Facts About the Culture, Geography, and History of Sudan
Sudan is one of the largest countries in Africa. It is found on the north-eastern parts of Africa. It borders South-Sudan, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Egypt etc.
The following 12 interesting facts will enable you get a rough picture of what awaits you to explore on this expansive land
The official name of Sudan is the Republic of the Sudan (Jumhuriyat as-Sudan).
Sudan is predominantly Arabic-speaking nation with a significant population comprising people of whose origin can be traced to the Arabian Peninsula. Its Arabic name ‘Jumhuriyat as-Sudan’ is popularly used by its people and its Arab brothers than its English-translated name ‘Republic of Sudan’.
On January 1, 1956, Sudan gained independence from Egypt and the UK.
Sudan is one of the earliest countries to gain independence. However, it is also one of the few countries to have been colonized by a fellow African country.
Sudan was initially colonized by Britain, and later on, under agreement, both Britain and Egypt colonized Sudan after Egypt gained its independence.
The name “Sudan” translates to “the land of the blacks” in Arabic. It is taken from the Arabic bilād as-sūdān.
Ancient Sudan was the ancestral land of the Black Nilotic tribes. When Arabs invaded and established territory, some of these black Nilotic tribes were assimilated through intermarriages and slavery while others were pushed further southwards.
Nonetheless, the Arabs gave this recognition of this ancestral land by naming it ‘Bilad as-Sudan’ which translates to ‘the land of the blacks’ and simply abbreviated as ‘Sudan’.
The river Nile runs from the north to the south of Sudan.
River Nile, Africa’s largest and one of the longest rivers, has its source from East Africa. It draws most of its waters from Lake Victoria. It is the main river that sustains agriculture in Sudan and Egypt.
River Nile pours its waters into the Mediterranean Sea. Over 80% of the Egyptian population is located along the banks of River Nile as it is the only reliable source of water for its vast population.
Deriba Caldera is the highest point in Sudan at an elevation of 3,042 m, located in Darfur in the western part of Sudan.
Deriba Caldera is part of the Marra volcanic mountains. It comprises of two lakes – the larger but shallower salty water lake and the smaller but deeper freshwater lake.
With 114 native languages and more than 500 accents, Sudan has a diverse multilingual population.
The bulk of native languages are of the Nilotic origin. Intermarriages between blacks and Arabs dating more than 15 centuries has meant that there are extremely few Sudanese of purely Arabic origin.
Most of them have Nilotic blood. These intermarriages created different accents that borrow heavily from both the Arabic and Nilotic ethnic words. This helps to account for the over 500 accents found in Sudan.
After the formation of South Sudan, the size of Sudan was reduced by 25%.
South Sudan, being the bigger than Kenya, and almost same size as France, is an expansive land on its own. Yet, it only comprises about a quarter of the once larger Sudan.
After secession at the turn of this millennium, Sudan retained three-quarters of the land. Although this split denied it the title of being the largest country in Africa, it nonetheless, occupies the top five slots.