Somalia, a Country Study

In November 1977, a year after completion of the research and writing of the second edition of the Area Handbook for Somalia, the republic's military government broke ranks with the Soviet Union, whose arms support and presence in the Horn of Africa had excited much international controversy. Moscow's transfer of its military assistance to Ethiopia in that country's traditional territorial struggle with Somalia led in 1978 to the latter's defeat in combat. In light of the Mogadishu government's search for renewed military and economic support and the United States' increasing interest in the strategically important Indian Ocean area, a fresh look at Somali society and its changing role in world affairs is warranted. Like its predecessor, Somali : A Country Study seeks to provide a compact and objective exposition of the African republic's dominant social, political, economic, and national security aspects and to give the reader some idea of the forces involved at this time in Somalia's history. In presenting this new study the authors have relied primarily on official reports of governmental and international organizations, journals and newspapers but knowledgeable individuals also have been consulted on a number of points. Detailed information on many aspects of Somali affairs was not always readily available, however, and gaps in data and varied interpretations of certain matters existed among some of the sources considered. Such gaps and differences have been noted where appropriate in the text. Where available books and articles provide greater amplification of detail and interpretation of material presented, each author bas noted them in a final bibliographic statement. Full references to these and other sources used are included in the detailed Bibliography. The literature regarding Somalia frequently is confusing because of changes that have occurred in the spelling of Dames for places, persons, and Somali terms. Historically such spellings have varied with the extent of British or Italian influence. Moreover variants occurred within any one tradition as Somalis and outsiders sought to provide spellings that approximated sounds within the Somali language.