Halima Mohamed Yusuf, better known as Halima Godane ("the stooped one") (1935–1994) was a Somali poet and activist.

Biography

Born in

Kismayo Kismayo ( so, Kismaayo, Maay Maay, Maay: ''Kismanyy'', ar, كيسمايو, ; it, Chisimaio) is a port city in the southern Lower Juba (Jubbada Hoose) province of Somalia. It is the commercial capital of the autonomous Jubaland region. The cit ...

, Godane was married at age nine to Bulqaas of Ali Seleebaan. She moved to

Mogadishu Mogadishu (, also ; so, Muqdisho or ; ar, مقديشو ; it, Mogadiscio ), locally known as Xamar or Hamar, is the capital and List of cities in Somalia by population, most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port ...

in the later 1940s, joining the

Somali Youth League The Somali Youth League (SYL) ( so, Ururka Dhalinyarada Soomaaliyeed رابطة الشباب الصومالي, it, Lega dei Giovani Somali or ''Lega Somala della Gioventù''), initially known as the Somali Youth Club (SYC), was the first politi ...

; in the early 1950s, she was elected a member of the party's women's committee. On national occasions she would recite '' buraanbur'' poetry, entertaining crowds at the regular party meetings as well. On October 12, 1954, she first recited what would become her best-known work, an ode to the

flag of Somalia The flag of Somalia ( so, Calanka Soomaaliyeed, ar, علم الصومال), also known as the Somali flag, was adopted on October 12, 1954, and was designed by Mohammed Awale Liban. The flag was initially used within the Trust Territory of Somal ...

. In 1958, she was among those who supported Haaji Mahammad Husseen in his desire to form the

Greater Somalia League The Greater Somalia League (GSL) was a political party in Somalia that advocated for the establishment of a Greater Somalia. History The GSL was led by Haaji Mahammad Husseen. It was formed by dissidents of the Somali Youth League (SYL). The par ...

; that same year, she was elected to Mogadishu's city council. In 1967, she again switched parties, to the Workers' Socialist Party, and in 1974, she received an award and lifetime monthly pension from Mogadishu authorized by

Mohamed Siad Barre Mohamed Siad Barre ( so, Maxamed Siyaad Barre, Osmanya script: ; ar, محمد سياد بري; c. 1910 – 2 January 1995) was a Somali head of state and general who served as the 3rd president of the Somali Democratic Republic from 1969 to 199 ...

. Godane remained steadfast in her socialist beliefs and desire to see a unified Somalia until her death.

References

1935 births 1994 deaths Somalian women writers Somalian poets Somalian women poets 20th-century poets 20th-century women writers Somalian activists Somalian women activists Somalian women in politics Women local politicians 20th-century women politicians Somali Youth League politicians People from Kismayo 20th-century Somalian women writers 20th-century Somalian writers Somali-language writers {{Somalia-writer-stub