The Issa are a Somali clan

Somali clan

The demographics of Somalia describes the condition and overview of Somalia's inhabitants. Demographic topics include basic education, health and population statistics, as well as identified racial and religious affiliations.-Somalis:...

, a sub-clan of the Dir

Dir (clan)

The Dir , or Theyr bin Abdalla as mentioned in the book "Futuh al-Habasha", is a Somali clan. Its members mostly live in northwestern Somalia and Djibouti, in addition to southern and central Somalia and the Ogaden....

. The Issa primarily reside in Djibouti

Djibouti

Djibouti , officially the Republic of Djibouti , is a country in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Eritrea in the north, Ethiopia in the west and south, and Somalia in the southeast. The remainder of the border is formed by the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden at the east...

, the extreme northwestern fringe in the Awdal

Awdal

Awdal is a region in northwestern Somalia. Its capital is Borama.Awdal is bordered by Ethiopia, Djibouti, the Somali region of Woqooyi Galbeed, and the Gulf of Aden...

 district of Somaliland

Somaliland

Somaliland is an unrecognised self-declared sovereign state that is internationally recognised as an autonomous region of Somalia. The government of Somaliland regards itself as the successor state to the British Somaliland protectorate, which was independent for a few days in 1960 as the State of...

 in northern Somalia

Somalia

Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...

, as well as the Shinile Zone

Shinile Zone

Shinile is one of nine Zones of the Ethiopian Somali Region. Shinile is named for its largest town, Shinile.Located at the northwestern point of the Somali Region, and stretching across the savanna north of the Amhar mountains, Shinile is bordered on the south by the Oromia Region, on the west by...

 located in the Somali Region

Somali Region

Somali Region ; is the eastern-most of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia. It is often called Somalia, though it is not to be confused with the independent country of the same name. The capital of Somali State is Jijiga...

 of Ethiopia

Ethiopia

Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...

.

Lineage

The Issa traditionally traces its Arabian connexions through its Dir affiliations to 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...

. However, by 1962 it had become the practice to regard the clan founder as a sheikh or even saint in much the same way (and no doubt at least partly in response to their claims) as the eponyms of the 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...

 and 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...

 clans. Although I.M. Lewis knows of no printed hagiologies in honor of the Issa ancestor, by the time of Lewis's writing a number of hymns (or qasiidas) have been composed for him, and there is a shrine in Djibouti City where he is said to have appeared miraculously. His actual grave lies close to that of Sheikh Ishaq ibn Ahmad al- Hashimi, in northeastern Somalia.

Clan tree

There is no clear agreement on the clan and sub-clan structures and many lineages are omitted. The following listing is taken from the World Bank

World Bank

The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...

's Conflict in Somalia: Drivers and Dynamics from 2005 and the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

's Home Office

Home Office

The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...

 publication, Somalia Assessment 2001.

• 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....
  
  
  • Gadabuursi
    Gadabuursi
    The Gadabuursi , also known as Samaroon, is a northern Somali clan, a sub-division of the Dir.Most Gadabuursi members are descendants of Sheikh Samaroon...
    
     (Gadabursi)
  • Biinaal
  • Issa

In the south central part of Somalia the World Bank shows the following clan tree:

• Dir
  • Isaac
    • Garhajis
    • Habar Je'lo
    • Habar Awal
    • Habar Tol
  • Gadabursi
  • Isse
  • Biyomal
  • Gadsan
  • Qubeys

Prominent figures

• Hassan Gouled Aptidon
  Hassan Gouled Aptidon
  Hassan Gouled Aptidon was the first President of Djibouti from 1977 to 1999.-Biography:...
  
   1916-2006, First President of Djibouti from 1977 to 1999.
• Ismail Omar Guelleh
  Ismail Omar Guelleh
  Ismaïl Omar Guelleh is the President of Djibouti. He succeeded his uncle, Hassan Gouled Aptidon, in 1999. He is often referred to in the region by his initials 'IOG'....
  
  , Current president of Djibouti
• Abdourahman Waberi
  Abdourahman Waberi
  Abdourahman A. Waberi is novelist, essayist, poet, academic and short-story writer.Abdourahman Waberi was born in Djibouti City in 1965. He went to France in 1985 to study English literature. Waberi worked as a literary consultant for Editions Le Serpent à plumes, Paris, and as a literary critic...
  
  , Novelist
• Aden Robleh Awaleh
  Aden Robleh Awaleh
  Aden Robleh Awaleh is a Djiboutian politician and President of the National Democratic Party . He is currently a member of the National Assembly of Djibouti....
  
  , president of the National Democratic Party
  National Democratic Party (Djibouti)
  The National Democratic Party , is a political party in Djibouti. It was founded as an opposition party in 1992 by Aden Robleh Awaleh, who remains the party's president. It is currently part of the ruling coalition....
  
   PNh
• Roble Olhaye
  Roble Olhaye
  Roble Olhaye is the Permanent Representative to the United Nations for the Republic of Djibouti. He has been Permanent Representative to the United Nations and Ambassador of Djibouti to the United States since 1988. In 1989, Olhaye was appointed as non-resident Ambassador to Canada. He is married...
  
  The Permanent Representative to the United Nations for the Republic of Djibouti.
• Yacin Elmi Bouh
  Yacin Elmi Bouh
  Yacin Elmi Bouh is a Djiboutian politician. He was Minister of Finance from 1997 to 2005 and has been Minister of the Interior and Decentralization since 22 May 2005.-Early life and education:...
  
  s a Djiboutian politician.