Why is Arabic an official language of Somalia?

[Basra-]

Still trying to figure this one out. Most Somalis can't speak the language. The few that do either live in arab countries or are religous scholars and had to study it to learn what is in the quran. Most Somalis can't read arabic. Sorry but reading the quran ain't the same as modern arabic. And even if some of us can translate our quranic reading skills to standard arabic, we don't understand it.

I know Islam is important to most somalis, but having Arabic as an official language when almost no one in the country can speak it is pretty comical. English has more right to be an official language of Somalia than Arabic given the fact far more Somalis can speak English than can speak Arabic.

I won't be surprised that by the time the Turks are through with Xamar, Turkish will become another official langauge of Somalia.

Mali prince u r hilarious walaahi. Your Somali patriotism is just short of loving the arabs. If u only loved the arabs. u would be a complete Somali Patriot!

[SultanOrder]

I think your analysis is superficial. No Somali feels alienated, be he reer miyi or be he reer magal. Because when sees Arabic without knowing what it means recognizes it as something familiar and part of them, the same with listening to it. But take English and they know instinctively it is gaal the "other".

Learning Arabic for a true Somali is also a familiar experience because from their waking moment they heard Arabic, they used it to pray, they carried the names, and they have been using the words in everyday speech. This very natural association is what I mean by our Arabness, and learning to speak Arabic is only a completion of who we are.

Arab ancestry or Arab cultural appropriation is superficial and the latter is often times against Arabness and has to do with one culture like Saudi or Emerati, etc, which I don't limit Arab to and often against.

[AbdiJohnson]

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

[LiquidHYDROGEN]

TBH I don't even think most somalis share a clan fore-father, let alone some random arab dude who just happens to ahl-bait. Genetic studies have shown that not only are most Somalis homogeneous and native to the horn, they are all related to eachother intergroup-wise more so than intra-group. There were Habr awal guys getting the same dna haplogroup as a HG and an Ogaden etc. My own Haplogroup said my closest relatives were Dir and eritreans (whatever that means, most likely afars).
So for people to be still going on about being arabs when the evidence says otherwise can only mean one thing - self-hate. Luckily, those people are a minority.

[SultanOrder]

Also about the Oromos you couldn't be further from the truth. Oromos are within the habasha sphere of influence and closer culturally to Christian Habasha. What Ethiopia is doing in Somalia is unique in our history and represents a fluke that will not last. We are diametrically opposed to them, they are the a self centered Christian enclave and we are and have always been firmly on the Islamic side. You can not underestimate the power of this and when things get back to normal we will see our firm opposition to Ethiopia again. Ethiopians know this and that is why they oppose our rise.

[LiquidHYDROGEN]

PO, maybe you should separate being an "arab" and being a "muslim" before we can have an honest discussion. I feel you are confusing the two identities, a common problem for arab-wannabes.

[SultanOrder]

Another very important thing you guys don't realize, every people need to feel like they belong to a civilization to root themselves to the past. Western to Greco Roman, Eastern Europe to Christian Orthodox, China to Chinese early middle late Chinese civilization, Iranians to Islamic and ancient Persia, Turks to Ottoman which is an extension of Islamic, which is why Islamic revival is associated with Ottoman, the Arabs with Islamic, Somalis were and have seen themselves as extensions and associated themselves with Islamic vis a vie Arab civilization.

[SultanOrder]

.

[LiquidHYDROGEN]

If that's the case then I'm more interested in being tied to ancient Egypt than arabs. I don't however, because only the insecure tie themselves to other civilizations. It's like West who try their hardest to emulate Rome/Greece via architecture, literature, philosphy even the Olympics or East Asians who tried to emulate China. See what happened when Japan went it's own route and developed a more refined and interesting culture than both China or Korea.

[SultanOrder]

PO, maybe you should separate being an "arab" and being a "muslim" before we can have an honest discussion. I feel you are confusing the two identities, a common problem for arab-wannabes.

That is a new problem that our forefathers never dealt with and they didn't need to separate the two. Of curse I'm not supporting the Arab ancestry. But what makes a Moroccan more Arab than me? It's only the language and mostly because they lost their language while I kept mine. We incorporated Arabness without loosing ourselves, and we owe our forefathers to that, so we need to appreciate what they did instead of crying like basterds searching for our real fathers be they Arabs, or Oromos, or ancient Egyptians.

[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.

[SultanOrder]

If that's the case then I'm more interested in being tied to ancient Egypt than arabs. I don't however, because only the insecure tie themselves to other civilizations. It's like West who try their hardest to emulate Rome/Greece via architecture, literature, philosphy even the Olympics or East Asians who tried to emulate China. See what happened when Japan went it's own route and developed a more refined and interesting culture than both China or Korea.

Don't be a lost child, you have a great civilization you belong to and that is the Islamic one vis a vie Arab which is still alive what will you benefit from a dead extinct one?

You are an idiot if you think the west is insecure. Or if Japan is more amazing than China. The only thing is China was lost for a hundred years and because of their weakness they adopted western civilization like communism , but as they awaken why do you think they keep pushing Chinese civilization as opposed to Western?

Ps Japanese is heavily indebted to Chinese civilization.

[Adali]

The official language of the government used to be Italian then the Kacaan made huge changes to switch it to Somali, how can you govern a people with using an alien language, my grandfather still has Italian government papers, it is embarrassing but we got through that period and experienced the blessed Kacaan.

I don't know what the official language is now, I'm assuming it remained Somali.

[SultanOrder]

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?

[SultanOrder]

Also Arab civilization is in a coma because Islamic civilization is in a coma. What you see now is not a civilization.