THE WIDER CHRONICLE | COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT
October 27, 2026
Sheik Abdirashid Ali Sufi’s journey began with lessons from his father, Sheikh Ali Abdirahman Sufi, a Somali Qur’anic scholar. By the age of ten, he had memorized the Qur’an. Those early lessons laid the foundation for a lifetime devoted to recitation and teaching.
In 1981, he travelled to Egypt to study the recognized traditions of Qur’anic recitation, known as qira’at. He earned advanced qualifications in the ten recitations and studied with a specialist at Al-Azhar. His work also included teaching and serving as an imam in Mogadishu before moving to Qatar in 1991.
Through teaching, public recitation, and recordings, he has shared this tradition with audiences beyond Somalia. This week, The Wider Chronicle highlights his contribution to Qur’anic learning and the Somali tradition of preserving knowledge through generations.