Somali literature

Somali literature refers to the literary tradition of Somalia. It ranges from Islamic poetry and prose produced by the region's scholars and Sheikhs of centuries past to works of fiction from contemporary writers.

The Islamic literature of Somalia dates back to the early 14th century, with Uthman bin Ali Zayla'i producing Tabayin al-Haqa’iq li Sharh Kanz al-Daqa’iq, one of the most referenced books in the Hanafi school of Islam. Sayyid Muhammad Abdullah Hassan (1864–1921), the celebrated religious and nationalist leader, also left a considerable amount of manuscripts. One of the better-known examples of Somali Islamic literature is Maja'mut al-Mubaraka, a work written by Shaykh Abdullah al-Qalanqooli and published in Cairo in 1918. Shaykh Abd Al-Rahman bin Ahmad al-Zayla'i also produced many Islamic-orientated manuscripts in the 19th century. In addition, poetry in the form of Qasidas was also popular among Somali Sheikhs, the latter of whom produced thousands of such works in praise of Prophet Muhammad.

Due to the Somali people's passionate love for and facility with poetry, Somalia has also been called by, among others, the Canadian novelist and scholar Margaret Laurence, a "Nation of Poets" and a "Nation of Bards". The 19th-century British explorer Richard Francis Burton, who visited the Somali Peninsula, similarly recounts in his book First Footsteps in East Africa how:

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