Berbera

Berbera, port, northwestern Somalia, on the Gulf of Aden; it is also under the jurisdiction of the Republic of Somaliland (a self-declared independent state without international recognition that falls within the recognized borders of Somalia) and serves as Somaliland’s primary port. Berbera lies at the terminus of roads from the towns of Hargeysa and Burko and has an airport. Known during classical times and to Ibn Saʿīd (d. 1286) and other early Arab geographers, Berbera was one of the Muslim settlements of the medieval state of Adal. It was sacked by the Portuguese in 1518 and occupied by the sharifs of Mocha in the 17th century, by the Egyptians in 1875, and by the British in 1884. It served as the capital of British Somaliland until 1941. Water is supplied by pipeline from Dubar to the south. Berbera’s trade increased after World War II because of improved port facilities, which were further modernized in the late 1960s and early ’70s. Much of the port was destroyed during warfare in the 1980s and early ’90s; however, the port continued to function, and in the early 21st century it was a key source of income for the Republic of Somaliland. Exports include sheep, hides and skins, ghee, frankincense, myrrh, and gum arabic. A portion of the population migrates to the Galgodon (Ogo) Highlands during the hot season. Pop. (1990 est.) 70,000.