Northern Somali
Northern Somali () is a dialect of the Somali language and forms the basis for Standard Somali. It is spoken by more than 60% of the entire Somali population, with its speech area stretching from Djibouti, Somaliland, Somali Region of Ethiopia, Northern Frontier District to most parts of Somalia This widespread modern distribution is a result of a long series of southward population movements over the past ten centuries from the Gulf of Aden littoral. Overview. Northern Somali is spoken by more than 60% of the entire Somali population. Its primary speech area stretches from Djibouti, Somaliland and to  parts of the eastern and southwestern sections of Somalia. This widespread modern distribution is a result of a long series of southward population movements over the past ten centuries from the Gulf of Aden littoral. Northern Somali is subdivided into three dialects: Northern Somali proper (spoken in the northwest), the Darod group (spoken in the northeast and along the eastern Ethiopia frontier), and the Lower Juba group (spoken by northern Somali settlers in the southern riverine areas). Northern Somali has frequently been used by famous Somali poets as well as the political elite, and thus has the most prestige out  of the Somali dialects. Due to being wide spread, it forms the basis for Standard Somali. Most of the classical Somali poetry is recited and composed in the Northern Somali dialect. The dialect of the Isaaq clan-family has the highest prestige of any other Somali dialect. Northern Somali also contains many Harari loanwords. Varieties. Lamberti divides Northern Somali into three subgroups: References.