Somalia

Somalia (Somali: 𐒈𐒂𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕 Sūmāliya), officially the Republic of Cushitia (Cushite: 𐒃𐒖𐒑𐒔𐒓𐒇𐒘𐒕𐒖𐒆𐒖 𐒈𐒂𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕  Jamhūriyada Sūmāliya) is a nation located in northern Azania. It is bounded by Abyssinia to the west, Djibouti to the north, and the United Azanian Federation to the south. It’s capital is located in Xamar, and has a modest population of 17.43 million. Despite being one of Lybia’s most homogenous nations, Cushitia suffers from deep fractures along subnational lines. The name of Somalia is derived from the ancient Samāle clan, whose name means “to milk a cow”.

History
Ancient pyramidical structures, mausoleums, ruined cities and stone walls, such as the Wargaade Wall, are evidence of an old civilization that once thrived in the Azanian Horn. This civilization enjoyed a trading relationship with ancient Egypt and Mycenaean Greece since the second millennium BCE, supporting the hypothesis that Cushitia or adjacent regions were the location of the ancient Land of Punt. In the classical era, the Macrobians, who may have been the ancestors of today’s Somali peoples, established a powerful tribal kingdom that ruled large parts of southern and northern Somalia.

During the classical period, the Berbera city-states also known as the Sesea of Mosylon, including the cities of Opone, Heis, Bulhar, Malao, Zeila and Sarapion developed a lucrative trade network, connecting with merchants from Ptolemaic Egypt, ancient Greece, Phoenicia, Parthian Persia, Saba, the Nabataean Kingdom, and the Roman Empire. They used the ancient maritime vessel known as the Beden to transport their cargo. In order to curb piracy, Arab and Cushite merchants agreed with the Romans to bar Indian ships from trading in the free port cities of Algeria to protect the interests of Somali and Arab merchants. Islam, specifically Sunnism was introduced to the area early on by the first Muslims of Mecca fleeing prosecution during the first Hejira with Masjid al-Qiblatayn in Zeila being built before the Qiblah towards Mecca. It is one of the oldest mosques in Africa. In the late 9th century, Al-Yaqubi wrote that Muslims were living along the northern Cushitic seaboard in limited numbers, noting a large population of Waaqism followers living in the south. At this time period, the Bravanese and Shunguli began to move into the south of Cushitia. Trading relations were established with Malacca in the 15th century, with cloth, ambergris and porcelain being the main commodities of the trade. Giraffes, zebras and incense were exported to the Ming Empire of China, which established Somali merchants as leaders in the commerce between East Asia and the Horn. Hindu merchants from Surat and Southeast African merchants from Pate, seeking to bypass both the Lusitanian India and later Oman. Adal's headquarters were again relocated the following century, this time southward to Harar. From this new capital, Adal organised an effective army led by Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi that invaded the Abyssinian empire. This 16th-century campaign is historically known as the Conquest of Abyssinia. During the war, Imam Ahmad pioneered the use of cannons supplied by the Ottoman Empire. This conquest failed, and Adal was dismantled by both the Lusitanians and Abyssinians.

In the early modern period, successor states to the Adal Sultanate and Ajuran Sultanate began to flourish in Cushitia. These included the Hiraab Imamate, Warsangali Sultanate, the Bari Dynasties, the Sultanate of the Geledi, the Majeerteen Sultanate, and the Sultanate of Hobyo. They continued the tradition of castle-building and seaborne trade established by previous Somali empires.

Folk
The population of Somalia as of 2025 was 17.43 million, making it one of the smaller nations in Azania in terms of population, though it’s populace size is even smaller compared to other Lybian nations. The folk of Somalia are primarily Cushitic peoples, though there are a plethora of Bantu and Semitic minorities. The annual birthrate sits at 1.75%. Cushitia is widely regarded as one of Lybia's most homogenous nations, alongside Merina and Ruanda, though Somalia is much poorer compared to them due to fracturing among clan lines. The folk of Somalia are one of the most homogenous in Lybia, with almost 85% of the national populace belonging to a single group. The largest group are the Somalis. They account for 84.4% of the nation’s population, making them the homogenous majority. Arabs form the second largest group, forming 7.1%, concentrated in the north. Afro-Arabs are a mixed group, and account for only 3.3% of the populace despite their long history. The Mushunguli, a Bantu group live in the Jubaland region, and make up 2.7%, while the Cushitic Afar people make up exactly 1%, and the Bravanese at 0.4%.

Faithwise, the nation is even more homogenous, with 95% of the nation following Islam (not including it’s branches). Sunnism accounts for 92.7% of the nations adherents to religion, with only 2.3% of the nation following Shi’ism. The Ibadism branch in Cushitia is virtually non-existent. Keeping non-Islamic faiths into account, the 4% that is following other faiths or none are often marginalized, and even killed. The largest of these non-Islamic groups are the adherents of Waaqism, at 3.1% of the populace. Waaqism is the traditional religion from pre-Islamic times based around the figure of Waaq.

The sole official language of Somalia is Somali, which is a language of the Cushitic family in the larger Afro-Asiatic language. It is written in the Osmanya script, developed in the 20th century when people began to become literate and needed a writing system. The status of Arabic is a government recognized language, used in government sessions, business practices and education. Strangely enough despite it’s important status, it has yet to be declared an official language. No other language has protected status, though Italian was used during colonial periods. The Ministry of Education is responsible for overseeing the nation’s multiple schools, institutions and universities. Teachers in Somalia are paid given their salaries by the government administration. In spite of this, many children do not attend regular classes, and it is estimated that 45.8% of children never make it past grade 12. Though public institutions exist, the vast majority of pupils attending higher education programs enroll through private institutions, such as the critically acclaimed Merca University.