Evidence of Ancient Somali Writing Systems

[Periplus]

The only hardcore evidence of the somali language written in any form of script dates back to the late 1800s early 1900s written in wadaad Arabic script. We can assume that Arabic script was used even a bit earlier but evidence is scars because of lack of research.

Wadaad script goes back to the 1300s at least.

 

[Som]

Wadaad script goes back to the 1300s at least.

That's what they say but we don't have medieval wadaad script writings

 

[Erythrean]

Yes but Hebrew was the language of their ancestors and their used it as a liturgical language for praying for thousands of years. They had an actual relationship with Hebrew. We as Somali have zero relationship with that script. The only script that makes sense to adopt besides latin is the wadaad Arabic script because it has some kind of documented history in Somalia. If by any chance we found hard evidence of our ancient script (at least a full text written in somali / something close to Somali) then we should maybe consider adopting it for strengthening national identity and pride. Tbh though I'm fine with latin script

Yeah. If we find hard proof that we used Sabean or some other native script than I say for strengthening national and ethnic identity we consider adopting it. The Latin script is annoying and doesn’t fit us well.

 

[Hamzza]

That's what they say but we don't have medieval wadaad script writings

The earliest Somali Wadaad writings is Sheikh Uweys's poems in Af Maay, written in the last decade of the 19th century.

 

[Maintainnnin]

That's what they say but we don't have medieval wadaad script writings

While normal functioning countries have Universities and Government funding to find, archive, and digitalize historical works, Somalia obviously doesn't have that luxury. I remember someone posting on here some writing in Far-Wadaad dating to 1692 making it the oldest known so far.

The Earliest Surviving Manuscript Known Written By A Somali From 1692

Should've made a thread on this ages ago and inshallah I'll do a blog post and maybe a YouTube video on it someday but here we are: Migration, Digitization, and Preservation - A Case Study of a Somali Manuscript The oday who wrote...

www.somalispot.com

 

[Hamzza]

I remember someone posting on here some writing in Far-Wadaad dating to 1692 making it the oldest known so far.

The Earliest Surviving Manuscript Known Written By A Somali From 1692

Should've made a thread on this ages ago and inshallah I'll do a blog post and maybe a YouTube video on it someday but here we are: Migration, Digitization, and Preservation - A Case Study of a Somali Manuscript The oday who wrote...

www.somalispot.com

That was Arabic text. Far Wadaad is Somali written in Arabic characters.

 

[Som]

While normal functioning countries have Universities and Government funding to find, archive, and digitalize historical works, Somalia obviously doesn't have that luxury. I remember someone posting on here some writing in Far-Wadaad dating to 1692 making it the oldest known so far.

The Earliest Surviving Manuscript Known Written By A Somali From 1692

Should've made a thread on this ages ago and inshallah I'll do a blog post and maybe a YouTube video on it someday but here we are: Migration, Digitization, and Preservation - A Case Study of a Somali Manuscript The oday who wrote...

www.somalispot.com

That's not far wadaad. That's straight up Arabic language. We had scholars in Somalia, there are some medieval scholars who were probably from present they Somalia (many have the zela'i nick name cause they were from Zeila/horn African coast) so I'm not saying somalis were illiterate. I'm saying that were no evidence of wadaad script from af soomaali before the first modern example in last two centuries and that we used fusha arabic for most written conversation.

 

[Maintainnnin]

*UPDATE*

I wanted to update this thread because I've looked into the Sumado writing script which I think is predominantly still used by Dir clans in the North today. I found an image of a cave in Somaliland that also happens to have very similar characters on it's walls also. It's possible this script could be very ancient, more research needs to be done on it.

 

[Maintainnnin]

These are called summadu meaning signs or markings. It's often times used as camel marking but they could also serve many other functions as well. For example in southern somalia these summadu are used to mark the function of a clay pot some are for cooking others for water etc. They're some times used to indicate same sub clans too. If we had a civilization with complicated bureaucracy these signs might have developed into a proper script. Think of them as a pseudo pictogram.

Look at the post I just made, found photos of it in a cave, and it looks like it can be used as a complete writing script.

 

[Garaad diinle]

Look at the post I just made, found photos of it in a cave, and it looks like it can be used as a complete writing script.

Summadu alphabet sounds very nice and it has a good ring to it. Most likely every script on earth originates from markings similar to these so it's only natural for us to be inspired by our ancestors and make a script out of these markings.

Look at buur heybe summadu that is still in use. Here you see that every summadu has a a name and a meaning to it. Despite them being reer reewing they still have summadu with the same name as northern somalis, names such as halbeeg and jiif.



I know where this particular summadu were found. They are found in buurta sitti in somali galbeed. You see they functioned not as camel markings but a symbol of every sub-clans and the elder that represented it. They even had another meaning that points to a star in the sky. They where carved around 500 years ago by cissa somalis. They had a very complex societal structure which required a level of literacy.

There is reports from both awdal and the nogal that there are mysterious writing found in their area. They even say that the territory use to be inhabited by people who knew how to read and write. They might be referring to an era where somalis temporary developed a pseudo-writing from summadu and later dicarded it but in awdal and sitti it's still remembered to a certain degree.

 

[Garaad diinle]

Dayum man!!! It might've actually been a full fledged script. If true this is a momentous occasion and a reason for celebration. This will re-write the somali history and change our views on it. The more we learn the more we realise how complex these geeljire really were. I'd really appreciate it if someone found the whole alphabet said to be found in jabuuti

 

[killerxsmoke]

Dayum man!!! It might've actually been a full fledged script. If true this is a momentous occasion and a reason for celebration. This will re-write the somali history and change our views on it. The more we learn the more we realise how complex these geeljire really were.

Is that written on a tree

 

[Garaad diinle]

Is that written on a tree

Yes.

 

[Maintainnnin]

Is that written on a tree

Yes.

I thought it was more like proto-writing or a system of symbols at first until I seen the pic where someone wrote Jabuuti & Hooyo with it. Don't know the validity of it tho. There's enough different symbols that it could feasibly be used as a full fledged script also.

Bits of small information & clues of it is scattered on the internet, it very difficult to look into this as a topic.

 

[Garaad diinle]

I thought it was more like proto-writing or a system of symbols at first until I seen the pic where someone wrote Jabuuti & Hooyo with it. Don't know the validity of it tho. There's enough different symbols that it could feasibly be used as a full fledged script also.

Bits of small information & clues of it is scattered on the internet, it very difficult to look into this as a topic.

You're right i can't say for sure we do indeed need to confirm this at the very least we need an alphabetical representation of these signs.

I thought they were writing on a tree but when i flipped the picture it was writing that it's was an inscription on a stone in somali. This is a big clue that might give credence to the theory that it's an actual somali script.

This would further expand our horizon, there are numerus summado spread throughout somaliwayne like the ones you shared. We use to think that they meant nothing but if these summado are indeed also an alphabet we might be able to decipher them and unlock a hidden part of somali history and learn about af somali.

 

[Maintainnnin]

More of the Summadu alphabet.

 

[Garaad diinle]

Wallahi fascinating with an air of mysticism surrounding it. The script seems to be well developed with a number of cryptic signs still to be determined. One thing for sure is that these summadu are consistent and is found everywhere in somalia. These summadu above is i guess from djibouti and i found this summadu carved on a spoon in jubaland with two sign one is the i sound in the summadu above and the other is a plus sign.

The fact that it's consistent as opposed to be a random sign could very well mean that they had an intrinsic meaning well understood by all somalis sort of like how the letter "c" stands for a sound everywhere in the west. I think that some of these summado have both an alphabetical value and a pictographic value which is natural since all script starts off as pictographs. The alphabet also seem to have twin meaning to them for example alpha means ox, beta is bet in arabic and it means house and gama is gamal or jamal in arabic and it means camel. I think these signs might also have a double meaning to them as well.

I think it's feasible to turn these summado into an official somali script espesially since they have a cultural significance and is found throughout somaliweyen. I think we need to research these sign and see how there modern meaning correlate to the cave painting with similar signs.

 

[Gaban]

Found a video of someone who visited Godka Xararka in Las Anod. From the video I can't make out any symbols, or writing unfortunately.

Inshallah more people visit these sites and document them for others to see. Maybe someday we can collectively create a fund for an archeology team to document and date these sites because no one will do it for us.

@Hamzza your theory that somalis could have been troglodytes is more accurate than the Macrobian theory, because much of Somali ancient culture is found in caves.

 

[Gaban]

In a book i read called Af-dhaab written by Cismaan Cabdinuur he said that our language most definitely had a previous script and the scripts may have been influenced by religion and culture over time. The exmples he used was that Somalis have many various words or realting words to 'write' these include:

Qor(write), Khad(ink), Xaradh(letter), Far(hand writing),qorid(writing), dhigid(writing), hingaad(Spell), Yeeri/yeedhis(spell), Warqad-War-Khad(Word with ink aka paper), Xaanshi(paper), summad(sign,letter), baal(sign), loox(log to right on), bog(post/page), shax(to paint/draw or how to write), Farshaxan(Far-shaxan meaning to draw with the finger beautifully), tiro or qaybid, Barre(teacher), xer, qalin jabin or qalin leef(Graduate), xiiso(lesson). and much more

the more arabic words:
Qalin,daabac, arday, wadaad, xaraf, cashar, xisaab, sawir(could be originally somali)

what do y'all think?
@Garaad diinle @Maintainnnin

 

[Gaban]

Dayum man!!! It might've actually been a full fledged script. If true this is a momentous occasion and a reason for celebration. This will re-write the somali history and change our views on it. The more we learn the more we realise how complex these geeljire really were. I'd really appreciate it if someone found the whole alphabet said to be found in jabuuti

This thread is just magnificent, I laud you all for your efforts in piecing together our great story. Thank you very much.