Ughaz (sometimes spelled ''Ugass'', ''Ugas'' or ''Ougaz'') is a traditional Somali title. It is primarily used by the Dir and

Darod The Darod (, ) is a Somali clan. The forefather of this clan is Sheikh Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti, more commonly known as Darod. The clan primarily settles the apex of the Horn of Africa and its peripheries, the Somali hinterlands adjacent ...

clans.

Etymology

According to

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

linguist

Giorgio Banti Giorgio Banti is a scholar of African studies and Linguistics. Early life Giorgio Banti was born in Rome, Italy. He completed his post secondary studies at Sapienza University of Rome. Career Giorgio Banti became professor at University of ...

, the term ''"Ughaz"'' is of

Ethio-Semitic Ethio-Semitic (also Ethiopian Semitic, Ethiosemitic, Ethiopic or Abyssinian) is a family of languages spoken in Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Sudan. They form the western branch of the South Semitic languages, itself a sub-branch of Semitic, part of t ...

origin. However Djiboutian researcher, Ali Moussa Iye, states that the term ''"Ughaz"'' is composed of the two Somali terms ''"ul"'' and ''"gaas"'' meaning ''"the stick of the warrior’s chief".'' American archeologist, Julien Cooper, labeled ''"gas/gos"'' as a pan-

Cushitic The Cushitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken primarily in the Horn of Africa, with minorities speaking Cushitic languages to the north in Egypt and Sudan, and to the south in Kenya and Tanzania. As of 2 ...

kinship root word with various reflexes such as ''"Ughaz"'' in Somali and ''"Gosa"'' in Burji. He later stated that this required further research.

History

After the downfall of the

Adal Sultanate The Adal Sultanate, also known as the Adal Empire or Barr Saʿad dīn (alt. spelling ''Adel Sultanate'', ''Adal Sultanate'') (), was a medieval Sunni Muslim empire which was located in the Horn of Africa. It was founded by Sabr ad-Din III on th ...

in the sixteenth century, the region descended into turmoil, which led to the establishment of the Ughaz. This figure was endowed with the authority to resolve conflicts among the different Somali clans, in addition to other responsibilities. According to

I. M. Lewis Ioan Myrddin Lewis FBA (30 January 1930 – 14 March 2014), popularly known as I. M. Lewis, was a Scottish professor emeritus of anthropology at the London School of Economics. Early life and education Born in Scotland to a Welsh father and ...

, in the early 1600s Ughaz Ali Makahil successfully repelled the

Oromo Invasions The Oromo expansions or the Oromo invasions (in older historiography, Galla invasions), were a series of expansions in the 16th and 17th centuries by the Oromo primarily documented by the ethnic Gamo monk Bahrey, but also mentioned in other Ch ...

in modern northern

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 the Issa clan, the

Wardiq The Wardiq (sometimes spelled ''Wardiiq'', or ''Wardik'') is a minority Somali clan of the wider Isaa family. History The Wardiq are thought to be descendants of Aws, particularly Abadir ( Sheekhal) and Barkhadle. Certain accounts from the ...

sub-clan traditionally elects the Ughaz. In the late 1800s French trader Alfred Bardey states the Ughaz were responsible for ensuring the safety of the route connecting

Harar Harar (; Harari language, Harari: ሀረር / ; ; ; ), known historically by the indigenous as Harar-Gey or simply Gey (Harari: ጌይ, ݘٛىيْ, ''Gēy'', ), is a List of cities with defensive walls, walled city in eastern Ethiopia. It is al ...

and

Zeila Zeila (, ), also known as Zaila or Zayla, is a historical port town in the western Awdal region of Somaliland. In the Middle Ages, the Jewish traveller Benjamin of Tudela identified Zeila with the Biblical location of Havilah. Most modern schola ...

from any disturbances. The Ughaz appeared to exert significant influence in the

Emirate of Harar The Emirate of Harar was a Muslim kingdom founded in 1647 when the Harari people refused to accept Imām ʿUmardīn Ādam as their ruler and broke away from the Imamate of Aussa to form their own state under `Ali ibn Da`ud. The Harar, city of Ha ...

, as the sister of Emir Abdullahi II was wed to a member of the Ughaz. In the early 1900s, subsequent to the deposition of the appointed Ethiopian emperor

Lij Iyasu ''Lij'' Iyasu (; 4 February 1895 – 25 November 1935) was the designated Emperor of Ethiopia from 1913 to 1916. His baptismal name was Kifle Yaqob (ክፍለ ያዕቆብ ''kəflä y’aqob''). Ethiopian emperors traditionally chose their regna ...

, the

Ogaden Ogaden (pronounced and often spelled ''Ogadēn''; , ) is one of the historical names used for the modern Somali Region. It is also natively referred to as Soomaali Galbeed (). The region forms the eastern portion of Ethiopia and borders Somalia ...

governor,

Abdullahi Sadiq Abdullahi Ali Sadiq also known as Abdullahi Sadiq al-Harari was an influential Harari-Ethiopian businessman and governor for Ogaden whose peaceful jurisdiction spread beyond today's Ethiopia. Early days Abdullahi in the early 20th century had ...

, was apprehended along with several Ughaz by Ethiopian authorities in

. This group included Ughaz Hasan from

, Ughaz Omar representing the Malingoor, Robleh Nur of the

Gadabuursi The Gadabuursi (Somali language, Somali: ''Gadabuursi'', Arabic language, Arabic: جادابورسي), also known as ''Samaroon'' (Arabic language, Arabic: ''قبيلة سَمَرُون)'', is a northern Somali clan, a sub-division of the Dir ...

, and members of Rer Dalal, among others.

Places

* Ugaas Noor Airport, airport in central Somalia * Ugaas Khaliif International Airport, airport in southern Somalia * Ugaas Mirad Ugaas Leyli Airport, airport in eastern Ethiopia

Notable Ughaz

* Nur II * Elmi Warfa * Yasin Ugas Abdurahman * Hassan Ugas Yasin * Roble I

References

Society of Somalia Noble titles Somalian monarchy Culture of Somalia Court titles Gubernatorial titles Royal titles Titles of national or ethnic leadership Aristocracy Heads of state {{improve categories, date=February 2025

Etymology

History

Places

Notable Ughaz

See also

References