The Walashma dynasty was a medieval Muslim dynasty of the Horn of Africa. It governed the Ifat and Adal Sultanates in what are present-day northern Somalia, Djibouti and eastern Ethiopia.
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Genealogical traditions
The Walashma princes of Ifat and Adal all possessed Arab genealogical traditions. According to both Maqrizi and the chronicle of the Walashma, ʿUmar Walashma, the founder of the dynasty, was of Quraysh or Hashimite origin.
In terms of lineage, Walashma traditions trace descent from Akīl ibn Abī Tālib, the brother of the Caliph ʿAlī and Djaʿfar ibn Abī Tālib. The latter was among the earliest Muslims to settle in the Horn region. However, the semi-legendary apologetic History of the Walasma' asserts that ʿUmar ibn-Dunya-hawz had as a progenitor Caliph ʿAlī's son al-Hasan with this genealogy being owed to their supposed ancestor Yusuf bin Ahmad al-Kawneyn, a famous Somali saintly figure.
Language
The 19th century Ethiopian historian Asma Giyorgis suggests that the Walashma themselves spoke Arabic. He additionally describes the family as among the first Muslims to enter Abyssinia ("Habasha"), which he writes was originally inhabited by the Saba, Balaw, Kalaw and Noba.
Sultanate of Ifat
According to Maqrizi, the forefathers of 'Umar Walashma first settled in the Zeila-controlled Jabarta region. From there, they slowly expanded into the hinterland.
Despite being described as a 'successor' to the Sultanate of Showa, the Sultanate of Ifat and Showa state were founded around the same time. ʿUmar DunyaHuz founded Ifat at Zeila in 1185, one of eight Sultanates that were established in the Horn of Africa during this period. The other sultanates were the aforementioned Showa along with the sultanates of Arbabni, Dawaro, Hadiya, Sharka, Bale and Dara). The original borders of the Sultanate of Ifat roughly correspond with the present-day Awdal region in northwestern Somalia. In 1278, the Walashma conquered the Sultanate of Showa. The dynasty later annexed the sultanate into Ifat in 1280, making Ifat the largest and most powerful of its peers. This annexation is usually attributed to ʿUmar, but he had been dead for 50 years by the time Showa was annexed. More likely, it was his grandson Jamal ad-Dīn or perhaps even his great-grandson Abūd.
In 1332, the Zeila-based King of Adal was slain in a military campaign against the Abyssinian Emperor Amda Seyon's invading troops. Amda Seyon then appointed Jamal ad-Din as the new King, followed by Jamal ad-Din's brother Nasr ad-Din. Despite this setback, the Muslim rulers of Ifat continued their campaign. The Abyssinian Emperor branded the Muslims of the surrounding area "enemies of the Lord", and again invaded Ifat in the early 15th century. After much struggle, Ifat's troops were defeated and the Sultanate's ruler, King Sa'ad ad-Din II, fled to Zeila. He was pursued there by Abyssinian forces, where they slayed him.
Sultanate of Adal
Islam was introduced to the Horn of Africa early on from the Arabian peninsula, shortly after the hijra. In the late 9th century, Al-Yaqubi wrote that Muslims were living along the northern Somali seaboard. He also mentioned that the Adal kingdom had its capital in the city, suggesting that the Adal Sultanate with Zeila as its headquarters dates back to at least the 9th or 10th century. According to I.M. Lewis, the polity was governed by local dynasties consisting of Somalized Arabs or Arabized Somalis, who also ruled over the similarly-established Sultanate of Mogadishu in the Benadir region to the south. Adal's history from this founding period forth would be characterized by a succession of battles with neighbouring Abyssinia.
After the last Sultan of Ifat, Sa'ad ad-Din II, was killed in Zeila in 1410, his children escaped to Yemen, before later returning in 1415. In the early 15th century, Adal's capital was moved further inland to the town of Dakkar, where Sabr ad-Din II, the eldest son of Sa'ad ad-Din II, established a new base after his return from Yemen.
Adal's headquarters were again relocated the following century, this time to Harar. From this new capital, Adal organised an effective army led by Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi (Ahmad "Gurey" or Ahmad "Gran") that invaded the Abyssinian empire. This 16th century campaign is historically known as the Conquest of Abyssinia (Futuh al-Habash). During the war, Imam Ahmad pioneered the use of cannons supplied by the Ottoman Empire, which he imported through Zeila and deployed against Abyssinian forces and their Portuguese allies led by Cristóvão da Gama. Some scholars argue that this conflict proved, through their use on both sides, the value of firearms like the matchlock musket, cannons and the arquebus over traditional weapons.
Sultanate of Harar
In 1559, the Ethiopian General Hamalmal captured Harar and killed Sultan Barakat. The Walashma dynasty did not go extinct (there are still members alive today), but Amīr Nūr ibn Mujahid was chosen to succeed him. Nūr ibn Mujahid subsequently founded a new dynasty and sultanate in the same year, the Sultanate of Harar.