[2] The Habar Awal are politically and economically influential in present-day Somaliland as well as the Horn of Africa at large, and they reside in strategic coastal and fertile lands.

They form a majority of the population in the national capital Hargeisa as well as exclusively dominate in the agricultural towns and settlements of Gabiley, Wajaale, Arabsiyo, and Kalabaydh.

[5] Outside of Somaliland, the Habr Awal also have large settlements in the Somali Region of Ethiopia, specifically in Fafan Zone where they respectively make up the majority in Harshin, Hart Sheik, and Wajaale (Ethiopian Side) towns.

[16] The Habr Awal as a whole are a rich people, mainly thanks to the trade passing through the port of Berbera which lies in the territory of the Sa’ad Musa.

When under the stimulus of developments at Aden the port's prosperity markedly increased, the numerically dominant Ayyal Yunis drove out their rival kinsmen and declared themselves commercial masters of Berbera.

This led to a feud in which each side sought outside help; the defeated Ayyal Ahmed turned to Haji Shirmarke ‘Ali and his Habr Yunis clansmen for support.

They bring from Harrar and the Galla country, coffee, saffron (bastard), tusks (ivory), and feathers, taking away in return zinc, brass, broad cloth, and piece goods.

[21]In the interior, Habr Awal trade caravans (khafilas) were a frequent sight according to contemporary European accounts of the Somali Peninsula: On leaving Hargeisa we travelled for many miles through beautiful park-like land, alive with birds and jungle fowl.

We met the usual Somali khafilas [trading caravans] of Habr-Awal men, carrying their skins, gums, ghee, and coffee to our port at Bulhar, situated between Berbera and Zeila.

[24]When a British vessel named the Mary Anne attempted to dock in Berbera's port in 1825 it was attacked and multiple members of the crew were massacred by the Habr Awal.

[27] They had numerous commercial ties with the Somalis, leading vessels from Ras Al Khaimah and the Persian Gulf to regularly attend trade fairs in the large ports of Berbera and Zeila and were very familiar with the Isaaq.

[30] In the mid 19th century Hargeisa and the surrounding region was a hotbed of clan strife with raids being made on caravans attempting to pass through.

Madar alongside the other leaders of Jam'a Weyn introduced the cultivation of sorghum and the new construction of permanent housing and creating his grand mosque in 1883.

[35] Sheikh Madar and Isaaq Sultan Deria Hassan met outside Hargeisa in 1870 to discuss issues regarding the new town and agreed that poaching and tree cutting in the vicinity should be banned.

[36] The Saad Musa branch of the Habr Awal began to settle in Hargeisa under the watch of Madar and the Sultan Deria and eagerly took up the new farming methods.

In March 1955, for instance, a delegation consisting of Michael Mariano, Abokor Haji Farah and Abdi Dahir went to Mogadisho to win the support and co-operation of the nationalist groups in Somalia.

[40]The Italian explorer and geographer Luigi Robecchi Brichetti had a similar remark in aspect of the valuable caravan trade, where he also mentioned the related Ayal Ahmad of Habr Awal - who reserved the title as the Abban of Berbera.

Oh Suldaan I have not insulted you And I am not reprimanding you I am not compensating you for shame I expect no wealth from you The respect we give you The beautiful young women We will never take back from you Men who were like you Who we put leaves on as king Are keeping back The Muuse Subeer people The Issa Musse have produced many prominent Somali figures with the Undersecretary General of the United Nations Abdulrahim Abby Farah, and most prominently the first Somali Prime Minister & second President of Somaliland Muhammad Haji Ibrahim Egal, who led the former British Somaliland protectorate to independence in July 1960 to form the Somali Republic.

On 26 June 1960 Egal was Prime minister of the newly independent State of Somaliland, which merged five days later with the former Trust Territory of Somalia to form the Somali Republic on July 1, 1960.

The SNM at 1981 founding in London it elected Ahmed Mohamed Gulaid from the Habr Awal clan as its first chairman, who stated that the group's explicit purpose was to overthrow the Siad Barre military regime.

As commander of the 99th division, General Mohamed Hasan Abdullahi (Jidhif) also established a Somali National Movement military base in Zeila where the SNM occupied the Awdal region for 4 years and successfully defeated attempts by USF militia forces loyal to Djibouti who tried to take advantage of the fall of Siad Barre's Military Junta in 1991 and annex the city of Zeila.

[50] The Habr Awal have a long tradition of leadership and are led by a Sultan from the Ahmed Abdalla branch - a numerous subclan of Saad Musa that mainly reside in Ethiopia.

[54] Habr Awal Garaads would rally men in times of war and settle large disputes with other clans filling the role as the ultimate peacemaker (nabadoon).

[56] From Till Garaad Abdalla served for several decades and was received by travelling British officials near the southern limit of the protectorate in 1894 concerning expansion by General Ras Makonen on behalf of Menelik II.

[57] Garaad Abdalla alongside many other leaders in British Somaliland such as Sultan Deria Hassan and Sheikh Madar were worried about a devastating raid by the Abyssinian forces aimed at the burgeoning town Hargeisa and its environs.

[55] A wise Habr Awal bard from Bulhar named Aami stood and recited a gabay[55] The parties were moved by his words and mediated their dispute.

Sheikh Madar rallied the northern sections of the Habr Awal who unlike the Ahmed Abdalla and a few others, did reside mainly inside the borders of British Somaliland.

[64] DNA analysis of Habr Awal clan members inhabiting Djibouti found that all of the individuals belonged to the EV32 subclade of the Y-DNA E1b1b paternal haplogroup.