10–15% of Somalia’s land is considered arable, and most of it lies in the south where the two rivers , the Jubba and Shabelle , provide enough water for farming. That region is productive enough to support agricultural surplus, not just for local consumption but also for export into other regions.
But it’s important to note that large numbers of Somalis historically have clustered in towns and villages, especially in areas where farming, trade, and water access allowed for it. The densest settlements historically were in western Somaliland, the Harar uplands, and along the southern riverine zones. These areas have always supported village life, farming communities, and market economies.
Somalia does not rely solely on rivers for settlement formation. In fact, much of Somalia’s population is urbanized or semi-urbanized even in areas without major rivers, such as Hargeisa, Garowe, Bosaso, and Berbera. Today for example water access is managed through wells, boreholes, private water tankers, and storage systems,
It was similar in the past and they sustained large urban populations through water management systems.
Add to that the long Somali coastline, and you’ll find many Somalis also living in coastal villages and urban centers. Urban life wasn’t new or rare , it just wasn’t concentrated into one single megacity. Somalis built networks of trade and settlements rather than a singular capital-centric model.
Now when it comes to Yemen , they don’t have any permanent rivers at all. Rainfall is seasonal, and agriculture mostly depends on rain-fed or groundwater sources. That makes the small arable region in the western highlands the only viable area for farming, which naturally forces people to cluster in those areas. This created the pattern of clusters but also made Yemen heavily reliant on imports , even from Somalia historically.
Yemen also has fewer water resources than Somalia and it's one of the most water-scarce countries in the world. Somalia has more widespread rainfall in key regions , which contributes to perennial rivers and extensive aquifers.
In contrast, Somalia’s varied landscape (grazing lands, rivers, coastlines, pockets of arable land) allowed people to live in more dispersed ways , fishermen, pastoralists, agro-pastoralists, traders, farmers , depending on region and season. That mobility and ecological diversity made it possible for people to live sustainably without clustering into one urban core.. They didn’t need to . the land allowed livelihoods in multiple zones.
So you’re right in a way, the nature of Somalia’s geography and economy gave Somalis more spatial flexibility. That’s why they never concentrated in one tight region , they didn’t have to. But that doesn't directly have to with being nomadic or lack of water.
Somalia’s smaller population relative to Yemen isn’t about water or clustering. It’s mostly due to:
Long-term conflict and/or displacement
Outmigration and diaspora size
Lower fertility during conflict periods
Less census coverage and undercounting
Somalia’s dispersed population reflects mobility, not a set back. Unlike Yemen’s constrained geography, Somalia’s ecology allows people to spread out and still be productive.
Somalia’s dispersed settlement pattern reflects economic adaptability, decentralized development, and environmental flexibility, not a lack of urbanism or cohesion.
