Mogadishu is a capital city.
Mogadishu ( [ ˌmɔːɡəˈdiːʃuː ] Muqdisho [ mʉqdɪʃɔ ] ; مقديشو [ maqadiːʃuː ] ) , known locally as Hamar , is the capital and most populous city of Somalia . The city later became the capital of Italian Somaliland ( 1889 -- 1936 ) in the colonial period . As Somalia 's capital city , many important national institutions are based in Mogadishu .