Africa 24 Media Photography

The catalog of the Somali people historically appears on record when Egyptian Queen Hatsebshut sent a convoy to the land of Punt. This directly translated is the land of spices. Somali was the land of Punt, it was famous for trading its spices in for things such as glass and jewelry from the Egyptians. Travelers described them as very graceful. Surprisingly information has been jotted down describing the majority of the population as fat and somewhat worldly.

Somali is unique from other countries in that it is one of the most homogeneous nations in the world. A significant majority of the population practices Islam. Colonialists could hardly employ the divide and conquer approach with them. After all, they all had more or less the same complexion and spoke a common language. The nation speaks one language yes but the dialect varies from region to region. Their appearance is sometimes mistaken for that of their Ethiopian neighbors. This is not surprising, historical evidence traces their roots to the southern regions of modern day Ethiopia. The genealogy of its people has been passed down orally. This was so as to help them better understand their ancestry. Their culture is said to be little eroded by western influences. They hold dear their cultural practices and many of them reject the idea of western forms of dressing and still maintain their traditional attire. You may find the men draped in kilt like sarongs named macawiis. The younger generation of men will put on the t-shirt and jeans but yet still compliment it with embroided shawls. Women however are slightly more restricted in their wardrobe. Head scarfs are compulsory. This is more a religious issue than it is a societal norm. The scarf is known as a hijab. Some ladies prefer to adorn themselves in the jalabeeb; this is the head to toe burqa. Heena is also used by the women to tattoo themselves as a means of heightening their beauty. Music is a way through which life is expressed and the Somali people have found a way to hold on to their traditional forms of music. Unfortunately popular traditional bands have not as such managed to sway the world. Urban culture has seen the infusion of modern concepts such as rock and roll, jazz and hip hop along traditional forms of music. Xer-Dhaanto is one such form of music that has sprung forth as a result. It is an urbanized form of Somali folk dance and song. Toronto, still in Somali has become the music center of the nation. This metropolitan music forms are seeping into the world and have already established strong holds in places such as London and Minneapolis. Somali’s most inexhaustible resource is its people. There is very little debate about that.

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