Akisho

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Main article: Somali clan

Akisho (var. Akisha, Akishe; also known as Gurre) is a Somali subclan, part of the larger Dir group whose members live in Ethiopia and northern Somalia. The Akisho are a subclan of the Ali Madaxweyn Dir, and they are reputed to be descendants of the eldest sons of the Madaxweyn Dir.

Akisho is one of the oldest clans in the Horn of Africa. According to Somali history, two of the oldest monarchies in the region, the Ifat and Adal Sultanates, were Akisho.^{[citation needed]} However, the inhabitants of the Ethiopian province/kingdom of Ifat spoke a South Semitic language related to Amharic.^[1]

The Akisho inhabit both Somaliland and Ethiopia. In Somaliland, Akisho members live in the southern Woqooyi Galbeed Province, Wajaale, Ala’ibaday, and Gabiley. In Ethiopia, where the Akisho are the most widespread Somali group, Akisho members inhabit Jijiga, Baale (Nagelle), Baabule, Fayaanbiiro, Qabri-Bayah, Fiq, Hara-Maaya, Harar, and Dadar.

Akisho members are predominantly adherents of Sunni Islam, though one might find a Christian Akisho in the Shewa area of Ethiopia. Other Akisho groups and their related clans are reputed to have migrated from Somali Ethiopian region all the way up North as far as the country Chad, the Sudan, and Northern Eritrea are said to be inhabited by these lost Dir groups.^{[citation needed]}

The Akisho name is originally derived from "Cayisho" which means in old Somali the (Cayilsan) "Fat One", and in Oromo Akisho.^{[citation needed]} Also the other nickname of the Akisho, Guure, is derived from one who doesn't "hear" because they did not speak the Oromo language when they settled among the Oromo of Bale and Arsi around 1600.^{[citation needed]} Similarly, the Gurgure who are very closely related to the Akisho, use a nickname and were referred to the Oromo and Somalis as the traders or Gurgure from the old Somali and Oromo word "gorgortan" which means one who sales and trades.

According to the folklore historians of the Southern Suure Dir of the Mudug region, the Akisho and the Gurgure madahweyne Dir produced some of the most famous Somali folk heroes like the Somali queen Araweelo who was Warre Miyo. Also the Akisho and Gurgure clans were instrumental in spreading the Muslim faith in the hinterlands of Ethiopia. The Sheikh Abba Hussein in Southern Ethiopia is said to be of Dir, as well as Awbarkadleh and Awbuube who are two major saints of the Somalis.

The Warre prefix in front of many Akisho clans names means "the Clan of" or reer (WaaReer) in proper Somali. For example, the Warre Miyo are referred to Reer Miiyo in Somalia, but Warre Miyo in Ethiopian Somali and Oromo regions. Other clans related to the Aksiho are the Gariire, Warre Dayo,Gurgure, Layiile, and Aw Said's of Lower Jubba.

[edit] Major subclans

The Akisho (Gurre) clan consists of 12 major subclans:

1. Waro-Miyo
2. Waro-Bito
3. Waro-Dayo
4. Waro-Luujo
5. Waro-Ito
6. Waro-Kiyo
7. Waro-Heebaan
8. Waro-Kurto
9. Obo
10. Igo
11. Asaabo
12. Eejo

[edit] References

1. ^ Pankhurst, Richard K.P. The Ethiopian Borderlands: Essays in Regional History from Ancient Times to the End of the 18th Century. The Red Sea Press, Inc.: Asmara, Eritrea, 1997.

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