Awdal State Movement

WHO RULED ADAL (ZEILA)

⭐ WHO RULED ADAL (ZEILA) FROM 1200 TO 1884? — AND FROM WHICH CLAN?

➡️ From 1200 to the end of Adal and up to 1884, political leadership of Zeila (Zayla) was held overwhelmingly by the Gadabuursi (Samaroon) clan of the Dir family.
➡️ The Issa (Ciise) were strong in frontier defense, caravan routes, and military mobility, but not the formal political rulers of Zeila.

🟩 FULL LIST OF ADAL / ZEILA RULERS (1200–1884) AND THEIR CLAN

1️⃣ 1200–1250 — Sultanate of Ifat (pre-Adal)

1. Sultan Abubaker (Abu Bakr)

  • Role: Governor of Ifat, early ruler linked to Zeila
  • Clan: Gadabuursi (Dir)

2️⃣ 1250–1300 — Proto-Adal founders of Zeila

2. Garad Abuun (Abun)

  • Role: Founding ruler of early Adal structures
  • Clan: Gadabuursi

3️⃣ 1300–1400 — Building the Adal State

3. Garad Meherin I (1300–1350)

  • Role: Administrator of Awdal & Zeila trade
  • Clan: Gadabuursi

4. Garad Meherin II (1350–1400)

  • Role: Consolidator of Adal’s political structure
  • Clan: Gadabuursi

4️⃣ 1400–1500 — Expansion of Adal

5. Sultan Sabr ad-Din II (1415–1422)

  • Role: Sultan of Adal during wars with Christian Ethiopia
  • Clan: Dir (associated with Gadabuursi)

6. Garad ‘Umar Meherin (1450–1500)

  • Role: Senior administrator of Zeila
  • Clan: Gadabuursi

5️⃣ 1500–1600 — Height of Adal, Ahmed Gurey era

7. Sultan Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad (1500–1520)

  • Role: Sultan during the re-organization of Adal
  • Clan: Gadabuursi

8. Makahil Dynasty (1520–1600)

A continuous Gadabuursi ruling line after the fall of central Adal:

  • Garad Makahil I
  • Garad Makahil II
  • Garad Nur Makahil
  • Garad Roble Makahil

Role:

  • Governors of Zeila
  • Administrators of Awdal
  • Conducting political and military logistics during the Ahmed Gurey campaigns

Clan: Gadabuursi (Makahiil branch)

🌅 POST-ADAL PERIOD (THE KINGDOM OF AWDAL)

After Adal dissolved (~1600), the Gadabuursi continued to rule Awdal (including Zeila’s inland authority) through hereditary Ugaas.

6️⃣ 1600–1700 — Early Post-Adal Gadabuursi Rulers

9. Ugaas Nur Makahil (1600–1650)

  • Clan: Gadabuursi

10. Ugaas Roble Makahil (1650–1700)

  • Clan: Gadabuursi

7️⃣ 1700–1800 — Consolidation of the Gadabuursi Kingdom

11. Ugaas Sharmarke Makahil (1700–1740)

  • Clan: Gadabuursi

12. Ugaas Nur II Makahil (1740–1780)

  • Clan: Gadabuursi

13. Ugaas Hirsi Makahil (1780–1800)

  • Clan: Gadabuursi

8️⃣ 1800–1884 — Era before the colonial treaties

14. Ugaas Nur Hirsi Makahil (1800–1835)

  • Clan: Gadabuursi

15. Ugaas Hirsi II Makahil (1835–1870)

  • Clan: Gadabuursi

16. Ugaas Roba Makahil (1870–1884)

  • Clan: Gadabuursi
    ➡️ Final Gadabuursi ruler before the British protectorate treaties of 1884.

⭐ SUMMARY

From 1200 to 1884, the formal rulers of Zeila and Adal were:

🟢 Gadabuursi (Samaroon) — continuous political leadership

🔴 Issa (Ciise) — military/logistical frontier leadership (not political rulers)

Zeila = A Dir city ruled administratively by Gadabuursi for 684 years.

📚 REFERENCES (ENGLISH)

Primary Sources

  1. Futūḥ al-Ḥabasha (Shihāb al-Dīn Aḥmad) — major chronicle of the Adal wars
  2. The Ethiopian Royal Chronicles (Tārika Nagast)
  3. Portuguese accounts (Álvares, Castanhoso, Bermudes)

Academic Works

  1. I.M. Lewis — A Pastoral Democracy
  2. I.M. Lewis — The Somali Lineage System
  3. J. Spencer Trimingham — Islam in Ethiopia
  4. Enrico Cerulli — Somalia: Scritti Varii
  5. Ulrich Braukämper — Islamic History and Culture in Southern Ethiopia
  6. H.A. MacMichael — A History of the Arabs in the Sudan

Modern Somali Studies

  1. Somali Studies International Association — Zeila and Its Hinterland
  2. Historical Notes from the University of Djibouti (Awdal studies)

Colonial Archives

  1. British Somaliland Protectorate Records (1884–1960)
  2. French Colonial Archives (Djibouti): reports on Ugaas Roba Makahil and Gadabuursi leadership