The fundamentals of Somali clothing

Although Somalis have worn imported clothing and jewelry for centuries, there were still many items of somali clothing made locally up until the 1970s (when commercial goods began to predominate) such as leather clothing, shields made of leather and wood, metal weapons, amulets, simple pieces of jewelry, wooden combs, sandals, and headrests for maintaining elaborate hairstyles. Some of the items were created by nomads for their own use, while others were created by the Saab, a caste of artisans who forged iron and brass objects, hunted wild animals, created amulets, and performed circumcisions—activities that were deemed too dangerous for people outside of the caste to undertake.

However, as leather artisans, Ralph Drake-Brockman of Great Britain said that “their ways are rudimentary” (1912, p. 214).Shields, for instance, were frequently painted on the reverse side with geometric patterns and ornamented on the front with patterns of incised dots. Even though they were designed for practical uses, nomadic men frequently carried shields, spears, and daggers, or hid one in the folds of their garments. These accessories were made to be seen and might easily be regarded as a part of their clothing. Layers of leather were sewed together in a stack that was up to one inch thick after being punctured with an awl. A particularly ornate pair, fashioned for a wedding, is on display at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. The layers of leather were notched with small points (as if the sandals had been cut out with pinking shears).

Men and women who lived as nomads until the middle of the 1800s also wore garments made of leather from their own herds of livestock. However, by the time European explorers arrived in Somalia, this style of somali clothing had already begun to rapidly decline and had been replaced by imported cotton material that was sold in lengths of seven cubits (one cubit being measured from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger). This was the typical length for a clothing worn by nomads. The lengthy rectangle of fabric would be divided in half and sewed into a sizable square for a guy. Usually, a person would merely wrap this around his waist, but in formal settings or during chilly weather, one could drape an edge over one or both shoulders.

A tobe, an Arabic term for “garment,” or maro, a Somali word for “cloth,” were used to describe it. The rectangle of fabric would remain in its original shape for a lady, who would tie one corner over her right shoulder and wrap the remaining portion around her body. Guuntina was the name for this. A lengthier variation known as the saddexqayd was constructed using up to twenty yards of cloth that was wrapped repeatedly around the torso and fastened with a belt made of homemade rope. Even though some outfits, particularly those for leaders or religious occasions, were constructed of plaid or striped fabric, the majority of it was plain undyed white cotton known as merikani (also known as “American” cloth, one typical source in the late 1800s).

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