The <answer>clan</answer> groupings of the Somali people are important social units, and <answer>clan</answer> membership plays a central part in Somali culture and politics. Clans are patrilineal and are often divided into sub-<answer>clan</answer>s, sometimes with many sub-divisions. The tombs of the founders of the Darod, Dir and Isaaq major <answer>clan</answer>s as well as the Abgaal sub-<answer>clan</answer> of the Hawiye are all located in northern Somalia. Tradition holds this general area as an ancestral homeland of the Somali people.
What is a basic social unit of Somali society?
clan