# Jiiddu (Jiddu, Jiido, Digil)

> The Jiiddu (Jiddu, Jiido) of the Digil: Hafow, Farre and Gogo lines, the Af-Jiiddu language, Qoryooley and Lower Shabelle, and conflict records.

Source page: https://calankii.com/en/society/jiiddu/
Last checked: 2026-11-13
Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com)

## Name and family tree

The Jiiddu are a clan of the [Digil](/en/society/digil/), part of the [Rahanweyn](/en/society/rahanweyn/). The name is also written Jiddu and Jiido.

| Source | Line it gives |
|---|---|
| Abbink 2009 | Digil > Jiddu ([Abbink, *The Total Somali Clan Genealogy*, 2009](https://hdl.handle.net/1887/14007)) |
| World Bank 2005 | Under the Digil, as "Jiiddo" ([World Bank, *Conflict in Somalia*, 2005, Appendix 2](https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/entities/publication/b2109b26-2d10-5ac6-85c2-dbfa820c5f6e)) |
| EUAA 2025 | "Jiido (Digil/Rahanweyne)" ([EUAA Country Focus 2025, section 1.5.1](https://coi.euaa.europa.eu/administration/easo/PLib/2025_05_EUAA_COI_Report_Somalia_Country_Focus.pdf)) |
| ACLED 2025 | Rahanweyn > Digil > Jiido, and Jiido Safar ([ACLED clan actor list, September 2025](https://acleddata.com/system/files/2025-10/Somalia-clan-actor-old-to-new-list_16-September-2025.xlsx)) |

See [the Rahanweyn tree](/en/society/somali-clan-tree-rahanweyn/).

## Main branches

Abbink lists three Jiddu lines (Abbink 2009, Digil chart):

| Line | Groups named under it |
|---|---|
| Hafow | Gadinale, Gowsitta, Gulle and Seyye |
| Farre | No sub-lines given |
| Gogo | Wa'ayse, Qorowa', Odleh, Mahammad, Maddow, Masulle, Surow and Yokor |

ACLED codes one Jiiddu sub-group, Jiido Safar (ACLED 2025).

## Language

The Jiiddu speak their own language. Wikipedia gives about 34,000 speakers in [Lower Shabelle](/en/infrastructure/k50-airstrip/), Bay and Middle [Juba](/en/economy/farming-and-harvests/) ([Wikipedia, Jiiddu language, backup](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiido)). It says the language is usually grouped with the Digil languages, but has "a different phonology and sentence structure from Somali" (same source). A native speaker, Dr. Salim Ibro, wrote a Jiiddu dictionary (same source). See [the Somali language](/en/society/the-somali-language/).

## Where they live

No census counts Somalis by clan. ACCORD notes that Somalis often claim more members than their groups have, "in order to demonstrate strength" ([ACCORD, *Clans in Somalia*, 2009, p. 11](https://www.ecoi.net/en/file/local/1193130/90_1261130976_accord-report-clans-in-somaliarevised-edition-20091215.pdf)).

| Place | What the sources record |
|---|---|
| Lower Shabelle | The EASO lists the Jiddu among the largest long-settled Digil-Mirifle groups ([EASO, *Somalia: Security situation*, 2021](https://coi.euaa.europa.eu/administration/easo/PLib/2021_09_EASO_COI_Report_Somalia_Security_situation.pdf)) |
| Qoryooley | The EUAA places the Garre and Jiido dispute in Qoryooley district (EUAA Country Focus 2025) |
| Shabelle east bank | Wikipedia says a treaty gave the Tunni the west bank of the Shabelle and the Jiiddu the east bank ([Wikipedia, Tunni Sultanate, backup](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunni_Sultanate)) |

See [Lower Shabelle](/en/regions/lower-shabelle/), [Bay](/en/regions/bay/) and [Middle Juba](/en/regions/middle-juba/).

## History on record

- **Before 1000.** Wikipedia says the Tunni drove the Jiiddu inland, then made a treaty with them. It says both agreed "to resist foreign penetration" ([Wikipedia, Tunni Sultanate, backup](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunni_Sultanate)). See [Tunni](/en/society/tunni/).
- **1951 to 2021.** A 2021 thesis traces seventy years of work on writing Jiiddu (Neterer, 2021, cited by Wikipedia).
- **June to July 2024.** The EUAA records "a clash in [Qoryooley](/en/regions/qoryooley/) between the Jiido and Garre clans". It "reportedly left at least two people dead" ([EUAA 2025, Lower Shabelle](https://www.euaa.europa.eu/coi/somalia/2025/security-situation/22-south-west/223-lower-shabelle)).

## Elders and customary law

Senior Somali clan leaders carry titles such as *suldaan*, *ugaas* or *issim*. Their role is "mainly judicial and representative" ([UK Home Office, CPIN Somalia: clans, 2019, quoting EASO 2014](https://www.ecoi.net/en/file/local/2002542/Somalia_-_Clans_-_CPIN_V3.0e.pdf)). See [xeer, Somali customary law](/en/society/xeer-customary-law/).

## In recent conflict records

The EUAA lists "Garre (Digil/Rahanweyne) versus Jiido (Digil/Rahanweyne), in the Qoryoole District, Lower Shabelle Region" ([EUAA Country Focus 2025, section 1.5.1](https://coi.euaa.europa.eu/administration/easo/PLib/2025_05_EUAA_COI_Report_Somalia_Country_Focus.pdf)). See [Garre](/en/society/garre/) and [clan conflicts, district by district](/en/society/clan-conflicts/).

## Where sources differ

- **Family.** Abbink, the World Bank, the EUAA and ACLED put the Jiiddu in the Digil. Wikipedia's language article calls them "the Jiiddu sub-clan of the Dir".
- **Spelling.** Abbink writes Jiddu, the World Bank Jiiddo, and the EUAA and ACLED Jiido.

## Read more

- [Digil](/en/society/digil/)
- [Rahanweyn](/en/society/rahanweyn/)
- [Tunni](/en/society/tunni/)
- [Garre](/en/society/garre/)
- [Lower Shabelle](/en/regions/lower-shabelle/)

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