Somalia

Introduction & Quick Facts
Land
- Relief
- Drainage
- Soils
- Climate
- Plant and animal life
People
- Ethnic groups
- Languages
- Religion
- Settlement patterns
- Demographic trends
Economy
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing
- Resources and power
- Manufacturing
- Finance
- Trade
- Transportation
Government and society
- Constitutional framework
- Health and welfare
- Housing
- Education
Cultural life
- Cultural milieu
- Daily life and social customs
- The arts
- Media and publishing
History
- Exploration
  - Early activity on the coasts
  - Penetration of the interior
- Before partition
  - Peoples of the coasts and hinterland
  - The great Somali migrations
  - Somali clans and foreign traders
- The imperial partition
  - Competition between the European powers and Ethiopia
  - Revolt in British Somaliland
  - Italian Somaliland
- The Somali Republic
  - Independence and union
  - Pan-Somalism
  - The era of “Scientific Socialism”
  - Civil war
  - Attempts at peace
  - A new government
  - Parliamentary and presidential elections in 2016–17
  - Mohamed’s administration (2017–22), preparations for the 2021–22 elections, and ongoing insecurity
  - Mohamud’s second term (2022– ), federal-state disputes, and al-Shabaab threat
  - Tensions with Somaliland

References & Edit History Facts & Stats

Images

Map of Somalia showing its national boundaries, major cities such as Mogadishu, Hargeysa, Kismaayo, and Boosaaso, and surrounding countries including Ethiopia, Kenya, and Djibouti. The Indian Ocean borders Somalia to the east, and a small locator map highlights Somalia's position in eastern Africa.

Fishermen stand on a sandy beach and in shallow water near small boats at the port of Mogadishu, Somalia, with weathered buildings and dark clouds in the background.

Map highlighting Somalia in eastern Africa, shaded in orange, with surrounding countries labeled, including Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti, Eritrea, Uganda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Yemen across the Gulf of Aden. The capital city, Mogadishu, is marked along the southeastern coast on the Indian Ocean.

Map showing Somaliland in the northwest region of Somalia, with solid lines marking international boundaries and dashed lines indicating disputed boundaries with Puntland and Somalia. Major cities such as Hargeysa, Berbera, Boosaaso, Garoowe, and Mogadishu are labeled, along with neighboring countries Djibouti, Ethiopia, and Kenya.

Map of Somalia and its surrounding region in East Africa, showing major physical features such as the Nugaaleed Valley, Galgodon Highlands, and mountain ranges including the Cal Madow and Dharoor Valleys. Neighboring countries Ethiopia, Kenya, and Djibouti are labeled, as are nearby bodies of water, the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. An inset locator map highlights Somalia's position on the African continent.

Somalia: Ethnic composition

Somalia: Religious affiliation

Somalia: Urban-rural

Somalia: Age breakdown

At a Glance

default image

Somalia summary

Somalia: Media

country, Africa

Images

Somalia

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Map of Somalia showing its national boundaries, major cities such as Mogadishu, Hargeysa, Kismaayo, and Boosaaso, and surrounding countries including Ethiopia, Kenya, and Djibouti. The Indian Ocean borders Somalia to the east, and a small locator map highlights Somalia's position in eastern Africa.

Somalia

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Fishermen stand on a sandy beach and in shallow water near small boats at the port of Mogadishu, Somalia, with weathered buildings and dark clouds in the background.

Mogadishu, Somalia

Fishermen at the port of Mogadishu, Somalia.

© Sadik Gulec/Dreamstime.com

Map highlighting Somalia in eastern Africa, shaded in orange, with surrounding countries labeled, including Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti, Eritrea, Uganda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Yemen across the Gulf of Aden. The capital city, Mogadishu, is marked along the southeastern coast on the Indian Ocean.

Somalia

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Map showing Somaliland in the northwest region of Somalia, with solid lines marking international boundaries and dashed lines indicating disputed boundaries with Puntland and Somalia. Major cities such as Hargeysa, Berbera, Boosaaso, Garoowe, and Mogadishu are labeled, along with neighboring countries Djibouti, Ethiopia, and Kenya.

Somalia, Somaliland, and Puntland

The Republic of Somalia experienced fragmentation in the 1990s: The self-proclaimed...

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Map of Somalia and its surrounding region in East Africa, showing major physical features such as the Nugaaleed Valley, Galgodon Highlands, and mountain ranges including the Cal Madow and Dharoor Valleys. Neighboring countries Ethiopia, Kenya, and Djibouti are labeled, as are nearby bodies of water, the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. An inset locator map highlights Somalia's position on the African continent.

Physical features of Somalia

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Thematic map of the Horn of Africa showing major peoples and language areas, with regions shaded to indicate where Semitic languages (in pink) and Cushitic languages (in green) are spoken. The map highlights ethnic groups such as Amhara, Tigray, Oromo, Somali, and Sidamo across Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, and surrounding areas.

Peoples and language areas of the Horn of Africa

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Aḥmad ibn Ibrāhīm al-Ghāzī

Aḥmad ibn Ibrāhīm al-Ghāzī

Statue of the 16th-century Muslim leader Aḥmad ibn Ibrāhīm al-Ghāzī (also known as...

RoboRanks

Historical map of eastern Africa around 1850 showing major states such as Kefa, Buganda, and the Sultanate of Zanzibar, along with minor states, stateless peoples, and the Maasai. Red lines trace major trade routes connecting inland regions to the Red Sea, Arabian Peninsula, and Indian Ocean, while green arrows indicate directions of expansion by groups like the Oromo and Maasai. Major lakes, rivers, and mountain landmarks are labeled throughout the region.

Major states, peoples, and trade routes of eastern Africa, c. 1850

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Historical map of eastern Africa around 1914, showing the region divided among British, German, French, and Italian colonial powers. Different territories are color-coded by colonial ruler, with key locations such as British East Africa (Kenya and Uganda), German East Africa (including present-day Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi), Italian Somaliland, and French Somaliland labeled. Major lakes, rivers, and cities are also marked.

Imperial partitions of eastern Africa, 1881–1925

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Antique map showing northeast Africa from the early 1900s, including regions labeled as Tripoli, Egypt, Libya, Abyssinia, Darfur, and Wadai. The map features detailed borders, cities, and geographic features of the period, with an inset in the upper right corner highlighting the Nile Delta and the Suez Canal.

Somalia, c. 1902

Map of northeastern Africa, with British Somaliland (as British Somali Coast Protectorate)...

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Mogadishu, Somalia

Mogadishu, Somalia

Abandoned street in Mogadishu, Somalia, that was the dividing line between warring...

PH1 R. Oriez/U.S. Department of Defense

pirates off the coast of Somalia

pirates off the coast of Somalia

Pirates and their hostages waiting on the deck of a captive Ukrainian cargo ship...

Jason R. Zalasky/U.S. Navy

Somali National Theater

Somali National Theater

Singers performing at the Somali National Theater during a program marking the reopening...

Omar Faruk—Reuters/Alamy

Somalia: 2017 presidential election

Somalia: 2017 presidential election

Votes being counted in the first round of parliament's election of the president,...

AP Images

2022 handover ceremony

2022 handover ceremony

The outgoing president of Somalia, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, presenting the Somalian...

© Hasan Ali Elmi—AFP/Getty Images

Somalia

Somalia

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Interactives

Somalia: Ethnic composition

Somalia: Ethnic composition

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Somalia: Religious affiliation

Somalia: Religious affiliation

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Somalia: Urban-rural

Somalia: Urban-rural

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Somalia: Age breakdown

Somalia: Age breakdown

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Somalia: Major export destinations

Somalia: Major export destinations

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Somalia: Major import sources

Somalia: Major import sources

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Colonization of Africa: Maps, Timeline, Decolonization, & Independence

Colonization of Africa: Maps, Timeline, Decolonization, & Independence

Learn about the colonization of Africa, the process of decolonization that led to...

© Encyclopaedia Britannica

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