Anyone know what Somalis worshipped before Islam?

[Real_Talk]

I've read about the Waaq (sky god) which is an old Kushtic religion that was practiced by many of the tribes in East Africa like the Oromos. Some have even suggested Somalis also worshipped this god because of the prevalance of this word in alot of Somali sayings.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waaq

http://www.meta-religion.com/World_Reli ... ligion.htm

Anyone got anymore info on this?

[AbdiWahab252]

Realtalk,

It was Waaqism. Fascinating religion with no concept of heaven or hell. It is still practiced by Oromos, Rendille and other Cushitic people.

http://www.balaams-ass.com/journal/hous ... omoeth.htm

[BaasAbuur]

Somalis were not somalis before Islam......

[The_Emperior5]

somali ma iyaka ba jiiray islaamki ka hor

[Somaliman50]

Somalia's history before Islam is irrelevant and should remain so.

[Sakhraan]

geelwaaq

[Advo]

Doesnt matter and it's Islam that united the naked so called somalis.

[Keyse_0208]

somali ma iyaka ba jiiray islaamki ka hor

of couse weynu jirney, waxa la caabudi jirey barigaa cadceeda iyo dayaxa 'The sun and the moon'

[Gedo_Boy]

I don't think Waaq means 'Sky God' in the sense of polytheism. If that was the case, there would be a 'Sea God' ...and an 'XYZ god'. I think Waaq just meant God in the ancient Somali language, like Ebbe.

In fact, the word Waq is in the Qur'an, although I'm not sure if it is the exact term, but it does say something like: "And you have besides Allah no Waq"

[Captain24]

Somalida oo dhan midget, kuligood 1000 sano kama wayna

[BaasAbuur]

It was probably one of the deities of the Arabs before nabi maxamed Scw.

[Voltage]

Gedoboy, waaq being sun-god and all these unholy things are things that have entered the market in the last couple years. I finally got around to asking Oromo what Waaq means in their language and they just said it means God, it doesn't mean any specific god but it is a general name for a higher being like God is in English. In English you could say the Muslim God, the Christian God, the Hindu God, etc because God does not mean anything specific. In the same way Waaq does not mean anything specific, it is God in old Afro-Asiatic.

In fact you are right Waaq is also a Semitic/Arabic term. Guess what it means? Waaq in Arabic means protector. One of God's attributes like merfiful, bountiful, etc is also protector which aids the fact Waaq has been misinterpreted by Somali circles in the past couple years.

You can it in the Arabic dictionary under واق (Waaq-protector) and place names in Somalia have this definition:

Caabud-waaq = worship of the protector

Ceel-waaq = the well of the protector

Jid-waaq = the path of the protector

Takal-waaq = tireless protector

Also, many of our religious connotations symbolism has waaq as a root furthering its own existence in our culture as meaning the general name for God as protector as used also in other Afro-Asiatic languages including Arabic:

barWAAQo = living in plentiful and content (Signify as something of god's doing)

garWAAQsan = to be convinced of something (cannotation implies testimony to the conviction of God), also is related to the dispensing of justice

WAAQdhaaco = sacrificial slaughtering (slaughter for the purpose of God)

caWAAQib = what happens to you (fate which is in the hand of God)

ku dhaWAAQ = announce or proclaim something (religious conotation implies proclaiming belief in God)

WAAQsasho = to get something lost back (testifying God's intervention in helping you recover)

Hope this helps the author.

[surrender]

i read from somewhere long ago, that during the Egyptian Empire there was Egyptian "God" (he wasnt really a god, just statue) called Qorax, he was the God of sun! somali:qorax=sun. link? maybe!

[Voltage]

Surrender you are right if there is anything that would be close to sun-god as highlighted by language usage it would be that.

In Ancient Egyption the sun-god was calle Amen-Rah (thank Rah)

In Somali the sun is called Qor-Rah. Basically it means the (neck of Rah).

Our word for sun means the neck of the Sun God. Which could have come into existnce with the believe that the Sun God exists eternally, and that during the day when we see the sun is when the neck is showing (which makes it seem that during night it is not).

[admin]

I heard about waaq many times in the past. It is true that the name is still prevalent in somalia. But, somalia's history was and still based on oral and cannot be sustained for a long time.
ceel waaq
jid waaq
caabud waaq (caabud = worship)

I think the best way to get historic information is interview old people who live in these waaq places.

There are also traces of festivals and other rituals that pre-date Islam.

Somalia b4 islam = part of larger abysinia. Abysinia was very powerful its king attacked Mecca b4 Prophet Mohamed was born.