Muqdisho
Mogadishu (capital of Somalia)
Usage
Capital of Somalia, a port city on the Indian Ocean in the Banaadir region. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
The Somali spelling is Muqdisho; you will also see English Mogadishu and Italian-style Mogadiscio. The letter q is a uvular stop.
Hargeysa
Hargeisa (capital of Somaliland)
Usage
A highland city in north-western Somalia and the capital of Somaliland, a region that declared independence in 1991 and is not widely recognised internationally. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Hargeisa, and Hargaysa is also seen. The y in -ysa is a semivowel like i.
Boosaaso
Bosaso (port city in Puntland)
Usage
A port city on the Gulf of Aden in the north-east, and the main commercial port of Puntland. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
The double letters oo and aa mark long vowels. English usually writes Bosaso, but Somali spells the lengths out as Boosaaso.
Kismaayo
Kismayo (port city in southern Somalia)
Usage
A port city on the southern Indian Ocean coast of Somalia, near the mouth of the Jubba River. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Kismayo; Somali marks the long vowel as Kismaayo.
Berbera
Berbera (port town in Somaliland)
Usage
A long-established trading port on the Gulf of Aden in Somaliland, also known as a livestock export port. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
Somali also writes it Berbera (Barbara is another spelling). Maps and signs normally use the English-style spelling.
Baydhabo
Baidoa (city in south-western Somalia)
Usage
The main city of the inland farming region of Bay and the largest city of the South West State. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
The digraph dh is a retroflex d. English spells the town Baidoa, which is what maps and signs may show.
Garoowe
Garowe (administrative capital of Puntland)
Usage
An inland town in the north-east and the administrative capital of Puntland, in the Nugaal region. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Garowe; Somali shows the long vowel with oo.
Gaalkacyo
Galkayo (city in central Somalia)
Usage
A city in the Mudug region, with the north administered by Puntland and the south by Galmudug. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
The letter c stands for the voiced pharyngeal sound (ayn). English spellings include Galkayo and Galkacyo.
Laascaanood
Las Anod (city in northern Somalia)
Usage
The main city of the Sool region in northern Somalia. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English writes it Las Anod; the Somali spelling is Laascaanood, where c is a pharyngeal sound and aa a long vowel.
Burco
Burao (city in Somaliland)
Usage
The main city of the Togdheer region, one of the largest cities in Somaliland and known for its livestock trade. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Burao; in the Somali spelling Burco the letter c stands for the pharyngeal sound.
Boorama
Borama (city in Somaliland)
Usage
The main city of the Awdal region in the north-west, near the Ethiopian border and home to Amoud University. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Borama; Somali writes the long vowel as oo.
Beledweyne
Beledweyne (city in central Somalia)
Usage
The main city of the Hiraan region near the Ethiopian border, on the Shabelle River, which has a history of floods. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English writes it Beledweyne or Belet Weyne; the Somali spelling is Beledweyne.
Marka
Merca (port town south-west of Mogadishu)
Usage
A port town on the Indian Ocean coast about 110 km south-west of Mogadishu, in the Lower Shabelle region. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Merca. The Somali Marka is spelled like the common word marka (when), so it is capitalised as a place name.
Jowhar
Jowhar (city on the Shabelle River)
Usage
A city about 90 km north of Mogadishu in the farming belt along the Shabelle River, the centre of the Middle Shabelle region. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Jowhar as well; j sounds like English j and w like English w.
Afgooye
Afgooye (town near Mogadishu)
Usage
A town on the Shabelle River about 30 km from Mogadishu. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Afgooye; Somali shows the long vowel with oo.
Ceerigaabo
Erigavo (mountain town in northern Somalia)
Usage
The main town of the Sanaag region in the north, set in cool highlands close to the Cal Madow mountains. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Erigavo; the Somali spelling Ceerigaabo begins with c, the pharyngeal sound.
Baraawe
Barawa (old port town on the Indian Ocean coast)
Usage
An old port town on the Indian Ocean coast in the Lower Shabelle region, with its own Bravanese (Chimwiini) speech community. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English uses Barawa and also the Italian-derived Brava.
Hobyo
Hobyo (port town of a historic sultanate)
Usage
A town on the Indian Ocean coast in the Mudug region, the centre of the Sultanate of Hobyo that flourished from the 19th to the early 20th century. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Hobyo; Italian-era sources write Obbia.
Jabuuti
Djibouti (the country and its capital)
Usage
A neighbouring country of Somalia. The country and its capital share the name, and Somali is widely spoken there. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Djibouti; Somali writes Jabuuti with the long vowel uu.
Xamarweyne
Hamar Weyne (old quarter of Mogadishu)
Usage
An old-town district regarded as the oldest settlement of Mogadishu, known for its many mosques. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English writes two words, Hamar Weyne, but the Somali spelling is the single word Xamarweyne. The letter x is a voiceless pharyngeal sound.
Shingaani
Shangani (old quarter of Mogadishu)
Usage
An old-town district of Mogadishu, next to Hamar Weyne and also known for its mosques. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English writes Shangani; the Somali heading is Shingaani, with i in the first syllable and aa marking the long vowel.
Xeebta Liido
Lido Beach (seaside in Mogadishu)
Usage
A beach on the Mogadishu seafront that many people visit at weekends. The name comes from the Italian word lido (beach). Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
Xeebta is xeeb (beach) plus the feminine definite article -ta; the place name Liido follows it.
Laas Geel
Laas Geel (rock-art caves)
Usage
Caves on the outskirts of Hargeysa with prehistoric paintings of cattle and people, estimated to be several thousand years old and found by a French team in 2002.
Grammar Note
In the dictionary laas means a small well and geel means camel; the place name is generally read as the camels' watering place.
Cal Madow
Cal Madow mountains (northern highlands)
Usage
A mountain range in the Sanaag region that includes Shimbiris, the highest peak in Somalia, near Erigavo.
Grammar Note
Cal Madow is the name of the range, and madow means black. It is also said as Buuraha Cal Madow (the Cal Madow mountains).
Xaafuun
Hafun (peninsula in the north-east)
Usage
A town on a peninsula on the Indian Ocean coast of the Bari region. Ras Hafun is regarded as the easternmost point of mainland Africa. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
English spells it Hafun. In Somali x is a voiceless pharyngeal sound and aa a long vowel; the cape is Raas Xaafuun.
Webiga Jubba
Jubba River
Usage
One of Somalia's two permanent rivers. It flows south from Ethiopia and reaches the Indian Ocean near Kismayo, with farmland along its banks.
Grammar Note
The word for river is spelled webi in the dictionary and the Bible, and Webiga is the river plus the definite article. The Somali Wikipedia heading is Wabiga Jubba, the same river.
Webiga Shabeelle
Shabelle River
Usage
A major river rising in the Ethiopian highlands that flows through Beledweyne, Jowhar and Afgooye towards the coast near Mogadishu.
Grammar Note
Shabeelle appears in English as Shabelle or Shebelle. The word Webiga comes before the river name.
Soomaaliya
Somalia
Usage
A country in the Horn of Africa, with its capital in Mogadishu. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
Soomaaliya is Soomaali (Somali person or language) plus the country ending -ya.
Soomaaliland
Somaliland
Usage
A region in north-western Somalia that declared independence in 1991. Its capital is Hargeysa, and it is not widely recognised internationally. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
The name joins Soomaali with the English-derived land; the English spelling is Somaliland.
Puntland
Usage
A self-governing region in north-eastern Somalia, with Garowe as its administrative capital and Bosaso as its main port. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
The name recalls the ancient trading land of Punt and is spelled the same in Somali and English.
Galmudug
Usage
A federal member state in central Somalia that includes southern Galkayo and Dhuusamareeb. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
The name combines two region names, Galgaduud and Mudug.
Koonfur Galbeed
South West State
Usage
A federal member state in south-western Somalia, whose administration is currently based in Baidoa. Official travel advisories differ by region, so check the latest ones before going.
Grammar Note
Koonfur means south and galbeed means west; together they form south-west.
Gegada Diyaaradaha ee Aadan Cadde
Aden Adde International Airport (Mogadishu)
Usage
The international airport of Mogadishu, named after the first president, Aden Abdulle Osman (Aadan Cadde). Signs often use the English name.
Grammar Note
The wording follows the Somali Wikipedia article title. Airport appears there as gegada diyaaradaha and also as garoonka diyaaradaha (gegada is not in the dictionary). Ee links the name, meaning "of".
Gegada Diyaaradaha Cigaal
Egal International Airport (Hargeisa)
Usage
The airport of Hargeysa, named after the former Somaliland leader Mohamed Haji Ibrahim Egal (Cigaal). The English name Egal International Airport is commonly shown.
Grammar Note
In the name Cigaal the letter c is a pharyngeal sound; English writes it Egal.
Gegada diyaaradaha Berbera
Berbera Airport
Usage
The airport serving Berbera, near the port. Signs commonly show the English name Berbera Airport.
Grammar Note
The wording follows the Somali Wikipedia article title. Gegada diyaaradaha means airport and is followed by the town name (gegada is not in the dictionary).
More Somali phrases
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