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Sayyid Maxamed Cabdulle Xasan
Somalian leader
Quick Facts
- Also spelled:
- Mohammed Abdullah Hassan
- Born:
- April 7, 1864, Dulbahante area, British Somaliland [now Doli Bahanta, Somalia]
- Died:
- Dec. 21, 1920, Imi, Ethiopia (aged 56)
Sayyid Maxamed Cabdulle Xasan (born April 7, 1864, Dulbahante area, British Somaliland [now Doli Bahanta, Somalia]—died Dec. 21, 1920, Imi, Ethiopia) was a Somali religious and nationalist leader (called the “Mad Mullah” by the British) who for 20 years led armed resistance to the British, Italian, and Ethiopian colonial forces in Somaliland. Because of his active resistance to the British and his vision of a Somalia united in a Muslim brotherhood transcending clan divisions, Sayyid Maxamed is seen as a forerunner of modern Somali nationalism. He also is revered for his skill as an oral poet. Maxamed’s father belonged to ...(100 of 288 words)