Ogaden is one of the historical names used for the modern Somali Region which forms the eastern portion of Ethiopia and borders Somalia. Other names sometimes used for this area are Haud or Hawd.

The Somali people are a Cushitic ethnic group native to the Horn of Africa who share a common ancestry, culture and history. The Lowland East Cushitic Somali language is the shared mother tongue of ethnic Somalis, which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afroasiatic language family, and they are predominantly Sunni Muslim. Forming one of the largest ethnic groups on the continent, they cover one of the most expansive landmasses by a single ethnic group in Africa.