Somali aristocratic and court titlesThis is a list of Somali aristocratic and court titles that were historically used by the Somali people's various sultanates, kingdoms and empires. Also included are the honorifics reserved for Islamic notables as well as traditional leaders and officials within Somali customary law (xeer), in addition to the nobiliary particles set aside for distinguished individuals. Below is a list of the royal court titles historically retained by the Somali monarchies and aristocracies. Suldaan: From the Arabic for Sultan or English "Ruler".
JubalandJubaland (Jubbaland, , Oltregiuba), the Juba Valley (Dooxada Jubba) or Azania (Asaaniya, ), is a Federal Member State in southern Somalia. Its eastern border lies east of the Jubba River, stretching from Gedo to the Indian Ocean, while its western side flanks the North Eastern Province in Kenya, which was carved out of Jubaland during the colonial period. Jubaland has a total area of . As of 2005, it had a total population of 953,045 inhabitants. The territory consists of the Gedo, Lower Juba and Middle Juba provinces.
KismayoKismayo (Kismaayo, كيسمايو, Kīsmāyū; Chisimaio) is a port city in the southern Lower Juba (Jubbada Hoose) province of Somalia. It is the commercial capital of the autonomous Jubaland region. The city is situated southwest of Mogadishu, near the mouth of the Jubba River, where the waters empty into the Indian Ocean. According to the United Nations Development Programme, the city of Kismayo had a population of around 89,333 in 2005.
Somali architectureSomali architecture is the engineering and designing of multiple different construction types such as stone cities, castles, citadels, fortresses, mosques, temples, aqueducts, lighthouses, towers and tombs during the ancient, medieval and early modern periods in Somalia and other regions inhabited by Somalis, as well as the fusion of Somalo-Islamic architecture with Western designs in contemporary times. Some of the oldest known structures in the territory of modern-day Somalia consist of burial cairns (taalo).
RahanweynThe Rahanweyn (Reewin Northern Somali: Raxaweyn, رحنوين), also known as the Digil and Mirifle (Digil iyo Mirifle) are a major Somali clan. It is one of the major Somali clans in the Horn of Africa, with a large territory and densely populated fertile valleys of the Jubba and Shebelle rivers and the area between are mainly inhabited by settlers from the Digil and Mirifle lineages. Anthropologists and northern Somalis have helped coin the term Rahanweyn.
Ajuran SultanateThe Ajuran Sultanate (Saldanadda Ajuuraan, سلطنة الأجورانية), also natively referred-to as Ajuuraan, and often simply Ajuran, was a Somali Empire in the Middle Ages in the Horn of Africa that dominated the trade in the northern Indian ocean. They belonged to the Somali Muslim sultanate that ruled over large parts of the Horn of Africa in the Middle Ages. Through a strong centralized administration and an aggressive military stance towards invaders, the Ajuran Empire successfully resisted an Oromo incursion from the west and a Portuguese incursion from the east during the Gaal Madow and the Ajuran-Portuguese wars.
BardereBardere (بارديرا, Bardhere) is a district in the southwestern Gedo region in Jubaland State of Somalia. It is the second largest and most populous city in Jubaland with Kismayo being the largest and most densely populated city in the region. Bardera sits on the Jubba River around 250 km west of the city of Baidoa and is in a highland area with fertile soil. The city experiences extremely hot temperatures from December to April and heavy rainfalls from April to May knowns as Gu (spring) The city was formerly known as the "Onion capital of the World" for its production of the vegetable, the name Bardere means tall palm trees.
HawiyeThe Hawiye (Hawiye, بنو هوية, Hauija) is the largest Somali clan family. Members of this clan traditionally inhabit central and southern Somalia, Somaliland, Djibouti, Ethiopia (Somali, Harar, Oromia and Afar regions) and Kenya (North Eastern Province, Eastern Province). They are also the majority in the capital city, Mogadishu. Like the great majority of Somali clans, the Hawiye trace their ancestry to Aqil ibn Abi Talib (580 – 670 or 683), a cousin of the prophet Muhammad (570 – 632) and an older brother of Ali ibn Abi Talib (600 – 661) and Ja'far ibn Abi Talib (590 – 629).
Jubba RiverThe Jubba River or Juba River (Webiga Jubba) is a river in southern Somalia which flows through the autonomous region of Jubaland. It begins at the border with Ethiopia, where the Dawa and Ganale Dorya rivers meet, and flows directly south to the Somali Sea, where it empties at the Goobweyn juncture. The Jubba basin covers an area of . The Somali regional state of Jubaland, formerly called Trans-Juba, is named after the river.
Shebelle RiverThe Shebelle River (Webi Shabeelle, نهر شبيلي, እደላ) begins in the highlands of Ethiopia, and then flows southeast into Somalia towards Mogadishu. Near Mogadishu, it turns sharply southwest, where it follows the coast. Below Mogadishu, the river becomes seasonal. During most years, the river dries up near the mouth of the Jubba River, while in seasons of heavy rainfall, the river actually reaches the Jubba and thus the ocean. The Shebelle river's name is derived from the Somali term Webi Shabeelle, meaning "Leopard River".
