Somali Oral Poetry and the Failed She-Camel Nation State ─ A Critical Discourse Analysis of the Deelley Poetry Debate 1979-1980

Ahad, an economist and native Somalian who has written on Somali history, literature, and historiographical writing, analyzes the Deelly poetry debate, which took place in 1979 and 1980 among Somalia's cultural elite about the problems it faced due to clan rivalry, in the form of poetic orations by 49 participants and emphasizing the imagery of the bountiful she-camel and the smoldering fire of tribal and clan rivalry. He examines the debate in terms of national identity, the tribal system, hegemony, and the concept of state in Somali culture and describes the historical, political, and social context of Somali poetry; the context of the debate; individual poems and the metaphors of the damal-tree, the male camel, and the smoldering dung, analyzed using critical discourse analysis; the image of the she-camel nation-state and tribalism and the tribal system in the debate; and whether the poets were aware of the impending collapse of the state and the civil war a decade later. Annotation c2015 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)

Ali Mumin Ahad completed his undergraduate degree in economics at Somali National University. He earned his master’s degree in agribusiness at Sacred Heart University in Milan, Italy. His doctorate was awarded by La Trobe University in Australia. Ahad has published numerous articles and two books focusing on Somali history, literature, and historiographical writing.