By WardheerNews

“Inaa Lillahi wa Inna Ilayhi raji’un  – Surely we belong to Allah and to Him shall we return”

On this day of February 24, the year of 2015, Prof Said Sheikh Samatar Qali, one of the greatest scholars the Somali speaking people have produced, has passed away. The sudden death of our great friend, mentor, poet, a fine and  unparalleled scholar, and a gifted linguist, is a great loss to the entire Somali speaking world.

Said Samatar was born to a family of religious scholarship in the scorching and roasting lowland districts of the Ogaden region circa 1943. He spent most of his life studying the Somali condition. Said had a colorful career. Owing to his speedy skills in typing, his first job was clerking at the US Embassy in Mogadishu in 1962. In the 1960s, he once again clerked for the Somali Embassy in Addis Ababa, working for Mr. Omar Arte Ghalib. After graduating from the Nazareth High School, he worked at the National Teaching College, in Somalia  and  later came to the United States where he completed both his undergraduate and higher education, earning a Ph.D. in African History in 1979 from North Western University in Evanston, Illinois.

At the time of his death, Said was a Professor of History at Rutgers University where he lectured close to thirty years. He was the author of numerous books on Somali History and literature, articles and scholarly papers. He was also the Editor-in-chief of the oldest scholarly journal in the Horn of Africa region (The Horn Africa Journal); founded in 1978; he was the founding father of the Somali Peace Consultation (ERGO). Prof Said was lately a regular contributor to WardheerNews.

Prof Said had suddenly left us. We keep Lidia, Dalmar and Sofia in our prayers at this difficult time. We wholeheartedly pray for our brother so that Allah would open the gates of Janah Fardowsa for him. Rest in Peace our big brother, Said. Aamin

WardheerNews