The New Face of Somali Studies

Yasmeen Maxamuud
August 21, 2007

“Doonaayayow dalkayaga ninkii doonaayayoow, inuu duudsiyo rabow anagu diidnaye ogow”
As sung by Dr. Ahmed I. Samatar at the SSI Conference

Our descent onto the sprawling luminous Ohio State University (OSU) campus was met with confusion and fatigue after traveling over seven hours from the west coast. Being spoiled by the California weather one forgets the Midwest humidity could limit simple walking inviting the thought of plunking under cold running water even while fully clothed. Barton Hall, the dorm where we had been housed was bare as any college dormitory should be. The wealth of information, cultural events and traditional chit chat greatly made up for the punk beds, bare floors and scarce bathrooms. Somali nomads or “Maryooley” as my friend Dr. Kapchits calls them, roamed the campus lost, some looking to nourish their minds from the wide impressive concurrent sessions ranging from Aids Epidemic in the Diaspora to Somali Morphology. While the usual arm chair politicians were attracted to the conference for their predictable political fist fight, others such as young students from across the US who paid their own way were attracted to the conference to gain knowledge, share their research and finally join a conference where they could gain something positive about being a Somali.

While some session’s scale of squabble cautioned one to duck from flying chairs, other sessions were simply educational and encouraging. Some interesting sessions never saw the light of day, being canceled to the dismay of well prepared presenters, while some session’s Chair as well as presenters were a no show. A conference of this magnitude certainly would present a challenge to any organizing committee, especially when the participants are Somalis, however the organizing committee could have done a better job if they would have had limited the sessions and updated the participants on changes such as no shows, while an onsite staff for each session to facilitate the proceedings would have lessened the confusion.  I regret to have missed the session on Dhaqanka, Sugganta, iyo Af Soomaaliga where some of the most respected Traditional and Cultural Scholars presented.  Still the future of the Somali Studies offers hope given the impressive manner in which Somalis in the Diaspora as well as those inside the country are involved in education, commerce, entrepreneurship and activism. It is simply encouraging to know the past sixteen years has produced inspiring educated Somalis who have succeeded under harsh circumstances.

The session on Somali Ethnic Minorities: Their History, Culture, and their current situation in Somalia was poignant. The chair, Sahra Mohamed Ali Samatar was extremely vocal and imposingly unapologetic and reproachful of the Somalis, critically pointing to the ill treatment of ethnic minorities both in Somalia and the Diaspora. The overarching theme of the session was to change the mindset of the Somali population for their ill treatment of these tribes. Presenter Rasheed Farah and Ahmed Keynan shed an intense light on the motives Somali ethnic minorities are marginalized.  Farah challenged the old age reason the Midgan, madhibaan, Yibir, Muse Dheriyo and the Tumal face racism.  He disputed the claim that Somalis hail from Nobility some even asserting to be decedents of the Prophet (PBUH).  For these claimants Farah suggested the availability of DNA testing which of course could clarify this notion further. 

Fadumo Dubet reviled Somali mothers for their immense contribution to the debasing process. She said “Somali mothers teach their children the malice of marginalizing people who share the same ethnicity, religion and culture alongside religious and cultural teachings”. But the most moving presenter who was muted by his own tears should shame not only those present in the room but every Somali around the globe. Hagi Muusa, a man of my father’s age could not continue with the poem he has written to share with the audience. His were tears of anguish and ordeal. The dynamic group that sat across from us was the .5 of the 4.5 caste system institutionalizing tribalism as if the Somalis need that now.  I am not certain if any one notices the human rights violation committed by endorsing this 4.5 caste system, but surely the youth who are labeled .5 from the onset of their lives are not accepting these treatments according to Rasheed Farrah.  “The youth are very angry and want this system changed” He said.

Somali Morphology was presented by Abas Ali Farah. Farah shared his ten year research on Somali Morphology. He eloquently pointed to the breakdown of the Somali language for the past sixteen years. In his research Farah found that Somali may be one of the oldest languages in the world and could be the first language ever spoken by humans. He surprised the audience by stating the similarities between Somali and Latin. He also pointed out that Somali is the only language that has a one letter word, the letter A is a word used in Djibouti that carriers a meaning Farah said.

One of the most motivating sessions I have attended was The Role of Somali Women in peace Building chaired by Hamdi Mohamed. The all women panel featured Shukria Dini, Khadija Ossoble and Zainab Hassan. The session attracted a room full of women, though the crowd was verve with four daring men and a little boy. This session affirmed the new face of Somali women and their attempts under most trying circumstances to bring peace and stability in their respective regions in Somalia. The session was engaging sparking a varied realm of discussions regarding Somali women everywhere. Everything from violence on women to the dilemma of Somali women across the globe finding themselves alone to raise children when their husbands flee without notice. One woman in the audience asked if she should be enraged for being left to raise four kids on her own while the father is absent enjoying the freedom of parent absenteeism. This simple question triggered emotions and frustrations by the age old quandary of deficient Somali fathers and husbands. This session brought to live the many challenges confronted by Somali women in the Diaspora and at home.

I was the lucky recipient of a whole hour since none of my co-presenters showed up.  Hassan Mahadallah, the chair allotted an entire hour to the topic, The Role of Somali-American Youth in Culture.  The session discussed some of the challenges facing Somali parents to introduce the concept of culture and tradition to their children. Some of the challenges noted were the lack of language usage in the home, the “Maqane jooge” phenomenon where fathers who are present in the home do not partake in the day to day raising of children and single mothers who are finding it tough to raise children in America given their position in society.  Dr. Abdulahi Osman, University of Georgia added  by stating the role “Ghettoization” of refugee families plays in children losing their identify, culture and language.

Question and answer time across the board were plagued with know it all Somalis, usually men who simply elaborated on the topic at hand to show off their knowledge or simply to be heard, disrespecting the chair, the presenter, disrupting the session and wasting time.

I left the conference fully fed with diverse issues concerning Somalis. Even though I am still left with disdain for our elders, so called leaders, armchair politicians (sadly all future leader romantics), my scorn was in the interim halted by the young men and women who have apparently been working hard for the past years educating their mind to change the persistent negativity that plagues anything and everything Somali. To witness young PhD students such as Shukria Dini and Ladan Afi my dear childhood friend who have both lived in Somalia while doing research creates optimism for Somali studies which is beginning to have a fresh, placid more patriotic academic face.

Yasmeen Maxmuud
WardheerNews
E-Mail:Yasmeen_Maxmuud@Yahoo.com
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