Somali folktales

[Cigaal]

I found 2 websites which have a lot of common Somali folktales. Interesting read if you want to learn more about your culture
http://hooyo.web.free.fr/E_tale_00.html
http://www.ethiopianfolktales.com/somalia
The second link is folktales from Somali galbeed. The stories were collected in jigjiga.

 

[Cigaal]

If you niggas are to lazy to actually go to the links.

Igal Shidal and the Enemy


Once there was a man named Igal Shidal. While Igal Shidal was asleep, his wife heard that enemies from a neighboring town would soon attack them. Igal Shidal's wife quickly ran home to wake her husband, to tell him about the attack. Igal Shidal didn't believe his wife. He said, "You always make things up, and tell stories to frighten me."

His wife said, "I didn't make this up. It's true. All the women and children are talking about the attack. The men are already gathered to get ready for the attack. You are a man. You must help them now."

While they were talking, the enemy arrived. The people in town shouted, "Here they come."

Igal Shidal wondered what he should do. Then he said to his wife, "We can't escape now. The enemy will kill all the men. I am going to sleep in front of our house. Roll me in a rug, and cry, 'Oh, my husband is dead.'"

Igal Shidal's wife wrapped him in a rug, and she cried and cried. Igal Shidal didn't trust her to cry as much as he wanted her to cry. So he said to her, "Cry louder! Cry until tears come from your eyes."

While she was crying, the enemy came. They asked her when her husband had died. Before she could answer, Igal Shidal said from inside the rug, "Say that he died yesterday."

His wife said, "He died yesterday."

The enemy was shocked to hear Igal Shidal speak. They said, "This is not a real man. He is such a coward that he cannot hurt us. Let him live with the women and the children. Let's go."



Lesson : People don't respect a coward.

Igal Shidal and the Lion Stump


Once upon a time there was a man called Igal Shidal. It was night and Igal Shidal was traveling in the countryside. He saw what looked like a lion sitting in the middle of the path. He was a coward. He thought, "Oh, this is a lion." Igal Shidal stood where he was. He took his shield and spear, and got ready to fight the lion. He yelled loudly, trying to scare the lion away. But he was not able to scare it away. It just stood there. Igal Shidal was too scared to pass.

In the morning he saw the tree stump. He went closer to the stump, and he said, "Stump, you are one thing, and what I saw was something very different. What will I do ? I thought you were a lion about to attack me, but you are only a stump. I will never travel at night again."



Lesson: Don't be afraid of everything you don't recognize.

Ina Hagadare


There was once a man named Ina Hagadare who had many sheep. The animals began to die every day. He wondered why his sheep were dying. He decided to divide the animals into two equal parts separated by a fence. One part was for Allah and the other was for him. He spoke to God, saying, "These animals are for you. You can kill them if you want. But please, do not touch my animals."

The next day the animals began again to die. Whenever one of his animals died, he went to the animals of Allah, and killed one. However, the animals did not stop dying. He said to himself, "Every time I talk to Allah, I am punished. Whenever I stop to talk to Allah, I am punished. My animals continue to die, no matter what I do."


Moral: Allah does not need animals. Try to help yourself to solve your problems.

 

[Cigaal]

The Power of Education


Once upon a time, two men were travelling together. They were cousins. They were on their way to a special school that taught religion. While they were traveling, they stopped at a town that was ruled by an uneducated king. Since it was a Friday, they prayed at the mosque where the king talked nonsense. They slept in this town at night. In the morning they continued their travels. Finally, they reached their destination and they started to learn about the Islam religion. After they finished their religious education, one of the men said, "Let's go back home."

The other one said, "I will not go back home until I learn about politics." The first man said okay, and he started travelling back home.

He returned to the town where the uneducated king lived. When he was in this town, the king was leading Friday's prayer again. The man prayed with them. After they had finished the prayers, the king gave a speech. He said anything he wanted because he was not educated. No one dared to say that the king was wrong. However, the man who learned religion took over the speech. He changed everything that the king said. He made the king look like a fool. The king ordered his soldiers to put the man in prison. They took the man from the mosque, and took him to jail. They put him in a dungeon.

After two years, the prisoner's cousin returned to the town after he finished his political education. He didn't know his cousin was in jail. It was another Friday (Prayer day for Muslims). When they finished prayers, the king started to give his same old speech. After the king finished the speech, the man who learned politics raised his hand. The king let him talk. The man said, "Your king is so intelligent." He kept praising the king. Then he said, "The luckiest person in this world is the person who prays with this king for four Fridays, but you would be luckier to cut one hair from his head. Everyone started running to get a hair from the King's head. A mosque full of people tried to grab the King's hair. They climbed all over the King, trying to get his hair. The King died. Then the people who lived in the town chose the man who learned politics to be their King. He let his cousin out of jail. He had very tangled and matted hair after being in jail for two years.


Lesson : Any education you gain will help you one day.

The Sheep and the Goat


Once upon a time a goat and a sheep lived together in a lovely house. One day they left their house to eat some grass. When the goat returned, she saw a snake coming out of the house. The snake stopped by the door of the house. It was waiting to eat anything that tried to enter the house.

The goat ran to the sheep, and said, "I saw a snake come out of our house. What will we do ?"

The sheep said, "Show me the snake !" They both saw the snake in front of their house, waiting to eat them. They ran away as fast as they could. They came to the monkey's house which was on a banana farm. They asked the monkey for water, milk, and a place to sleep. The monkey asked, "What happened to you ?"

They answered, "There is a dangerous snake in our house." The monkey felt so sorry for them that he gave them food and water. Then he took them to a nice house made of banana leaves. They thanked the monkey, and they slept.

When they woke up, the monkey said, "I'll let you live in this house with me. We should all stick together, and help each other." The goat and the sheep were happy. They became friends with the monkey, and ever since then, they were strong friends. Together they were safe against any enemy.


Lesson : There is safety in numbers, even when it means very different kinds of people getting along together.

The King's Daughter


A long time ago a very rich king had a smart and very beautiful daughter. They ruled over a very prosperous city that had three roads leading into it. Each road had a special kind of traveler assigned to it. However, each road also had problems, which threatened the travelers going into the city. The first road had a mean lion that ate up everything he saw. The second road had a gang of men who would kill the travelers. The third road had a group of thieves that robbed the travelers of their food and belongings.


Many men came to the king to ask him if they could marry his beautiful, smart daughter. But the king's daughter loved another man, and she wanted to marry him. However, the king didn't want her to marry the man she loved, so he announced that his daughter would only marry the man who could get rid of the dangers on the three roads into the city.

All the men in the city started to compete with each other so they could be the winner, and marry the king's daughter. They all failed to get rid of the dangerous attackers on the roads leading into the city.

The girl's lover went to the girl, and said, "You are a very smart girl. How can we solve these problems so we can be married ?"

She said, "Lets take care of the lion first. We'll set a trap for him. Don't use a spear or carry other weapons."

He set a trap for the lion. Then he called the king and all the people in the city, and he said, " Here's the lion I caught without a weapon." Everyone was surprised, and they all clapped for him.

The daughter's lover then secretly went back to her, and asked her how to get rid of the gang on the second road. She said, "We'll cook some delicious food. We will put poison in the food. Then we'll tie the food to some donkeys, and have them walk along the road." The gang of men robbed the food from the donkeys. They ate the food very fast, and they all died.

The young man went back to the king's daughter, and asked her how to get rid of the thieves on the third road. She said, "Go find as many horses as you can. Tie thorn bushes to each horse. Then let the horses run in different directions to scare the thieves." The running horses made lots of dust, and when the robbers saw all the horses and the dust, they thought they were being attacked by an army.

They said, "A huge and powerful army is coming! What shall we do ?" They decided to run away in different directions so no one would find them together.

The king was very happy that all three roads leading into the city were now safe for travelers. He let his daughter marry the man she loved. They had a big wedding with many presents from the people in the city.

They were happy because they had faced these problems together. They had discussed their problems and decided how to solve them. They were always loyal to each other.


Lesson : Talk about your problems with people who care. Together you have a much better chance of solving them.

Osman's Lesson


Once upon a time, there lived a women named Amina and her daughter, Jamila. One day, Amina was on her way to the market when she passed the store of Osman. On the window of his shop, Osman put a sign which read : "Men are created smarter than women". Amina could not believe Osman would put up such a sign, so she entered the store to complain.

"Excuse me, but surely you know the sign is not true !" asked Amina.
"Oh yes, it is indeed true. Men are smarter than women. You women are good at having children but leave the important matters to us." Osman confidently assured.
"If you don't take down that sign by tomorrow, you'll be sorry." Amina warned.
"Ha ha ha !" laughed Osman, " What could you possibly do, you're just a woman !".
"You'll see just how smart we women are !"

On her way home, she began thinking of the best way to teach Osman a lesson. As she passed the palace of King Hassan, the idea came in a flash. She rushed home to tell her daughter, Jamila, about her brilliant plan.

The next day, Jamila entered Osman's shop on a mission of which he knew nothing. Already a beautiful girl, she had on her best clothes and perfume. Osman, who had never met Jamila, wondered who this mysterious lady was. She purchased a couple of items and engaged in small conversation with Osman. On her third visit to his store, Osman finally asked who she was.

"I am Sulekha, daughter of King Hassan." Jamila exclaimed.
"Impossible ! The King's daughter is paralyzed and he never lets her out of the palace."
"That is what my father wants everyone in the kingdom to think. He wanted to protect me from men who want to marry me for only for my beauty and wealth."
"I would like to marry you for who you are Sulekha. Is that possible ?"
"Oh yes, it is possible, but you have to follow my instructions carefully."
"Anything for you Sulekha" promised Osman.

Jamila went on to explain to Osman that when he went to the palace to ask for her, he must act as if he thinks she is paralyzed. That way, she assured, the King will assume Osman wants her for reasons of love. The next day, Osman rushed to seek an audience with King Hassan. After a long wait, he was finally ushered into the King's office.

"Your highness, it is with great respect that I come to ask for your daughter."
"Are you willing to marry my daughter, even with her condition ? asked the King.
"Yes, I do. I will to take care of her and give her all that she asks." Osman promised.
"Very well, the wedding ceremony will take place in one weeks time."

In preparation for the wedding, Osman spent the next week purchasing all types of silks and fabric. Eagerly awaiting the arrival of his young bride, he ordered his first wife to move into the smaller room to be shared with their small children. He even suggested she move in with her mother for some time.

After the wedding ceremony, Osman was taken to the princess' room where he was told his new bride was waiting for him. He saw Sulekha sitting on the bed draped in a beautiful veil. When he lifted the veil, to his surprise he saw the face of a woman, paralyzed, who he had never met.

"Who are you ? Where is Sulekha ?" shouted Osman.
"What are you talking about ? I am Sulekha." cried the princess, who was now very distraught.

Osman realized he had been deceived and was now stuck in a very difficult position. He could not go to the King and ask for a divorce, that might result in jail time or worse. So he told his new bride he had to go and prepare the house for her arrival. He left and went directly to his house to ponder a way out of this situation. Then a knock came at his door. When he opened it, he saw Amina and Jamila.

"How could you do something like this to me ?" cried Osman.
"I did warn you about taking down that sign, and you ignored me." Amina explained.
"You have to get me out of this marriage !" Osman demanded.
"If men are so much smarter than women, then why are you asking me for help ?"

Osman stubbornly refused to acknowledge that men are not smarter than women, so Amina and Jamila left his house. He asked for advice from some of his friends and no one could come up with a solution. Several days later, Osman ran into Amina and Jamila in town center. He begged Amina to help him find a way out of his predicament. She agreed to help him, with the following demands:

"Before we help you, you must permanently take down your sign and for one week, replace it with another sign stating woman are smarter than men" explained Amina.
"Anything. I'll do anything" pleaded Osman.

Following Amina's advice, Osman opened a haircut parlor for men in his store. Soon, it got back to the King that his son-in law was now a haircutter. He called Osman to the palace right away.

"I thought you owned a shop in town ?" asked the King.
"I do, but now I have decided to become a haircutter."
"You can't be a hair cutter and be married to my daughter. I want you to divorce my daughter at once !"

In an instant, Osman was a free man. He took down his sign and never again doubted the intelligence of women.

 

[Cigaal]

THE BLACK CROW
Narrated by Professor Ahmed Mohammed Ali

The crow was once a sheikh or priest, and at that time he was white. But all the other birds made an accusation against him.

They said, "On the one hand he eats meat, and on the other hand he eats fruits."

So all the birds came together and said, “You are a sheikh or a priest! But what you do is wrong. The smallest birds should eat meat. And the biggest ones eat fruit. But you eat from both sides.”

In not only Somali but Cushitic culture in general, it was said that the crow was the representative of the Sun God called Wak. Oromos believed in the Sun God also. People believed that the crow interpreted what Wak, the Sun God, said to the people and people would send their messages to the Sun God through him.

The crow, when he speaks, says “Wak! Wak!”

But the crow became dishonest and ate from both things – fruit and meat, and so he was punished. They cursed him and he became black.

DEYA ALI, THE CHEATING FOX
Narrated by Aisha Awadem

Once Deya Ali, the cheating fox, was in the village and she saw people crying.

She said, “What happened to you?”

They said, “A man is very seriously ill and going to die. That’s why we are crying.”

Deya Ali said, “I will try to cure him. Will you follow my suggestion?”

“Of course,” they said.

So Deya Ali said, “Please take your camels and cattle and cut off the meat and bring it into the room. Nobody else must be there. Just me and him, and I know I can cure him.”

So they said, “OK,” and they did bring much meat to the room and waited outside while the fox (Deya Ali) cured this friend. But at once the man died.

The people kept asking, “How is he?”

And she said, “Oh, he’s getting better. Bring more meat. More! More!”

So they did and she closed the room and she collected flies in a big jar and all night she kept it covered. Early in the morning she took off the cover and the flies flew out buzzing loudly.

“What’s happening?” said the watchers outside.

“Oh, the patient is trying to do ‘adhan’ (to pray at the mosque).”

“Oh! Very good!” they say.

So the fox makes the flies come out and whenever she does it, the people think the man is praying. So the fox goes on until she has eaten all the meat.

When she finished the meat she covered the body and said to everyone, “He’s asleep, don’t touch him for a while. He’ll wake up and feel better. Goodbye.”

And away she went.

After a while, when they took off the cloth, they saw that he was a dead body, and the fox had been telling a lie.

“Ah,” they said, “We have to find her.”

So they took horses and chased after the fox and caught her and tied her by a rope to a tree.

Then they said, “We’ll boil some water and put her in it to kill her.”

So they went back to the village and put the water on to boil. While they were away the hyena came and said, “Fox, what happened to you?”

“Oh! My uncle says he will invite me, and bring a lot of meat for me to eat. He said, ‘Don’t run away. Don’t move. So that we know where you are we have to tie you to this tree, then we’ll come and bring you lots of meat.’”

“Can you change with me?” said the hyena, “I want to eat the meat.”

“OK,” said the fox. "If you want to eat the meat, untie me and I will tie you up.”

“OK,” he said, so they did.

The fox hid near the tree, and the men came with the big pot of boiling water.

The hyena was very happy saying, “Oh, they’re bringing me meat.”

But when the men were near, they didn’t look at the hyena, just put him in the boiling water.

“Oh fox! Help me!” the hyena cried.

“I can’t help you. Sway like a camel and maybe you will become better.”

So he swayed and his skin became very red.

And that is all the history.

THE CANNIBAL WOMAN
Narrated by Degen Ali Adem

Once there was a cannibal woman in a village and people in the village were afraid of her in case she came to eat them.

There was a family in the village, and the husband had to travel away, and he said to his wife, “Please don’t open the door at night. There is a cannibal woman around who eats people. So be careful.”

So off he went.

In the evening the cannibal woman came and knocked on the door. The woman was alone.

“Who are you?”

She said she was the woman’s husband, so the woman opened the door. As soon as the cannibal came in, she ate the woman and put on her dress.

Then the woman’s husband came home. He had gone (because he was a nomad) to find grass and water. He had found a good place with other men of the village and they wanted to move to the place they had surveyed and selected. So all the families started to pack up their houses and go to the new place.

When the man came home he thought the woman was his wife, because she was wearing her clothes. He ordered her to pack.

His wife had been pregnant. The cannibal woman had put the remains of the woman and the baby into a hole. And she made an artificial pregnancy.

Soon all was packed and they went on their way. The family had one dog, one hen, one cat, one camel, one cow, one goat and one sheep. When she tried to milk the camel, it ran away. When she got near to any of the animals they ran away. The man wondered why.

Then at last he saw that this woman was not his wife but a cannibal woman. He killed her. He had suspected because of the animals, then he looked and found his wife’s body and his child’s.

That is the story.

THE CANNIBAL WOMAN
Narrated by Degen Ali Adem

Once there was a cannibal woman in a village and people in the village were afraid of her in case she came to eat them.

There was a family in the village, and the husband had to travel away, and he said to his wife, “Please don’t open the door at night. There is a cannibal woman around who eats people. So be careful.”

So off he went.

In the evening the cannibal woman came and knocked on the door. The woman was alone.

“Who are you?”

She said she was the woman’s husband, so the woman opened the door. As soon as the cannibal came in, she ate the woman and put on her dress.

Then the woman’s husband came home. He had gone (because he was a nomad) to find grass and water. He had found a good place with other men of the village and they wanted to move to the place they had surveyed and selected. So all the families started to pack up their houses and go to the new place.

When the man came home he thought the woman was his wife, because she was wearing her clothes. He ordered her to pack.

His wife had been pregnant. The cannibal woman had put the remains of the woman and the baby into a hole. And she made an artificial pregnancy.

Soon all was packed and they went on their way. The family had one dog, one hen, one cat, one camel, one cow, one goat and one sheep. When she tried to milk the camel, it ran away. When she got near to any of the animals they ran away. The man wondered why.

Then at last he saw that this woman was not his wife but a cannibal woman. He killed her. He had suspected because of the animals, then he looked and found his wife’s body and his child’s.

That is the story.

ABBA BUKKUSH
Narrated by Yusuf Adem Mandre

A long time ago, there lived a person called Abba Bukkush. He was a jolly fellow. He used to make the king laugh very much, so the king called him Abba Bukkush, which means 'Father of Laughter'. Abba Bukkush always sat beside the king.

Then one day he said to his friend, “The king is a very good man but when one man called Afewerke made mistakes, the king didn’t punish him. He should have given him some sort of punishment.”

Abba Bukkush’s friend went to the king and told him what Abba Bukkush said.

Then the king said, “Aha, so he has started to show disrespect for me,” and he was very angry with Abba Bukkush.

He ordered three of his soldiers to go to Abba Bukkush’s house and shit on his mattress.

So the soldiers went to Abba Bukkush’s house and said, “We have been ordered to shit on your mattress.”

So they brought the mattress out of the house and started to prepare themselves to shit.

At this time Abba Bukkush brought a big stick and said, “The king has only ordered you to shit on my mattress but he has not ordered you to pee. So if I see a drop of pee on my mattress I will beat your heads with this stick.”

The soldiers were confused and frightened since they couldn’t do one without the other, so they went back to the king and told him the story.

So the king was amazed and began to laugh and ordered his soldiers to take him some gifts.

THE BRIDE’S TEST
Narrated by Osman Abdulahi Ahmed

Once upon a time there was a boy who wanted to elope with a girl. He loved her and she was willing to go with him, but her parents would not accept the marriage. So the boy took a friend as a companion and they set out at night to go to the place where they could be married.

They walked the whole night and in the morning she said, “Let us have breakfast.”

Now there was nothing to eat. Her fiancé didn’t understand her.

“Why? You know there’s nothing here to eat,” he said.

But the best man understood her meaning, and said, “No, the lady means we have to brush our teeth, which is a kind of breakfast. We have nothing to eat.”

“Really?” the young man said to his fiancée. “Is that what you meant?”

“Yes of course it was,” she said impatiently.

This was her first test.

So they went on, but at midday they were very tired.

She said, “We’re tired. Let’s rest.”

So they all sat under a tree. The girl and the best man took their shoes off, but the young man kept his shoes on.

“Take a rest!” the girl said.

“But I am resting!” the young man said.

“How stupid he is,” thought the girl, “How can he rest with shoes on his feet?”

The best man said, “The lady means take your shoes off, because you can’t rest properly with them on.”

The third test happened when they arrived at a village, where the people invited them to eat meat with them.

When they had eaten, the girl said, “Let’s pull out the remaining meat.”

“What? What do you mean?” the fiancé said.

“Oh,” thought the girl. “How stupid this man is.”

But she said nothing.

Then the best man picked a twig and began to pick his teeth.

“This is what she means,” the best man said.

“Oh really?” said the young man. “Is that what you mean? I didn’t understand.”

“You don’t understand anything,” the young woman said.

At last they came to the house where the sheikh was ready to marry them. But the girl refused.

“I don’t like this man,” she said. “I want to marry his friend, if he will marry me.”

The moral of the story is, always choose a best man who is less clever, less handsome and less rich than yourself.

HIRSI AND KABAALAF
Narrated by Osman Abdulahi Ahmed

Part 1

Once there were two thieves, one called Hirsi and the other called Kabaalaf. They lived in adjacent towns and were both famous in their own town. Each one knew of the other.

One day each of them tried to go to the other town to cheat people. One took a sack of ash on his horse to sell as flour, and the other took a sack of goat’s dung, to sell it as coffee. On the way they met.

“Oh, how are you?”

“Are you well?”

“Are you on your way to market?”

“Yes.”

“What do you have?”

“A sack of flour.”

“That’s funny. A sack of flour is just what I want. I have a sack of coffee.”

“That’s amazing! Coffee is what I want. We don’t need to go all the way to the market. Aren’t we lucky! Let’s just swap.”

When they get home, they both took their sacks to the market to sell the contents. Then they each realised they’d been cheated.

This shows that cheats will be cheated in their turn.

Part 2

One day Hirsi and Kabaalaf met and planned a con trick. They noticed a woman with a pot of butter on her head, pulling a ram with a rope. Both her hands were busy.

One went ahead of her and sat down, pretending to be blind and began to plead, “Is there anyone here who can guide me where I want to go?”

“Oh, the poor blind man,” the woman said, and she came up to him and said, “Oh, I’m sorry for you. You are blind. I would like to help you but both my hands are full, one with the rope and ram, and the other with the jar of butter. So I can’t help you.”

“Oh, but you can,” the thief said. “Give me the rope and I’ll pull the ram. Then take my stick with that hand and guide me where I want to go.”

“That’s a good idea,” she said, and she took his stick and gave him his rope.

After a while the other thief, following, took the rope off the ram’s neck and took it.

The pseudo blind man said, “Oh, the rope is light now. What happened?”

The woman looked back and saw that her ram had gone.

“Oh, I didn’t feel anything. Just that the rope became very light.”

“What shall we do now?” the woman said.

“Why don’t you go back and look for the ram and I’ll look after your butter for you?” the thief said.

So she agreed and went to find the ram, and the thief ran off with the butter.

Then the two thieves met in the bush with the ram and butter. They ate them, but they both fell very seriously ill.

“What happened to you?” everyone said.

“Oh, we’ve done a bad thing. We took a ram and a pot of butter from a woman going to market. Maybe she has children who are hungry. We are very sorry that now we are about to die.”

The moral is that even if you are not punished by man, God will punish you.

THE CLEVER WOMAN AND THE SHEIKH WHO MAKES MISTAKES
Narrated by Abdul Hakim Abdulahi Jibril

Once there was a sheikh who was drawing water up from the well for the village people. One of the village women he loved, but she was married.

When she sent her son to the well, he said, “No, you can’t take the water. You’re too small. Send your mother to fetch the water.”

So at last, she came. Then he started to flatter her cleverness and beauty. At last she fell in love with him, but she didn’t tell anyone how she felt, and grew silent and thoughtful. She just walked back to her house.

She decided to discuss it with her husband.

She said, “I think this man likes me, and he wants me to agree to meet him secretly. I didn’t know what to do, so I decided to tell you so that we can get out of this problem without a fight or a scandal, since I am a married lady. We must discourage him, but how?”

So they talked for a long time, and they decided she must go outside and tell him the husband has gone away and she can be with him all evening and all night. Then, as soon as the sheikh has come, her husband must come home and will knock at the door, which she will have locked. At once the wife will dress the sheikh in women’s clothes to pretend he is a woman.

So the woman went to the well to get water. As soon as he saw her the sheikh begged her to meet him alone.

She’d never answered him before, but this time she said, “A great person has many eyes, which means he can understand everything. So I have understood what you want. I was silent up to now because my husband was present, but now he’s gone away. Now’s our chance. Come to me, and we can talk and do whatever we like.”

The sheikh was very happy and excited.

“When can I come?” he said.

“Come as soon as you’ve said your evening prayers,” she said.

He agreed at once, but then he grew thoughtful.

“What can I say to my wife?” he thought. “I never go out in the evening. I must give her a good reason or she will suspect something.”

At last he decided to tell his wife he would be out till ten o’clock that evening.

“Why?” said his wife. “This is extraordinary. You never go out at night.”

But he said, “There’s a verse in the Koran which is very hard to translate, and since I’m a sheikh, people have called me to a meeting to explain it to them.”

“Oh, that’s good,” she said. “If it’s about religion, of course you must go.”

So off he went to the woman’s house. As soon as he entered, she put down the beautiful mat and gave him tea. Before he had finished his tea, she locked the door.

As she had agreed with her husband, as soon as she locked the door, he knocked and shouted, “Wife! Wife! I couldn’t get a bus, so I’ve come back.”

As soon as the sheikh heard that the husband had been unable to leave, he was shocked.

The wife whispered, “We’re in trouble. My husband has come back.”

“What shall we do?” he said.

“I know,” she said. “Put on my dress and I’ll hide you. So if he asks who’s talking, I’ll say it’s a housemaid I have."

So she gave him the dress and he put it on and she opened the door. And she wrapped her scarf round her face and pretended to be very shy.

The husband came in and said, “Wife, I have brought you some maize, a sack of it.”

“Oh, how lovely!” said the wife.

“You’re lucky,” the husband said, “that the housemaid is here because the maize has not been pounded, and there is so much of it. Bring the mortar and pestle and let her start pounding.”

So the sheikh started to pound. The man sat close beside him and the sheikh had to keep his back turned and go on pounding. He had to go on and on, and pound the maize.

“Why won’t this husband go away?” he said. “I’m so tired of pounding all this maize.”

He went on and on until all the maize was pounded and, as soon as he had finished, the wife said, “Well done, you’ve done well. You can go.”

So the sheikh rushed home, but he was still in a woman’s dress. His wife was shocked.

“Oh! You are wearing a woman’s dress. You know the Koran says that for a man to wear a woman’s dress is a great sin.”

“Oh, I couldn’t help it,” the sheikh said. “We were discussing the verse in the Koran which calls Satan the evil one, and he came himself. At once he began to beat everyone, and luckily there was a woman’s dress near me and I put it on, and even Satan would be ashamed to beat a woman, so he let me run away.”

“Oh,” the wife said, “then you did very well to escape, even if you had to wear a woman’s dress.”

The next day, at the well, the woman came to the sheikh again and said, “My husband is going away tonight. I’m sure he will have gone, so come to my house.”

“Oh no,” said the sheikh. “I don’t want to pound maize all evening. If I want to do that, I have plenty of maize at home.”

HOW THE CAT BECAME THE WOMAN’S FRIEND
Narrated by Abdul Hakim Abdulahi Jibril

At the beginning of the world, the cat was the friend of the antelope in the bush. But once the lion came to the bush and fought and killed the antelope. So the cat thought the lion was better, and became a friend of the lion. But then a group of elephants fought the lion and the lion was killed, so she became the friend of the elephants. Then she saw a man kill an elephant.

“Oh, this is better than the elephant,” and she became the friend of man.

As soon as the man went into his house there was a quarrel with his wife, and his wife ran at him with a stick, shouting, “Where have you been?”

And she shouted many bad things to him. So the man ran away.

“Oh,” said the cat, “the woman is stronger than the man.”

So she became the friend of the woman.

EGAL SHEEDA
Narrator Unknown

A long time ago there was a man called Egal Sheeda. One day, his bull went to the field of a neighbour and ate his crops. The neighbour came and protested to Egal Sheeda. Egal Sheeda promised that it wouldn’t happen again. But the next day the bull went again and ate from the neighbour’s field.

So the neighbour was very angry and came charging to Egal Sheeda and said, “You promised that your bull would not eat my crops. But today he has done it again.”

So Egal Sheeda said, “As you can see I cannot control the bull. So the only thing I can suggest is that you have to slaughter it.”

So they slaughtered the bull and brought the meat to Egal Sheeda. Egal Sheeda took the beef and went to the market and sold it. And when he returned, he told his neighbours he had sold the beef from the bull and got a lot of money.

So the neighbours were amazed and thought to themselves, “If we could slaughter our bulls and sell their meat, we can get money like Egal Sheeda.”

So they slaughtered all their bulls and went to the market. But that day nobody could sell their beef.

So the neighbours said to themselves, “Egal Sheeda has cheated us, so what shall we do about him?”

They decided to put him in a sack and throw him in the river so that he will die.

They went to Egal Sheeda’s house and grabbed him and put him in a sack. But before throwing him in the river, it was time for them to pray to God. So all the neighbours went to pray.

At this time, a farmer was passing by and he saw this sack sitting by the side of the river. And when he looked at it closely, he found out that a man was in that sack.

So he said, “What are you doing in that sack?”

Egal Sheeda said, “I’m going to be thrown into the river, so that I can bring gold to the town.”

The farmer said, “Let me be the one to bring the gold from the river,” because he wants to get rich.

So Egal Sheeda said, “All right.”

So he came out of the sack and put the farmer inside the sack and went away, taking the farmer’s many sheep and cattle.

Then the neighbours, after their prayer, came to the river and, thinking that Egal Sheeda was still in the sack, they threw it into the river. When they went home, they found Egal Sheeda with so many cattle and sheep, sitting at his home. They were surprised.

They said, “How did you manage to get out of the river? Where did you come from? And where do all these sheep and cattle come from?”

Egal Sheeda said, “You threw me into the river and I found so much gold lying on the river bed. I brought it out and sold it and bought all these sheep and cattle.”

So they said, “If that’s the case, let us all be put in sacks and thrown into the river so that we can get rich like you.”

So he put them in sacks and threw them into the river and they all died and he inherited all their property.

End of the story.

 

[yuusufdiin]

my favorite folktales

ISAAQ
According to some genealogical books and Somali tradition, the Isaaq clan was founded in the 13th or 14th century with the arrival of Sheikh Isaaq Bin Ahmed Bin Mohammed Al Hashimi (Sheikh Isaaq) from Arabia, a descendant of Ali ibn Abi Talib in Maydh

DAROD
According to early Islamic books and Somali tradition, Muhammad ibn Aqil's descendant Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti (Darod), a son of the Sufi Sheikh Isma'il al-Jabarti of the Qadiriyyah order, fled his homeland in the Arabian Peninsula after an argument with his uncle.

 

[Cigaal]

my favorite folktales

In all seriousness who's editing the isaaq page? The writer has poor grammar and has no sources to back up claims like this "The origin of Sheikh Isaaq was traced back to Iraq. Researcher and groups such as AlAshraf concluded beyond doubt the origin and the history of Sheikh Isaaq. This research was based on the old books and scripts as well as DNA tests carried out randomly on some his descendants."

 

[yuusufdiin]

In all seriousness who's editing the isaaq page? The writer has poor grammar and has no sources to back up claims like this "The origin of Sheikh Isaaq was traced back to Iraq. Researcher and groups such as AlAshraf concluded beyond doubt the origin and the history of Sheikh Isaaq. This research was based on the old books and scripts as well as DNA tests carried out randomly on some his descendants."

suugo science wasnt enough to unravel this mystery so he had to use timiro testing

 

[Cigaal]

In all seriousness I don't see why daroods and isaaqs get flack for claiming Arab descent. All Somali clans tried connecting their ancestors to Arabs. Even Rahanweyn claimed to be arabs. Only difference is certain clans like daroods bootyclap more for Arabs than others.

 

[daacad]

Igal Shidal and the Enemy

Once there was a man named Igal Shidal. While Igal Shidal was asleep, his wife heard that enemies from a neighboring town would soon attack them. Igal Shidal's wife quickly ran home to wake her husband, to tell him about the attack. Igal Shidal didn't believe his wife. He said, "You always make things up, and tell stories to frighten me."
His wife said, "I didn't make this up. It's true. All the women and children are talking about the attack. The men are already gathered to get ready for the attack. You are a man. You must help them now."
While they were talking, the enemy arrived. The people in town shouted, "Here they come."
Igal Shidal wondered what he should do. Then he said to his wife, "We can't escape now. The enemy will kill all the men. I am going to sleep in front of our house. Roll me in a rug, and cry, 'Oh, my husband is dead.'"
Igal Shidal's wife wrapped him in a rug, and she cried and cried. Igal Shidal didn't trust her to cry as much as he wanted her to cry. So he said to her, "Cry louder! Cry until tears come from your eyes."
While she was crying, the enemy came. They asked her when her husband had died. Before she could answer, Igal Shidal said from inside the rug, "Say that he died yesterday."
His wife said, "He died yesterday."
The enemy was shocked to hear Igal Shidal speak. They said, "This is not a real man. He is such a coward that he cannot hurt us. Let him live with the women and the children. Let's go."

Lesson : People don't respect a coward.

this is not how the story goes unless I was told in a different way.
the one I told was that cigal shidaal and his sibilings arranged to go to a battle but cigaal didn't want to go so the day they were planning to go to the battle, he said to his wife that he was going to hide in the house and that she should tell them that "he died"..... After they come to his house they asked her "where is cigaal" and she said "he died" after that one them asked "when did he die" and because he(cigaal) didn't tell her the answer if they asked before she said anything he screamed from the house "tell them he died yesterday"

 

[yuusufdiin]

In all seriousness I don't see why daroods and isaaqs get flack for claiming Arab descent. All Somali clans tried connecting their ancestors to Arabs. Even Rahanweyn claimed to be arabs. Only difference is certain clans like daroods bootyclap more for Arabs than others.

i never heard other tribes claim to be arab, hawiye and dir have samaale lineage, most will tell you samaale was somali but you'll have a few that claim he was arab, us D&M have sab lineage (samaale's brother), ive even heard that darod's are descendant from samaale as well i dont buy this arab lineage bullshit we all share the same lineage

 

[Cigaal]

i never heard other tribes claim to be arab, hawiye and dir have samaale lineage, most will tell you samaale was somali but you'll have a few that claim he was arab, us D&M have sab lineage (samaale's brother), ive even heard that darod's are descendant from samaale as well i dont buy this arab lineage bullshit

Dir and hawiye don't claim Arab anymore. Some clans tried connecting the samaale and Sab with arabs by saying they are descendants of aqeel bin Abi talib but it's obviously bullshit. Isaaq is a dir subclan but for some reason they claim Arab now. I'm not really sure about daroods though.

 

[Cigaal]

Igal Shidal and the Enemy

Once there was a man named Igal Shidal. While Igal Shidal was asleep, his wife heard that enemies from a neighboring town would soon attack them. Igal Shidal's wife quickly ran home to wake her husband, to tell him about the attack. Igal Shidal didn't believe his wife. He said, "You always make things up, and tell stories to frighten me."
His wife said, "I didn't make this up. It's true. All the women and children are talking about the attack. The men are already gathered to get ready for the attack. You are a man. You must help them now."
While they were talking, the enemy arrived. The people in town shouted, "Here they come."
Igal Shidal wondered what he should do. Then he said to his wife, "We can't escape now. The enemy will kill all the men. I am going to sleep in front of our house. Roll me in a rug, and cry, 'Oh, my husband is dead.'"
Igal Shidal's wife wrapped him in a rug, and she cried and cried. Igal Shidal didn't trust her to cry as much as he wanted her to cry. So he said to her, "Cry louder! Cry until tears come from your eyes."
While she was crying, the enemy came. They asked her when her husband had died. Before she could answer, Igal Shidal said from inside the rug, "Say that he died yesterday."
His wife said, "He died yesterday."
The enemy was shocked to hear Igal Shidal speak. They said, "This is not a real man. He is such a coward that he cannot hurt us. Let him live with the women and the children. Let's go."

Lesson : People don't respect a coward.

this is not how the story goes unless I was told in a different way.
the one I told was that cigal shidaal and his sibilings arranged to go to a battle but cigaal didn't want to go so the day they were planning to go to the battle, he said to his wife that he was going to hide in the house and that she should tell them that "he died"..... After they come to his house they asked her "where is cigaal" and she said "he died" after that one them asked "when did he die" and because he(cigaal) didn't tell her the answer if they asked before she said anything he screamed from the house "tell them he died yesterday"

I guess different regions have different versions of the story

 

[yuusufdiin]

Dir and hawiye don't claim Arab anymore. Some clans tried connecting the samaale and Sab with arabs by saying they are descendants of aqeel bin Abi talib but it's obviously bullshit. Isaaq is a dir subclan but for some reason they claim Arab now. I'm not really sure about daroods though.

yea ive also heard plenty of times that isaaq is a dir subclan

 

[daacad]

I guess different regions have different versions of the story

I guess so because this story and cigaal and the lion stump story are both different to the one I heard

 

[Cigaal]

yea ive also heard plenty of times that isaaq is a dir subclan

Yeah im dir (biimaal) myself and I always though they were maha dir aswell. I guess they just copied daroods and claimed banu hashim.

 

[yuusufdiin]

Yeah im dir (biimaal) myself and I always though they were maha dir aswell. I guess they just copied daroods and claimed banu hashim.

Most biimaals I've met are very kind

 

[Cigaal]

Most biimaals I've met are very kind

Thank you, rahanweyn are also good people

 

[yuusufdiin]

Thank you, rahanweyn are also good people

Thanks aboowe
What region are u from?

 

[Cigaal]

Thanks aboowe
What region are u from?

Merca

 

[yuusufdiin]

Merca