The Gaal of Somalia [hint: they weren't Oromo]

[Abba Sadacha]

The 'Gaal' of Somalia

In Somali oral tradition there was once a people who inhabited Northern Somalia before being expelled by the clans which inhabit that area t...

gazirapress.blogspot.com

In Somali oral tradition there was once a people who inhabited Northern Somalia before being expelled by the clans which inhabit that area today. These people are simply referred to as 'Gaal' or 'non-muslim' in the Somali language. Many somalis claim that these people were Oromo since Oromos are often considered to be the indegenous stock of people in the Horn of Africa, while the tribes of northern Somalia mostly claim some form of Arab ancestry. Therefore, any tradition or artifact related to Somalia's pre-Islamic history is regarded as foreign. And the nearest foreigners to attribute it to are the Oromos.

For example the tradition of Gaalka'yo, or the town which traces it's name back to the expulsion of the 'gaal' people indicates that there was probably a conflict between Muslims and non-Muslims in the region. There is another nearby town called A'budWaaq. A'bud means worship in Arabic, while Waaq can be translated to the indegenous word for 'God'. What this most likely means is that the early Muslims in Somalia referred to God as 'Waaq'. Infact the word Waaq is quite prominent in the Somali tradition (there are towns and clans which bear the name). So it appears that the early Somali people were made up of indegenous people.

There is evidence that the regions south of the Juba river were inhabited by the Orma clan, and that they were expelled from that region in the 19th century when a war broke out after a smallpox epidemic devasted their population, according to British colonial documents. Other than that there's no evidence to suggest that the traditional 'Gaal' is a reference to Oromos. The first time it was used to refer to Oromos was by the Abyssinian monk Aba Bahrey in his 'Invasion of the Galla'. The term was then adopted by Western scholars.

So what is the source of this term? As far as we know, the original 'Gaal' was the non-Muslim population of Somalia which fought against the Muslim population of Somalia. The term is a product of the religious civil war which occurred in Somalia between the ancestors of the current day Somali people.

 

[Manafesto]

Just because there are ancient evidence that suggests Oromo being in Somalia milinials ago doesn't give them the rights to claim or use it as an excuse to move there, otherwise it would be no different than illegitmate Isreals claim to Palestine,it is stupid.

You left those regions for a great pastures or you were evicted from it and instead of fighting for it you gave up on it.

Usually when tribes and races are pushed out of their land it usually means the vicitms were minorities in that land n the first place and the majority group always wins, so why claim something after centuries later specially when you were most likely a minority there?

 

[WarraHararghe]

This guy on twitter seems to talk about this topic quite a bit, not sure if anything he says is creditable but it’s quite interesting.

This also aligns with Oromo oral history of a more northern origin in Mada Walabu(modern day Bale).

I asked some of my Somali friends regarding this and one said they were oromos, and the other one said they were Somalis who haven’t become Muslim yet lol.

 

[Leorio2000]

The gaal in Gaalkacyo and Gaaljecel means camel, not infidel. Stop the revisionism of our history. Oromo is not a real ethnic group. It is a confederacy of different ethnicities that were assimilated by the expending Boronas in the 16th century. Before the 16th century there were no refences of Oromos. Oromos are not indeginous either to Hararghe and most of Bale. So the only place Oromo can claim as theirs is the Borona region.

Oromos in my opinion who subscribe to Oromo Nationalism are as dangerous as Amharas and Tigrayans.

 

[Abba Sadacha]

The gaal in Gaalkacyo and Gaaljecel means camel, not infidel. Stop the revisionism of our history. Oromo is not a real ethnic group. It is a confederacy of different ethnicities that were assimilated by the expending Boronas in the 16th century. Before the 16th century there were no refences of Oromos. Oromos are not indeginous either to Hararghe and most of Bale. So the only place Oromo can claim as theirs is the Borona region.

Oromos in my opinion who subscribe to Oromo Nationalism are as dangerous as Amharas and Tigrayans.

And how do you know this? The explanation here makes more sense, seeing as how, there's no an entire ethnic group spread over such a vast land who embrace a religion all at once... some would obviously not embrace it as fast, or it'd be a delayed process...
just because oromo assimilated others, doesn't mean that we're not a ''real ethnic group.''
somalis assimilated a lot of people too, hence the diversity in looks; you have those who look like bantus with wide noses and lips, and you have those with the infamous cushitic looks, i.e. thin noses, thin lips, broad foreheads, etc.
and the borana is just one moiety or family of the oromo, the barentu is another large one.

 

[Al-Ma'mun]

Gaal is the old Somali way of saying camel.Nice try Qooti

Gaaljecel tribe means lovers of camels, Abgaal (subtribe of Hawiye) means father of camels.There is zero evidence of a religious civil war between Somalis

 

[Mount23]

This guy on twitter seems to talk about this topic quite a bit, not sure if anything he says is creditable but it’s quite interesting.

This also aligns with Oromo oral history of a more northern origin in Mada Walabu(modern day Bale).

I asked some of my Somali friends regarding this and one said they were oromos, and the other one said they were Somalis who haven’t become Muslim yet lol.View attachment 222243

What Gallas came from Asia??

 

[Abba Sadacha]

Gaal is the old Somali way of saying camel.Nice try Qooti

Gaaljecel tribe means lovers of camels, Abgaal (subtribe of Hawiye) means father of camels.There is zero evidence of a religious civil war between Somalis

doesn't mean it is what this is referring to, though. you're not proving anything, nor are you using any sound logic/reason here, as the author here did.

gaala is our word for camels too, btw.

it'd make sense that one occurred, simply because I said, there's no way any religion just got embraced by all quickly.... that makes perfect sense, and is probable... as opposed to you guys just saying it means camels.

 

[Rocktheboat]

Can you leave us alone damn

 

[Al-Ma'mun]

doesn't mean it is what this is referring to, though. you're not proving anything, nor are you using any sound logic/reason here, as the author here did.

gaala is our word for camels too, btw.

it'd make sense that one occurred, simply because I said, there's no way any religion just got embraced by all quickly.... that makes perfect sense, and is probable... as opposed to you guys just saying it means camels.

You don't know anything about Somali history, stick to the affairs of the Oromo who have been ruled by the Habesha for a thousand years

 

[Abba Sadacha]

You don't know anything about Somali history, stick to the affairs of the Oromo who have been ruled by the Habesha for a thousand years

Basically, all you have is an insult and pure conjecture based on nothing as a response. In other words, you concede defeat, but cannot bring yourself to admit that directly. Ah, I see.

 

[Man with a garuun]

The 'Gaal' of Somalia

In Somali oral tradition there was once a people who inhabited Northern Somalia before being expelled by the clans which inhabit that area t...

gazirapress.blogspot.com

In Somali oral tradition there was once a people who inhabited Northern Somalia before being expelled by the clans which inhabit that area today. These people are simply referred to as 'Gaal' or 'non-muslim' in the Somali language. Many somalis claim that these people were Oromo since Oromos are often considered to be the indegenous stock of people in the Horn of Africa, while the tribes of northern Somalia mostly claim some form of Arab ancestry. Therefore, any tradition or artifact related to Somalia's pre-Islamic history is regarded as foreign. And the nearest foreigners to attribute it to are the Oromos.

For example the tradition of Gaalka'yo, or the town which traces it's name back to the expulsion of the 'gaal' people indicates that there was probably a conflict between Muslims and non-Muslims in the region. There is another nearby town called A'budWaaq. A'bud means worship in Arabic, while Waaq can be translated to the indegenous word for 'God'. What this most likely means is that the early Muslims in Somalia referred to God as 'Waaq'. Infact the word Waaq is quite prominent in the Somali tradition (there are towns and clans which bear the name). So it appears that the early Somali people were made up of indegenous people.

There is evidence that the regions south of the Juba river were inhabited by the Orma clan, and that they were expelled from that region in the 19th century when a war broke out after a smallpox epidemic devasted their population, according to British colonial documents. Other than that there's no evidence to suggest that the traditional 'Gaal' is a reference to Oromos. The first time it was used to refer to Oromos was by the Abyssinian monk Aba Bahrey in his 'Invasion of the Galla'. The term was then adopted by Western scholars.

So what is the source of this term? As far as we know, the original 'Gaal' was the non-Muslim population of Somalia which fought against the Muslim population of Somalia. The term is a product of the religious civil war which occurred in Somalia between the ancestors of the current day Somali people.

Gaal is derived from Galla. Somalis historically had conflicts with 3 nearby groups of people: 1) Galla; 2) Amhara; 3) Xabashi (remnants of Axum empire).

In the Somali language, the Gaal is referred to as non-Muslims. Amxaar is refererd to as someone who is cruel. And Xabashi as people who are expansionists and wanted to conquer our lands and people.

We've had millenial-old conflicts with the Gallas and the Abyssinians. I learned from my elders there once was a major war between Somalis and Gallas. The Somalis were led by Garaad of Gerri Koombe and Ugaas of Dir. We drove them from the lands we settle today.

In the central and deep south, I encourage every Somali to study the battles between Ajuraan Somali sultanate on one hand and the Galla and Abysinians (Amhara and Habash) on the other side. When Somalis under that sultanate were fighting against Portuguese colonialists, both Abysinians and Gallas backstabbed us. This conflict is known as Gaal-Madow wars.

In the struggle led by Adal Somali Muslim Sultanate against the Abyssinians, Gallas backstabbed us, ransacked the city of Harar, and killed many Somalis there including Amiir Nuur, our Amir after Ahmed Gurey (May Allah (swt) be pleased them all).

Folks, stop conjuring some boolshit history and try to learn our true history. Gallas and Abysinians have been our historic enemies.

 

[Al-Ma'mun]

Basically, all you have is an insult and pure conjecture based on nothing as a response. In other words, you concede defeat, but cannot bring yourself to admit that directly. Ah, I see.

Trust me, I know far more about Somali history than you and 99% on this forum.Check my previous posts in this culture & history sub-forum. Your theory is so ludicrous and lacks any real archeological,linguistic evidence and does not deserve any serious response.

Somaliland has nothing to do with the Qotis.In SL we we were worshippers of the previous Somali religion plus Orthodox Aksumite Christianity (check Sada Mire's papers and and her recent book for specifics).Islam arrived early but the nomads were thoroughly Islamized by the 13th century which is why by the 16th century the nomadic Somali clans were able to participate in the Imam's wars against Abysinnia.

Like I said stick to qoti history and reading books by your uncle Mohammad Hasan

 

[Abba Sadacha]

Trust me, I know far more about Somali history than you and 99% on this forum.Check my previous posts in this culture & history sub-forum. Your theory is so ludicrous and lacks any real archeological,linguistic evidence and does not deserve any serious response.

Somaliland has nothing to do with the Qotis.In SL we we were worshippers of the previous Somali religion plus Orthodox Aksumite Christianity (check Sada Mire's papers and and her recent book for specifics).Islam arrived early but the nomads were thoroughly Islamized by the 13th century which is why by the 16th century the nomadic Somali clans were able to participate in the Imam's wars against Abysinnia.

Like I said stick to qoti history and reading books by your uncle Mohammad Hasan

''trust me, I know more than you and everyone'' just shows your arrogance, inability to reflect and admit that maybe, perhaps MAYBE, you could be wrong. It's also, not a credible argument that one would use in a discourse on history/politics/etc. It just proves me right, actually, because you have yet to use reason to explain why this theory is wrong, all you're saying is ''trust me, me right, you, wrong.'' it could be wrong, it could be right: but the point is you have yet to use sound reasoning, logic, proof, etc, to refute it.
The gaal here is referring to a group of people, not camels, why would camels be referred to as a group that was kicked out? Wut? It's not saying they were oromo, it's saying they were a non muslim group.

what was the previous somali religion? what was its deity, beliefs, etc? was it waaq? if not, what did waaq mean to the previous non muslim somalis then?

I'll stick to any history I want-and there's NOTHING that you can, or will do about it. Simple as that.

 

[Al-Ma'mun]

''trust me, I know more than you and everyone'' just shows your arrogance, inability to reflect and admit that maybe, perhaps MAYBE, you could be wrong. It's also, not a credible argument that one would use in a discourse on history/politics/etc. It just proves me right, actually, because you have yet to use reason to explain why this theory is wrong, all you're saying is ''trust me, me right, you, wrong.'' it could be wrong, it could be right: but the point is you have yet to use sound reasoning, logic, proof, etc, to refute it.
The gaal here is referring to a group of people, not camels, why would camels be referred to as a group that was kicked out? Wut? It's not saying they were oromo, it's saying they were a non muslim group.

what was the previous somali religion? what was its deity, beliefs, etc? was it waaq? if not, what did waaq mean to the previous non muslim somalis then?

I'll stick to any history I want-and there's NOTHING that you can, or will do about it. Simple as that.

Your whole post and references are "Trust me bro" sources.It's your input and some random blog post from 2013.Qotis really are low iq, no wonder why you have no history and will never rule anything

I actually quoted an actual archeologist from Somaliland. Lazy posts such as yours deserve lazy responses.

I know academic pursuits are not really the forte of the cawaan qotis but here's some sources on the Islamization of Somaliland:

Here are sources from actual archaeologists on the ground in Somaliland you qoti:

Mapping the Archaeology of Somaliland: Religion, Art, Script, Time, Urbanism, Trade and Empire - African Archaeological Review

This paper presents the results of some of the surveys conducted to map archaeological sites of Somaliland and includes almost 100 new and previously unpublished sites. The survey work was conducted by several of Somaliland’s Department of Archaeology staff, including Mohamed Ali Abdi, a...

link.springer.com

Divine Fertility

This book uniquely explores the impact of indigenous ideology and thought on everyday life in Northeast Africa. Furthermore, in highlighting the diversity in pre-Christian, pre-Islamic regional beliefs and practices that extend beyond the simplistic political arguments of the current dominant...

www.google.ca

https://statehorn.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Jorge20de20Torres-Built20on20diversity.pdf

There's zero evidence of some religious civil war and gaal just means camel.Fockin qoti

 

[Al-Ma'mun]

Proof from a paper on Semitic loanwords in Northern Somali.....but this qoti and his 2013 random blog post will tell us otherwise

 

[Abba Sadacha]

Your whole post and references are "Trust me bro" sources.It's your input and some random blog post from 2013.Qotis really are low iq, no wonder why you have no history and will never rule anything

I actually quoted an actual archeologist from Somaliland. Lazy posts such as yours deserve lazy responses.

I know academic pursuits are not really the forte of the cawaan qotis but here's some sources on the Islamization of Somaliland:

Here are sources from actual archaeologists on the ground in Somaliland you qoti:

Mapping the Archaeology of Somaliland: Religion, Art, Script, Time, Urbanism, Trade and Empire - African Archaeological Review

This paper presents the results of some of the surveys conducted to map archaeological sites of Somaliland and includes almost 100 new and previously unpublished sites. The survey work was conducted by several of Somaliland’s Department of Archaeology staff, including Mohamed Ali Abdi, a...

link.springer.com

Divine Fertility

This book uniquely explores the impact of indigenous ideology and thought on everyday life in Northeast Africa. Furthermore, in highlighting the diversity in pre-Christian, pre-Islamic regional beliefs and practices that extend beyond the simplistic political arguments of the current dominant...

www.google.ca

https://statehorn.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Jorge20de20Torres-Built20on20diversity.pdf

There's zero evidence of some religious civil war and gaal just means camel.Fockin qoti

You are the one who said ''trust me,'' as opposed to posting proof. Question: does any of those links prove who the ''gaal'' were/are? Gaal meaning camels, doesn't prove that the gaal who were expelled, were not non muslims though.... it's not proving the theory here wrong. so gaala were expelled or Gaalkacyo camels that were expelled? or? what is the origin of the term and what's the proof? you see, unlike you, the theory here is being proposed based on sound logic, that still, can be wrong.

and keep cussing, it just means you are getting emotional and whining, as opposed to being to have a civilized discussion.

 

[Abba Sadacha]

Gaal is derived from Galla. Somalis historically had conflicts with 3 nearby groups of people: 1) Galla; 2) Amhara; 3) Xabashi (remnants of Axum empire).

In the Somali language, the Gaal is referred to as non-Muslims. Amxaar is refererd to as someone who is cruel. And Xabashi as people who are expansionists and wanted to conquer our lands and people.

We've had millenial-old conflicts with the Gallas and the Abyssinians. I learned from my elders there once was a major war between Somalis and Gallas. The Somalis were led by Garaad of Gerri Koombe and Ugaas of Dir. We drove them from the lands we settle today.

In the central and deep south, I encourage every Somali to study the battles between Ajuraan Somali sultanate on one hand and the Galla and Abysinians (Amhara and Habash) on the other side. When Somalis under that sultanate were fighting against Portuguese colonialists, both Abysinians and Gallas backstabbed us. This conflict is known as Gaal-Madow wars.

In the struggle led by Adal Somali Muslim Sultanate against the Abyssinians, Gallas backstabbed us, ransacked the city of Harar, and killed many Somalis there including Amiir Nuur, our Amir after Ahmed Gurey (May Allah (swt) be pleased them all).

Folks, stop conjuring some boolshit history and try to learn our true history. Gallas and Abysinians have been our historic enemies.

and what is the proof for that? so the word for camels is derived from the word galla or infidels? or?
somalis had conflicts with their neighbors and with themselves, same for us oromos, it's just how things go, so that's obvious.

of course we fought for lands, we took some from u guys, u took some from us, that's life- you win some, you lose some. and it's not like somalis didn't take advantage of the smallpox epidemic that almost wiped out an entire clan of oromos - the orma, or warday, and then darood saw that and expelled them, assimilated some, and took their land. the same way siad barre saw ethiopia engulfed in a civil war, weakened by it, so he decided [with the advice of his generals, of course] to invade and start was is known as the ogaden war.

the oromo did not backstab and attack harar, we expanded like everyone else did, through war, to seek land, the same way somalis, afars, amharas, and others did.

we are not your enemies, we've been allies at times, enemies at others, we've inter-married, etc; so basically it's not as one sided as you are saying. and somalis aint innocent, especially the crimes the sna committed in oromo villages/towns during the ogaden war. rape, burning of villages, etc. the same crimes they did to isaaq which made them want to separate.

 

[Mujahid Nur Marehan]

Marehan are called reer Gaslshiredle, either camel herders or disbeliever in prisoners. We had this name for over 700 years.

 

[Man with a garuun]

Marehan are called reer Gaslshiredle, either camel herders or disbeliever in prisoners. We had this name for over 700 years.

He probably killed a gaal and took his name. Back in the days, that used to be the norm as a way of trophy.

Abdi Garaad, the father of a Dhulbahante subclan, killed a gaal named Qayaad. Today, the clan are nicknamed Qayaad.

Even Nugaal was a Borana king killed by Daarood warriors, if I am not mistaken it was Mohamed Harti. Today, the Nugaal valley is nicknamed after that Borana King.

Buur Hakaba was nicknamed after a Borana king. Digil and Mirifle killed him and kicked them out of that territory. Today the town of Buur Hakaba still has his name.

Majeerteen has a subclan named Siwaaqroon, and Ogaadeen has a subclan named Caabudwaaq. We need history behind these names.

Being an oral society, we lost a lot because we didn't write it down and keep it in archives. We should do it now before we lost this history.