The Rahanweyn (, Somali: , ), also known as the Digil and Mirifle () is a major Somali clan. It is one of the major Somali clans in the Horn of Africa, with a large territory in the densely populated fertile valleys of the Jubba and Shebelle rivers and the areas in between, which are mainly inhabited by settlers from the Digil and Mirifle lineages.Islam in the World Today: A Handbook of Politics, Religion, Culture, and Society Page 443
Etymology Anthropologists and northern Somalis have helped coin the term Rahanweyn. The name is said to be a combination of Rahan (grindstone) and Weyn (large) which means (large grindstone) suggesting the name's semantic relation to the Reewin economy. Another more interesting term is said to combine the names of Rahan (crowd) and Weyn (large) which means (literally 'crowd-big' or the large crowds) indicating that the Reewin clans are a confederation of diverse Somali clans that migrated elsewhere.
However, all these definitions are based on the Northern Somali dialect rather than the southern Somali dialect therefore these definitions should be deemed inaccurate. The name is correctly pronounced Reewin which can be divided into Ree (family) and Wiin (old) which means (old family). This name is a reference to the Reewin ancient origins which might indicate that they might have been the first Somali group to migrate to modern-day Somalia whilst the rest of the Somali clans slowly began to diverge and develop their own unique distinct dialects.The Invention of Somalia Page 94 Another theory states that the name Rahanweyn derives from the name of the ancestor of all Rahanweyn clans, one Ma'd or Mohammed Reewin.
Overview Each of the two subclans of the Rahanweyn comprises a great number of clans and sub-clans. The Digil sub-clan mainly consists of farmers and coastal people, while the Mirifle are predominantly agro-pastoralists.
According to constitutional law, Somalis are linguistically grouped into Mai Terreh and Maxaa Tiri. The vast majority of the Somalis who speak Mai Terreh (also known as Mai-Mai or Af-Maay) are the Rahanweyn who descend from Sab, while the speakers of Maxaa Tiri (i.e. most spoken Somali) belong to other clans (Darod, Dir, Hawiye and Isaaq) who descend from Samaale. Both Sab and Samaale are believed to have been fathered by Hiil (ancestral father of all Somalis).The Genesis of the Civil War in Somalia Page 120“My Clan Against the World”: U.S. and Coalition Forces in Somalia 1992-1994 Page 10
Rahanweyn clans contain a high number of adopted members, with British anthropologist I. M. Lewis describing the Rahanweyn as a "synthesis of old cultivating stock, and more recent and once nomadic immigrants from the other Somali clans", with almost every Somali lineage having some off-shoot living among them. This practice allows newcomers to integrate into resident clans in a pleasant manner. Furthermore, in riverine places such as Lower Shabelle or the Juba region, it adds to the complexity of lineage identity.
Distribution The clan resides in rich fertile lands in southern Somalia and lives on the banks of Somalia's two major rivers, the Shebelle and Jubba rivers. The Rahanweyn make up the majority in the southwestern regions of Bay, Bakool, and Lower Shabelle. They are also believed to be the silent majority in Jubbaland specifically in regions such as Gedo, Middle Juba, and Lower Juba.The Genesis of the Civil War in Somalia: The Impact of Foreign Military Intervention on the Conflict Page 122 They are the second-largest clan to reside in Mogadishu.Inside Al-Shabaab The Secret History of Al-Qaeda's Most Powerful Ally Page 142 They are also found in the Somali Region of Ethiopia and the North Eastern Province of Kenya.Negotiating Statehood: Dynamics of Power and Domination in Africa
History Antiquity Reewin groups were the first Somali/Cushitic group to enter what is the southern part of modern-day Somalia, around the end of the second century B.C.The Invention of Somalia Page 93The Bantu-Jareer Somalis Unearthing Apartheid in the Horn of Africa Page 248
The Rahanweyn clan were mentioned as the people of Reewin who lived in the fertile lands and coastal provinces and were very wealthy and powerful people during the antiquity period in southern Somalia. They were said to be a sub-group of the Barbaroi, ancestors of the Somali people.
Tunni Sultanate The Tunni Sultanate (r. 9th century - 13th century) was a Somali Muslim Sultanate located in southwestern Somalia, south of the Shabelle river. It was ruled by the Tunni Rahanweyn people, who spoke the Af-Tunni. The historical Tunni area correspondence to modern-day Lower Shabelle region Barawa founded by a Tunni saint called Aw-Ali and became the new capital for the Tunni Sultanate. The town prospered and became one of the major Islamic centers in the Horn, the Barawaani Ulama, attracting students from all over the region. Muslim scholars of that time, such as Ibn Sa'id, wrote about Barawa as "an Islamic island on the Somali coast." Al-Idrisi also described the construction of the coral houses and noted that Barawa was full of both domestic and foreign commodities. The Ajuran would take over the region and end the Tunni Sultanate.
Ajuran Sultanate
Along with Hawiye, Rahanweyn clan also came under the Ajuran Empire control in the 13th century that governed much of southern Somalia and eastern Ethiopia, with its domain extending from Hobyo in the north, to Qelafo in the west, to Kismayo in the south.Lee V. Cassanelli, The shaping of Somali society: reconstructing the history of a pastoral people, 1600-1900, (University of Pennsylvania Press: 1982), p.102.
Geledi Sultanate At the end of the 17th century, the Ajuran Sultanate was on its decline, and various vassals were now breaking free or being absorbed by new Somali powers. One of these powers was the Geledi Sultanate which was established by Ibrahim Adeer a former Ajuran general that successfully pushed the imperial Ajuran army out of Afgooye. He subsequently established the Geledi sultanates ruling house, the Gobroon dynasty, after having first defeated the Ajuran vassal state, the Silcis Kingdom.
The Geledi Sultanate was a Rahanweyn Kingdom ruled by the noble Geledi clan which held sway over the Jubba and Shabelle rivers in the interior and the Benadir coast. The Geledi Sultanate dominated the East African trade and had enough power to force the southern Arabians to pay tribute to the noble Geledi Rulers like Sultan Yusuf Mahamud.Luling (2002), p. 272.
Administration and military The Sultanate of Geledi exerted a strong centralized authority during its existence and possessed all of the organs and trappings of an integrated modern state: a functioning bureaucracy, a hereditary nobility, titled aristocrats, a taxing system, a state flag, as well as a professional army.Horn of Africa, Volume 15, Issues 1-4, (Horn of Africa Journal: 1997), p.130.Michigan State University. African Studies Center, Northeast African studies, Volumes 11–12, (Michigan State University Press: 1989), p. 32. The great sultanate also maintained written records of their activities, which still exist.
The Geledi Sultanate's main capital was at Afgooye where the rulers resided in the grand palace. The kingdom had a number of castles, forts and other variety of architectures in various areas within its realm, including a fortress at Luuq and a citadel at Bardera.S. B. Miles, On the Neighbourhood of Bunder Marayah, Vol. 42, (Blackwell Publishing on behalf of The Royal Geographical Society (with the institute of British Geographers): 1872), pp. 61–63.
The Geledi army numbered 20,000 men in times of peace, and could be raised to 50,000 troops in times of war.Transactions of the Bombay Geographical Society ..by Bombay Geographical Society p. 392 The supreme commanders of the army were the Sultan and his brother, who in turn had Malaakhs and Garads under them. The military was supplied with rifles and cannons by Somali traders of the coastal regions that controlled the East African arms trade.
Trade The kingdom maintained a vast trading network, trading with Arabia, Persia, India, Near East, Europe and the Swahili World, dominating the East African trade, and was a regional power.Somali Sultanate: The Geledi City-state Over 150 Years - Virginia Luling (2002) p. 155
In the case of the Geledi, wealth accrued to the nobles and to the Sultanate not only from the market cultivation which it had utilized from the Shebelle and Jubba valleys but also trade from their involvement in the slave trade and other enterprises such as ivory, cotton, iron, gold, among many other commodities. Generally, they also raised livestock animals such as cattle, sheep, goats, and chicken.
Modern Italian Protectorate
The Geledi Sultanate was eventually incorporated into Italian Somaliland Protectorate in 1908 by the Geledi ruler: Osman Ahmed who signed multiple treaties with the Italian colonials and the Kingdom ended with the death of Osman Ahmed in 1910.
Hizbi Dhigil & Mirifle The Hizbi Dhigil & Mirifle (1947–1969) was a Somali political party formed by members of the Rahanweyn clan however Jeilani Sheikh Bin Sheikh was the first to be elected as the leader of (HDMS) and was among the first to call for Federalism in Somalia. It had its roots in the 1920s as the Hizbiya Dastur Mustaqil Al Sumal which was formed as an anti colonial organization that educated the inter riverine peoples and provided health and other charitable motions. Later the Hizbi Dhigil & Mirifle formed in 1947 and would be the main opposition party winning the 2nd most seats in parliament after the Somali Youth League. Its main goals were to advocate for the Digil and Mirifle peoples of Somalia and a true census of the Somali Republic. The party also pushed for improving agricultural and animal husbandry practices.
Political marginalization and land seizures During the fight for independence, political parties were based on clan interest though these organizations claimed to act in the national interest and were against clan division. Thus, the anti-clan stance was an act in order to promote their clan interest. For example, the non-Rahanweyn, mainly Darod and Hawiye who dominated the Somali administration previously but who had already lived in tranquillity and harmony with Rahanweyn, declared the former pre-colonial loyalty of geeko mariidi (old days). Anti-clan laws were approved at independence that violated traditional land rights allowed the non-Rahanweyn to acquire gains at the expense of Rahanweyn. Under the disguise of nationalism, they promoted Darood and Hawiye interests. When Rahanweyn had political and numerical dominance in the interiverine region there was a petition to divide the region into nine provinces, only two remained in Rahanweyn's political control while the rest was Darood-led. This was supposedly a national development that turned out to be a hegemonic act and was aggravated by the Cooperative Development in 1974 under president Siad Barre when Rahanweyn land's was seized and annexed under an eminent domain law. The state farms thus used the Rahanweyn as labourers, but were managed by Darood and only promoted Darood interest, not the nation's interest.