Women in Somalia form a key part of Somali society, with clearly defined and important roles in the family and structure. This includes Somali women in Somaliland, a self-declared republic that is internationally recognized as an autonomous region of Somalia.[1][2] From the time of Ismail Urwayni's proselytizing in 1890, until the Dervish State's defeat by British air bombardment in 1920, women in the strip of land from Jidali, Sanaag in the north, to Beledweyne in the south were referred to as Darawiishaad (plural) or Darwiishad (singular).[3]
Most people in Somalia are Muslims.[4] Somalia's population is expanding at a growth rate of 1.67% per annum and a birth rate of 41.45 births/1,000 people. Somalia's total fertility rate in 2013 was 6.17 children born per woman, the fourth highest in the world.[5]
Most local residents are young, with a median age of 17.7 years. 44.3% of the population are between the ages of 0–14 years, 53.5% are between the ages of 15–64 years, and only 2.3% are 65 years of age or older. The sex ratio is roughly balanced, with proportionally about as many men as women.[5]
Due to the civil war, exact population statistics for Somalia have been difficult to determine since 1975. According to the United Nations, roughly half the population of Somalia, as of 2014, is female.[6]
When compared to other African countries there are lower levels of education and higher levels of infant mortality in Somalia.[7]
History of women's rights in Somalia
Somali writer and political activist Halima Ahmed
By the late 9th century A.D., almost all people living in Somalia had converted to Islam. The rights of women under the Quran include the right to life, education, ownership and inheritance of property, as well as the right to give consent to be married and the right to a marriage contract with one's future husband.[8] At the same time, Somali culture has traditionally operated as a patriarchy, where men made the majority of financial and family decisions, and dominated the public sphere.
After Somalia gained its independence from colonial powers in 1960, both men and women were given the right to vote.[9] This led to increased participation of women in public life from the 1970s to the 1980s. Female school enrollment, women in the workplace, and women's participation in politics and the military all increased during that time.[10] The Family Law of 1975 gave equal rights to women and men regarding marriage, divorce, and inheritance of property and restricted polygamy.[11] President Siad Barre supported the establishment of the Somali Women's Democratic Organization (SWDO) in 1977 in memory of Hawo Tako, a female member of the anti-colonialist Somali Youth League who was killed by the Italian forces in 1948.[11] The Barre regime established the SWDO and appointed its female leadership in order to maintain female compliance with the government.[11][12]
Gender equality
Women in urban areas are more likely to be head of the household.[citation needed]
Clan and family structure
Traditional hand craft during culture week in Hargeisa, Somalia
The clan groupings of the Somali people are important social units, and clan membership plays a central part in Somali culture and politics. Clans are patrilineal and are often divided into sub-clans, sometimes with many sub-divisions.
Somali society is traditionally ethnically endogamous. Women who marry are expected to join their husband's family. To extend ties of alliance, marriage is often to another Somali from a different clan. For example, a 1994 study observed that in 89 marriages contracted by men of the Dhulbahante clan, 55 (62%) were with women of Dhulbahante sub-clans other than those of their husbands; 30 (33.7%) were with women of surrounding clans of other clan families (Isaaq, 28; Hawiye, 3); and 3 (4.3%) were with women of other clans of the Darod clan family (Majeerteen 2, Ogaden 1).[13]
In 1975, the most prominent government reforms regarding family law in a Muslim country were set in motion in the Somali Democratic Republic, which put women and men, including husbands and wives, on complete equal footing.[14] The 1975 Somali Family Law gave men and women equal division of property between the husband and wife upon divorce and the exclusive right to control by each spouse over his or her personal property.[15]
During regular, day-to-day activities, women in Somalia usually wear the guntiino, a long stretch of cloth tied over the shoulder and draped around the waist. The guntiino is traditionally made out of plain white fabric sometimes featuring with decorative borders, although nowadays alindi, a textile common in the Horn of Africa region and some parts of North Africa, is more frequently used. The garment can be worn in many different styles and with different fabrics.[citation needed]
Under the Socialist Barre regime (1969–1991), women were free to dress as they wished, and most urban women did not wear hijab; however, after the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991, most women in Mogadishu started to wear hijab for the first time, and those who did not were harassed.[16]
During regular, day-to-day activities, Somali women usually wear the guntiino, a long stretch of cloth tied over the shoulder and draped around the waist. In more formal settings such as weddings or religious celebrations like Eid, women wear the dirac, which is a long, light, diaphanous voile dress made of cotton or polyester that is worn over a full-length half-slip and a brassiere. Married women tend to sport head-scarves referred to as shash, and also often cover their upper body with a shawl known as garbasaar. Unmarried or young women, however, wear hijab, and the jiilbab is also commonly worn.[17]
For more formal settings such as weddings or religious celebrations like Eid, women wear the dirac, a long, light, diaphanous voile dress made of cotton, polyester or saree fabric. Known as the gorgorad, the underskirt is made out of silk and serves as a key part of the overall outfit.[citation needed]
The dirac is usually sparkly and very colorful, the most popular styles being those with gilded borders or threads. The fabric is typically acquired from Somali clothing stores in tandem with the gorgorad. In the past, dirac fabric was also frequently purchased from South Asian merchandisers.[citation needed]
Somali young women and men performing the traditional dhaanto dance-song in Jubaland
Married women tend to sport head-scarves referred to as shash, and also often cover their upper body with a shawl known as garbasaar. Unmarried or young women do not always cover their heads. Traditional Arabian garb such as the jilbab is also commonly worn.[citation needed]
Additionally, Somali women have a long tradition of wearing gold and silver jewelry, particularly bangles. During weddings, the bride is frequently adorned in gold. Many Somali women by tradition also wear gold necklaces and anklets. Xirsi, a quranic necklace, also worn in countries such as Ethiopia and Yemen, is also frequently worn.
Henna is another important part of Somali culture. It is worn by Somali women on their hands, arms, feet and neck during weddings, Eid, Ramadan, and other festive occasions. Somali henna designs are similar to those in the Arabian peninsula, often featuring flower motifs and triangular shapes. The palm is also frequently decorated with a dot of henna and the fingertips are dipped in the dye. Henna parties are usually held before the wedding ceremony takes place.[citation needed]
Somali girls and women who practice Islam will wear hijab.[18] This has become the most familiar mode of dress for Somali girls and women.
Somalia has a long tradition of poetry. Several well-developed Somali forms of verse include the female-driven buraanbur, as well as gabay, jiifto, geeraar, wiglo, beercade, afarey and guuraw. The gabay (epic poem) is mostly composed by men has the most complex length and meter, often exceeding 100 lines. It is considered the mark of poetic attainment when a young poet is able to compose such verse, and is regarded as the height of poetry.[20]
Buraanbur, which is of a lighter measure, is primarily composed by women. Groups of memorizers and reciters (hafidayaal) traditionally propagated the well-developed art form. Poems revolve around several main themes, including baroorodiiq (elegy), amaan (praise), jacayl (romance), guhaadin (diatribe), digasho (gloating) and guubaabo (guidance). The baroorodiiq is composed to commemorate the death of a prominent poet or figure.[20]
Notable women
Somali women leaders and members of civil society attend a meeting in Mogadishu on June 19, 2016 during which they have agreed on an election model that will see the women secure 30% representation, across all levels of leadership in the forthcoming elections.
Notable women in the country include:
Honourable Fawzia Yusuf H. Adam, a Member of Parliament and Former Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister
About 97.9% of Somalia's women and girls underwent female genital mutilation in a 2005 study. This was at the time the world's highest prevalence rate of the procedure.[23] A UNICEF 2010 report reported that Somalia had the world's highest rate of Type III FGM, with 79% of all Somali women having undergone the procedure. Another 15% of women underwent Type II FGM.[24]
The prevalence is on the decline in the northern part of Somalia. In 2013, UNICEF in conjunction with the Somali authorities reported that the FGM prevalence rate among 1- to 14-year-old girls in the autonomous northern Puntland and Somaliland regions had dropped to 25% following a social and religious awareness campaign.[25] Article 15 of the Federal Constitution adopted in August 2012 prohibits female circumcision.[2]
In southern Somalia, in Jubaland, Minister for Women, Adar Ismail Jurati, led a consultative meeting in 2022 with government officials and people who perform female gential mutilation (FGM) with a view to stopping the practice in the Kismayo area.[26]
↑ Gender in Somalia Brief(PDF). United Nations Development Programme Country Office for Somalia Gender Unit. 2016. pp.2–4. Archived(PDF) from the original on 2018-08-26. Retrieved 2018-11-21.
↑ "Women and Islam". The Oxford Dictionary of Islam: Oxford Studies Online. 2018. Archived from the original on June 22, 2010. Retrieved 2018-11-20.
↑ Park, Daeyun (2009). "Somali Women". Lives in Conflict: Somali Women and Children. Archived from the original on 2014-10-02. Retrieved 2018-11-20.
↑ Ioan M. Lewis, Blood and Bone: The Call of Kinship in Somali Society, (Red Sea Press: 1994), p.51
↑ Pg.115 – Women in Muslim family law by John L. Esposito, Natana J. DeLong-Bas
↑ Pg.75 – Generating employment and incomes in Somalia: report of an inter-disciplinary employment and project-identification mission to Somalia financed by the United Nations Development Programme and executed by ILO/JASPA
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is the cutting or removal of some or all of the vulva for non-medical reasons. FGM prevalence varies worldwide, but is majorly present in some countries of Africa, Asia and Middle East, and within their diasporas. As of 2024, UNICEF estimates that worldwide 230 million girls and women had been subjected to one or more types of FGM.
Somaliland, officially the Republic of Somaliland, is an unrecognised country in the Horn of Africa. It is located in the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden and bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, Ethiopia to the south and west, and Somalia to the east. Its claimed territory has an area of 176,120 square kilometres (68,000 sq mi), with approximately 6.2 million people as of 2024. The capital and largest city is Hargeisa.
Puntland, officially the Puntland State of Somalia, is an autonomous territory formed in 1998 that became a Federal Member State. Puntland is located in the northeastern part of Somalia and its state capital is the city of Garoowe in the Nugal region. The region had a population of 4,334,633 in 2016. Geographically to the west, Puntland lays claim to the intra-46th meridian territories that were outside European colonial rule during parts of the Scramble for Africa period.
The culture of the Republic of Djibouti is diverse, due to the nation's Red Sea location at a crossroads of trade and commerce.
The culture of Somalia is an amalgamation of traditions that were developed independently since the Proto-Somali era. The hypernym of the term Somali from a geopolitical sense is Horner and from an ethnic sense, it is Cushite.
The dirac is a Somali garment worn by Somali women that is long, usually ankle length.
The Somali people are a Cushitic ethnic group native to the Horn of Africa who share a common ancestry, culture and history. The East Cushitic Somali language is the shared mother tongue of ethnic Somalis, which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afroasiatic language family, and they are predominantly Sunni Muslim. Forming one of the largest ethnic groups on the continent, they cover one of the most expansive landmasses by a single ethnic group in Africa.
The Darod is a Somali clan. The forefather of this clan is Sheikh Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti, more commonly known as Darod. The clan primarily settles the apex of the Horn of Africa and its peripheries, the Somali hinterlands adjacent to Oromia (Ogaden), and both sides of the Kenya–Somalia border. The Darod clan is the largest Somali clan family in the Horn of Africa.
Mohamed Abdi Hashi was a Somali politician, who served as the president of USP during the 1990s. He hailed from the Dhulbahante clan, Qayaad sub clan.
Culture of Somaliland encompasses a wide range of Somali activity and Islamic structures that give Somaliland a rich cultural and historical heritage. Nomadic and Arab Islamic cultural significance have also played a key role in Somaliland's cultural history.
Demographic features of Somalia's inhabitants include ethnicity, language, population density, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population. Somalia is believed to be one of the most homogeneous countries in Africa.
The Harti, (Somali: Harti), are a Somali clan that trace their lineage back to SalehAbdi (Harti). They are a sub-clan of the larger Darod clan. Notable sub-clans within Harti include the Majeerteen, Dhulbahante, and the Warsengeli. They predominantly reside in the apex of the Horn of Africa and its surrounding regions. Furthermore, in the southern territories, the clan's settlements span both sides of the Kenya-Somalia border.
Education in Somalia refers to the academic system within Somalia. The Ministry of Education is officially responsible for education in Somalia, with about 15% of the nation's budget allocated to scholastic instruction. The breakaway republic of Somaliland maintains its own advanced Ministry of Education.
Buuhoodle, also known as Bohotle, serves as a significant border town for the movement of goods between Khaatumo and the Somali Region of Ethiopia. The surrounding district is rich in livestock with growing agricultural activities.
There is a widespread view among practitioners of female genital mutilation (FGM) that it is a religious requirement, although prevalence rates often vary according to geography and ethnic group. There is an ongoing debate about the extent to which the practice's continuation is influenced by custom, social pressure, lack of health-care information, and the position of women in society. The procedures confer no health benefits and can lead to serious health problems.
Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting (FGC), female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and female circumcision, is practiced in 30 countries in western, eastern, and north-eastern Africa, in parts of the Middle East and Asia, and within some immigrant communities in Europe, North America and Australia, aswell as in specific minority enclaves in areas such as South Asia and Russia. The WHO defines the practice as "all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons."
The Golis Mountains are a mountain range in Somaliland. Also known as Qar Golis, they cut through the Togdheer region, and end near the Gan Libah.
Puntland, ,, officially the Puntland State of Somalia, Arabic: ولاية أرض البنط الصومالية), is a Federal Member State in northeastern Somalia. The Administrative Capital is Garowe in the Nugal region, and its leaders declared the territory an autonomous state in 1998. Geographically to the west, Puntland lays claim to the intra-46th meridian territories that were outside European colonial rule during parts of the Scramble for Africa period.
The 2009 Puntland presidential election was held on 8 January 2009 in Garowe, the administrative capital of the autonomous Puntland state of Somalia. The second such vote to be held in the state since its establishment 1998, it followed the election of a new Parliament Speaker and Deputy Speakers on January 04, 2009 by the 66-seat bicameral legislature. Candidates included officials from the incumbent Puntland administration, former government ministers and prominent local entrepreneurs. The ballot saw the election of former Puntland minister of finance Abdirahman Farole as the fourth president of Puntland, majority defeating Abdullahi Ahmed Jama. Parliament of Puntland concurrently elected Abdisamad Ali Shire as Puntland's new vice president in place of Hassan Dahir Afqurac.
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