CULTURE Social hierarchy within Pre-modern Somalia

[mohammdov]

All these groups never lived in one place for there to be lowest and highest. In an urban society a fisherman, seafarer ,weaver, blacksmith, goldsmith, silversmiths, porter , merchant etc were all equal obviously they'd vary in terms of wealth like a merchant would be from a much wealthier background than a porter

They lived in the north and east, but the south was dominated by those I mentioned and it very mixed

 

[Banadiri Warrior]

They lived in the north and east, but the south was dominated by those I mentioned and it very mixed

Yh but not in one specific area, only place you'd see all those mentioned would be in banadiri urban coastal towns

 

[Soul Kaizer]

1.Camel herders Firstly
2.Goat herders
3.Cows herders
4.Farmers
5.fishermen
6.The blacksmith and the hunter are the lowest
Camel herders first, because they were the most involved in wars and their lives were more difficult, and in many areas they imposed taxes on farmers and residents of coastal cities.

Maybe when talking about the hierarchy of livestock herders but when talking about general somali society they are 3-4 stages below the highest

 

[Garaad Awal]

The people that use malaaq originally resided in Eastern Ethiopia same for garaad

Many clans in SL/Northern Somalia use Garaad.Habar Awal only three generations ago adopted the title Suldaan to be similar to the other Isaaq clans. Isn't Malaakh only used by Af-Maay speaking clans of Southern Somalia?

 

[Garaad Awal]

Ugaas Ethio-Semitic ???

Yes, it is of South Ethio-Semitic origin probably from the Ancient Harla.

 

[Qeelbax]

Imam
Sultan / Emir / Boqor
Garaad / Ugaas
Wasiir / Na’ib
Sharif / Sheikh / Qadi / Wadaad
Waranleh / Malassay / Malaakh
Nomad / Merchant / Farmer / Urbanite / Sailor
Blacksmith / Weaver / Mason / Artisan
Slave / Servant
​

And nobody has an education, maybe just the imam but his is probably limited too

Did Somalis ever go to school before the 1990s?

There’s no reason why Nomads should be above the artisan class.

 

[Three Moons]

And nobody has an education, maybe just the imam but his is probably limited too

Did Somalis ever go to school before the 1990s?

There’s no reason why Nomads should be above the artisan class.

Well before the 1990s, the country got an international award for having the highest increase in Literacy, from 5% to a % in the high 70s so yes Somalis did go to school before the 1990s.

The hierarchy in the cities also impacted the farming lands and the pastures, as people had relatives living in those cities, traded with those cities, were members of religious Orders and Brotherhoods originating from those cities, and vice-versa. Though artisans in other parts of the world were usually considered more prestigious, in Somalia, where livestock equalled wealth and status, this was not case.

Another factor was their clan, most artisans did not belong to the major clan families, while most of the nomads did.