Somali (af Soomaali / اَف صَومالي˜ )

Somali is a member of the East Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family. It is spoken mainly in Somalia, and also in Djibouti and Ethiopia. In Somali it is an offical language, in Djibouti it is a national language, and it is a working language in the Somali Region of Ethiopia. In 2015 there were about 15 million Somali speakers.

Somali has been written with a number of different scripts, including an Arabic-based abjad known as Wadaad's writing, a Latin-based alphabet and the Borama, Osmanya and Kaddare alphabets. The current official script for Somali is the Latin alphabet.

Wadaad's writing ( وَداد )

The Arabic script was first introduced in the 13th century by Sheikh Yusuf al-Kowneyn to aid Koranic teaching. In the 19th century Sheikh Uways al-Barawi improved the writing of Somali with the Arabic script and based it on the Maay dialect of Southern Somalia. A Somali linguists, Muuse Xaaji Ismaaciil Galaal, radically altered the spelling conventions for Somali written with the Arabic script and introduced a set of new symbols for the vowels in the 1950s.

Source: http://www.afrikanistik-online.de/archiv/2010/2723

Sample text

Source: https://www.somalinet.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=378236

Borama/Gadabuursi alphabet

In 1933 Sheikh Abdurahman Sheikh Nuur invented another script for Somali known as Borama or Gadabuursi which was only used by the Sheikh's small circle of associates in Borama.

Sample text

Translation

My beloved brother Huseen, Peace.

I am well, the reer is at Đoobo.

The big burden camel has been eaten by a lion. 'Ali has come.

The goods have been received by us. Send us (some) ghee.

Out mother has come. Your brother Guuleed has gone to Hargeisa.



Nuur Bile,

Borama.

Somali/Osmanya alphabet (𐒋𐒘𐒈𐒑𐒛𐒒𐒕𐒀)

The Osmanya alphabet was created in between 1920 and 1922 by Osman Yusuf Kenadid (Cusmaan Yuusuf Keenadiid / عثمان يوسف), brother of the Sultan of Obbia. In Somali it is known as Farta Cismaanya / 𐒋𐒘𐒈𐒑𐒛𐒒𐒕𐒀 (Somali writing) or Far Soomaali (Somali writing). It replaced an attempt by Sheikh Uweys to devise an Arabic-based alphabet for Somali, and has in turn been replaced by the Latin orthography devised by Shire Jama Ahmed, a Somali linguist, in 1972.

The Osmanya alphabet is not used much these days, though during the 1970s quite a number of people used it for personal correspondence and bookkeeping. A few books and magazines have also been published in the alphabet.

Notable features

Direction of writing: left to right in horizontal rows.

The names of the letters are based on Arabic letter names.

The letters waw and ya are used to write the long vowels uu and ii respectively.

Somali is a tonal language with three tones, which are not usually marked in the Osmanya alphabet. The tones have grammatical uses: they indicate number, gender and case.

Numerals

Sample text

Kaddare alphabet

The Kaddare alphabet was invented by Sheikh Hussein Sheikh Ahmed Kaddare of the Abgaal Hawiye clan in 1952. The letters have upper forms, which are shown on the first row of the chart below, and lower case forms, which are shown on the second row.

Sample text

Source: http://www.skyknowledge.com/kaddare.htm - alphabet information based on research by Ian James, who is uncertain about the use of this alphabet.

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

Latin alphabet for Somali

In 1961 both the Latin and Osmanya scripts were adopted for use in Somalia, but in 1969 there was a coup, with one of its stated aims the resolution of the debate over the country's writing system. The Latin alphabet was finally adopted in 1972 and at the same time Somali was made the sole official language of Somalia. Shire Jama Ahmed (Shire Jaamac Axmed / شيري جامع أحمد‎) is credited with the invention of this spelling system, and his system was chosen from among eighteen competing new orthographies.

Notes

Tones are marked as follows: the high tone with an acute accent (á), the low tone with a grave accent (à) and the falling tone with a circumflex (â).

Vowels can contrast breathy voice and harsh voice, and vowel length

Sample text

Aadanaha dhammaantiis wuxuu dhashaa isagoo xor ah kana siman xagga sharafta iyo xuquuqada Waxaa Alle (Ilaah) siiyay aqoon iyo wacyi, waana in qof la arkaa qofka kale ula dhaqmaa si walaaltinimo ah.

Hear recording of this text by Abdisalam Farah

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

Sample video in Somali

Information about Somali | Phrases | Numbers | Tower of Babel | Learning materials

Links

Information about the Somali language and alphabets

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somali_language

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somali_phonology

http://www.lmp.ucla.edu/Profile.aspx?LangID=202&menu=004

http://www.ethnologue.com/language/som

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaddare_alphabet

http://www.skyknowledge.com/kaddare.htm

http://www.dm.unipi.it/~jama/alif/qaamuus/gogoldhig.html

Somali lessons

http://www.digitaldialects.com/Somali.htm

http://learn101.org/somali.php

http://mylanguages.org/somali_audio.php

http://www.linguistics.universityofqaran.com/gpage2.html

http://www.youtube.com/user/AfSomali/videos

http://polymath.org/somali.php

Somali phrases



Online Somali dictionaries

http://www.afmaal.com/dictionary/

http://www.freelang.net/online/somali.php

Online Somali radio and news

http://somaliradio.net

http://radiomuqdisho.net/

http://www.radiofreesomalia.com/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/somali

http://www.voasomali.com

Free Osmanya fonts

http://www.wazu.jp/gallery/Fonts_Osmanya.html

Somalinet - a Somali portal (in Somali & English)

http://www.somalinet.com

Cushitic languages

Afaan-Oromo, Afar, Awngi, Beja, Blin, Gawwada, Iraqw, Somali, Xamtanga

Adlam, Armenian, Avestan, Avoiuli, Bassa (Vah), Beitha Kukju, Borama / Gadabuursi, Carian, Carpathian Basin Rovas, Chinuk pipa, Coorgi-Cox, Coptic, Cyrillic, Dalecarlian runes, Deseret, Elbasan, Etruscan, Faliscan, Galik, Georgian (Asomtavruli), Georgian (Nuskhuri), Georgian (Mkhedruli), Glagolitic, Gothic, Greek, Irish (Uncial), Kaddare, Khatt-i-Badí’, Khazarian Rovas, Korean, Latin, Lepontic, Luo Lakeside Script, Lycian, Lydian, Manchu, Mandaic, Mandombe, Marsiliana, Messapic, Mongolian, Mro, Mundari Bani, N'Ko, North Picene, Ogham, Old Church Slavonic, Oirat Clear Script, Old Italic, Old Nubian, Old Permic, Orkhon, Oscan, Pau Cin Hau, Phrygian, Pollard script, Runic, Santali, Székely-Hungarian Rovás (Hungarian Runes), Somali (Osmanya), South Picene, Sutton SignWriting, Tai Lue, Todhri, Umbrian, Uyghur, Zaghawa

Other writing systems

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