Toon is a town in the

Maroodi Jeex Marodi Jeh ( so, Maroodi Jeex, ar, مرودي جيح) is an administrative region ('' gobol'') in western Somaliland. It is the most populous region of the country. It is bordered by Awdal to the west, Sahil to the north, Togdheer to the eas ...

region of

Somaliland Somaliland,; ar, صوماليلاند ', ' officially the Republic of Somaliland,, ar, جمهورية صوماليلاند, link=no ''Jumhūrīyat Ṣūmālīlānd'' is a ''de facto'' sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, still conside ...

. Situated in Salahlay District, it is well-known for being the birth place of the

Isaaq Sultanate The Isaaq Sultanate ( so, Saldanadda Isaaq, Wadaad: , ar, السلطنة الإسحاقية) was a Somali kingdom that ruled parts of the Horn of Africa during the 18th and 19th centuries. It spanned the territories of the Isaaq clan in modern ...

, a Somali

Sultanate This article includes a list of successive Islamic states and Muslim dynasties beginning with the time of the Islamic prophet Muhammad (570–632 CE) and the early Muslim conquests that spread Islam outside of the Arabian Peninsula, and continui ...

that ruled much of Somaliland from the mid-18th to late-19th centuries.

History

The Isaaq Sultanate was established in the mid-18th century by Sultan Guled of the

Eidagale The Eidagale (Ciidagale), ar, ‎عيدَغَلي, (which translates to "army joiner"), Full Name: Da'ud ibn Al-Qādhī Ismā'īl ibn ash-Shaykh Isḥāq ibn Aḥmad, is a major Somali clan and is a sub-division of the Garhajis clan of the Isaa ...

sub-division of the

Garhajis The Garhajis ( so, Garxajis, ar, غرحجس , Full Name: ''Al-Qādhī Ismā'īl ibn ash-Shaykh Isḥāq ibn Aḥmad bin Muḥammad bin'' ''al-Ḥusayn al-Hāshimīy'') historically known as the Habar Gerhajis () is a major clan of the wider Isa ...

clan. His coronation took place after the victorious battle of Lafaruug in which his father, the legendary Abdi Eisa successfully led the Isaaq in battle and defeated the

Absame The Darod ( so, Daarood, ar, دارود) is a Somali clan. The forefather of this clan was Sheikh Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti, more commonly known as ''Darood''. The clan primarily settles the apex of the Horn of Africa and its peripheries ...

tribes, permanently pushing them out of present-day

region. After witnessing his leadership and courage, the

Isaaq The Isaaq (also Isaq, Ishaak, Isaac) ( so, Reer Sheekh Isxaaq, ar, بني إسحاق, Banī Isḥāq) is a Somali clan. It is one of the major Somali clans in the Horn of Africa, with a large and densely populated traditional territory. Per ...

chiefs recognized his father Abdi who refused to adopt the Sultan title instead preferring his son Guled. Guled would be crowned the first Sultan of the Isaaq clan. Sultan Guled thus ruled the Isaaq up until his death in the early 19th century, where he was succeeded by his eldest son Farah. The Isaaq Sultanate was established and based at Toon. Lieutenant C.P Rigby in the year 1848 writes about the capital of the Isaaq:

The Hubr Gajis tribe and its different branches are governed by two Sultans, named Sultan Deriah abr Yunis Sultanand Sultan Farah: the residence of the latter is at Toro.The Transactions of the Bombay Geographical Society 1850, Volume 9, p.133

Demographics

The town is primarily inhabited by the Reer Guled branch of the

clan. The Reer Guled are the descendants of Sultan Guled.

References

Populated places in Maroodi Jeex {{Somaliland-geo-stub