Extracts From "The Withered Soul of a Nation" (Part 3)

an unpublished book by Jama Nuh Abdulla

Chapter 3: The World Identity Tree

I was startled by then, as I was just about to finish reading the contents of the World Identity Tree to ascertain if the Somali Identity was still to be found there. To be sure, it was still there, though with a sharp degradation to the bottom of the Lower Echelon on the Graph of Demerits for the nations of the world. Oh, do you know? There are a number of identities and sub-identities enlisted for every nation for its merits and demerits - just the same as a number line denotes the values of plus and minus. For instance, the starting point is SOVEREIGNTY to each of the two only directions on the number line, just the same as zero (0) is the starting point in mathematical representation for our theory in the plus-minus directions.

Then, of course, we use words for our value representation on the number line. For instance, immediately on the right side of the word SOVEREIGNTY begins with the word DEMOCRACY followed by JUSTICE, PEACE, GOOD-NEIGHBORLINESS, PROSPERITY... while the left side begins with DICTATORSHIP, INJUSTICE, DISPUTE, TERRORISM, AGGRESSION, POVERTY....

There are many titles and endless sub-titles under each national identity for the different countries in this world. The World Identity Tree is extremely important in that it just serves as a complete encyclopedia on any subject relating to anyone particular country. Although I was disheartened by the sad downfall of my country, yet I was enlivened by a passage I read under the sub-title:

The Neglected Rich Language

To be certain, it read something like: "Being a member of the Cushitic Languages, a group of East African languages of the Hamitic type, the Somali language is one of the richest languages of Africa and should be viewed in a world-wide historical context, and..."

I was heartily encouraged by this living passage in my new discovery and bounced back in a full fighting form to defeat the Somalo-Sceptics and the like breeds - this time in the offensive front rather than always being on the defensive. I committed my new discovery, World Identity Tree, to memory for my source of reference and began with amusement to translate it into Somali: Geedka Sawraca Kooska.

I checked my word-treasure for further refinement of my translation, but I instantly realized then, to my dismay, that the term sawrac is not at all used for official documentation in all the Five Somali Territories. So is the word same by which Mr. Farhan addressed me in the last minute when he was going out of the air and threw the ball in my yard. Anyway, the word sawrac means ‘a distinguishing natural image, form or mark of a person, animal or an object.’ The term (samo) it same means, ‘above, high, noble, good, good deeds, grace, honour, virtue’

Mr. Farhan used the term same here to mean master (Mr.) and it is abbreviated to Sm. to be used and understood henceforth as the equivalent of the English Mr. in Somali. Again, this term, like its sister (sawrac), was not used before for the sense I have just mentioned, the reason being that Somali is, sadly enough, a misunderstood language. In my state of ecstasy after having read the World Identity Tree, sawrac, same, sawrac, same, ahaawi, lahaawi, yahmin, dalxin... and thousands of similarly invaluable misunderstood terms in the treasure of the language were bursting to the foreground of my mind screen and I was busy sorting them out when I was suddenly disrupted by the yell of Mr. Farhan.

To me, it was a terrible disruption, indeed. This disturbance forced me unwillingly to cut short a long important process of sorting out my newly learnt terms pertinent to many branches of knowledge in the language. As I attempted to take the turn, and/or at least, respond to the call of my friend, I gave out a quack-like cry as if choked by a stranglehold momentarily, and specks of red sparks ran in front of my eyes.

"Well, no way out," I told myself. "I have to play my role in the best way possible since my friend, for whom I have a high regard for his sound argumentation in our debates, has thrown the ball in my yard."

Rubbing my eyes with one of my hands to face the inevitable, and I don’t remember which of them it was, I saw the set of my friends all gazing at me solemnly in anticipation of the sort of response I might give in my turn - just like well trained and highly disciplined soldiers in a parade for inspection of promotion. Again, rubbing the palms of my hands vigorously together for no specific reason, I dared to utter plainly the terms sawrac, same, sawrac, same, ahaawi, lahaawi, yahmin, dalxin... - repeating them in a rhythm that made my friends smile and I went on to address them presently.

See Previous issues for Part 1 and Part 2.

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