Mythologies of the Soqotri Tribe

The Soqotri tribe, sometimes referred to as Socotran, are a South Arabian ethnic group native to the Gulf of Aden island of Socotra. They speak the Soqotri language, a Modern South Arabian language in the Afroasiatic family. The Soqotri primarily inhabit the Socotra Archipelago, on Socotra island and the Abd al Kuri, Darsah and Samhah districts of the Amanat Al Asimah governorate, Yemen. According to Ethnologue, there are an estimated 71,400 Soqotri. As of the last 1990 Socotra census, they numbered around 57,000. Most Soqotri are Sunni Muslim. Historically, Soqotri were Nestorian Christians, from the Christianization of the island between the 4th and 6th centuries up until the 15th century, when the island was occupied by the Mehri Sultanate in 1480. This led to slow Islamisation of the Soqotri. The Soqotri speak the Soqotri language (also known as Saqatri, Socotri, Sokotri and Suqutri). It belongs to the Modern South Arabian languages which are closer to the Ethiopian Semitic languages than to Arabic (Central Semitic languages). Despite historical contacts with the Arabic language, there is no mutual understanding between native speakers of the Modern South Arabian languages and native speakers of Arabic. Moreover, there is no mutual understanding between the speakers of the Modern South Arabian languages themselves, and the Soqotri language is only spoken on the island of Socotra. Soqotri has several dialects, which consist of ’Abd Al-Kuri, Central Soqotri, Northern Soqotri, Southern Soqotri and Western Soqotri. North Soqotri comprises North Central and Northwest Central (highland) Soqotri. The language is written using the Naskh variant of the Arabic script. Soqotri is also transcribed with the Latin script.

Soqotra, an island situated at the mouth of the Gulf of Aden in the northwest Indian Ocean between Africa and Arabia, is home to ~60,000 people subsisting through fishing and semi-nomadic pastoralism who speak a Modern South Arabian language. Most of what is known about Soqotri history derives from writings of foreign travellers who provided little detail about local people, and the geographic origins and genetic affinities of early Soqotri people has not yet been investigated directly. Here we report genome-wide data from 39 individuals who lived between ~650 and 1750 CE at six locations across the island and document strong genetic connections between Soqotra and the similarly isolated Hadramawt region of coastal South Arabia that likely reflects a source for the peopling of Soqotra. Medieval Soqotri can be modelled as deriving ~86% of their ancestry from a population such as that found in the Hadramawt today, with the remaining ~14% best proxied by an Iranian-related source with up to 2% ancestry from the Indian sub-continent, possibly reflecting genetic exchanges that occurred along with archaeologically documented trade from these regions. In contrast to all other genotyped populations of the Arabian Peninsula, genome-level analysis of the medieval Soqotri is consistent with no sub-Saharan African admixture dating to the Holocene. The deep ancestry of people from medieval Soqotra and the Hadramawt is also unique in deriving less from early Holocene Levantine farmers and more from groups such as Late Pleistocene hunter–gatherers from the Levant (Natufians) than other mainland Arabians. This attests to migrations by early farmers having less impact in southernmost Arabia and Soqotra and provides compelling evidence that there has not been complete population replacement between the Pleistocene and Holocene throughout the Arabian Peninsula. Medieval Soqotra harboured a small population that showed qualitatively different marriage practices from modern Soqotri, with first-cousin unions occurring significantly less frequently than today.

Socotra is home to an ethnically diverse human population and a mosaic culture composed of ancient indigenous traditions and foreign influence brought to Socotra by the multitude of travelers that have visited the archipelago throughout history. Some of the cultural elements that render Socotra so unique include an endemic language spoken nowhere else and a myriad of unique, enduring cultural practices within the realms of tangible and intangible cultural heritage.

The archipelago’s current human population is a patchwork of indigenous and foreign lineages, and mixtures of both, all of which live in relative harmony. Indigenous Socotris are the ethnic group that has inhabited the island the longest and are largely part of the Al-Mahra tribe of south Arabia. The remaining population is composed principally of people of East-African descent and an increasing number of mainland Yemenis. Historically Socotra’s inhabitants were geographically and culturally divided into two groups: those who lived in the mountains, subsisting primarily on livestock and those who lived on the coastal plains, subsisting primarily on fish. The dichotomy also reflected geographical divisions; the prior group belonged to kin-based tribal groups that owned land and had access to specific land and water resources while the latter did not. To date, the majority of indigenous Socotris still live as semi-nomadic pastoralists and depend on animal husbandry, fishing, date agriculture and other practices tied to their surrounding nature as livelihoods. Until recently, the diet of most Socotris consisted of meat, milk products, fish, dates and the few other edible plants found on the archipelago. Due to the largely arid climate and lack of irrigation infrastructure, large scale agriculture was, and still is, not an option, though subsistence agriculture is practiced in quaint home gardens throughout Socotra island. As a result of these nutritional limitations, livestock on Socotra (goats, sheep, camels, miniature cattle), and especially goats, occupy an important place in local culture and attributed with much respect and reverence.

Soqotri (also spelt Socotri, Sokotri, or Suqutri; autonym: ماتڸ دسقطري, mɛ́taḷ di-saḳɔ́ṭri; Arabic: اللغة السقطرية, al-luḡah al-suquṭriyyah) is a South Semitic language spoken by the Soqotri people on the island of Socotra and the two nearby islands of Abd al Kuri and Samhah, in the Socotra archipelago, in the Guardafui Channel. Soqotri is one of six languages that form a group called Modern South Arabian languages (MSAL). These additional languages include Mehri, Shehri, Bathari, Harsusi and Hobyot. All are spoken in different regions of Southern Arabia. Soqotri is often mistaken as a variety of Arabic but is officially classified as an Afro-Asiatic, Semitic, South Semitic and South Arabian language. The language is under immense influence of the dominant Arabic language and culture because many Arabic-speaking Yemenis have settled in the Soqotri region permanently, resulting in Arabic becoming the official language of the island. Soqotri is now replaced with Arabic as a means of education in schools. Students are prohibited from using their mother tongue while at school and job seeking Soqotrans must be able to speak Arabic before getting employed. Young Soqotrans even prefer Arabic to Soqotri and now have a difficult time learning it. Oftentimes they mix Arabic in it and cannot recite or understand any piece of Soqotri oral literature.

The Soqotri, also known as Socotran, are an ethnically South Arabian group who have long inhabited the archipelago. Their culture is deeply rooted in tradition, and their lifestyle is a testament to their resilience and adaptation to the harsh island environment. Historically, they were Nestorian Christians, converting to Islam in the 15th century due to the occupation by the Mehri Sultanate. The islanders’ way of life is primarily sustained by traditional practices such as livestock herding, fishing, date farming, and small-scale agriculture in primitive home gardens. Livestock varieties include goats, sheep, cattle, and camels, each adapted to different parts of the island’s diverse ecology. Fishing remains a crucial part of their economy, with fish and seafood being major commodities exported to mainland Yemen and Oman. Poetry and song are deeply ingrained in Socotri culture and serve as primary means of communication. These forms of expression are not only a way to pass down stories and traditions but also to preserve the language and cultural identity. The island’s residents often gather to share and perform their poetic works, which are typically accompanied by music. This cultural practice is so vital that festivities centered around poetry and music are common, celebrating both new and old compositions. The spiritual life of the Socotri is significant, with Islam playing a central role. The practice of Islam is intertwined with daily activities and cultural expressions. Socotri Muslims adhere to the five daily prayers, which are a cornerstone of their spiritual practice. This religious adherence shapes much of the social and cultural norms observed on the island.