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The history of Somali is deeper than most suspected. Already in the 5th millennium before Christ, the culinary branch separated from the semitic tribe of the afroasian language family. From about 4,000 BC, the proto-Kuschitian spokesmen migrated into the Horn of Africa. From this root Somali grew, today spoken by more than 24 million people in Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and a growing diaspora worldwide. For centuries the language existed without writing. Knowledge, history and law were passed on in poems. Somalia is a nation of poets.

At Sankofa Lingua Academy you learn Somali from the ground and discover a language that made poetry a way of life.

To understand how Somali became the language, one has to imagine the Horn of Africa 1,500 years ago. Between 400 and 800 AD, the ancestors of today's Somalis spread over the region. They came from southern Africa, not as long as adopted from the north and met hunters, collectors and early farmers. A common language emerged from this encounter.

Then Islam came. In the 7th century arab traders and scholars the Horn of Africa. With them came new words for religion, law and science. Today, about 20% of the Somali vocabulary comes from the Arab. But the influence continued. Somalia was located on the major maritime routes of the Indian Ocean. Greek, Persian and Indian merchants in the port cities. Every encounter left traces in the language. Swahili, the great trading language of East Africa, was formed by the same routes and contacts. Much later, in 19 and 20. Century, European powers divided the country. The British took the north, the Italians took the south. Thus new words for technology and administration were added.

The appearance of the Somalis tells about a long history with many walks, contacts and cultural exchanges. Somalis belong to the African-African language family, including Arabic, Hebrew and Hausa belong. Within this family, Somali is part of the Ukrainian subgroup, as well as the languages of many Ethiopians and Eritreans. As a result, these populations not only resemble linguistically, but often also externally. The Somalis ancestors more than a thousand years ago, from today’s northern Kenya, moved to the north and east. This movement is caused by genetic studies and linguistic similarities with neighbouring groups such as Rendille or bonuses confirmed.

Through the proximity to the Arab world, for centuries there was close contact with traders and scholars from the Persian Gulf. Many somalian clans lead their origins to holy men from Arabia back. Such narratives still characterize the clan consciousness.

A special group within Somalia is Somali Bantu, also Jareer called. Unlike the majority of Somalis, they have Bantu origin and resemble people from southern or south-east Africa in their appearance. Your ancestors were in 18 and 19 century brought to Somalia during East African slave trade. 

One language, several countries. The somalian language today connects people across state borders, which were once arbitrarily drawn by colonial powers. Somalia forms the core country for the Somali language. In contrast Djibouti where Somalis is about 60% of the population and form the government. At the same time, millions of Somali-speaking people live in ethiopian Somali region, also Ogaden called. In the northeast of Kenya, Somali also enjoys the status of a recognized minority language. In addition, in the 1990s, the civil war pushed a large diaspora into the world, especially North America and Europe.

Paradox, however, appears the status of the language in Djibouti. Despite demographic dominance, Somali is not an official language. Instead, French and Arabic fill this role. 

	Somalia	Djibouti
Colonial language	English (Northern) / Italian (South)	French
Official status	Official language	National language
Clan base	Darod, Isaaq, Hawiye, Rahanweyn	Mostly

Religiously, the somalian population is remarkably homogeneous. The majority of Somalis belong to Sunni Islam. In contrast, it is much more complex social structure, because the Clan system shapes the entire society. Patrilineal organizes, Clans form the basis for social networks, political alliances and economic opportunities. Domination five large Clan families: the Darod, Isaaq, Hawiye, Rahanweyn and Dir. Each of these families branches into numerous sub-Clans, each with its own territories and political interests.

For centuries, Somali only existed as a spoken language. Knowledge was passed orally, poems replaced history books. But in 1972 everything changed. In just three years, Somalia completed one of most successful literacy campaigns in Africa.

Before 1972 dead fierce debates on the correct written system. Several options were available. The Arabic script Wadaad had centuries of tradition in religious circles. Indigenous inventions, such as the Osmanya alphabet, testified with pride to their own culture. In addition, the Latin alphabet came with its technical advantages. 
For the Council Siad Barre fell in 1972 to the Latin alphabet. The reasons were pragmatic. The Latin system was easier to learn and more technically easier to implement. Writing machines, printing presses and international communication already worked with this alphabet. 

The actual revolution began two years later. 1974 launched an unprecedented literacy campaign. All schools were closed for one year. 25,000 pupils and soldiers moved to the country to teach the population to read and write. Young city dwellers lived like nomads, shared tents and meals with the people they should teach. They brought fibles, panels and the will to form a nation. The results were impressive. The literacy rate jumped from 5% to over 55% in no time. 

The somalian language sounds quite different from German. This is due to how words are built and what role tone and vocals play. Somali is an agglutinating language. This means that words consist of a word root and many small building blocks attached to it or behind it.