The Somalis ( 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒆𐒖, ) are an 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 are predominantly Sunni Muslim. They form one of the largest ethnic groups on the African continent, and cover one of the most expansive landmasses by a single ethnic group in Africa. According to most scholars, the ancient Land of Punt and its native inhabitants formed part of the ethnogenesis of the Somali people. An ancient historical kingdom where a great portion of their cultural traditions and ancestry has been said to derive from. Somalis share many historical and cultural traits with other Cushitic peoples, especially with Lowland East Cushitic people, specifically the Afar and the Saho. Ethnic Somalis are principally concentrated in Somalia (around 8.8 million), Somaliland (5.7 million), Ethiopia (11.7 million), Kenya (2.8 million), and Djibouti (534,000). Somali diasporas are also found in parts of the Middle East, North America, Western Europe, African Great Lakes region, Southern Africa and Oceania. Etymology Samaale, the oldest common ancestor of several Somali clans, is generally regarded as the source of the ethnonym Somali. One other theory is that the name is held to be derived from the words soo and maal, which together mean "go and milk". This interpretation differs depending on region with northern Somalis imply it refers to go and milk in regards to the camel's milk, southern Somalis use the transliteration "sa''' maal" which refers to cow's milk. This is a reference to the ubiquitous pastoralism of the Somali people. Another plausible etymology proposes that the term Somali is derived from the Arabic for "wealthy" (zāwamāl), again referring to Somali riches in livestock. Alternatively, the ethnonym Somali is believed to have been derived from the Automoli (Asmach), a group of warriors from ancient Egypt described by Herodotus, who were likely of Meshwesh origin according to Flinders Petrie. Asmach is thought to have been their Egyptian name, with Automoli being a Greek derivative of the Hebrew word S’mali (meaning "on the left hand side"). An ancient Chinese document from the 9th century CE referred to the northern Somalia coast — which was then part of a broader region in Northeast Africa known as Barbara, in reference to the area's Barbars