Opinion: Somalilanders are going to form an identity different than our Somali identity

[FBIsomalia]

Another example of ethnicities who don't consider themselves to be one for various reasons.
Tigray speakers consider themselves to be different than Tigray speakers in Ethiopia. They are the same exact people but Eritrean tigrayans would swear they are different and will claim tigrayan Ethiopians stole their history. One key similarity with Somaliland is that the Eritrean Tigray speakers have huge political grievances against Tigray Ethiopians which lead to this different identity. Tigray Ethiopians and Tigrinya speakers in Eritrea speak the same language, have similar culture and the same religion just like Landers and Somalis

You forget bunjab india and pakistan.

 

[FBIsomalia]

Think about it. The SNM movement started as a Somali national movement that's literally the name their main objective was topple Siad and then wait for the south to join up in a new Somalia, within a couple of years they all converted to separatism

It seems you dont know history, because of Aydiid they did this, learn kid.

 

[Yami]

Let them join their oromo kin, who wants them!.

 

[NidarNidar]

I was referring to meneliks expansion, the conflicts in the 60s and 70s was provoked by somalia. Ethiopia has no reason to expand into our territory in somalia if we give up irrendentist claims. Even less of a reason for problems if isaaqs are willing to hand over access to their port.

Ethiopia has always been an expansionist state, in the late 19th century, they started looting nomadic communities in Somali galbeed, pushing clans out the areas around Harar/Jigjiga and deeper into the interior, and all the way into Southern Somalia and Kenya.

 

[Warzio7]

Nah. There is. Of course somalis feel more attached to Qabil but they all know they are somalis and share a common identity with the rest of somalis . The only one Qabil larping as a separate people is Isaaq , even minorities like benadiris and J weyne will identify as Somali despite having actual foreign ancestry

Just say you hate Isaaq and move on. No need to write all this. All I'm reading is "I want to rule over Isaaq and I can't ....uggh". "I'm trying to trick them by playing the Somalinimo card but they're not falling for it...ugghh".

 

[abdi_]

Who is this Orromo manace that is raised so often on this site. I looked them up once and did not see the connection, they are just Ethopians. Why are we scared of them lol?

 

[Haragwaafi]

Hear me out. After the infamous song in Somaliland in which they say they feel closer to Amxaaro Ethiopians than to the rest of Somalis I'm seeing a dangerous tendency that will eventually lead Somalilanders (mostly Isaaq) to refuse to identify as somalis and form a new different etjnic identity. This happened in history before . A very key example would be Macedonians and Bulgarians. Macedonians are culturally and linguistically pretty much Bulgarians and they were considered as such by others , but during the 1800s some Macedonian intellectual developed a Separate Macedonian based on the ancient Macedonian kingdom. I see that Somalilanders will go on to do something similar to try to detach from the rest of somalis. The clues are there , the song about Amxaaro being closer , Edna Aden trying to suggest they are the ''good somalis'' and even talk shows and interviews in SL that I watched recently were people say openly they want nothing to do with Somalis and feel closer to Ethiopians. Of course not all Somalilanders believe this and I still think those who do are a minority but just for the moment. This idea of not being Somali will grow among SL people especially among the young. Mark my words 20-30 years from now landers will consider themselves as a different people, they will start claiming their accent is actually a different language than Somali and they will change the name of their fake country to something esle

We're Somali and we will forever be Somalis no one can take that from us

 

[Haragwaafi]

You mean IsaaqLand not SomaliLand, its Clan state who cleansed and force migrated other clans who did not submit, also they do not control the whole north.

Man I wish that was the case but no that's not how it is you just believing in BS KK

 

[Zak12]

Man I wish that was the case but no that's not how it is you just believing in BS KK

It isn't

 

[Abdisamad]

 

[Abdisamad]

We're Somali and we will forever be Somalis no one can take that from us

We the rest of the Somalis are not the ones forcing you, it's some of your own kin folks who are singing they're more Oromo than Somali, maybe you should sort this internally with them before going die hard Somali on us

 

[NordicSomali]

It’s dumb, they don’t gain anything from distancing themselves from other Somalis. Independence is a different matter though and doesn’t necessitate this divergence from the Somali identity. At best it’s perverse.

 

[AP123]

Hear me out. After the infamous song in Somaliland in which they say they feel closer to Amxaaro Ethiopians than to the rest of Somalis I'm seeing a dangerous tendency that will eventually lead Somalilanders (mostly Isaaq) to refuse to identify as somalis and form a new different etjnic identity. This happened in history before . A very key example would be Macedonians and Bulgarians. Macedonians are culturally and linguistically pretty much Bulgarians and they were considered as such by others , but during the 1800s some Macedonian intellectual developed a Separate Macedonian based on the ancient Macedonian kingdom. I see that Somalilanders will go on to do something similar to try to detach from the rest of somalis. The clues are there , the song about Amxaaro being closer , Edna Aden trying to suggest they are the ''good somalis'' and even talk shows and interviews in SL that I watched recently were people say openly they want nothing to do with Somalis and feel closer to Ethiopians. Of course not all Somalilanders believe this and I still think those who do are a minority but just for the moment. This idea of not being Somali will grow among SL people especially among the young. Mark my words 20-30 years from now landers will consider themselves as a different people, they will start claiming their accent is actually a different language than Somali and they will change the name of their fake country to something esle

We can get along fine as two different countries. That's what the south needs to understand. Djibouti is not part of somalia and they have good relations with the south. We can be the same. We've been pissed about the union since the 60s. We tried to make up for it in the 90s after the gov fell but couldn't come to terms with the south. So just let us go ffs

 

[Ripemoos]

It’s too late.

 

[AbdiFreedom]

It doesn't matter what the insignificant and irrelevant Somaliland does. Somaliland is a failed state, just like it's federal, senior partner Somalia. Somaliland forming its own identity is no different than other failed states forming their own: their clan government identity. Somaliland is a Habar Awal, featuring Habar Jeclo clan project and it does not deserve a seat in the United Nations; it deserves western domination and vassal state status, like the rest of their Somali brothers and sisters who don't know anything about running a country or a society and need the western man to show them (and who cares if they don't want it).

 

[Haragwaafi]

We the rest of the Somalis are not the ones forcing you, it's some of your own kin folks who are singing they're more Oromo than Somali, maybe you should sort this internally with them before going die hard Somali on us

Is your views shaped by what you see on social media ??

 

[Som]

Is your views shaped by what you see on social media ??

There are actuall interviews on the ground with multiple people in SL claiming they feel closer to Xabashis and Oromos. It's just undeniable at this point

 

[Haragwaafi]

There are actuall interviews on the ground with multiple people in SL claiming they feel closer to Xabashis and Oromos. It's just undeniable at this point

So individual nacas on streets being interviewed to state their opinions so what?? how does that define the average citizen of SL ??

 

[Som]

So individual nacas on streets being interviewed to state their opinions so what?? how does that define the average citizen of SL ??

I never said it's the average Lander but this type of thinking is certainly a significant minority

 

[seldiboy]

Another example of ethnicities who don't consider themselves to be one for various reasons.
Tigray speakers consider themselves to be different than Tigray speakers in Ethiopia. They are the same exact people but Eritrean tigrayans would swear they are different and will claim tigrayan Ethiopians stole their history. One key similarity with Somaliland is that the Eritrean Tigray speakers have huge political grievances against Tigray Ethiopians which lead to this different identity. Tigray Ethiopians and Tigrinya speakers in Eritrea speak the same language, have similar culture and the same religion just like Landers and Somalis

I think it’s a lot more nuanced and complicated than that. I can understand why people would come to that conclusion since it’s the most convenient but there’s a bit more to it. It doesn’t help that what should have been an academic question has become fiercely politicized.

I’d recommend reading the book/journal “Borders & Borderlands as Resources in the Horn of Africa” which I’ll leave a link to the pdf here

Chapter 4 specifically deals with the ethnohistorical case of Tigrinya speakers meanwhile Chapter 6 (and 7 to a lesser extent) deals with the case of those in Somaliland