Somalia can be dated back to the prehistoric era as far as 9,000 BC, and proof of this has been found in Laas Gaal caves. Archaeologists have found some of the earliest known rock paintings and descriptions on the African continent. However the texts written on the cave walls still haven’t been able to be deciphered. Also genetic research has proven that the Somalia DNA originates from Egypt. Ancient pyramid structures, tombs and stonewalls have been found in Somalia which brings about evidence of ancient sophisticated civilization.
Somalia was known as the Kingdom of Punt, which was an ancient society with their own writing system. The current language is also a survived ancient-Egyptian language. They also had trading relations with ancient Egypt and Mycenaean Greece since at least the 2nd millennium BC. Punt was sacred to the Egyptians because they supplied them with majority of there rice. Also, Egyptian ships could reach the shores of Somalia and obtain valuable goods like myrrh, ebony, and animals.
The Egyptians would occasionally refer to the Land of as Ta-Netjeru, which meant the land of gods. Ancient Egypt believed that they had originated from the Land of Punt and there people migrated down stream of the Nile River to the lands of Egypt. They also state even their Queen Hatshepsut was also from the lands of Somalia. The Egyptian culture shaped allot of ancient Somalia’s religious beliefs, which I will be discussing next.
Dhaqan, which in the Somali language means religion, was established during the pre-islamic times, and was practiced as a complex Monotheistic belief. This belief was referenced to practice the worship of Eebe, which in Somali means God also referred to as Waaq. Waaq was said to have lived in the heavens, and whenever the Somalis successfully prayed for rain it was known as Bar-waaqo, which in Somali means God’s rain. The Ayaanle in Ancient Somalia were known as the good spirits or Angels and acted as mediators between God Eebe and humans. They were said to be bringers of luck and blessings from Eebe in Somalia what they call today is Ayaanlayaal. Hoobal was another God in the Somali Religion. Many old Somali folk songs still contain references to this God. The Somalis would say “Heedhe Hoobalwa”. There were many Gods to which the Somali people prayed to due to historical beliefs of different circumstances of praise and punishment. For example the messenger of Death, also known as Huur or Xuur, came in the form of a large bird, and was said to have played a similar role to the God Waaq. Nidar was the righter of wrong. He was considered the champion of those that were exploited by their fellow humans. This deity has survived in modern Somalia as a popular saying; Nidar Ba Ku Heli, which in translation means Nidar will find and punish you. These for the most part are the main religious standpoints in ancient Somali times, and to this day are still practiced and worshipped.
In closing, finding good sources for this site wasn’t very complicated as Google contains alot of information on this topic. Some of the sources that I used were www.flickr.com, Historical Relationships Between Ancient Egypt And the Land of Punt Somalia, and http://www.nairaland.com, The Ancient Religions of Eebe Waaq.
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