Somali Students’ Association members gather around flag of Somalia at first annual Somali Night celebration in 2018. Credit: Courtesy of Fatima Shauri
The Somali Students’ Association will host its sixth annual Somali Night Saturday at 5 p.m. in the Ohio Union Archie Griffin Ballroom.
The event will celebrate Somali culture through poetry, dance and music. Fatima Shauri — a third-year in international studies and vice president of Ohio State’s SSA — said 2025 marks the organization’s 20th anniversary at Ohio State, making this year’s Somali Night especially significant.
“We’re celebrating 20 years of the Somali Students’ Association on [OSU’s] campus helping Somali students and giving them a safe place to come and talk and connect,” Shauri said. “Obviously, we are a minority on campus and we do want a safe place, and I feel like the Somali Students’ Association has been doing that for 20 years. It’s a big accomplishment.”
The event has grown alongside the Somali community, which has expanded both on campus and in the greater Columbus area. According to The Columbus Dispatch, Columbus is home to over 60,000 Somali residents and has the second-largest Somali population in the United States after Minneapolis, Minnesota.
This year, members of the SSAs at Michigan State and the University of Minnesota will travel to Ohio State to join the festivities, Shauri said.
“It started off as a small event in the U.S. Bank Theater, and now it has evolved into something where we are expecting to have like 800 people coming and sitting in the Archie Griffin Ballroom,” Shauri said. “We’re just using this night to celebrate that because it is a huge milestone to be alive, and be active, and be having continuous board members and growing each year to uplift the Somali community on OSU, but also outside of OSU.”
Ohio State’s SSA was one of the first organizations in the country to host an annual Somali Night, and the idea quickly gained national traction, said Abdirahman Moualem, president of Ohio State’s SSA.
“The concept of Somali Night is becoming more [widespread],” Moualem, also a third-year in computer science and engineering, said. “Every SSA across the country has adapted to it. It’s a demonstration of how powerful the community is and how powerful our voice is.”
At its core, Moualem said Somali Night is a celebration of heritage, culture and togetherness.
“Somali night is a night to demonstrate your culture and demonstrate how big the Somali community is on campus,” Moualem said. “Overall, it’s a welcoming environment to teach people about Somali culture and values, and also award people that are doing great stuff in our community.”
Poetry readings — a staple of Somali culture — will be one of the main features at Somali Night, Shauri said.
“We’re known as the poets, and Somalia is the land of the poets itself,” Shauri said. “The way we talk is with poetry; the way of our music and dancing, it’s all like a language of poetry that’s being shown to get that emotion out of you, but to also bring you back to your roots.”
The event will also include a performance from the Columbus-based Somali dance troupe Cabsi Cabsi, which brings the community together every year, Shauri said.
“The dance team connects the audience and connects the community together,” Shauri said. “It doesn’t matter if they know the person next to them on their right or their left; they just start dancing with each other, and they start connecting, and they forget all the problems they have and they just connect to the music and the dance.”
Along with poetry and dance, attendees can also anticipate a special play performed by members of Ohio State’s SSA chapter.
“This year, we have a play, which we call ‘Riwayaad’ in Somali,” Shauri said, “It’s a way to show the Somali culture as funny and emotional, and it pulls your strings a little bit, but it keeps it engaging.”
Students and community members of all backgrounds are encouraged to attend Somali Night, Shauri said.
“It’s a day to learn about a culture that you might not be familiar with,” Shauri said. “Showing other demographics at OSU how wonderful the Somali culture is and how beautiful it is with the culture and our dances, the music, our poetry, the awardees.”
Tickets can be purchased at the SSA’s website. For more information about Somali Night and the club’s future events, visit its Instagram page.
