Sheikh Mohammed Rashad Abdulle ( – May 25, 2013) was an Oromo scholar. He is known for developing Oromo phonology and translating the

Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...

into the

Oromo language Oromo, historically also called Galla, is an Afroasiatic language belonging to the Cushitic branch, primarily spoken by the Oromo people, native to the Ethiopian state of Oromia; and northern Kenya. It is used as a lingua franca in Oromia an ...

Biography

Sheikh Mohammed Rashad was born at Laga Arba village near the town of

Gelemso Galamso (also spelled Gelemso, and in Oromo Galamsoo), is a town in West Haraghe of Oromia Region, Ethiopia, Gelemso is located in eastern Ethiopian and is far from country capital by 301 km and second way 413 km in the western per ...

, the son of Kabir Abdulle Kabir Mummaya and Amina Bakar. He learned Qur'an from his father and traveled extensively within the province of

Hararghe Hararghe ( ''Harärge''; Harari language, Harari: ሀረርጌ፞ይ, هَرَرْݘٛىيْ,''Harargêy'', Oromo language, Oromo: Harargee, ) was a provinces of Ethiopia, province of eastern Ethiopia with its capital in Harar. Etymology Harargh ...

to acquire further knowledge. His teachers included Sheikh Mohammed Rashid Bilal, Sheikh Hassan Anano, Sheikh

Abdullah al-Harari 'Abdullah al-Harari () (1906 – September 2, 2008) was a Harari muhaddith and scholar of Islamic jurisprudence. He lived and taught in Beirut, Lebanon. History Al-Harariyy was born in 1906 in Harar, Ethiopia. In 1983, he founded Al-Ahbash, ...

and Sheikh Bakri Sapalo.Mohammed Hassen thanks Mohammed Rashad for providing him with copies of a number of Sheikh Bakri Sapalo's manuscripts, "which are otherwise inaccessible". (''The Oromo of Ethiopia: A History 1570-1860'' renton: Red Sea, 1994 p. xv) Finished a postgraduate program at

Al Azhar University The Al-Azhar University ( ; , , ) is a public university in Cairo, Egypt. Associated with Al-Azhar Al-Sharif in Islamic Cairo, it is Egypt's oldest degree-granting university and is known as one of the most prestigious universities for Islamic ...

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

, Rashad was appointed by the University as officer at their

Burao Burao, also spelt Bur'o or Bur'ao (; , , ), is the capital of the Togdheer region and the second largest city in Somaliland. Burao was the site of the Somaliland Declaration of Independence, declaration of an independent Somaliland on 18 May 19 ...

branch school in northwestern

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

in 1963. After three years of working for Al Azhar in Burao, He went to

Mogadishu Mogadishu, locally known as Xamar or Hamar, is the capital and List of cities in Somalia by population, most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port connecting traders across the Indian Ocean for millennia and has ...

and started working for Front for Somali Galbeed as a communications officer and youth coordinator. He convinced Somali authorities to open a

Radio Mogadishu Radio Mogadishu (, ) is the federal government-run radio station of Somalia.

's Afan Oromo program. Sheik Mohammed Rashad Abdulle died at age 79 on May 25, 2013, in

Dire Dawa Dire Dawa (; , meaning"where the Dir (clan), Dir hit his spear into the ground" or "The true Dir", , Harari language, Harari: ድሬዳዋ, lit. "Plain of Medicine"; ) is a city in eastern Ethiopia near the Somali Region and Oromia, Oromo borde ...

References

1930s births Ethiopian Muslims 2013 deaths People from Dire Dawa Oromo people Quran translators Translators to Oromo Oromo-language writers 20th-century translators 20th-century Ethiopian writers Ethiopian translators {{Ethiopia-translator-stub