Abyssinian shotel for coment

Rod Charters · 18th November 2007, 09:31 AM

Hi Jim thanks very much for the further comments as it clarifies for me the origins. It also brings up a lot more questions. Why was the shotel not more widely adopted by the Afar given that according to your research it had been used by the Afari as far back as Burtons time? It would seem a more effective figting knife / sword than the Gille. Was it because the spear was widely used by the Afari instead of swords? Which came first the Shotel or the Gille.

As for your points on the regionalisation of the weapons, why has the Gille been widely adopted by the Isse but not by the other Somali tribes who tend to favour the Billao? A theory I have on this last point is that the Isse have been expanding their territory at the expense of the Afar for decades, possibly longer, and whilst capturing this territory they have captured and adopted the weapons of the Afar? There are also questions on the origins of the Isse as they somehow lie outside the 5 major Somali clans.

Rod

18th November 2007, 09:31 AM	#12
Rod Charters Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 48	Hi Jim thanks very much for the further comments as it clarifies for me the origins. It also brings up a lot more questions. Why was the shotel not more widely adopted by the Afar given that according to your research it had been used by the Afari as far back as Burtons time? It would seem a more effective figting knife / sword than the Gille. Was it because the spear was widely used by the Afari instead of swords? Which came first the Shotel or the Gille. As for your points on the regionalisation of the weapons, why has the Gille been widely adopted by the Isse but not by the other Somali tribes who tend to favour the Billao? A theory I have on this last point is that the Isse have been expanding their territory at the expense of the Afar for decades, possibly longer, and whilst capturing this territory they have captured and adopted the weapons of the Afar? There are also questions on the origins of the Isse as they somehow lie outside the 5 major Somali clans. Rod