Bamiyan Panorama

Bamiyan Panorama

Friday, September 14, 2012

Somalia before the war





Postcard of Mogadishu - maybe taken in the 60's?


Fiat of Mogadishu, delivery of 4 wagons to Public Works shop January 20, 1970



View of the City - (Maybe Mogadishu?)


This video shows photos and film clips of Somalia in the 60's and 70's.  Looks like they had very good infastructure, businesses, restaurants, industry, etc....  



Girl scouts - with Somlian AND European girls together.



Mogadishu City Hall - before and after


Mogadishu Stadium, built in 1978


Mogadishu Waterfront


Mogadishu 1977


Somali National University (Mogadishu). It was created in 1954. There were three campuses (1. Gaheyr - Mogadishu at KM6, 2. Digfeer - Medicine school near Digfeer Hospital in Mogadishu, and 3. Lafoole Teaching College - Lafoole). Initially the language of instruction was Italian, but later also included Somali and English. Siad Barre’s government (no bias here) really did play an important role in expanding the national university and higher education through the country in the 1970’s. Research centers were established throughout different cities with the goal of developing the national economy.
The fifteen departments of Somali National University were:
1. Department of Sharia Law
2. Department of Linguistics (Somali, Arabic, English, German and Italian)
3. Department of Livestock and Forest Management
4. Department of Education (Teaching College at Lafoole), 20 km west of Mogadishu
5. Department of Agriculture
6. Department of Geology and Mining
7. Department of Medicine (College of Medicine) near Digfeer Hospital
8. Department of Chemical/Industrial Engineering
9. Department of History
10. Department of Geography
11. Department of Science
12. Department of Mathematics
13. Department of Public Health
14. Department of Engineering
15. Department of Political Science

Somali school children in Somalia. The kids uniforms are very Somali ( in terms of colors I mean). Their teacher looks hip too. I wonder what happened to this generation of children who enjoyed education, peace, and opportunities non existent today in Somalia.
Schoolchildren

Mogadishu 1963
Mogadishu 1963

Lighthouse port of Mogadishu 1988 #vintagesomalia
Old lighthouse for the Port of Mogadishu taken in 1988


Somali Nomads (in white) at a Market in 1969 in Xuddar(Hudar) Region, Somalia


Female employee - sometime in the 80's.

This is how Somali women use to dress back in the day. Effortless style. From their accessories to headscarf’s, shawls and not to mention gold. They had beautiful skin with no need for toxic makeup as well. You don’t see this anymore :(.
All people know of Somalis is current day Somalia, but there was a time when Somalis were really happy (well some) and life was good and people dressed well, had parties, went to the beach, worked hard. Somali women had a lot more freedom than any of the women in the Arab/Muslim world and beyond Africa as well. They could go to school, work, drive, wear whatever they wanted. They were not oppressed. They had culture. Somalia was very cosmopolitan once. Sad to see what it has become today.
This is how Somali women use to dress back in the day. Effortless style. From their accessories to headscarf’s, shawls and not to mention gold. They had beautiful skin with no need for toxic makeup as well. You don’t see this anymore :(.
All people know of Somalis is current day Somalia, but there was a time when Somalis were really happy (well some) and life was good and people dressed well, had parties, went to the beach, worked hard. Somali women had a lot more freedom than any of the women in the Arab/Muslim world and beyond Africa as well. They could go to school, work, drive, wear whatever they wanted. They were not oppressed. They had culture. Somalia was very cosmopolitan once. Sad to see what it has become today.   (quote from a Somali)

Xamar #vintagsomalia
Mogadishu


Air Somalia 


1970s Somali Women's Basketball Team

All photos and info are from http://vintagesomalia.tumblr.com/ 






16 comments:

Unknown said...

I love Somalia, really it was beautiful

Anonymous said...

Hello,

Thanks for this beautiful pictures.

samir entertainment said...

Thank You for collecting all of these information , i learn't more about my country

yamyam said...

Thanks for the beautiful pictures. It gives us hope. We also pray for your country to be the Real Alfghanistan it was before the war!

Somali_wonderer said...

Hello.
I liked how you put together all of this in effort of how Somalia was before the war occurred.
I'm Somali sadly never been to my own country living in London. I sometimes wonder how life would have been without the war..
How different all Somalia life's would have turned out.

Somali_wonderer said...

I am so happy to see what you pit together in honour of Somalia before the war. I sometimes sit back and think of how different our lives would have turned out if Somalia was at peace..

Somali_wonderer said...

Hello.
I liked how you put together all of this in effort of how Somalia was before the war occurred.
I'm Somali sadly never been to my own country living in London. I sometimes wonder how life would have been without the war..
How different all Somalia life's would have turned out.

belief said...

Great pics! Thanks for the blog..Somalia was indeed beautiful and its sad what happened to it after the war.However, I was there 3 years ago and its slowly coming back.I hope for peace and Prosperity for our country.Somalia Hanoolato(long live Somalia) :)

Unknown said...

This is actually on point what it was. I would love to see the former Italian Somaliliand as it was before. I can see the mark Italians left on our culture and Society. I mean if you go to Mogadishu right now it will be nothing compared to what it WAS. The Americans think that they can destroy every Muslim nation. I mean Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Egypt, Libya etc.

Unknown said...

totally I'm so excited to see these pictures of my city I was born and grow up. Who is responsible what happened in that great city? I think Hawiye tribe is responsible what happened in that city period....

davidclarke said...

What was the name of the arch in mogadishu samalia called and became of it?

Unknown said...

Thanks

Unknown said...

sooo beautiful.... i Pray that tides change and somalia becomes the amazing country it was, i Pray that all war torn countries are restored to their former glory.

Unknown said...

thanks for this...it really gives hope and motivates ones love for his/her country

Anonymous said...

Absolutely beautiful thank you

Anonymous said...

Absolutely beautiful. Thank you for sharing this and collecting this information you’ve helped me learn more about my history