Poets and writers
Knowmadic (Ahmed Ali)
Ahmed Ali, known as Knowmadic (born 28 November 1984 in Mogadishu), is a Somali-Canadian spoken-word poet, writer, actor and youth activist. He was Edmonton's seventh Poet Laureate, from July 2017 to June 2019, and won the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word championship with team Edmonton in 2011.
KnowmadicAhmed Ali · Ahmed Knowmadic Ali
- Lived
- 1984-11-28 to today
- Known as one of
- Poets and writers
- Places
- Muqdisho and Banaadir
- Era
- The Republic, 1960 to 1991; Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 1 sources
Who is he?
Ahmed Ali, better known as Knowmadic, is a Somali-Canadian poet, writer, actor, musician and youth activist (Wikipedia, Knowmadic). He was born in Mogadishu on 28 November 1984 to a nomadic father and a mother from a farming family; his pen name joins "knowledge" and "nomadic" (same source). The family moved to Italy in 1989 and then to Canada (same source).
Spoken word
He studied comedy writing and performance at Humber College in Toronto (Wikipedia). He was introduced to spoken word in 2009 by Titilope Sonuga and helped her found the Breath in Poetry Collective (same source). In 2011 he and team Edmonton won the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word championship, and in 2013 he was artist in residence at the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center in Seattle (same source).
Edmonton
He was Edmonton's seventh Poet Laureate, from 1 July 2017 to 30 June 2019 (Wikipedia). In 2017 he was runner-up for public school board trustee in Ward A (same source). He chairs the equity committee of the Edmonton Arts Council (same source). See Somalis in Edmonton.
In short
A Mogadishu-born spoken-word poet who served as Edmonton's Poet Laureate.
Sources
- Wikipedia, Knowmadic · en.wikipedia.org
KnowmadicAhmed Ali · Ahmed Knowmadic Ali
- Lived
- 1984-11-28 to today
- Known as one of
- Poets and writers
- Places
- Muqdisho and Banaadir
- Era
- The Republic, 1960 to 1991; Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 1 sources
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Where this matters
Same era
- Australia18,401 people of Somali ancestry and 8,101 born in Somalia lived in Australia at the 2021 Census, more than half in Victoria. History, work, issues.
- Birmingham (Somali diaspora)About 17,000 to 21,600 Somalis live in Birmingham (Census 2021), mostly in Nechells, Newtown, Small Heath and Alum Rock. History, work, health and ties home.
- Bristol (Somali diaspora)9,167 people in Bristol identified as Somali or Somalilander in Census 2021, the city's largest minority group. Where they live, work, housing, leaders and ties home.
- Calgary, Alberta, Canada2,845 people of Somali origin lived in Calgary at the 2021 Census, plus 890 in Brooks. How they came, who serves them and what they face.
- Denmark (Somali diaspora)21,885 people of Somali origin lived in Denmark in 2026, half born there. Numbers, history, work, permit reviews, and ties home.
- DjiboutiAbout 13,900 refugees from Somalia live in Djibouti (Aug 2026): numbers since 1990, Ali Addeh, Holl-Holl, the 2017 refugee law, Arta 2000 and 2025 returns.
Keep reading
- Hadraawi (Maxamed Ibraahin Warsame), 1943 to 2022: the master of Somali speechHadraawi, Somali poet (1943 to 2022): his songs and poems, five years in prison from 1973, exile, the 2004 peace march, the Prince Claus Award and his legacy.
- Nuruddin Farah: the Somali novelist who won the Neustadt PrizeNuruddin Farah, Somali novelist born in Baidoa in 1945: his novels and three trilogies, his years of exile, and his 1998 Neustadt Prize.
- Timacadde (Cabdillaahi Suldaan Maxamed)Timacadde (about 1920–1973), poet of Somali independence: his life, the flag poem of 1960 and his message of unity over clan.
- Gaarriye (Maxamed Xaashi Dhamac)Gaarriye (1949–2012): Hargeisa poet, starter of the Deelley poem chain, first to explain Somali metre, and voice of reconciliation.
- Nadifa Mohamed (Nadiifa Maxamed)Nadifa Mohamed, born 1981 in Hargeisa: author of Black Mamba Boy, The Orchard of Lost Souls and the Booker-shortlisted The Fortune Men.
- Warsan Shire (Warsan Shire)Warsan Shire, born 1988: British Somali poet, London's first Young Poet Laureate, Brunel Prize winner, and voice in Beyoncé's Lemonade.