Lists of office-holders

Sultans of Mogadishu, 10th to 19th centuries

Mogadishu was ruled by sultans from at least the 13th century. Most of them are known only from the names stamped on Mogadishu coins, so their dates are not known. Ibn Battuta met its ruler Abu Bakr ibn Umar in 1331. From the 19th century the city was under Omani and then Zanzibari suzerainty, and Italy annexed it in 1905.

Last checked 2026-11-12 2 sources Reading time: 3 min

In short

The sultanate of Mogadishu was established before 1331; World Statesmen notes that it was later called the Hiraab sultanate. Mogadishu was under Omani suzerainty from 1828 and under Zanzibar from 1861. It was leased to Italy in 1892 and annexed by Italy on 16 March 1905. (World Statesmen, Somali traditional states, Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu)

Each row below gives the holder's name in English and Somali spelling, dates in office and the source for that row. Dates are from World Statesmen, Somali traditional states, Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu; where sources give different dates, the note says so. How we source: How we check facts.

Sultans named on Mogadishu coins

The Wikipedia list of sultans, drawn from coins, in its order. A private coin collection shows at least 23 sultans. (Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu)

Name In office Note Source
Abu Bakr ibn Fakhr ad-Din not known to not known Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu
Ismail ibn Muhammad not known to not known Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu
Al-Rahman ibn al-Musa'id not known to not known Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu
Yusuf ibn Sa'id not known to not known Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu
Sultan Muhammad not known to not known Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu
Rasul ibn Ali not known to not known Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu
Yusuf ibn Abi Bakr not known to not known Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu
Malik ibn Sa'id not known to not known Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu
Sultan Umar not known to not known Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu
Zubayr ibn Umar not known to not known Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu

Sultans listed by World Statesmen

Name In office Note Source
Umar (Cumar) not known to not known World Statesmen, Somali traditional states
Ahmad I (Axmed I) not known to not known World Statesmen, Somali traditional states
Muhammad I (Maxamad I) not known to not known World Statesmen, Somali traditional states
Ahmad II (Axmed II) not known to not known World Statesmen, Somali traditional states
Mahmud (Maxamuud) not known to not known World Statesmen, Somali traditional states
Ali (Cali) not known to not known World Statesmen, Somali traditional states
Uthman (Cismaan) not known to not known World Statesmen, Somali traditional states
Muhammad II (Maxamad II) not known to not known World Statesmen, Somali traditional states
Ahmad III (Axmed III) about 1860 to not known World Statesmen, Somali traditional states

Sources

We also publish every row of every office-holder list as one open data file: office-holders.csv.

Sources

  1. World Statesmen, Somali traditional states · worldstatesmen.org
  2. Wikipedia, Sultanate of Mogadishu · en.wikipedia.org

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