Borama Explained

Official Name:Borama
Native Name:
Settlement Type:City
Image Blank Emblem:Borama local council logo.svg
Blank Emblem Type:Local council Seal of Borama
Pushpin Map:Awdal#Somaliland
Pushpin Label Position:right
Pushpin Map Caption:Location of Borama
Pushpin Relief:yes
Coordinates:9.9358°N 43.1842°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Type2:Region
Subdivision Type3:District
Subdivision Name2:Awdal
Subdivision Name3:Borama District
Leader Title:Mayor
Leader Name:Mohamed Ahmed Warsame (Baradho)
Unit Pref:Metric
Area Total Km2:3,130
Elevation M:1,433
Population Density Km2:191.0
Population Est:300,000
Pop Est As Of:2023
Population Rank:3rd
Pop Est Footnotes:[1]
Area Code:+252
Timezone:EAT
Utc Offset:+3
Blank Name:Climate
Blank Info:BSh
Population Demonym:BOORAMAWI بورماوي
Iso Code:SO-AW

Borama (Somali: Boorama, Arabic: بورما) is the largest city of the northwestern Awdal region of Somaliland.[2] The commercial seat of the province, it is situated near the border with Ethiopia.

During the Middle Ages, Borama was ruled by the Adal Sultanate. It later formed a part of the British Somaliland protectorate in the first half of the 20th century.

According to a 2023 estimate the city had a population of 300,000,[3] with the broader district having a population of 398,609 according to a UN 2014 population estimate.[4] [5] [6] [7] making it one of the largest cities inside Somaliland. It has been a leading example in community organizing, having been the first area in Somaliland to adopt a self-help scheme in the wake of the civil war.[8]

History

See main article: Adal Sultanate and Somali aristocratic and court titles.

As with several nearby towns such as Amud, numerous archaeological finds have been discovered in the Borama area that point to an eventful past. The latter include ancient remains of tombs, houses and mosques, in addition to sherds of Oriental wares, particularly Chinese porcelain. The artefacts and structures date from various historical periods, ranging from the 12th through to the 18th centuries. Most, however, are from the 15th and 16th centuries, a time of great commercial activity in the region that is associated with the medieval Adal Sultanate.[9]

Excavations in the late 1800s and early 1900s at over fourteen sites in the vicinity of Borama unearthed, among other things, coins identified as having been derived from Kait Bey, the eighteenth Burji Mamluk Sultan of Egypt. Most of these finds were sent to the British Museum for preservation shortly after their discovery.[10]

In the first half of the 20th century, Borama formed a part of the British Somaliland protectorate. It was later given district status in 1925.

In 1933, Sheikh Abdurahman Sheikh Nuur, a Qur'anic teacher and son of Borama's qadi (judge), devised a new orthography for transcribing the Afro-Asiatic Cushitic Somali language. A quite accurate phonetic writing system, this Borama script was principally used by Nuur, his circle of associates in the city and some of the merchants in control of trade in Zeila and Borama. Students of Sheikh Nuur were also trained in the use of this script. .[11] [12] The alphabet is also generally known as the Gadabuursi script.[13]

In the post-independence period, Borama was administered as part of the official Awdal administrative region of Somalia. During the Ogaden War in the late 1970s, Borama was one of several northern cities aerially bombarded by Ethiopian forces.[14]

Geography

Location and habitat

Borama is situated in a mountainous and hilly area. It has green meadows and fields and represents a key focal point for wildlife. The town's unusual fertility and greenery in the largely arid countryside have attracted many faunas, such as gazelles, birds, and camels.

Climate

The prevailing climate in Borama is known as a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen BSh). The hottest month of the year is June, with an average temperature of 24.11NaN1, whilst the coolest month is January, whose average temperature is 17.11NaN1. The difference in rainfall between the driest month and the wettest month is 1101NaN1. The average temperatures vary during the year by 71NaN1.[15]

Demographics

The Awdal Region in which the city is situated is mainly inhabited by the Gadabuursi subclan of the Dir who are especially well represented and considered the predominant clan of the region.[16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] [24]

Federico Battera (2005) states about the Awdal Region:

"Awdal is mainly inhabited by the Gadabuursi confederation of clans."[25]

A UN report published by Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (1999), states concerning Awdal:

"The Gadabuursi clan dominates Awdal region. As a result, regional politics in Awdal is almost synonymous with Gadabuursi internal clan affairs."[19]

Roland Marchal (1997) states that numerically, the Gadabuursi are the predominant inhabitants of the Awdal Region:

"The Gadabuursi's numerical predominance in Awdal virtually ensures that Gadabuursi interests drive the politics of the region."[26]

Marleen Renders and Ulf Terlinden (2010) both state that the Gadabuursi almost exclusively inhabit the Awdal Region:

"Awdal in western Somaliland is situated between Djibouti, Ethiopia, and the Issaq-populated mainland of Somaliland. It is primarily inhabited by the three sub-clans of the Gadabursi clan, whose traditional institutions survived the colonial period, Somali statehood and the war in good shape, remaining functionally intact and highly relevant to public security."[27]

There is also a sizeable minority of the Issa subclan of the Dir who mainly inhabit the Zeila district.[28]

Education

Currently, there are 52 primary and secondary schools in Borama. These schools can be divided into three main categories: public primary and secondary schools, private primary and secondary schools and Religious schools.

Total number of students in Borama is 15,314.[29]

Transportation

For air transportation, Borama is served by the Borama International Airport.[30] It is the only airport in the Awdal region. The facility was named in honor of Aden Isaq Ahmed, Somalia's first Minister of Education. The airport is not in use; however, there are plans to rejuvenate it.[31]

Notable residents

See also

References

Notes and References

  1. Web site: SDF funded Borama Water Supply Expansion Project Commissioned. dmy-all.
  2. Web site: Somalia City & Town Population. FAO. https://web.archive.org/web/20150211231231/http://www.faoswalim.org/ftp/Land_Reports/Cleared/L-03%20Land%20Cover%20of%20Selected%20Study%20Areas%20in%20Somaliland%20and%20Southern%20Somalia.pdf. 11 February 2015. 20 October 2015 .
  3. Web site: SDF funded Borama Water Supply Expansion Project Commissioned . dmy-all.
  4. Web site: Regions, districts, and their populations: Somalia 2005 (draft) . . . 31 December 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170728203029/https://docs.unocha.org/sites/dms/Somalia/UNDP-POP-RURAL-URBAN%202005.pdf . 28 July 2017 . dead.
  5. Web site: Boorama (District, Somalia) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location .
  6. Book: Solar Eclipses 2024–2027: Where and When to Experience Totality. 13 March 2023. Bradt Travel Guides. 978-1-80469-162-5. dmy-all.
  7. Web site: Utilization pattern of antenatal care and determining factors among reproductive-age women in Borama, Somaliland. dmy-all.
  8. Borama Local Council, p.10.
  9. Bernard Samuel Myers, ed., Encyclopedia of World Art, Volume 13, (McGraw-Hill: 1959), p.xcii.
  10. Royal Geographical Society (Great Britain), The Geographical Journal, Volume 87, (Royal Geographical Society: 1936), p.301.
  11. David D. Laitin, Politics, Language, and Thought: The Somali Experience, (University Of Chicago Press: 1977), pp.86-87.
  12. Abdi Ismail Samatar (2001), Borama History and the Gadabuursi script, Bildhaan Studies Macalaster College, Vol. 1, pp. 115-116
  13. Web site: Somali alphabets, pronunciation and language. Omniglot. 3 January 2015.
  14. Web site: Mohamoud . Abdulkadir . The Night SNM Fighters came to Hargeisa . Warheernews . 3 January 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120528045317/http://www.wardheernews.com/Articles_10/Oct/06_snm_hargeisa_partII_abdulkadir.html . 28 May 2012 .
  15. Web site: Climate: Borama – Climate graph, Temperature graph, Climate table. Climate-Data.org. 25 September 2013.
  16. Book: Ambroso, G (2002). Pastoral society and transnational refugees:population movements in Somaliland and eastern Ethiopia 1988 - 2000 . 5. Main sub-clan(s) Habr Awal, Region(s): Waqooyi Galbeed, Main districts: Gabiley, Hargeisa, Berbera. Main sub-clan(s) Gadabursi, Region(s): Awdal, Main districts: Borama, Baki, part. Gabiley, Zeila, Lughaya.. .
  17. Samatar, Abdi I.. Somali Reconstruction and Local Initiative: Amoud University. Bildhaan. 4 November 2008 . 1 . 1 . 132. Samaroon or Gadabursi is the clan name for the majority of people of Awdal origin..
  18. Book: Battera . Federico . Walter Dostal, Wolfgang Kraus (ed.) . Shattering Tradition: Custom, Law and the Individual in the Muslim Mediterranean . 18 March 2010 . 2005 . I.B. Taurus . London . 1-85043-634-7 . 296 . Chapter 9: The Collapse of the State and the Resurgence of Customary Law in Northern Somalia . https://books.google.com/books?id=Pos3wAofV4UC&pg=PA278 . Awdal is mainly inhabited by the Gadabuursi confederation of clans. The Gadaabursi are concentrated in Awdal..
  19. UN (1999) Somaliland: Update to SML26165.E of 14 February 1997 on the situation in Zeila, including who is controlling it, whether there is fighting in the area, and whether refugees are returning. "Gadabuursi clan dominates Awdal region. As a result, regional politics in Awdal is almost synonymous with Gadabuursi internal clan affairs." p. 5.
  20. Book: Renders . Marleen . Terlinden . Ulf . Negotiating Statehood: Dynamics of Power and Domination in Africa . Chapter 9: Negotiating Statehood in a Hybrid Political Order: The Case of Somaliland . Tobias Hagmann . Didier Péclard . 191. 2012-01-21. "Awdal in western Somaliland is situated between Djibouti, Ethiopia and the Issaq-populated mainland of Somaliland. It is primarily inhabited by the three sub-clans of the Gadabursi clan, whose traditional institutions survived the colonial period, Somali statehood and the war in good shape, remaining functionally intact and highly relevant to public security.".
  21. Book: Jörg, J. What are Somalia's Development Perspectives?. 2001 . 132. Verlag Hans Schiler . 978-3-86093-230-8 . Awdal region, populated by Dir clans : the Gadabursi and ` Cisa, is credited as being the most stable region in Somaliland . This is mainly due to peacekeeping efforts on the part of the Gadabursi clan who dominate this region..
  22. Book: Countries That Aren't Really Countries. 22. The Isaaq are concentrated primarily in the regions of Maroodi Jeex, Sanaag, Gabiley, Togdheer and Saaxil. The Gadabuursi inhabit the west, pre-dominantly in Awdal, the Zeila district of Salal and parts of Gabiley..
  23. Book: Bruchhaus, E. M, Sommer, M. M.. Hot Spot Horn of Africa Revisited (2008). 2008 . 54. 978-3-8258-1314-7 . Next to the three sub-clans of the Gadabursi, a small minority of Ciisse inhabits Awdal..
  24. Book: Deutsches Institut für Afrika-Forschung. Afrika Spectrum Volume 43. 2008 . 77. Gadabursi being the major descent group in the Awdal region..
  25. Book: Battera . Federico . Walter Dostal, Wolfgang Kraus (ed.) . Shattering Tradition: Custom, Law and the Individual in the Muslim Mediterranean . 2010-03-18 . 2005 . I.B. Taurus . London . 1-85043-634-7 . 296 . Chapter 9: The Collapse of the State and the Resurgence of Customary Law in Northern Somalia . https://books.google.com/books?id=Pos3wAofV4UC&pg=PA278 . Awdal is mainly inhabited by the Gadabuursi confederation of clans..
  26. Web site: United Nations Development Office for Somalia: Studies on Governance: Awdal Region. 1997. dmy-all. The Gadabuursi's numerical predominance in Awdal virtually ensures that Gadabuursi interests drive the politics of the region.. Marchal. Roland.
  27. Book: Renders . Marleen . Terlinden . Ulf . Negotiating Statehood: Dynamics of Power and Domination in Africa . Chapter 9: Negotiating Statehood in a Hybrid Political Order: The Case of Somaliland . Tobias Hagmann . Didier Péclard . 191. 2012-01-21. "Awdal in western Somaliland is situated between Djibouti, Ethiopia and the Issaq-populated mainland of Somaliland. It is primarily inhabited by the three sub-clans of the Gadabursi clan, whose traditional institutions survived the colonial period, Somali statehood and the war in good shape, remaining functionally intact and highly relevant to public security.".
  28. Book: Janzen. J.. von Vitzthum. S.. Somali Studies International Association. What are Somalia's Development Perspectives?: Science Between Resignation and Hope? : Proceedings of the 6th SSIA Congress, Berlin 6-9 December 1996. Das Arabische Buch. Proceedings of the ... SSIA-Congress. 2001. 978-3-86093-230-8. 20 July 2018. 132. https://web.archive.org/web/20180720102419/https://books.google.com/books?id=DZJPm2j2iz4C&pg=PA132. 20 July 2018. live. dmy-all.
  29. Web site: 2011/2 Primary School Census Statistics Yearbook. 2018-02-13. 2023-03-03. https://web.archive.org/web/20230303002340/https://www.unicef.org/somalia/SOM_resources_primschoolcensus20112.pdf. dead.
  30. Web site: Borama International Airport. Altius Directory. 31 August 2013.
  31. Web site: Minister of Aviation pledges to rejuvenate Borama airport | SOMALILANDINFORMER . 2015-01-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150403133013/http://www.somalilandinformer.com/minister-of-aviation-pledges-to-rejuvenate-borama-airport/ . 2015-04-03 .

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