Hadrawi
 |
Hadrawi | |
|---|---|
 Hadrawi in 2018 | |
| Native name | |
| Born | Mohamed Ibrahim Warsame 1943 Burao, Togdheer British Somaliland |
| Died | (aged 79) Hargeisa, Somaliland |
| Pen name | Hadrawi |
| Occupation |
|
| Alma mater | Somali National University |
| Subject | Patriotism, love, faith, mortality |
| Notable works |
|
| Notable awards | Prince Claus Award (2012) |
Mohamed Ibrahim Warsame[a] (1943 – 18 August 2022), known by the pseudonym Hadrawi,[b] was a Somali poet, philosopher and songwriter. Having written many notable protest works, Hadrawi has been likened by some to Shakespeare,[1] and his poetry has been translated into various languages.[2][3]
Biography
Hadrawi was born in Burao, situated in the Togdheer region of Somaliland, then part of British Somaliland. His family was poor and consisted of one girl and eight boys. In 1953, at the age of nine, he went to live with an uncle in the Yemeni port city of Aden. There Warsame began attending a local school, where he received the nickname "Hadrawi" (Abu Hadra), a pseudonym by which he is now popularly known. In 1963, he became a primary school teacher.
Return to Somali Republic
After British Somaliland gained independence on June 26th 1960 and then formed a union with the Italian Somaliland (who gained independence on the 1st July 1960), Hadrawi relocated from Aden to Mogadishu, The newly formed Somali Republic’s capital, and began working for Radio Mogadiscio. In Mogadishu, he both attended and later taught at the Lafoole University (Afgooye). He also worked for the government's Department of Information.
In addition to love lyrics, he was a powerful commentator on the political situation and critic of the then military regime in Mogadishu (former Italian Somaliland section) who oppressed the former portion of British Somaliland. Imprisoned between 1973 and 1978.[2]
In 1973, Hadrawi wrote the poem Siinley and the play Tawaawac ('Lament'), both of which were critical of the military government that was then in power. For this dissent, he was subsequently arrested and imprisoned in Qansax Dheere until April 1978.
Somali National Movement
Following his release from prison in 1978, Hadrawi became the director of the arts division of the Academy of Science, Arts, and Literature in Somalia. when he joined the opposition Somali National Movement, based in Ethiopia. He was a very powerful voice in the ensuing years of civil war and the repressive military regime, and continues to be a very important poet commenting on the predicament the Somalis face.[2]
Hadrawi relocated to United Kingdom in 1991. During this period, he traveled frequently throughout Europe and North America to participate in folklore and poetry festivals.
In 1999, Hadrawi returned once more to his native Somaliland, this time settling in Hargeisa. The following year, the mayor of Chicago invited him to participate in the latter city's Millennium Festival.
Hadrawi later lived in Burao, and reportedly made a (hajj) pilgrimage to Mecca.
Death
Hadrawi died in Hargeisa on 18 August 2022, at the age of 79.[4]
Contributions to popular music
Besides volumes of poems and dozens of plays, Hadrawi participated in numerous collaborations with popular vocal artists. His lyrical corpus includes:
- "Baladweyn" – song performed by Hasan Adan Samatar in 1974
- "Saxarlaay ha Fududaan" – sung by Mohamed Mooge Liibaan
- "Jacayl Dhiig ma Lagu Qoraa?" – sung by Magool, and later translated by Hanna Barket as "Is Love Written in Blood?" or "Do You Write Love in Blood?". Another translation of the song by the British linguist and Somali Studies doyen Martin Orwin is "Has Love Been Blood-written?".[5]
Awards
In 2012, Hadraawi was awarded the Prince Claus Award for his contributions to peace through poetry.[6]
Works
- Hooya la'anta ('Motherlessness')
- Beled Wayn
- Hablaha geeska
- Gudgude
- Siinley
- Sirta nolosha
- Tawaawac
- Aqoon iyo afgarad
- Deeley
- Hawaale warran
- Bulshooy
All the translations are by Poetry Translation Centre
See also
Notes
References
- ^ Ditmars, Hadani (30 September 1994). "Somali Shakespeare". The Independent. Archived from the original on 5 December 2013. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
- ^ a b c McConnell, Tristan (12 February 2010). "Inside Somalia: Where poetry is revered". GlobalPost. Retrieved 17 September 2012.
- ^ "Hadraawi: The Somali Shakespeare – The Documentary Podcast". BBC World Service. 2 August 2017. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
- ^ "Great Somali poet Hadrawi passed away in Hargeisa". Somali Times. 18 August 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
- ^ Orwin, Martin (2001). "Maxamed Ibraahim Warsame 'Hadraawi'". Modern Poetry in Translation (17). London: King's College London. ISSN 0969-3572.
- ^ "Prêmio Principal Príncipe Claus 2012 para cooperativa editorial argentina Eloísa Cartonera" [2012 Prince Claus Main Award for Argentine Publishing Cooperative Eloísa Cartonera]. PR Newswire (in Portuguese). Amsterdam. 6 September 2012. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
General references
- "Abwaan Maxamed Ibraahim Warsame Hadraawi oo geeriyooday" [Poet Mohamed Ibrahim Warsame Hadrawi who passed away]. VOASomali.com (in Somali). 18 August 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
Further reading
- Xasan, Maxamed Baashe X. (2004). Hal Ka Haleel: Sooyaalka Hadraawi iyo Suugaantiisa [Presence of Mind: Biography of Hadraawi and His Literature] (in Somali). London: Bashe Publications. ISBN 9780995753334. OCLC 62124821.
- Warsame, Maxamed Ibraahin; Jama, Jama Musse (2013). Maxamed Ibraahin Warsame 'Hadraawi': The Man and the Poet. Pisa, Italy: Ponte Invisibile. ISBN 9780995753334. OCLC 1077606703.
External links
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
- 1943 births
- 2022 deaths
- Somalian dramatists and playwrights
- Somalian poets
- Somali-language writers
- People from Burao
- Somalian Muslims
- 20th-century Somalian writers
- 20th-century poets
- 21st-century poets
- Ethnic Somali people
- 21st-century Somalian writers
- African philosophers
- 20th-century Muslims
- 21st-century Muslims
- Somalian male writers
- 20th-century male writers
- 21st-century male writers