Somali literature
Somalia produced a large amount of literature through Islamic poetry and Hadith from Somali scholars of the last centuries to modern fiction from present day Somali writers which have received widespread success respectivly.

Islamic literature
Islamic literature of Somalia dates back to the early 14th century with Shaykh Al-Zayla'i producing Tabayin al-Haqa’iq li Sharh Kanz al-Daqa’iq which is one of the most referenced books in the Hanafi school of Islam. Sayyid Abdullah Hassan the celebrated 19th century Resistance leader also left a considerable amount of MSS. Some of the better know Somali Islamic literature is Maja'mut al-Mubaraka from Shaykh Abdullah al-Qalanqooli published in Cairo in 1918. Shaykh Abd Al-Rahman bin Ahmad al-Zayla'i also produced many Islamic orientated literature in the 19th century. Poetry in the form of Qasida's was also popular among Somali Shaykhs who produced several thousand poems in praise of Prophet Muhammad
translation:

A Qasida from Sheikh Uways al-Barawi.
Whenever you wish to make easy your objective
Then give a prayer to your Messenger, the best of Guides
And say seeking aid in every circle
Blessings of God and the crier cries
On the chosen our Master the Praised
Beloved of God preferred to those who ascended
His tomb is above any Throne or High Place
As is Every pious place sincerely
Musk and Spices give fragrance, truly
To the tomb of Muhammad, light of Heart
Every aspect of the Habib gives light
The one who seeks him sees the lights with goodness
The distance meets it along with the near
It will encompass the Family, the neighbours of the Beloved
As well as people of the community with knowledge of his fragrance

Somali Poetry
Poetry plays an important role in Somali society in terms of Socialising and communicating with each other. Somalia was dubbed by the 19th century British explorer in his book First Footsteps in East Africa as a Nation of Bards
The country teems with poets,Every man has his recognised position in literature as accurately defined as though he had been reviewed in a century of magazines - the fine ear of this people causing them to take the greatest pleasure in harmonious sounds and poetic expressions. Every chief in the country must have a panegyric to be sung by his clan, and the great patronize light literature by keeping a poet. -Richard Burton
Sayyid Abdullah Hassan (1864-1921) is considered by many Somali poetry lovers as the Greatest Somali poet, in times of colonial resistance he produced a body of defiant poetry often attacking his enemies or glorifying his victories.
one of his wellknown poems is Gaala Leged (Defeat of the Infidels)

Sayyid's Poem Gaala Leged.
Translation:
To begin with, i had neglected poetry and had let it dry up I had sent it west in the beginning of the spring rains But let me set forth what prevented me from sleeping last night
God's Blessing are more numerous than those growing trees. I will remind you of the victory he gave us Listen to me my council, for you are most dear to me'
If the unwashed lefthanded one had died yesterday, if i had cut his throath- may he taste hell in the grave itself And the wild animals had eaten him, he and his ilk would deserve this
I would salute the hyena that would gorge itself on his flesh,as it's doing me a favour, it is dearer to me than any other animal of the wild. If could i would reward it every day
That deformed one wasted alot of my wealth since he kept committing wrongs again and again I knew al along that the hyena would devour him
It was their insincere refusal to acknowlegde the truth that put them down and destroyed them And made me attack their best man with a Dagger
If they had not become ungratefull, i would have not become enraged with them I would have not lost my generosity and respect for them I would have not have withheld anything from them, if they desired peace
But when they acted disdainfully, death marched straight at them

Folk literature

DhegDheer.

Coldiid the wise warrior.

A Lion's tale.
Somalia has a rich oral tradition when it comes to ancient folktales which were passed one from generation to generation. Stories like Dhegdheer the cannibal woman were told to little children as a way to scare them and discipline them at the same time cause it was said Dhegdheer would visit those that were naughty at night. Coldiid the wise warrior is also a popular Somali folktale with a positive message regarding a Waranle (warrior) who avoids any kind of violence and in turn is looked down upon by his peers but in the end shows violence is not the way to earn respect or love. A Lion's tale is a popular childrens book in the Somali Diaspora where two Somali immigrant children struggle with life in a different world surrounded by friends they perceive as greedy only to magically return to Ancient Somalia where they experience all the popular Somali folktales themselves. A lion's tale is currently also a School play

Modern literature
With the adoption of the latin script in 1973 Numerous Somali authors have released books over the years which received widespread success. Nuruddin Farah being one of them. Novels like A crooked rib and Links are considered important literary achievements which earned him the 1998 Neustadt International Prize for Literature award.
Abdourahman A. Waberi's novel Le Pays Sans Ombre ("The Land Without Shadow") was released in 1994 and won the Grand Prize for new French speakers from the Royal Academy of French Language and Literature.
In 1997 Supermodel Waris Dirie released her biography Desert flower. The book was printed in more than 50 licensed editions and made it to number 1 on multiple bestselling lists in many countries. In Germany “Desert flower” was in the top ten of the “Spiegel” bestselling list for 120 weeks.

Nuruddin Farah's Links.

Nuruddin Farah's A crooked rib.
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
Edit this Wikipedia entry -->Donate to Wikimedia -->
Donate to Wikimedia
if (document.getElementById('nistar'))document.getElementById('nistar').disabled=true;


Join the WikiAnswers Q&A community. Post a question or answer questions.
Copyrights:

Wikipedia information about Somali literatureThis article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Somali literature". More from Wikipedia
Get the FREE Answers.com IE Toolbar! Download Now More InfoAdd Answers to the IE7 Toolbar Search