The historical presence of Arabs in the Banadir coast—most notably Mogadishu—during the medieval period has long been a subject of scholarly interest. Archaeological and epigraphic evidence suggests that this presence may date back significantly earlier than previously assumed. The continued…
His full name was Sheikh Muḥyiddīn Muʿallim Mukarram Muʿallim ʿUmar ibn ʿĀlim ibn Muʿallim Mahād Muḥammad ibn Muʿallim ʿUmar ibn Sheikh ʿUthmān ibn Sheikh Būhow ibn Qāḍī Musharraf Hājī ibn Hājī Abū Bakr al-Qaḥṭānī. Commonly known as Muḥyiddīn Muʿallim Mukarram…
It is necessary to make one clarification immediately. Prior to Italian colonisation, Somalia as a political entity did not exist. With Art.1 of the law 161 of the 5th April 1908, the Italian colonial government gave Somalia its name. Incautious…
The history of Banadir, has long been subjected to colonial distortions, with Italian and British narratives falsely exaggerating the extent of slavery in the region. This propaganda was not only a tool for justifying colonization but also served to undermine…
‘Futa Banadir’, a term used to describe the traditional handwoven Banadiri fabric, is part of the distinctive clothing of the Banadir People, famous for their historical textile industry. Traditionally woven by Banadiri men, this fabric holds cultural and historical importance,…
Degmooyinka taariikhigaee Muqdisho iyo kuwa ku yaalla magaalooyinka kale ee Soomaaliya, waxa ay leeyihiin qiimo gaar ah. Naqshadaha guryahooda (architecture), masaajidyada iyo qorsheeynta degitaanka magaalada (urbanization) waxa ay na siinayaan caddeyn sida ay u kortay xirfadaha dhismaha magaaladu, qarni ka…
On August 19, 2011, political events in Somalia suddenly accelerated after a long agony began in 1990 with the civil war between the Somali tribes. In the middle of the holy month of Ramadan, in Mogadishu – a city defined…
The removal of ancient ceramic plates from the mihraab of the Al Jaama’a mosque in the Hamarweyne district in Mogadishu. In November 2021, all the ceramic plates that adorned the upper part of the mihraab of the Al Jaama’a mosque…
“Perhaps there is no disorientation more radical than the uprooting of those who live exiled in their homeland and fight a daily struggle, made up of small gestures to safeguard and protect the places that could be taken from them,…
“…a blessed boy will be born of the al-Shaashi who will come from the family of the father Amiin Imanka, and will be widely known in the Islamic countries..” – Quote by Abdurahman Sheikh Sufi al-Shaashi on the arrival of…
On the fateful day of Friday, May 5th, 2023, we bore witness to a momentous event, as the historical lighthouse in the old district of Mogadishu met partial collapse. Built just after 1936, the lighthouse makes up an integral part…
For 30 years since the civil war our fathers have migrated from Somalia which resulted in our family having children in every country on earth. Children that were born during the Somali civil war including me have always asked themselves,…
Sheikh Ahmed bin Haji was a Banadiri scholar in the late 19th century, he rose to prominence based on his defiance and long resistance against Italian Colonial rule and also being a religious reformer. Biography Sheikh Ahmed bin Haji Mahdi…
Some of the greatest mashā’ikh of Hadīth—such as Shams al-Dīn al-Dhahabī (673/1274–748/1348), Zayn al-Dīn al-‘Irāqī (725/1325–806/1404), Ibn Nāsir al-Dīn al-Dimishqī (777/1375–842/1438), Taqī al-Dīn al-Maqrīzī (764/1364–845/1442), Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalanī (773/1372– 852/1449), Shams al-Dīn al-Sakhāwī (831/1428–902/1497), and many others—have been taught by…
The Aw Mukhtar & Aw Sheikh Omar also known as the Twin Mosques (Somali: Masaajidka Mataanaha) is now a large mosque in the historical Hamar Weyne district in Mogadishu. Overview The Twin mosques up until recently was made up of 2 separate mosques the Aw…
In this transcribed oral history recorded originally from a Bajuni Shaykh, we learn of a story that details the origin of many towns on the Banadir as well as the Swahili coast. Introduction The author is Shaykh Fāḍil bin ʿUmar…
The Portuguese arrival in the Indian Ocean in the 1490s paved way for a power struggle in who controlled the ocean, major changes into the monopolisation of the ocean was when they came into contact with the Banadir ports. Trade…
The city states of Mogadishu, Barawa, Marka and Kismayo were at one point all surrounded by walls. This was a systematic approach by the Sultan at that time to separate rural people from the urban dwellers. This was witnessed by…
Masjid Awooto Eeday is what seems to be a small mosque hidden in the many historical alleyways of Hamarweyne. Overview The mosque is said to have been built with the money of a pious woman who was known as Awooto…
The oldest existing Masjid in Somalia is Masjid Jaama’a (also known as Friday Mosque or Masjid Jum’ah) – built in the year 636 AH, it is situated in the heart of Hamarweyne. It is one of the three oldest Mosques…
