Why is Arabic an official language of Somalia?

[LiquidHYDROGEN]

I know that Japanese Civilization is indebted to China, but that doesn't mean Japanese culture = Chinese culture. They went their own separate way after absorbing Chinese confucian and buddhist thought for centuries and developed a more refined culture in the process. Why China lagged behind is another subject which I don't really wish to go into.

If the west isn't insecure, why are they constantly trying to tie themselves to Greece and Rome?

And how is not claiming to be an arab being lost? Like I said, we have a culture of our own and that has nothing to do with arabs or being arabs.

[LiquidHYDROGEN]

The difference is that the Moroccan, same as the Egyptian, Iraqi, Libyan, Lebanese etc. was conquered and arabized - the Somali wasn't. These people are also the vital backbone of arab culture and civilization - the Somali isn't and never has contributed anything to arab culture or civilization. Also, clearly you don't know anything about somali history because the concept of "arabness" of Somalis only arose in the mid-twentieth century. Before that you could get killed for calling a Somali an arab -it was percieved as an insult.

That can't be the only difference because the Persians, central Asians, sub continent were all conquered.

Lol was the 20th century before or after they started claiming Arab forefathers?

We both know only a few clans claimed arab descent and even they were 100% Culturally and liguistically Somali. And now, thanks to genetic study, we have found they are 100% genetically Somali as well.

As for Persia, if you studied islamic history, you'd know they were the intellectual and cultural matrix of the Islamic world - there's a reason why scientific, cultural and philosophical learning increased exponentially under the Abbasids and not the Ummayads. The Iranian people have also had a much better cohesion and efforts to revive and preserve iranian langauges and culture have been more effective - Ferdowsi's Shahnama was an effort not only to preserve traditional Persian myth/folklore but also the persian language which was being lost due to slow arabization. You can't compare the Persians to the Moroccans and Egyptians- apples and oranges, man. When the arabs conquered Persia, they were conquering an old and sophisticated civilization rivaling China, India and Greece. When the arabs conquered Egypt and North Africa, they were conquering Byzantine vassal-states and hill-tribes of the Atlas Mountains.

[SultanOrder]

There is very little that is special about the Japanese and have zero contribution to world history, you can't even compare them to the Chinese. The worlds great contemporary civilizations are Islamic, Indian, Chinese, and Western.

The West has every right to do so because they see themselves consciously and are the inheritors of Greco-Roman civilization. Hell the Romana saw themselves that way about the Greeks. It's all fair play.

Sxb you distance yourself from Arab, for why? Because you don't see yourself as Egyptian or Saudi or Iraqi? Well you are not, but you still share that civilization. But don't forget we have culture, but so do Saudis or Moroccans, but it is inline with Islam vis a vie Arab civilization. Remember a civilization can have many local cultures.

[LiquidHYDROGEN]

So far all you've proved is that Somalis are tied to the larger Islamic culture - which is the case for every muslim people from Morocco to Malaysia. You haven't proved how we are arabs or culturally arab.

The West can claim what they want. The truth is when Plato was teaching in the Academy and when Alexander was conquering Persia nobody even knew they existed. They have no classical tradition and so they latch themselves onto Greco-Roman civilization and label it western - when it was really just mediterranean.

[Thuganomics]

so do Saudis

Morracans yes laakiin Saudi nationality is a 20th century construct.The culture of that area is alive and well in Eritrea.Which moved there with the Rashidis lol
As for the subject at hand either you remove yourself from been a member of the Arab league or th e Status Quo remains

[Lancer]

Isn't it a requirement for the Arab league?

[BlackVelvet]

Actually Hawiye claim Arab ancestry and so does Dir. A few generations above them is their Arab father, one of the sons of Abu Talib, the uncle of the Prophet

I am,

Abdi "Everyone has a Arab daddy" Johnson

How dare you sir, how very, very dare you

[Basra-]

There is very little that is special about the Japanese and have zero contribution to world history, you can't even compare them to the Chinese. The worlds great contemporary civilizations are Islamic, Indian, Chinese, and Western.

The West has every right to do so because they see themselves consciously and are the inheritors of Greco-Roman civilization. Hell the Romana saw themselves that way about the Greeks. It's all fair play.

Sxb you distance yourself from Arab, for why? Because you don't see yourself as Egyptian or Saudi or Iraqi? Well you are not, but you still share that civilization. But don't forget we have culture, but so do Saudis or Moroccans, but it is inline with Islam vis a vie Arab civilization. Remember a civilization can have many local cultures.

PO

Can I ask you a question? Perhaps the definition of civilization Is lost to you. How can Islamic, meaning the arab 'civilization' be civilized if they were not enlightened? To be civilized is to be enlightened. Learning how to read and write Arabic and Quran is all Good for the soul, but is it being civilized? I mean---the medieval monks who worshiped idols were also well read.

To me--arabs were never civilized. Up to today, they live in this state of ridiculousness, tents and shisha smoking, that's not civilized to me. That's conservatism.

[Khalid Ali]

if you want to join the Arab league Arabic has to be the official language its one of the requirements the Somali government in the 1970s sold the Notion that Somalis were Arabs , in an interview with the Khaleeji Times with Siad bare he was asked how are Arab Somali relations he said the question you are asking is wrong by separating Somalis from Arabs.


Any way there is no major threat from Arabs coming to the Somalis, Somali language is not in danger , Arabic is taught in Primary schools in Somaliland i Know this when i was in Somaliland people are exposed to Arabic. I can say 40% of the Somaliland population speaks Arabic decently. A quarter of Somaliland population spend their adults life in the Golf countries from the 1950s. The only dangerous ideology that can harm Somalis is Wahabism and Salafi Jihadism. but not speaking Arabic. I say the more languages one speaks the better i am very glad that my family went to a Non English speaking country in Europe, Somalis should also Learn Spanish Language its also a major language in the world.

[LiquidHYDROGEN]

if you want to join the Arab league Arabic has to be the official language its one of the requirements the Somali government in the 1970s sold the Notion that Somalis were Arabs , in an interview with the Khaleeji Times with Siad bare he was asked how are Arab Somali relations he said the question you are asking is wrong by separating Somalis from Arabs.


Any way there is no major threat from Arabs coming to the Somalis, Somali language is not in danger , Arabic is taught in Primary schools in Somaliland i Know this when i was in Somaliland people are exposed to Arabic. I can say 40% of the Somaliland population speaks Arabic decently. A quarter of Somaliland population spend their adults life in the Golf countries from the 1950s. The only dangerous ideology that can harm Somalis is Wahabism and Salafi Jihadism. but not speaking Arabic. I say the more languages one speaks the better i am very glad that my family went to a Non English speaking country in Europe, Somalis should also Learn Spanish Language its also a major language in the world.

Waxaad ku haleysid bal eeg, miyaanad isla yaabeYn? 40% of SL can bearly read somali let alone speak another language fluently. Why don't you become a government spin-doctor? You have a talent for bullshitting.

[GAMES]

Arabic is the 5th or 6th most spoken language in the world with at least 350 million people speaking it.

[Khalid Ali]

Liquid its true somaliland youth watch arabic channles and arabic is taught very young for religion reasons than in high school later and than in uni to say somali youth cant read af somali is wrong. Somaliland youth like either work in the golf or study in Sudan. I have visited all major unis and arabic is encouraged. Arabic In not a threat to somali language the2 can coexist.

[MaliPrince]

The difference is that the Moroccan, same as the Egyptian, Iraqi, Libyan, Lebanese etc. was conquered and arabized - the Somali wasn't. These people are also the vital backbone of arab culture and civilization - the Somali isn't and never has contributed anything to arab culture or civilization. Also, clearly you don't know anything about somali history because the concept of "arabness" of Somalis only arose in the mid-twentieth century. Before that you could get killed for calling a Somali an arab -it was percieved as an insult.

somaliida also called carabta daag caas, so I doubt the association with carabs in the past was close at all.

[MaliPrince]

There is very little that is special about the Japanese and have zero contribution to world history, you can't even compare them to the Chinese. The worlds great contemporary civilizations are Islamic, Indian, Chinese, and Western.

The West has every right to do so because they see themselves consciously and are the inheritors of Greco-Roman civilization. Hell the Romana saw themselves that way about the Greeks. It's all fair play.

Sxb you distance yourself from Arab, for why? Because you don't see yourself as Egyptian or Saudi or Iraqi? Well you are not, but you still share that civilization. But don't forget we have culture, but so do Saudis or Moroccans, but it is inline with Islam vis a vie Arab civilization. Remember a civilization can have many local cultures.

have you ever asked your father or mother what life was like when they were kids? if not, ask them? ask them whether women wore hijabs and jilbabs? ask them how common it was for them to pray? you might be surprised what you learn. contrary to your assumptions, this idea that somalis shared a "islamic civilization" with the arabs is simply not accurate. somalis were muslim largely in name for most of our history.

Read Sir Richard Burton's book "First Footsteps in East Africa". He was the first white man to travel to Somalia in the mid 1800s. His descriptions of the life of Somali nomads is among the most ancient you will find. In the book, he mentions that the Somali nomads of that time had very little knowledge of islam. He was actually welcomed by the Isa tribe (who he traveled with) because they thought he was an carab and that he would teach them about the quran and islam. It seems as though for much of our history, we really were only muslim by name.

Look back at some of the old pictures taken by the italians or british when they first came upon somalis. you'll see that women didn't cover their hair. some even used to have their chests exposed like some of the isolated Afar tribes in Ethiopia. Somali women definitely did not wear jilbabs or whatever other carab clothing that is now popular. Somalis also didn't pray that much. My father said when he was growing up (1960-70s), praying was not really part of culture. there were the few who were very religous but it wasn't as uniform in somali culture as it is now.

so other than self-identifying as muslims, somalis really had no tangible connections to "Islamic Civilization" or "Arab Civilization." Somalis (before the 1990s) were far closer in culture to their nomadic East African neighbors (Oromo, Afar, Masai) who were not muslim than they were to their muslim neighbours in Arabia or North Africa.

[InoCabdi]

If removing Arabic from being an official language will instill in us a national identity I'm all for it. But alas, there is no such cure. As for Arabic I see no threat it poses to Somali, in fact I believe we should strengthen that tie to the Arabic language.

It would be good for somalia to be a bilingual society.