Did ajuran empire/state exist?
- Thread starter Diini23
- Start date
Doubtful it actually existed
Step a side
VIP
The state wasn’t called Ajuuraan. It was called the Ajan coast by the Portuguese (primary sources) with Mogadishu, Merca and Baraawe as their main cities. They mention Hawiye as its rulers. Also the RX and Hawiye all agree that Ajuuraan were the boss in the south back in the days.
Follow this thread. It saves me time from posting all the maps and stuff
Follow this thread. It saves me time from posting all the maps and stuff
Step a side
VIP
Gareen are Hawiye who ruled over other Hawiye.
From medieval accounts all the way to the early 1700s , there was state with its commercial capital in Mogadishu that covered most of the southern coast up to Mareeg and stretched into the far interior until it reach the state of Hadiyah (called Adea) and at times it was tributary to it and even Shoa ended paying tribute to it as European account relate about it. It was very powerful.
It also collaborated by archeology with many abandoned ruins, even a whole city in Mareeg with villages surounding it and one of the abandoned quarters of Mogadishu called Hamar Jabab covered 5km2 , which essentially made it hold around a population of 500.000 people. Thats just 1 quarter, not even El Garweyne was excavated yet crazyy right
So yeah the empire/sultanate existed.but it wasn't called Ajuuran. The name Ajuuran was mostly just a local umbrella name for state administrators who usually were called amirs, naibs, wakils, imam's that taxed and coordinated production from the rural's and urban people, we have epigraphical and textual accounts of these titles being used. It was the same situation in northern and western Somalia with Awdal if we look at the details in Futuh
The tradition Somali relate about it is not even that specific to the southern coast and what they are actually remembering is how centralized Somalia was throughout during the medieval period and it was governed by state actors and divided into provinces.
The name itself means taxation
It's still kinda of a mystery what happened to it, because we have an account by a British that was held captive in Mogadishu in the year 1700 and he wrote a whole diary filled drawings of the city and its monuments and it describing how wealthy and glamorous they were.
and this was after the leadership was replaced and the rural rebellions they remember took control of the city in the late 1600s supposedly by Hiraab. It creates a gap in the memory. Because it was by early 1800s reduced and impoverished
I hypothesized to that it might have succumb to a natural catastrophe in a thread:
We have various names of the Sultans from the same dynastic line of the Somali sultan who met Ibn Batuta and other arabic textual mentions of other Sultans names and the surviving coins with their names engraved in them.
It also collaborated by archeology with many abandoned ruins, even a whole city in Mareeg with villages surounding it and one of the abandoned quarters of Mogadishu called Hamar Jabab covered 5km2 , which essentially made it hold around a population of 500.000 people. Thats just 1 quarter, not even El Garweyne was excavated yet crazyy right
So yeah the empire/sultanate existed.but it wasn't called Ajuuran. The name Ajuuran was mostly just a local umbrella name for state administrators who usually were called amirs, naibs, wakils, imam's that taxed and coordinated production from the rural's and urban people, we have epigraphical and textual accounts of these titles being used. It was the same situation in northern and western Somalia with Awdal if we look at the details in Futuh
The tradition Somali relate about it is not even that specific to the southern coast and what they are actually remembering is how centralized Somalia was throughout during the medieval period and it was governed by state actors and divided into provinces.
The name itself means taxation
It's still kinda of a mystery what happened to it, because we have an account by a British that was held captive in Mogadishu in the year 1700 and he wrote a whole diary filled drawings of the city and its monuments and it describing how wealthy and glamorous they were.
1700 Early Modern Tombs in Mogadishu
Tomb of the Kings Tomb of the Queens Tomb of the Princes Tomb of Duke & Duchesses Tomb of Imams Tomb of the Mujahideen Army Drawing of Mogadishu
www.somalispot.com
and this was after the leadership was replaced and the rural rebellions they remember took control of the city in the late 1600s supposedly by Hiraab. It creates a gap in the memory. Because it was by early 1800s reduced and impoverished
I hypothesized to that it might have succumb to a natural catastrophe in a thread:
Locust plague and Famine the cause of medieval collapse of the sultanates?
The two most prominent explanations given for the collapse is Oromo expansion and Portuguese maritime disturbance, both don't seem like very convincing explanations. I am extremely doubtful of the Oromo invasion argument, firstly the portuguese noted that Awdalites weren't weakened by the war...
www.somalispot.com
We have various names of the Sultans from the same dynastic line of the Somali sultan who met Ibn Batuta and other arabic textual mentions of other Sultans names and the surviving coins with their names engraved in them.
Sultan Ali ibn Yusuf of Mogadishu mentioned by Ibn Hajar al Asqalani
In Ibn Hajar Al Asqalani mentions the Sultan of Mogadishu Ali ibn Yusuf ibn Umar ibn Anwar died in 1432 funnily enough Ibn Battuta mentions Abu Bakr ibn Umar as the ruler of Mogadishu in 1331. Can we assume that Ali ibn Yusuf ibn Umar who died in 1432 is the Nephew of Abu Bakr ibn Umar who was...
www.somalispot.com
Last edited:
They were a cousin clan but not hawiye themselves, they were from another branch of Samaale.
Step a side
VIP
Jambeele are Hawiye. They are descendants of Baalcad Gaas Siroole Jambeele. The Arab larp is inconsistent in age gap with a Hashemite/Samaale non Irir and a sub sub Hawiye lineage mix. The exlusivity of the empire of Hawiye at its core, naming the medieval kingdom after the tribe (Hawiye Ajan) and holding the Hawiye boqortooyo title even out of respect till the last century under Olol Dinle is paramount in showing how important Ajuran was and still is to Hawiye. The Habargidir use to regularly reclaim Ajuran ex territory in the Gaalkacyo shirar to let the Italians know they were dealing with an old relic kkkk.
Ajan was European mispronounciation of Ajam, which Arabs applied to neighboring non-arab speaking lands and countries. So it was not what the state name was either.
I don't think portuguese ever mentioned hawiye as rulers , we have Ibn Said and Al-Idrisi mentioning them and saying that they lived on the coast and the hinterland river valley but thats about it.
Saying Hawiye or Dir or whatever at that time is nonsense anyway, the Moieties of Somalis were probably different,Ajan was European mispronounciation of Ajam, which Arabs applied to neighboring non-arab speaking lands and countries. So it was not what the state name was either.
I don't think portuguese ever mentioned hawiye as rulers , we have Ibn Said and Al-Idrisi mentioning them and saying that they live on the coast and the hinterland river valley.
It's not nonsense, it is textual documentation that show continuity of Somali population in the same area.
As for the clan origin of the leadership, we don't have medieval record of their genealogy. All we know is that they were Somali and that they spoke Somali based on medieval descriptions and they bore certain titles.
I recall they were overthrown due to overtaxation and tyranny.
Step a side
VIP
The people on the coast of Ajan or Ajam etc were Hawiye by several medieval ans early modern era texts.Ajan was European mispronounciation of Ajam, which Arabs applied to neighboring non-arab speaking lands and countries. So it was not what the state name was either.
I don't think portuguese ever mentioned hawiye as rulers , we have Ibn Said and Al-Idrisi mentioning them and saying that they lived on the coast and the hinterland river valley but thats about it.
Ajan was referred to the southern kingdoms with Mogadishu being its main town while Adal was the northern.
^Ajan and Aiaua ( Hawiye)
^ Same thing again
^Ajan & Haouya ( Hawiye in French)
^Ajan with Mogadishu as one of its main towns
^ Same thing again. Ajan’s principal towns are Mogadishu and Brava
Yeah but the overthrow of leadership happened in 1573-1574, 981 Hijri , as we have a surviving state document from Mogadishu recording it with multiple individuals baring witness to it.
But it continued to function as a state and prosper well into the early 1700s , even continued issuing coinage.
Last edited:
Step a side
VIP
Wish we had a Ajuuraan on this forum. They live with us in Bale and Mogadishu. Always knew them as Hawiye. Olol Diinle carried the Hawiye title while the patriarch Gareen (royal family) himself is buried in Ximan Gareen. This was outlined by Hawiye elders during the infamous Tomaselli conference. Read below the red lines.
Trending
-
Gaalo Infiltrationists using camel milk to spread Christian Evangelism into the Somali community
- Started by Idilinaa
- Replies: 83
-
Johnny Somali and his Buddies Get Pulverized by Korean Gangsters- Started by Dooyo
- Replies: 59
