Somali language
The Somali language (Somali: Afsoomaali, Arabic: الصومالية) is a member of the East Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family. Its nearest relatives are Afar and Oromo. Somali is the best documented of the Cushitic languages,[1] with academic studies of it from before 1900.
Number of speakers
The exact number of speakers of Somali is unknown. One source estimates that there are 7.78 million speakers of Somali in Somalia itself and 12.65 million speakers globally.[2] A population estimate made by the Dutch Universiteitsbibliotheek Utrecht puts the Somali population somewhere between 10 and 15 million.[3] Combined with a large international expatriate community, it is difficult to get a specific number of Somali speakers, but somewhere between 10 and 16 million worldwide seems a reasonable estimate.
[edit] Geographic distribution
The Somali language is spoken by ethnic Somalis in Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Yemen and Kenya, and by the Somali diaspora.
[edit] Official status
Culture of Somalia
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Somali has been the national language of Somalia since 1972, gaining official status with standardization (Standard Somali) and the adoption of the Latin alphabet, developed under orders of then president Siad Barre. After the collapse of the central Somali government in the Somali civil war in the 1990s, Somali has remained an official language or de facto national language of the various regional governments such as Somaliland and Puntland
Geographic distribution==
The Somali language is spoken by [[Somali people|ethnic Somalis]] in [[Somalia]], [[Djibouti]], [[Ethiopia]], [[Yemen]] and [[Kenya]], and by the [[Somali diaspora]].
===Official status===
{{Culture of Somalia}}
Somali has been the national language of [[Somalia]] since 1972, gaining official status with standardization (Standard Somali) and the adoption of the [[Latin alphabet]], developed under orders of then president [[Siad Barre]]. After the collapse of the central Somali government in the [[Somali civil war]] in the 1990s, Somali has remained an official language or ''de facto'' national language of the various regional governments such as [[Somaliland]] and [[Puntland]].
===Dialects===
[[File:Somali map.jpg|thumb|left|Map of Somali language distribution]]
Somali dialects are divided into three main groups: Northern, Benaadir and Maay. Northern Somali (or Northern-Central Somali) forms the basis for Standard Somali. Benaadir (also known as Coastal Somali) is spoken on the [[Benadir]] Coast from [[Cadale]] to south of [[Marka]], including [[Mogadishu]], and in the immediate hinterland. The coastal dialects have additional phonemes which do not exist in Standard Somali.
The [[Digil]] and [[Mirifle]] clans (sometimes called [[Rahanweyn]]) live in the southern areas of Somalia. Recent research (Diriye Abdullahi, 2000) has shown that, although previously classified with Somali, their languages and dialects are incomprehensible to many Somali speakers. The most important language of the Digil and Mirifle is [[Maay language|Maay]]. Other languages in this category are Jiido, Dabare, Garre, and Central Tunni. Of all these, Jiido is the most incomprehensible to Somali speakers. One important aspect in which the languages of the Digil and Mirifle differ from Somali is the lack of pharyngeal sounds. The retroflex {{IPA|/ɖ/}} is also replaced by {{IPA|/r/}} in some positions.
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