Somalia

Somalia
Country
Continent:	Africa
Capital:	Mogadishu
National Language:	Somali and Arabic
Government:	Federal parliamentary republic
Status in OTL:	Active

Somalia is a country located in the Horn of Africa, bordering Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, and the Indian Ocean. Somalia has a population of about 10 million people. About 80% of the population are ethnic Somalis, the rest is made up of minority ethnic groups which are mostly concentrated in the southern areas. Somali and Arabic are the official languages of the country. The religion is mostly Islamic.

Ever since Siad Barre took control of the country, it has been wracked by despotism and corruption. Ever since the 1990s and the Somalian Civil War broke out, violence and devastation have spread throughout the country. Law and order broke down along with any central government, and the situation is still the same.

Literary Comment

In most Harry Turtledove works, Somalia is under colonial rule and referred to as Somaliland.

Somalia in "The Breaking of Nations"

Refugees from Somalia lived in the United States in the 2020s. It proved to be little if at all better than their native land, as there were a number of anti-Somali pogroms in Minnesota.

Somalia in The War That Came Early

Flag of British Somaliland

Flag of Italian Somaliland

Somaliland was a zone of combat between Britain and Italy. The fighting between the two was a desultory secondary front of World War II. Campaigns in that theater were on so small a scale (especially compared with the fighting in the European mainland) that it was considered safe for civilians to travel through the combat zone.