Top 10 Most Popular Somali Swear Words

This is the overarching concept of insulting, but it also works as the ultimate attack. Publicly giving someone a tongue-lashing ('cay') destroys their reputation in front of everyone.

Shame may be the worst thing that can happen to you in Somali society. Calling someone 'ceeb' is an attack on their entire worth as a person within the group.

'Nacalaa' is more a religious curse than a simple swear word. It means that someone has been cursed by a higher power.

Here we enter the territory of very heavy insults. It attacks a woman's sexual reputation in a way that is devastating in Somalia.

The literal translation of 'baqbaqaaq' is parrot. You use it for the blowhards who make a lot of noise without ever saying anything sensible.

'Naayaa' is an interesting Somali insult because context is everything. Among female friends, it's an informal way of calling each other (comparable to 'hey you').

'Wasakh' literally means dirty or filthy. You don't use it for a mud stain on your trousers, but for someone who is morally unclean.

'Dofar' literally means pig. Because of the culture's Islamic background, this insult lands like a sledgehammer.

'Nacas' goes a step further than 'doqon'. It describes someone who doesn't just act clumsily, but consistently falls short in insight or intelligence.

'Doqon' means fool and is often used when someone makes an obvious mistake. Somali culture has countless proverbs about the 'doqon'.