Somaliland

**Somaliland** (;  **',  **'), officially the **Somaliland Protectorate** (, ) is a de facto country that used to be the former protectorate of British Somaliland. Djibouti lies to the west of Somaliland, the Federal Republic of Ethiopia lies to the south and west and Somalia lies to the east and south.

The area used to be the Somaliland protectorate, which was part of the British empire along with Jubaland, once called Trans-juba. The British granted its independence on 26 June 1960 upon which it called the "Somaliland Republic". Shortly after, the leaders of Somaliland and Somalia agreed to form a unified state. In May of 1991, after a brutal war waged by the government of Siad Barre, Somaliland proclaimed and regained its independence.::.

Currently, Somaliland's international position fulfills the requirements to be considered an independent country according to the Montevideo Convention. The government of Somalia, however, still considers Somaliland to be a part of Somalia.:.

Somaliland has a republican government with free elections. The capital is Hargeisa. Berbera is a beautiful city on the coast. About 55% of the people of Somalilands are nomads. Most Somalis are Sunni Muslims. Some people are part of Sufi orders.

A territory in the west, called  Khatumo State has been disputed between Somaliland and Puntland.

### Language

Most people in Somaliland speak Somali and Arabic. Article 6 of the Constitution of 2001 says the official language of Somaliland is Somali, but Arabic is a mandatory subject in school. English is also spoken and taught in schools.

The main Somali dialect is Standard Somali. Standard Somali is spoken in most of Somalia and in countries that are next to it. Standard Somali is used by almost all of the media in the Somaliland region.

### Religion

Almost all Somalilanders are Muslims. This is because Islam is the state religion, and promoting a religion other than Islam is against the law. Small amounts of non-Islamic traditions exist in Somaliland, but Islam is very important to the Somali sense of national identity.

## Other websites

- Somaliland's official website

## Infobox (country)

- **conventional long name**: Somaliland Protectorate
- **common name**: Somaliland
- **image flag**: Flag of Somaliland.svg
- **image coat**: Coat of arms of Somalia.svg
- **symbol type**: National emblem
- **national motto**:

_Lā ilāhā illā-llāhu; muhammadun rasūlu-llāh_

- **national anthem**:

<div style="display:inline-block;margin-top:0.4em;"></div>
- **image map**: Somaliland (orthographic projection).svg
- **map caption**: Controlled territory (dark green) and territory claimed but not controlled (light green)
- **capital**: Hargeisa
- **largest city**: capital
- **official languages**: Arabic language, Arabic• Somali language, somali
- **languages type**: Second language
- **languages**: Arabic language, Arabic;  English language, English
- **languages2 type**: Arabic
- **demonym**: Somalilander
- **government type**: Unitary state, Unitary Presidential system, presidential republic
- **leader title1**: President of Somaliland, President
- **leader title2**: Vice President of Somaliland, Vice President
- **leader name2**: Abdirahman Saylici
- **leader title3**: House of Representatives (Somaliland), Speaker of the House
- **leader name3**: Abdirisak Khalif
- **leader title4**: Chief Justice of Somaliland, Chief Justice
- **leader name4**: Adan Haji Ali
- **legislature**: Parliament of Somaliland, Parliament
- **upper house**: House of Elders of Somaliland, House of Elders
- **lower house**: House of Representatives of Somaliland, House of Representatives
- **sovereignty type**: Unrecognised independence
- **sovereignty note**: from Somalia
- **established event1**: Punt Kingdom ,  First Pre-Islamic Kingdom
- **established event2**: Ifat Sultanate ,  First Islamic Sultanate
- **established date2**: 1185
- **established event3**: Isaaq Sultanate
- **established date3**: 1750–1884
- **established event4**: Establishment of British Somaliland, English protectorate
- **established date4**: 1884
- **established event5**: Independence of the State of Somaliland
- **established date5**: 26 June 1960
- **established event6**: Somali Republic, Union with the Trust Territory of Somaliland
- **established date6**: 1 July 1960
- **established event7**: Somaliland Declaration of Independence, Declaration of independence
- **established date7**: 18 May 1991
- **area km2**: 177,000
- **area sq mi**: 110,000
- **population estimate**: 5.7 million
- **population estimate year**: 2021
- **population estimate rank**: 113th
- **population density km2**: 28.27
- **gdp ppp**: $12.5 billion
- **gdp ppp year**: 2018
- **gdp ppp per capita**: $675
- **currency**: Somaliland shilling
- **time zone**: East Africa Time, EAT
- **utc offset**: +3
- **date format**: d/m/yy (Anno Domini, AD)
- **drives on**: right
- **calling code**: +252 <small>(Somalia)</small>
- **ethnic groups**: 81% somali
*25% #Demographics, Other
- **ethnic groups year**: 2017