Poets and writers
Hadraawi (Maxamed Ibraahin Warsame), 1943 to 2022: the master of Somali speech
Hadraawi was the pen name of Maxamed Ibraahin Warsame, born in Togdheer in 1943, whom newspapers called 'the Shakespeare of Somalia' when he died. He wrote more than 200 long poems and more than 70 songs, spent five years in prison from 1973 for his verse, and later walked the Somali regions on a march for peace. He died in Hargeisa on 18 August 2022, aged 79.
HadraawiHadrawi · Maxamed Ibraahin Warsame
- Lived
- 1943 to 2022
- Known as one of
- Poets and writers
- Era
- The Republic, 1960 to 1991; Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 3 sources
Who he was
Maxamed Ibraahin Warsame was born in 1943 in the Togdheer region. Somalis know him as Hadraawi, a name that means "the master or father of speech" (Poetry Translation Centre). Newspapers called him "the Shakespeare of Somalia" when he died (VOA, 19 August 2022).
He wrote more than 200 long poems and more than 70 song lyrics. The count comes from Hal ka haleel, a 2018 book on his life and work by Maxamed Baashe X. Xasan (VOA 2022; African Studies Centre Leiden). Leading singers broadcast and performed his early songs (African Studies Centre Leiden).
Prison and the chain poems
In 1973 the military government jailed him for five years. His poems had grown sharper in their social and political criticism (Poetry Translation Centre). VOA reports he was held for working toward a society free of state control (VOA 2022).
After his release he started debates through chain poems (silsilad), where poets answer each other in turn. His new verse was composed in secret, then memorised and passed from person to person (African Studies Centre Leiden). The best-known chain, Deelley, is described on Somali poetry.
Exile and London
He later left Somalia. Sources differ on the route. The Poetry Translation Centre and Leiden say he joined the Somali National Movement in Ethiopia and wrote the long poem Gudgude there. VOA says he fled to Djibouti and kept writing political poems that people learned by heart.
From 1993 to 2001 he lived in the Somali community in London. That time inspired Dabo Huwan, a poem of about 800 lines (African Studies Centre Leiden).
The march for peace
Back home, he travelled across the Somali regions on a peace march, urging people to stop the fighting and to reconcile. VOA dates the peace caravans to the second half of 2003. Leiden gives 2004. He also lectured at the University of Burco (African Studies Centre Leiden).
In December 2012 he received the Dutch Prince Claus Award for his work for peace through poetry (Poetry Translation Centre; African Studies Centre Leiden).
Death and legacy
Hadraawi died in Hargeisa on 18 August 2022, aged 79, after years of illness. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud called him "an icon" of Somali literature. Somaliland's president, Muse Bihi Abdi, announced a national funeral (VOA 2022).
VOA names "Hooyoy La'aanta" (The Mother) as one of his best-loved songs (VOA 2022). The Center for Hadraawi Literature in Hargeisa runs workshops, readings and seminars for young writers (Poetry Translation Centre).
Read more
- Somali poetry: the forms, alliteration and the great poets.
- Somali music: the singers who made his songs famous.
Sources
- Poetry Translation Centre. Maxamed Ibraahin Warsame 'Hadraawi'.
- VOA News (2022). Death of 'Somali Shakespeare' mourned nationwide.
- African Studies Centre Leiden (2022). Library Weekly: Hadraawi, with a reading list of books by and about him.
Sources
- Poetry Translation Centre · poetrytranslation.org
- VOA, 19 August 2022 · voanews.com
- African Studies Centre Leiden · ascleiden.nl
HadraawiHadrawi · Maxamed Ibraahin Warsame
- Lived
- 1943 to 2022
- Known as one of
- Poets and writers
- Era
- The Republic, 1960 to 1991; Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 3 sources
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