Portal:Somalia

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Camels on sale at Baidoa livestock market in Somalia on November 7, 2019

Flag of Somalia	Coat of arms of Somalia

Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Indian Ocean to the east, and Kenya to the southwest. Somalia has the longest coastline on the mainland of Africa, with a seaboard that stretches 3,025 kilometres (1,880 mi).

In antiquity, Somalia was an important centre for commerce with the rest of the ancient world, it is among the most probable locations of the fabled ancient Land of Punt. During the Middle Ages, several powerful Somali empires dominated the regional trade, including the Ajuuraan Sultanate, the Adal Sultanate and the Geledi Sultanate. In the late nineteenth century, through a succession of treaties with these kingdoms, the British and Italians gained control of parts of the coast, and established British Somaliland and Italian Somaliland. In the interior, the Dervish State wherein Muhammad Abdullah Hassan was leader successfully repulsed the British Empire four times and forced it to retreat to the coastal region. Italian occupation lasted until 1941, yielding to British military administration. British Somaliland would remain a protectorate, while Italian Somaliland in 1949 became a United Nations Trusteeship under Italian administration, the Trust Territory of Somaliland.

Though, in 1960, the two regions united to form the independent Somali Republic under a civilian government. In 1991, following the collapse of the government of Siad Barre, the Republic of Somaliland unilaterally declared its independence from Somalia, reinstating the borders of former British Somaliland, and has been governed by democratically elected leaders since. Somaliland's independence, however, has not been recognised by any foreign country or international organisation.

Somalia has a population of around 10 million. About 85% of local residents are ethnic Somalis, Somali and Arabic are the official languages of Somalia, both of which belong to the Afro-Asiatic family. Most people in the territory are Muslims, the majority being Sunni.

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Maritime history of Somalia refers to the seafaring tradition of the Somali people. It includes various stages of Somali navigational technology, shipbuilding and design, as well as the history of the Somali port cities. It also covers the historical sea routes taken by Somali sailors which sustained the commercial enterprises of the historical Somali kingdoms and empires, in addition to the contemporary maritime culture of Somalia.

In antiquity, the ancestors of the Somali people were an important link in the Horn of Africa connecting the region's commerce with the rest of the ancient world. Somali sailors and merchants were the main suppliers of frankincense, myrrh and spices, items which were considered valuable luxuries by the Ancient Egyptians, Phoenicians, Mycenaeans and Babylonians. During the classical era, several ancient city-states such as Ophir at the time Berbera and Ras Hafun and Hiran then part of Mogadishu competed with the Sabaeans, Parthians and Axumites for the wealthy Indo-Greco-Roman trade also flourished in Somalia. In the Middle Ages, several powerful Somali empires dominated the regional trade including the Ajuran Sultanate, the latter of which maintained profitable maritime contacts with Arabia, India, Venetia, Persia, Egypt, Portugal and as far away as China. This tradition of seaborne trade was maintained in the early modern period, with Berbera being the pre-eminent Somali port during the 18th–19th centuries. (Full article...)

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Clockwise from top: Mohammed Abdullah Hassan monument, Lido Beach, the Old Fishing Harbour, and Mosque of Islamic Solidarity.

Mogadishu, locally known as Xamar or Hamar, is the capital and most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port connecting traders across the Indian Ocean for millennia and has an estimated urban population of 2,610,483.

Mogadishu is located in the coastal Banaadir region on the Indian Ocean, which, unlike other Somali regions, is considered a municipality rather than a maamul goboleed (federal state). (Full article...)

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Battle of Jilib Embassy of the United States, Mogadishu Operation Eastern Exit Cyclone Sagar Somalia at the 2000 Summer Olympics Somalia at the 2008 Summer Olympics Somalia at the 2012 Summer Olympics Somalia at the 2016 Summer Olympics Somalia at the 2016 Summer Paralympics

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...that the Fakr ad-Din mosque is the oldest Islamic building in the Horn of Africa?

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Image 1A satellite image of Somalia, 2004
Image 2The beachside at Merca, an ancient port city in the southern Lower Shebelle province of Somalia
Image 3Mashmash, a Somali pancake and part of Somali cuisine
Image 4A view of Bosaso
Image 5Hargeisa and much of northwestern Somalia is desert or hilly terrain. Here, the thelarchic-shaped Naasa Hablood hills are shown.
Image 6A view in the Kismayo/Dalxiiska area in 2016
Image 7A Dhulbahante garesa (dervish fort) in Taleh
Image 8The Jubba river near Jamaame
Image 9A view of the Port of Mogadishu
Image 10A view of Banderadley Somalia
Image 11A camel peering over the leafier portions of Cal Madow, a mountain range in Somalia
Image 12Lamadaya are waterfalls located in the Cal Madow mountain range in the northern Sanaag region of Somalia
Image 13A man carries a huge hammerhead shark through the streets of Mogadishu

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The following are images from various Somalia-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Downtown Mogadishu in 1936. Arch of Triumph Umberto to the left, Cathedral and Arba Rucun mosque to the centre-right. (from History of Somalia)
Image 2Somali women in traditional dirac and shash (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 3Somali woman in Hargeisa opening speech with traditional greeting. (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 4In 1698, the Portuguese in Mombasa surrendered to a joint Somali-Ottoman force. (from History of Somalia)
Image 5Sheikh Ali Ayanle Samatar, a prominent Somali Islamic scholar. (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 619th century Martello fort in Berbera constructed by Haji Sharmarke Ali Saleh (from History of Somalia)
Image 7Map of Italian Somaliland in 1940, when was added the British Somaliland (after the previous addition of the Ogaden in 1936) (from History of Somalia)
Image 8AMISOM reinforcement convoy on the Baidoa-Mogadishu road in April 2014 (from History of Somalia)
Image 9Almnara Tower, Mogadishu. (from History of Somalia)
Image 10Abdirahman Ahmed Ali Tuur Chairman of the Somali National Movement that overthrew Barre's regime in Northern Somalia (from History of Somalia)
Image 11Dulbiciid in Godaalo, Xudun District, tallest Somalia mountain outside karkaar range (from Geography of Somalia)
Image 12Merca is an ancient Islamic center in Somalia. (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 13Somali woman building a Somali house (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 14Engraving of the 13th century Fakr ad-Din Mosque built by Fakr ad-Din, the first Sultan of the Sultanate of Mogadishu. (from History of Somalia)
Image 15Somali women basket weaving (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 16Ahmad ibn Ibrihim al-Ghazi's pioneering use of cannons figured prominently in his Conquest of Ethiopian territories. (from History of Somalia)
Image 17Italian stamp from Mogadiscio (from History of Somalia)
Image 18Topography of Somalia (from Geography of Somalia)
Image 19Embassy of Somalia in Paris (from History of Somalia)
Image 20Bimaal clan elders and the Bimal Sultan on board Marco Polo discussing matters with Italian figures (from History of Somalia)
Image 21Dervish commander Haji Sudi on the left with his brother in-law Duale Idres. Aden, 1892. (from History of Somalia)
Image 22Somali women performing a traditional dance (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 23Former leader of the Somali Youth League Aden Abdullah Osman Daar who eventually became the first President of the Somali Republic following the union of State of Somaliland and Italian Trusteeship of Somalia. (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 24Wa'daan warriors ambushed and killed the Italian explorer Antonio Cecchi and most of his troops at Lafoole, west of Mogadishu, 1896 (from History of Somalia)
Image 25A Somali woman showing a decorated pottery (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 26Barawa city was an important medieval centre of Somali enterprise. (from History of Somalia)
Image 27Somali Army soldiers during the operation Operation Indian Ocean, October 2014 (from History of Somalia)
Image 28Somali language books on display. (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 29Ruins of the Sultanate of Adal in Zeila, Somalia. (from History of Somalia)
Image 30Cinema Italia in Mogadiscio, 1937 (from History of Somalia)
Image 31An avenue in downtown Mogadishu in 1963. (from History of Somalia)
Image 32The Guardafui Channel, between the tip of Somalia and Socotra island. (from Geography of Somalia)
Image 33A traditional dabqaad incense burner. (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 34Model of a medieval Mogadishan ship. (from History of Somalia)
Image 35Fiat building in Mogadiscio, 1940 (from History of Somalia)
Image 36Major General Mohamed Siad Barre, Chairman of the Supreme Revolutionary Council. (from History of Somalia)
Image 37Mogadishan currency – The Sultanate of Mogadishu was an important monetary supporter of Adal. (from History of Somalia)
Image 38Italian Somalia (from History of Somalia)
Image 39Foreign Minister of Somalia Mohamed Abdullahi Omaar in a meeting with UNDP Administrator Helen Clark and other diplomats at the UN headquarters in New York. (from History of Somalia)
Image 40Somali singer Fartuun Birimo wearing henna hand and arm designs. (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 41Exhumed skeletal remains of victims of the Isaaq genocide (from History of Somalia)
Image 42The battle flag of Al-Shabaab, an Islamist group waging war against the federal government. (from History of Somalia)
Image 43Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, leader of the Dervish movement. (from History of Somalia)
Image 44Somalia map of Köppen climate classification. (from Geography of Somalia)
Image 45Flag of the Somali Youth League (SYL), the nation's first political party. (from History of Somalia)
Image 46The Osmanya writing script. (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 47Neolithic rock art at the Laas Geel complex depicting a camel. (from History of Somalia)
Image 48US Army helicopter shortly before Battle of Mogadishu in 1993. (from History of Somalia)
Image 49Somalis performing the folk dance called Dhaanto (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 50Somali men and women in front of a traditional house (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 51Governor's palace in Mogadiscio (from History of Somalia)
Image 52Mogadiscio cathedral (from History of Somalia)
Image 53Mosque of Islamic Solidarity (from Culture of Somalia)
Image 54The Silk Road extending from southern Europe through Arabia, Somalia, Egypt, Persia, India and Java until it reaches China. (from History of Somalia)
Image 55Taleh was the capital of the Dervish movement. (from History of Somalia)
Image 56Mosque in Borama, Somaliland (from Culture of Somalia)

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