Sayings of Somali origin
A man with a sense of humor is never at a loss for words or action.
The bridge is repaired only after someone falls in the water.
A person stands next to a shade not next to words.
You don’t go searching for bones in a lion’s den.
Poverty is slavery.
Every camel was once upon time two years old.
Think before you do. Think before you do.
Lend a false ear to false words.
The person who does not listen to an elder’s advice gets his or her leg broken.
What you see is what you believe.
Dogs understand each other by their barking, and men by their words.
To try and fail is not laziness.
Somalis don’t say a false proverb.
Death and justice affect all men equally
Where there is negotiation, there is hope for agreement.
To be without knowledge is to be without light.
The best bed that a man can sleep on is peace.
A coward is full of precaution.
A coward dies before the courageous dies.
Your woman should be in the house or in the grave.
A man throws stones not words.
A deer is an elder to its family.
You lend a false ear to false words.
Where I make my living, there is my home.
One refusing a sibling’s advice breaks his arm.
One should rise to a person who sees you sitting.
Poverty is slavery.
One shares food not words.
When the snake is in the house, one need not discuss the matter at length.
An escaped lie does not reach the truth.
Oh hyena, you cannot drag away hides without making a sound.
A good man may be controlled by his wife, while lesser man dominates his
Do not walk into a snake pit with your eyes open.
He is a fool who marries an old woman without teeth.
To be without a friend is to be poor indeed.
When a man sleeps, it is the same person when he wakes up.
He, who does not seize opportunity today, will be unable to seize tomorrow’s opportunity.
A man one year elder to you is one cunning year elder to you.
One doesn’t tell a man ‘go away’ but one shows him something so he will go.
Wisdom does not come overnight.
The stronger man will rule the house.
Men for tea, women for talk.
The fowl digs out the blade that kills it.
One cannot count on riches.
A brother is like one’s shoulder.
A man prolonging his age sees a camel giving birth.
Only water in your hands can satisfy your thirst.
The teeth and the tongue are close neighbors, and yet they sometimes bite each other.
Either be a mountain or lean on one.
A thousand assignations, one marriage.
In the ocean, one does not need to sow water.
An old wound will not go away.
A thief is always under suspicion.
A cat in her house has the teeth of a lion.
A sinking persons grabs a straw.
The most dangerous thing a man needs is woman.
A madman does not lack wisdom.
Ignorance is blindness.
There is always a better man for every good man.
Even the brave are scared by a lion three times: first by its tracks, again by its roar, and one last time face to face.
A Somali is worth more than all the men on earth combined.
A brave man is scared of a lion three times: first when he sees the tracks; second when he hears the first roar; and third when they are face to face.
Water and milk do not mix.
Don’t set out on a journey using someone else’s donkey.
Let what is on this side of the bank be washed out by the flood, and what is on that side of the bank be carried away by the wind.
If you want to dismantle a hedge, remove one thorn bush at a time.
These youth taught their mother to give birth.
If people come together, they can even mend a crack in the sky.
A camel can tolerate a heavy load, but not a crooked rope.
A married couple is neither enemies nor friends.
He who does not shave you does not cut you.
A man who has eaten something becomes shy.
A childless old lady is obsessed with sea shells.
A dog which refuses a bone is not alive.
He who takes responsibility becomes the target of the people.
The Federal Republic of Somalia
Somalia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Indian Ocean to the east, and Kenya to the southwest. Somalia has the longest coastline on the continent’s mainland, and its terrain consists mainly of plateaus, plains and highlands. Climatically, hot conditions prevail year-round, with periodic monsoon winds and irregular rainfall.
Somalia has a population of around 10 million. Around 85% of its residents are ethnic Somalis, who have historically inhabited the northern part of the country. Ethnic minorities are largely concentrated in the southern regions.
The official languages of Somalia are Somali and Arabic, both of which belong to the Afro-Asiatic family. Most people in the country are Muslim.
Mogadishu, known locally as Xamar, is the largest and capital city of Somalia. Located in the coastal Banaadir region on the Indian Ocean, the city has served as an important port for centuries. As of 2015, it has a population of 1,280,000 residents. (An excerpt from Wikipedia)
“SOOMAALIYEEY TOOSOO” is the national anthem of the Federal Republic of Somalia.
Somali National Anthem ( English Lyrics):
Any nation’s flag, bears its own color
The sky (above us), does ours look like
Defects it has none; love it with candor
Oh you White Star, at your service we are
Superior you are, in any part of our land
Be famous oh Star, like the sun (of the far)
On the day you arose, our hearts you have
Purified with pureness, (Oh you our flag)
Lord may not dim you, pray we in this night
The detached part of, our forces of five
I beseech from God, their return you cause
This fate that wrote, for us to meet now