53 Facts About Somalia

Somalia is a country in the Horn of Africa. Its official name is the Federal Republic of Somalia.

Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Indian Ocean to the east, and Kenya to the southwest border the country.

Somalia has the continent's longest coastline.

Restaurants are popular in many Somali cities, but women rarely dined out with men until the late 1990s.

It is customary for women to serve the men first when dining at home. The men will eat with the children after they have finished their meals.

When eating, Somalis use their first three fingers to scoop food from their bowl. Some people will roll a banana leaf and scoop with it. Many urban Somalis prefer to eat with their fingers rather than silverware.

Somali women are expected to submit to men while carrying out their responsibilities as daughters, mothers, and wives.

Somali women do not wear the Muslim veil, but they are not permitted to interact with men in public.

Nomads in Somalia believe that the country's pastureland is open to all. When a family digs a water well, it is not considered public property. It would only be for the family.

When a family has a wedding, a birth, or a circumcision, it calls for a big party with lots of food. The family would slaughter animals, bake bread, and prepare food for both guests and the poor who were also invited to the celebration.

The camel is Somalia's most recognisable symbol. This is due to the camel's ability to provide meat, milk, transportation, income, and status to those who own one.

Somali is the most widely spoken language in Somalia. Some people also speak Arabic, Italian, and English.

Educated young adults from well-off families in Somalia speak five or more languages.

Somalia has been embroiled in a civil war for more than a decade.

The Civil War has been waged against Ethiopia, warlord-led groups, and even the United States.

Over 500,000 people have died in Somalia's civil war since it erupted in the early 1990s.

During Somalia's civil war, an American Black Hawk helicopter was shot down. The three soldiers on board were killed.

After 15 months in Somalia, the United States withdrew on March 25, 1994.

Since the beginning of the civil war in the early 1990s, no tourist had visited Somalia until 2010, when a Canadian named Mike Spencer Brown arrived, shocking authorities by declaring himself a tourist.

Somalia's capital is an extremely dangerous city as a result of the civil war. It is a place where various clans are constantly fighting for dominance.

Somalia's people are suffering from famine and drought. Unfortunately, food delivery is limited due to fighting between competing clans.

There has been a power struggle between two warring clan lords, Mohamed Farah Aideed and Ali Mahdi Mohamed.

Over 350,000 innocent civilians died as a result of disease and starvation as a result of the Civil War. As a result of the situation, George H.W. Bush ordered emergency airlifts of food and supplies to assist the residents.

Somalia is one of the world's poorest countries.

Residents in Somalia have been working since the year 2000 to rebuild cities destroyed during the Civil War.

The United States provided financial assistance to Somalia, which aided in the improvement of seaports and Mogadishu International Airport.

Many of Somalia's industries were built with the assistance of foreign nationals.

Somalia's only industries are fish and meat canneries, mild processing plants, leather tanning factories, and electrical and pharmaceutical plants.

More than half of Somalia's population is self-employed. They are farmers, herders, and small-business owners.

Small clans in Somalia have traditionally assigned important tasks to men and older boys, such as tending camels and cattle. Young girls and boys look after the sheep and goats.

Many men were killed during the Civil War or as a result of diseases like tuberculosis. The women were left to fend for themselves as a result of this.

Women in Somalia have demonstrated remarkable adaptability and business talent. Many international organisations have assisted them in their educational and vocational training.

When people in Somalia marry, they form a bond not only between the man and his wife, but also between clans and families.

Somalia was established as a new country on July 1, 1960.

In order to become dictator, Mohamed Siad Barre led a bloodless coup in 1969.

Somalia invaded Ethiopia's Ogaden region in 1977 and 1978.

Ethiopia and Somalia finally signed a peace treaty in 1988.

The United Nations launched a coalition force led by the United States in December 1992 to restore order so that food could be delivered to the starving Somali people.

The Battle of Mogadishu is one of Somalia's bloodiest battles. Eighteen US soldiers were killed, and more than 70 were injured.

Michael Durant, an American pilot, was captured during the Battle of Mogadishu. On October 14, 1993, he was released.

Hundreds of Somalis were killed during a cholera outbreak due to contaminated water. As a result, Somalia experienced a severe drought.

The United Nations was forced to withdraw staff and aid workers from the country in 2001 due to dangerous fighting and kidnappings, as well as disagreements over religion, government, education, and health.

On August 8, 2011, US President Barack Obama announced $105 million in emergency funding for the country.

More than 73% of Somalis live on less than $2 USD per day.

The 2011 famine in Southern Somalia was the region's first in over 30 years.

In Somalia, one out of every eight children is severely malnourished.

Over a million people in the country are currently in desperate need of emergency food assistance.

Due to the two decades of conflict, 1.1 million Somalis are internally displaced.

Somali pirates hijacked the Maersk Alabama on April 8, 2009. To protect his crew, the captain, Richard Phillips, offered himself as a hostage.

Three of the pirates were killed by US Navy SEALs, and the fourth was apprehended.

The Captain's ordeal was the subject of a book and a film.

The survivor pirate was extradited to the United States, where he was sentenced to over 33 years in a federal prison.

The surviving pirate agreed to plead guilty, and the charges of piracy and machine gun possession were dropped. He admitted to kidnapping and hostage-taking.