Somalia: An African Beauty with Exclusive Culture

“Federal Republic of Somalia” or “Somalia”, commonly known as “Horn of Africa” is a country with a population of approximately 17 million. Somalia is considered as one of the most homogeneous countries culturally in entire Africa as 85% of the residents are ethnically Somali and most of the citizens are Muslims. The official languages of the country are Somali and Arabic but English is also spoken in some parts of the country as a second or third language. There are many aspects about Somalia which the world doesn’t know that might surprise you. Today, we are going to discuss some of them.

5000 YEARS OLD LAAS GEEL CAVE PAINTINGS:

Somalia is blessed with one of the historical places that gives us signs of ancient human settlements that were settled here during the Stone Age. The caves of Laas Geel located near the city of Hargeisa, provides us the opportunity to sight the ancient cave paintings.  Laas Geel Cave Paintings are considered as the oldest cave paintings in the entire continent which are at least 5000 years old.

These paintings depict the signs of the lifestyle of ancient people. This beautiful historical site is a dreamland for archaeologists, historians and researchers. This precious site deserves to be counted as a “UNESCO World Heritage Site”. This historical site can become a great tourist destination and may provide an economic boost to Somalia if it is highlighted on international platforms properly.

MOGADISHU:

Mogadishu is the capital and the most populous city of Somalia having the population of around 4.2 million.  This beautiful city has a long history that begins from the ancient period and continued centuries after centuries. This city enjoyed its height of peak and prosperity back in 14^th and 15^th centuries. During that period, this city was considered as the wealthiest city of the East African coast along with the centre of textile industry.  Even today, we find some glimpse of historical architecture.

The main Markets of Mogadishu are The Bakara Market and The Hamarweyne Market.  Bakara Market provides commodities like basic food material to clothes, beverages, ornaments of silver and gold, cosmetics, medicine, hardware materials, vehicles spare part and a lot more.

On the other hand, The Hamarweyne Market is famous for fish. In fact, it is known as the hub for fish trading. It is one of the busiest fish markets in the city. Other famous markets of Mogadishu include The Suq Bacad Market and The Madina Market.

OTHER INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT SOMALIA:

LEOPARD: THE NATIONAL ANIMAL OF SOMALIA

There are many wild animals that are found in Somalia. Some of the famous wild animals include Foxes, Hyenas, Lions and Leopards.

Leopard is considered the national animal of Somalia. These giant wild cats with unique spots on their body are one of the biggest attractions for tourists who are coming to Somalia for the first time.

CAMEL: THE PART OF SOMALIAN CULTURE:

Camels play a significant role in the culture of Somalia. It is considered as a sign of prestige, social status and wealth; at the same time camel provides other benefits like it is a source of transportation, a source of milk and meat too.

RIVERS:

Journey of Somalia is incomplete without discussing the two main rivers namely the Juba and the Shabelle. These both rivers run from the Ethiopian Highlands across Somalia towards the Indian Ocean.

ACCORDING TO THE AUTHOR LAILA HASSAN ALI FROM SOMALIA:

EXCLUSIVE SOMALI ATTIRE:

When we talk about the attire of the Somali people, I must admit that they have a really rich, strong, and attractive culture as far as clothing is concerned from daily casual wear to traditional wear, from cultural festivals to wedding ceremonies.

Somali attire is influenced by a lot of factors including their own long history, regional factors, African culture, strong influence of religion and continuous connection with the Arab world; which provides the variety of clothing in Somali culture.

Traditional clothing for men and women is different. Mostly, men wear Khamiis (long ankle length garment with sleeves) just like the attire for men in the Arab world. On festivals, men wear a colorful turban on their head. People commonly wear Khamiis during Jumma Namaz (Friday Prayers), Eid festivals and so on while Jeans and shirt is also common among men.

Among women, the most common and comfortable dress is none other than Baati. There are various designs of baati that vary from region to region.

While Dirac is a long, beautiful dress made from cotton or polyester fabric.

Another thing that multiplies the beauty of their dress is Shawl. Shawl is similar to the Sub-continental shawl, people loosely wear it on their shoulders or sometimes it is also worn over head. There are various qualities of shawl common in Somali culture but “Kashmir Shawl” is famous because of its elaborated designs.

For weddings, Somali women wear beautiful traditional wedding dress along with gold and silver jewelry including necklaces and bangles. While for men, the attire is composed of two sheets, commonly white in colour.

SOMALI FOOD:

CANJEERO:

There are some food items which we consider as our traditional foods. For instance, Canjeero is the food you will find in every home during the breakfast.

MOGADISHO’S FAMOUS BARIS (RICE) AND BAASTO (SPAGHETTI)

When it comes to lunch in the city like Mogadisho, Baris (Rice) and Baasto (spaghetti) is common but as far as traditional food of Somalia is concerned it is none other than Soor and Camuulo/Ambuulo.

FRUITS:

After Banana, dates, pears, Muuz and grapes are among some of the popular fruits in Somalia but Papaya is the national fruit in Somalia.

Bananas play a significant part of Somalian culture. There is a saying that many people in Somalia consider their meal incomplete without the presence of energy fruit bananas. Banana is one of major Somalia’s export along with charcoal and livestock. Bananas and livestock are exported to Arab countries. 

NOTE: We are thankful to the following for the research work.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laas_Geel

20 Interesting And Fun Facts About Somalia [Explained]

https://intpolicydigest.org/ancient-art-in-somaliland-in-limbo/

https://dekochi.com/laas-geel.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mogadishu#:~:text=The%20Mogadishu%20Sultanate%20maintained%20a,the%20hinterland%20neighbouring%20coastal%20towns.

https://dlca.logcluster.org/36-somalia-food-suppliers-accommodation-and-other-markets#:~:text=Bakara%20is%20the%20most%20popular%20market%20in%20Somalia.

https://www.adequatetravel.com/blog/best-cities-to-visit-in-somalia/#:~:text=1.,region%20of%20the%20Indian%20Ocean.