Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti
Encyclopedia
Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti, also known as Darod or Dawud, is the man traditionally held to be the common ancestor of the Somali
Darod
clan. According to early Islamic books and local tradition, Abdirahman is believed to have descended from Aqeel ibn Abi Talib
, a member of the Banu Hashim
and the uncle of the Prophet Muhammad.
Authors such as Ibn Hawqal
, Al-Muqaddasi
and Ibn Said have confirmed the early presence of Arabian tribes in municipalities such as Berbera
, Zeila
, Jabarta (an old metropolis now in ruins) and Massawa
in the northern Horn of Africa
.
Al-Masudi
wrote about the specific Arabian families and tribes that lived in Jabarta and Zeila in his 9th century book Aqeeliyoon. This book sheds light on one individual, a Sufi Sheikh of the Qadiriyyah order called Isma'il ibn Ibrahim al-Jabarti, who fathered several children, one of which was named Abdirahman.
According to such early Islamic books and Somali tradition, Muhammad ibn Aqil's descendant Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti (Darod) fled his homeland in the Arabian Peninsula
after an argument with his uncle. During the 10th or 11th century CE, he is believed to have then settled in northern Somalia just across the Red Sea
and married the daughter of the Dir
chief, which is said to have given rise to the Darod clan family.
According to the British anthropologist and Somali Studies
veteran I.M. Lewis, while the traditions of descent from noble Arab families related to the Prophet
are most probably expressions of the importance of Islam
in Somali society, "there is a strong historically valid component in these legends which, in the case of the Darod, is confirmed in the current practice of a Dir representative officiating at the ceremony of installation of the chief of the Darod family."
A similar clan mythology exists for the Isaaq
, whom are said to have descended from one Sheikh
Ishaq ibn Ahmad al-'Alawi, another Banu Hashim
who came to Somalia around the same time. As with Sheikh Isaaq, there are also numerous existing hagiologies
in Arabic which describe Sheikh Darod's travels, works and overall life in northern Somalia, as well as his movements in Arabia before his arrival. Besides historical sources such as Al-Masudi's Aqeeliyoon, a modern manaaqib (a collection of glorious deeds) printed in Cairo
in 1945 by Sheikh Ahmad bin Hussen bin Mahammad titled Manaaqib as-Sheikh Ismaa'iil bin Ibraahiim al-Jabarti also discusses Sheikh Darod and his proposed father Isma'il al-Jabarti, the latter of whom is reportedly buried in Bab Siham in the Zabid District
of western Yemen
.
Sheikh Darod's own tomb is in Haylaan
, situated in the Hadaaftimo Mountains in northern Somalia, and is the scene of frequent pilgrimage
s. Sheikh Isaaq is buried nearby in Maydh
, as is Sheikh Harti, a descendant of Sheikh Darod and the progenitor of the Harti Darod sub-clan, whose tomb lies in the ancient town of Qa’ableh
.
Sheikh Darod's mawlid
(birthday) is also celebrated every Friday with a public reading of his manaaqib.
Somali people
Somalis are an ethnic group located in the Horn of Africa, also known as the Somali Peninsula. The overwhelming majority of Somalis speak the Somali language, which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family...
Darod
Darod
The Darod is a Somali clan. The father of this clan is named Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti, but is more commonly known as Darod. In the Somali language, the word Daarood means "an enclosed compound," a conflation of the two words daar and ood .The Darod population in Somalia lives principally...
clan. According to early Islamic books and local tradition, Abdirahman is believed to have descended from Aqeel ibn Abi Talib
Aqeel ibn Abi Talib
Aqeel ibn Abi Talib was born in the year 590.Aqeel was second of four sons of Abu Talib, who was the uncle and protector of Muhammad and brother of Ali ibn Abi Talib. Aqeel's nickname was Abu Yazid...
, a member of the Banu Hashim
Banu Hashim
Banū Hāshim was a clan in the Quraysh tribe. Muhammad, was a member of this clan; his great-grandfather was Hashim, for whom the clan is named. Members of this clan are referred to by the Anglicised version of their name as Hashemites, or Huseini or Hasani...
and the uncle of the Prophet Muhammad.
Biography
Ibn Hawqal
Muḥammad Abū’l-Qāsim Ibn Ḥawqal was a 10th century Muslim writer, geographer, and chronicler. His famous work, written in 977, is called Ṣūrat al-’Arḍ ....
, Al-Muqaddasi
Al-Muqaddasi
Muhammad ibn Ahmad Shams al-Din Al-Muqaddasi , also transliterated as Al-Maqdisi and el-Mukaddasi, was a medieval Arab geographer, author of Ahsan at-Taqasim fi Ma`rifat il-Aqalim .-Biography:Al-Muqaddasi, "the Hierosolomite" was born in Jerusalem in 946 AD...
and Ibn Said have confirmed the early presence of Arabian tribes in municipalities such as Berbera
Berbera
Berbera is a city and seat of Berbera District in Somaliland, a self-proclaimed Independent Republic with de facto control over its own territory, which is recognized by the international community and the Somali Government as a part of Somalia...
, Zeila
Zeila
Zeila, also known as Zaila , is a port city on the Gulf of Aden coast, situated in the northwestern Awdal region of Somalia.Located near the Djibouti border, the town sits on a sandy spit surrounded by the sea. It is known for its offshore islands, coral reef and mangroves. Landward, the terrain is...
, Jabarta (an old metropolis now in ruins) and Massawa
Massawa
Massawa, also known as Mitsiwa Massawa, also known as Mitsiwa Massawa, also known as Mitsiwa (Ge'ez ምጽዋዕ , formerly ባጽዕ is a city on the Red Sea coast of Eritrea. An important port for many centuries, it was ruled by a succession of polities, including the Axumite Empire, the Umayyad Caliphate,...
in the northern Horn of Africa
Horn of Africa
The Horn of Africa is a peninsula in East Africa that juts hundreds of kilometers into the Arabian Sea and lies along the southern side of the Gulf of Aden. It is the easternmost projection of the African continent...
.
Al-Masudi
Al-Masudi
Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn al-Husayn ibn Ali al-Mas'udi , was an Arab historian and geographer, known as the "Herodotus of the Arabs." Al-Masudi was one of the first to combine history and scientific geography in a large-scale work, Muruj adh-dhahab...
wrote about the specific Arabian families and tribes that lived in Jabarta and Zeila in his 9th century book Aqeeliyoon. This book sheds light on one individual, a Sufi Sheikh of the Qadiriyyah order called Isma'il ibn Ibrahim al-Jabarti, who fathered several children, one of which was named Abdirahman.
According to such early Islamic books and Somali tradition, Muhammad ibn Aqil's descendant Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti (Darod) fled his homeland in the Arabian Peninsula
Arabian Peninsula
The Arabian Peninsula is a land mass situated north-east of Africa. Also known as Arabia or the Arabian subcontinent, it is the world's largest peninsula and covers 3,237,500 km2...
after an argument with his uncle. During the 10th or 11th century CE, he is believed to have then settled in northern Somalia just across the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
and married the daughter of the Dir
Dir
-Acronyms:* Detroit International Riverfront, an area of Detroit, Michigan that borders the Detroit River* Developmental, Individual differences, Relationship-based approach, a developmental intervention to autism developed by Stanley Greenspan and Serena Weider....
chief, which is said to have given rise to the Darod clan family.
Somali Studies
Somali Studies is the scholarly term for research concerning Somalis and Somalia. It consists of several disciplines such as anthropology, sociology, linguistics, historiography and archaeology...
veteran I.M. Lewis, while the traditions of descent from noble Arab families related to the Prophet
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
are most probably expressions of the importance of Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
in Somali society, "there is a strong historically valid component in these legends which, in the case of the Darod, is confirmed in the current practice of a Dir representative officiating at the ceremony of installation of the chief of the Darod family."
A similar clan mythology exists for the Isaaq
Isaaq
The Isaaq is one of the main Somali clans. Members of the clan principally live in the northwestern Somaliland region of Somalia, and the Somali Region of Ethiopia. The populations of five major cities of Somaliland – Hargeisa, Burco, Berbera, Ceerigaabo and Gabiley – are predominantly Isaaq...
, whom are said to have descended from one Sheikh
Sheikh
Not to be confused with sikhSheikh — also spelled Sheik or Shaikh, or transliterated as Shaykh — is an honorific in the Arabic language that literally means "elder" and carries the meaning "leader and/or governor"...
Ishaq ibn Ahmad al-'Alawi, another Banu Hashim
Banu Hashim
Banū Hāshim was a clan in the Quraysh tribe. Muhammad, was a member of this clan; his great-grandfather was Hashim, for whom the clan is named. Members of this clan are referred to by the Anglicised version of their name as Hashemites, or Huseini or Hasani...
who came to Somalia around the same time. As with Sheikh Isaaq, there are also numerous existing hagiologies
Hagiography
Hagiography is the study of saints.From the Greek and , it refers literally to writings on the subject of such holy people, and specifically to the biographies of saints and ecclesiastical leaders. The term hagiology, the study of hagiography, is also current in English, though less common...
in Arabic which describe Sheikh Darod's travels, works and overall life in northern Somalia, as well as his movements in Arabia before his arrival. Besides historical sources such as Al-Masudi's Aqeeliyoon, a modern manaaqib (a collection of glorious deeds) printed in Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
in 1945 by Sheikh Ahmad bin Hussen bin Mahammad titled Manaaqib as-Sheikh Ismaa'iil bin Ibraahiim al-Jabarti also discusses Sheikh Darod and his proposed father Isma'il al-Jabarti, the latter of whom is reportedly buried in Bab Siham in the Zabid District
Zabid District
Zabid District is a district of the Al Hudaydah Governorate in western Yemen.-Overview:The Yemeni Sufi Sheikh Isma'il al-Jabarti of the Qadiriyyah order is buried in the Zabid District. The father of Sheikh Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti , the progenitor of the Somali Darod clan, Isma'il...
of western Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
.
Sheikh Darod's own tomb is in Haylaan
Haylaan
Haylaan, also known as Haylan, is an ancient town in the northern Sanaag region of Somalia.-Overview:An old settlement, Haylaan is the site of numerous ancient ruins and buildings, many of obscure origins. Northern Somalia in general is home to numerous such archaeological sites...
, situated in the Hadaaftimo Mountains in northern Somalia, and is the scene of frequent pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
s. Sheikh Isaaq is buried nearby in Maydh
Maydh
Maydh is an ancient town in the Sanaag region of northern Somalia.Local control is disputed between Somaliland, a self-declared independent republic that is internationally recognized as an autonomous region of Somalia, the autonomous Puntland region in northeastern Somalia, and HBM-SSC , a local...
, as is Sheikh Harti, a descendant of Sheikh Darod and the progenitor of the Harti Darod sub-clan, whose tomb lies in the ancient town of Qa’ableh
Qa’ableh
Qa’ableh is a town in the northern Sanaag region of Somalia. It is the site of numerous archaeological structures and tombs.-Overview:Qa'ableh is located near the Haylaan historical ruins. An ancient city, it is home to numerous archaeological sites and structures, similar to those found in...
.
Sheikh Darod's mawlid
Mawlid
Mawlid or sometimes ميلاد , mīlād is a term used to refer to the observance of the birthday of the Islamic prophet Muhammad which occurs in Rabi' al-awwal,...
(birthday) is also celebrated every Friday with a public reading of his manaaqib.