, as president of a renamed Somali Democratic Republic, leaned heavily toward the USSR. In 1977, Somalia openly backed rebels in the easternmost area of Ethiopia, the Ogaden Desert, which had been seized by Ethiopia at the turn of the century. Somalia acknowledged defeat in an eight-month war against the Ethiopians that year, having lost much of its 32,000-man army and most of its tanks and planes. President Siad Barre fled the country in late Jan. 1991. His departure left Somalia in the hands of a number of clan-based guerrilla groups, none of which trusted each other.
Africa's worst drought of the century occurred in 1992, and, coupled with the devastation of civil war, Somalia was plunged into a severe famine that killed 300,000. U.S. troops were sent in to protect the delivery of food in Dec. 1992, and in May 1993 the UN took control of the relief efforts from the U.S. The warlord Mohamed Farah Aidid ambushed UN troops and dragged American bodies through the streets, causing an about-face in U.S. willingness to involve itself in the fate of this lawless country. The last of the U.S. troops departed in late March, leaving 19,000 UN troops behind.
Since 1991 Somalia has been engulfed in anarchy. Years of peace negotiations between the various factions were fruitless, and warlords and militias ruled over individual swaths of land. In 1991, a breakaway nation, the Somaliland Republic, proclaimed its independence. Since then several warlords have set up their own ministates in Puntland and Jubaland. Although internationally unrecognized, these states have been peaceful and stable.
In Aug. 2000, a Parliament convened in nearby Djibouti and elected Somalia's first government in nearly a decade. After its first year in office, the government still controlled only 10% of the country, and in Aug. 2003, its mandate expired. In Oct. 2002, new talks to establish a government began; in Aug. 2004 a 275-member transitional Parliament was inaugurated for a five-year term. Parliament selected a national president in September, Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, the president of the breakaway region of Puntland. The new government, however, spent its first year operating out of Kenya—Somalia remained too violent and unstable, and lawmakers were unable to agree on what city should serve as the seat of government.
The group of northern provinces that formerly comprised British Somaliland has been the most stable part of the country since the early-1990s. These provinces seceded from Somalia in 1991, to form a nominally independent state, known as ‘Somaliland’, under the leadership of a former Somali prime minister of the 1960s, Mohamed Ibrahim Egal. Although it has so far received little official recognition from the outside world, Somaliland has established its own democratic governmental structures (see below) and held elections in 2003. These were won by Dahir Riyale Kahine, an ally of Egal, standing for the main political party known as UDUB (Unity, Democracy and Independence).
In late 2004, Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed was elected as the country's new president. Shortly after, Ahmed named Professor Muhamed Ghedi as his new prime minister. This was welcomed by many as a long-overdue positive outcome in Somalia's recently troubled history: Ghedi is considered a fresh, optimistic figure and Somalis are probably hoping that he manages to instil some of his optimism, along with Ahmed, into Somalia's future.
Somalia was the worst-hit of all African states following the tsunami on December 26 2004. Damage was concentrated in the region of Puntland, on the tip of the Horn of Africa. The effects of the wave destroyed both homes and livelihood, plus it rendered wells and reservoirs unusable. Between 150 and 200 Somalis died, with thousands homeless or still unaccounted for. The UN has called for $13 million to help victims of the tsunami. However, Somalia's poor infrastructure, especially its roads, will present aid agencies with a formidable challenge.
Almost all Somalis are Sunni Muslims; Islam is the principal faith. Though traces of pre-Islamic traditional religion exist in Somalia, Islam is extremely important to the Somali sense of national identity. Many of the Somali social norms come from their religion. For example, men shake hands only with men, and women shake hands with women. Many Somali women cover their heads and bodies with a hijab when they are in public. In addition, Somalis abstain from pork, gambling, and alcohol, and receiving or paying any form of interest. Muslims generally congregate on Friday afternoons for a sermon and group prayer. Accordance with these prohibitions depends on each individuals level of orthodoxy.
Traditionally, the main meal of the day is eaten at lunchtime and Somali people usually begin their day with a flat bread called Laxoox or La'hooh, liver, toast, cereal or porridge made of millet or cornmeal. Lunch can be a mix of rice or noodles with meat and sauce. Later in the day a lighter meal is served which includes beans, muffo (patties made of oats or corn), or a salad with more Anjeero.
Islam and poetry have been described as the twin pillars of Somali culture. Most Somalis are Sunni Muslims and Islam is vitally important to the Somali sense of national identity. Most Somalis don't belong to specific mosque or sect and can pray in any mosque they find. Celebrations come in the form of religious festivities, two of the most important being Eid al Adha and Eid al Fitr which marks the end of the fasting month. Families get dressed up to visit one another. If they can afford it, money is donated to the poor. Other holidays include June 26, which celebrates the north's Independence, and July 1, which celebrates the unification of the North and South.
In a nomadic culture, where one's possessions are frequently moved, there is little reason for the plastic arts to be highly developed. Somalis embellish and decorate their woven and wooden milk jugs and their wooden headrests, and traditional dance is important, though mainly as a form of courtship among young people. Saving face is very important to Somalis, so indirectness and humour are often used in conversation. Somalis deeply value the family with the strength of family ties providing a safety net in times of need and suffering
Country Name: Soomaaliya
Area: 246,199 sq mi (637,657 sq km)
Population : 8,591,629
Capital : Mogadishu
Currency: Somali shilling
Languages: official;Somali, Other;Arabic, English, Italian
Religion: Islam (Sunni)
