Ruguda, also known as Rakudah () is a historic coastal port town located in the
Sanaag
Sanag (, ) is an administrative region ('' gobol'') in north eastern Somaliland.[Regions of Somalia](_blank)
Sa ...
region of
Somaliland
Somaliland, officially the Republic of Somaliland, is an List of states with limited recognition, unrecognised country in the Horn of Africa. It is located in the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden and bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, E ...
, near
Heis.
Overview
Ruguda is a coastal town approximately 38km away from the larger
Heis town nearby. Other nearby cities and towns include
Erigavo (134km),
Burao
Burao, also spelt Bur'o or Bur'ao (; , , ), is the capital of the Togdheer region and the second largest city in Somaliland. Burao was the site of the Somaliland Declaration of Independence, declaration of an independent Somaliland on 18 May 19 ...
(389km), and
Xagal
Xagal is a town in Berbera District, in the Sahil Region of Somaliland
Somaliland, officially the Republic of Somaliland, is an List of states with limited recognition, unrecognised country in the Horn of Africa. It is located in the sou ...
(108km).
History
Ruguda was a well known landmark to navigators and legendary Arab explorer
Ahmad ibn Mājid wrote of Ruguda and a few other notable landmarks and ports of the northern Somali coast, including
Berbera
Berbera (; , ) is the capital of the Sahil, Somaliland, Sahil region of Somaliland and is the main sea port of the country, located approximately 160 km from the national capital, Hargeisa. Berbera is a coastal city and was the former capital of t ...
, the
Sa'ad ad-Din islands
The Sa'ad ad-Din Islands (, ), also Sa'ad ad-Din Islands#Etymology, Romanized as and known as the Zeila Archipelago, are a group of islands off the northwestern coast of Somalia. They are situated near the ancient city of Zeila.
The Zeila Arch ...
aka the Zeila Archipelago near
Zeila
Zeila (, ), also known as Zaila or Zayla, is a historical port town in the western Awdal region of Somaliland.
In the Middle Ages, the Jewish traveller Benjamin of Tudela identified Zeila with the Biblical location of Havilah. Most modern schola ...
,
Siyara
Siyara () was a historic coastal settlement and fort located in the Sahil region of Somaliland. It served as the first capital of the Adal Sultanate following the Muslim resurgence spearheaded by Sabr ad-Din II.Pankhurst, Richard. ''The Ethiopia ...
,
Maydh
Maydh (also transliterated as Maedh, Mette, Mait or Meit) (, ) is an ancient port city in the eastern Sanaag region of Somaliland.
History
Antiquity
According to Augustus Henry Keane, Maydh represents an early center of dispersal of the Somali ...
,
Alula
The alula , or bastard wing, (plural ''alulae'') is a small projection on the anterior edge of the wing of modern birds and a few non-avian dinosaurs. The word is Latin and means "winglet"; it is the diminutive of ''ala'', meaning "wing". The a ...
,
El-Sheikh,
Heis and
El-Darad
El-Darad () was a historic coastal settlement and fort located in the Sahil region of Somaliland.
History
Legendary 15th century Arab explorer Ahmad ibn Mājid wrote of El-Darad and several other notable landmarks and ports of the northern So ...
.
John Hanning Speke, an
English explorer who made an exploratory expedition to the area in an attempt to reach the
Nugaal Valley
The Nugaal Valley (, ), also called the Nogal Valley, is a long and broad valley located in northern Somalia. The Nugaal Valley is bounded to the north by the Warsangali clan, the Nugal Plateau and to the south by 'Iid.
Overview
The Nugaal Va ...
, described the port town:
Demographics
Ruguda is populated by the
Sanbuur sub-division of the
Habr Je'lo
The Habr Je'lo (), , Full Name: ''Mūsa ibn ash-Shaykh Isḥāq ibn Aḥmad,'' historically known as the Habr Toljaala () is a major Northern Somali clan of the wider Isaaq family. Its members form the Habr Habusheed () confederation along with t ...
Isaaq
The Isaaq (, , ''Banu Ishaq'') is a major Somali clans, Somali clan. It is one of the largest Somali clan families in the Horn of Africa, with a large and densely populated traditional territory.
The Isaaq people claim in a traditional legend ...
.
See also
References
Populated places in Sanaag
{{Somaliland-geo-stub