Maalim Ibrahim | |
|---|---|
| Born | |
| Occupation | Navigator |
| Years active | 17th century |
| Known for | Maritime expertise |
Maalim Ibrahim was a 17th-century Somali [1] captain and navigator who was considered an expert in the medieval maritime trade routes of the Indian Ocean region between Mogadishu and the city of Cambay in the Gujarat Sultanate of India. [2]
Maalim was born in the Sultanate of Mogadishu, whose capital at the time was the richest city on the Eastern African coast. In 1615, on the return leg of a trade voyage to Madagascar, Maalim docked at one of the Islands of the Comoros and encountered the English explorer Thomas Roe, who during their encounter noted Maalim's fluency of the Portuguese language.
Roe provided Maalim with a nautical map of the region, and was intrigued when the Somali captain pointed out numerous cartographic errors in his map, and then revealed his own, which Roe summarised as a “graduated map of high quality” drawn on parchment and subsequently began adjusting his own map based on that of Maalim. [3] [4]
His brother was also a sailor and a mercenary that had participated at the naval Battle of Swally between the English and the Portuguese, on the side of the latter, off the coast of the Indian subcontinent.
Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. The country was an important centre for commerce with the rest of the ancient world, and according to most scholars, it is among the most probable locations of the fabled ancient Land of Punt. During the Middle Ages, several powerful Somali states and port towns dominated the regional trade, the Mogadishu Sultanate and Ajuran Sultanate both centered around the port town Mogadishu, but also the port towns of Barawe and Merca.
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Sir Thomas Roe was an English diplomat of the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods. Roe's voyages ranged from Central America to India; as ambassador, he represented England in the Mughal Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Holy Roman Empire. He held a seat in the House of Commons at various times between 1614 and 1644. Roe was an accomplished scholar and a patron of learning.
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The Ajuran Sultanate, natively referred to as Ajuuraan, and often simply Ajuran, was a medieval Muslim Empire in the Horn of Africa. Founded by Somali Sultans it ruled over large parts of the Horn of Africa during the Middle Ages. It rose to power in the 13th century and would dominate the Indian Ocean trade for centuries to come. Through a strong centralised administration and an aggressive military stance towards invaders, the Ajuran Empire successfully resisted Oromo invasions from the west and fought against Portuguese incursions from the east.
Mogadishu is the largest city in Somalia and the nation's capital. Located in the coastal Benadir region on the Indian Ocean, the city has served as an important port for centuries.
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The Shirazi also known as Mbwera, are a Bantu ethnic group inhabiting the Swahili coast and the nearby Indian ocean islands. They are particularly concentrated on the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba and Comoros.
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The Sultanate of Mogadishu, also known as Kingdom of Magadazo, was a medieval Muslim sultanate centered in southern Somalia. It rose as one of the pre-eminent powers in the Horn of Africa under the rule of Fakhr al-Din before becoming part of the powerful and expanding Ajuran Sultanate in the 13th century. The Mogadishu Sultanate maintained a vast trading network, dominated the regional gold trade, minted its own currency, and left an extensive architectural legacy in present-day southern Somalia.
Somali nationalism is a nationalist ideology advocating for the unification of all Somali people who share a common ethnicity, language, and culture, under a single banner. Its earliest manifestations has its roots in the Middle Ages and the Adal Sultanate whilst in the contemporary era its often traced back to the Somali Youth League, a political organisation founded in 1943. The Somali Youth League became one of the most influential political parties in Somalia prior to post-independence. The Somali guerilla militia Al-Shabab is also noteworthy for incorporating Somali nationalism into its Islamist ideology.
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