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Tora (Darfur)
The Tora are a semi-legendary culture that existed in Jebel Marra, Darfur. In local oral traditions they appear as "white giants" who arrived in Darfur from somewhere in the north, which might be a hint to them originally being Berbers. They are credited with the introduction of monumental stone architecture, advanced stone-working techniques and agriculture techniques like terrace farming, irrigation and palm tree cultivation. By the 12th century the Tora culture had been succeeded by the Daju. Architecture While it is unknown if the Tora even existed, the pre-Daju sites ascribed to them are real. The construction methods employed appear to be a local development, different from the architecture of the Chad and Nile region, but still fundamentally African in character. Typical for Tora architecture is the massive masonry which is faced on both sides. Rubble was used to fill the walls, making the structures extremely solid. The largest type of structure are palaces, being as large ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jebel Marra
The Marrah Mountains or Marra Mountains (Fur, Fugo Marra; ar, جبل مرة, Jebel Marra are a range of volcanic peaks in a massif that rises up to . They are the highest mountains in Sudan. Geography The mountains are located in the center of the Darfur region of Sudan on the border of the states of South Darfur and Central Darfur, with a smaller part of the range in the state of North Darfur. The highest point is Deriba Caldera. The upper reaches of the massif is a small area of temperate climate with high rainfall and permanent springs of water amidst the dry savanna and scrub of the Sahel below. Apart from the Aïr Mountains in Niger which are on the border of the Sahara proper, the Marrah Mountains are the only major mountain range in the otherwise flat Sahel, rising up to above the plain, but are relatively unknown owing to lack of development and political conflict in the region. The last eruption occurred around 1500 BC. The centre of activity was Deriba Caldera, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lake Chad
Lake Chad (french: Lac Tchad) is a historically large, shallow, endorheic lake in Central Africa, which has varied in size over the centuries. According to the ''Global Resource Information Database'' of the United Nations Environment Programme, it shrank by as much as 95% from about 1963 to 1998. The lowest area was in 1986, at , but "the 2007 (satellite) image shows significant improvement over previous years." Lake Chad is economically important, providing water to more than 30 million people living in the four countries surrounding it ( Chad, Cameroon, Niger, and Nigeria) on the central part of the Sahel. It is the largest lake in the Chad Basin. Geography and hydrology The freshwater lake is located in the Sahelian zone of West-central Africa. It is located in the interior basin which used to be occupied by a much larger ancient sea sometimes called Mega Chad. The lake is historically ranked as one of the largest lakes in Africa. Its surface area varies by season as well ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sultanate Of Darfur
The Sultanate of Darfur was a pre-colonial state in present-day Sudan. It existed from 1603 to October 24, 1874, when it fell to the Sudanese warlord Rabih az-Zubayr and again from 1898 to 1916, when it was conquered by the British and integrated into Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. At its peak in the late 18th and early 19th century it stretched all the way from Darfur in the west to Kordofan and the western banks of the White Nile in the east, giving it the size of present-day Nigeria. History Origins Darfur is composed mostly of semi-arid plains that cannot support a dense population. The one exception is the area in and around the Jebal Marra mountains. It was from bases in these mountains that a series of groups expanded to control the region. The Daju and the 14th century migrants the Tunjur were the earliest powers in Darfur according to written records. The transition of power from the Daju to the Tunjur was facilitated through marriage. Eventually the Tunjur began marryin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Keira Dynasty
The Keira dynasty were the rulers of the Sultanate of Darfur from the seventeenth century until 1916. Originally the Keira clan were perhaps regional rulers in the Tunjur state, with Sulayman traditionally seen as the founder of the Darfur state. The monarchy was suspended after the Egyptian conquest of the region in 1874, but was revived as a de facto independent state in 1898 after the defeat of the Mahdiyah. The Keira dynasty finally ended in 1916 when the British annexed Darfur to the Sudan. As of 2012, the family includes Ali B. Ali-Dinar, the grandson of the last ruling Sultan. Retrieved 2012 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tunjur Kingdom
The Tunjur kingdom was a Sahelian precolonial kingdom in Africa between the 15th and early 17th centuries. Establishment Local chronicles claim that the founder of the Tunjur dynasty became a "king in the island of Sennar". Origins of the Tunjur state are not well known. It is known that the Tunjur kingdom replaced an earlier Daju kingdom, after Tunjur people migrated from north to the Darfur region in the fifteenth century. Their migration represents a second known Berber migration to the region. The states possibly coexisted for some time, with Tunjur rule in the north and Daju rule in the south, before the Tunjur people managed to replace the earlier dynasty completely. Lands ruled by the Tunjur people are within contemporary Sudan, and their influence also extended into Chad. Culture The Tunjur were probably Arabized Berbers, and spoke the Arabic language. They claimed heritage from the tribe of Banu Hilal. However, they were initially entirely pagan after the migration ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daju Kingdom
The Daju kingdom was a medieval monarchy that existed in Darfur (Sudan) from possibly the 12th–15th century. Its name stems from the Daju people, the ruling ethnic group. The Daju were eventually ousted from power by the Tunjur and the last Daju king subsequently fled to present-day Chad. The sources for the Daju kingdom are almost entirely local traditions collected in the 19th and 20th century and mentions by medieval Arab historians. History According to oral traditions, the Daju arrived in Darfur from the east or south, most likely the Shendi region in Nubia. The Daju languages bear great similarity with Nobiin, matching between 10 and 25% of its vocabulary. Arkell claims that Daju pottery is virtually indistinguishable from that produced in the late Meroitic kingdom. Arriving in Darfur, the Daju probably supplanted the local Tora culture. The Daju established their kingdom in southern Jebel Marra, from where they also exercised their influence over the adjacent regions ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Architecture Of Africa
Like other aspects of the culture of Africa, the architecture of Africa is exceptionally diverse. Throughout the history of Africa, Africans have developed their own local architectural traditions. In some cases, broader regional styles can be identified, such as the Sudano-Sahelian architecture of West Africa. A common theme in traditional African architecture is the use of fractal scaling: small parts of the structure tend to look similar to larger parts, such as a circular village made of circular houses. African architecture in some areas has been influenced by external cultures for centuries, according to available evidence. Western architecture has influenced coastal areas since the late 15th century and is now an important source of inspiration for many larger buildings, particularly in major cities. African architecture uses a wide range of materials, including thatch, stick/wood, mud, mudbrick, rammed earth, and stone. These material preferences vary by region: North Afr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nile
The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin language, Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the List of rivers by length, longest river in the world, though this has been contested by research suggesting that the Amazon River is slightly longer.Amazon Longer Than Nile River, Scientists Say Of the world's major rivers, the Nile is one of the smallest, as measured by annual flow in cubic metres of water. About long, its drainage basin covers eleven countries: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Erit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Archaeological Site
An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology and represents a part of the archaeological record. Sites may range from those with few or no remains visible above ground, to buildings and other structures still in use. Beyond this, the definition and geographical extent of a "site" can vary widely, depending on the period studied and the theoretical approach of the archaeologist. Geographical extent It is almost invariably difficult to delimit a site. It is sometimes taken to indicate a settlement of some sort although the archaeologist must also define the limits of human activity around the settlement. Any episode of deposition such as a hoard or burial can form a site as well. Development-led archaeology undertaken as cultural resources management has the disadvantage (or the ben ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Darfur
Darfur ( ; ar, دار فور, Dār Fūr, lit=Realm of the Fur) is a region of western Sudan. ''Dār'' is an Arabic word meaning "home f – the region was named Dardaju ( ar, دار داجو, Dār Dājū, links=no) while ruled by the Daju, who migrated from Meroë , and it was renamed Dartunjur ( ar, دار تنجر, Dār Tunjur, links=no) when the Tunjur ruled the area. Darfur was an independent sultanate for several hundred yearsRichard Cockett Sudan: Darfur and the failure of an African state. 2010. Hobbs the Printers Ltd., Totten, Hampshire. until it was incorporated into Sudan by Anglo-Egyptian forces in 1916. As an administrative region, Darfur is divided into five federal states: Central Darfur, East Darfur, North Darfur, South Darfur and West Darfur. Because of the War in Darfur between Sudanese government forces and the indigenous population, the region has been in a state of humanitarian emergency and genocide since 2003. The factors include religious and ethn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daju People
The Daju people are a group of seven distinct ethnicities speaking related languages (see Daju languages) living on both sides of the Chad- Sudan border and in the Nuba Mountains. Separated by distance and speaking different languages, at present, they generally have little cultural affinity to each other. The traditional area identified with the Daju are the Daju Hills in the southern portion of the Marrah Mountains located in the Darfur province of Sudan. As the Marrah Mountains are the only area in Darfur that has a temperate climate and thus could support large populations, a Daju state arose perhaps as early as the 12th century BC. Very little is known of this kingdom except for a list of kings and several mentions in Egyptian texts. The most ancient mention of king's names is king Githar at the time of the Daju prophet Saleh who died and buried at the bank of Wadi Saleh in the southwestern corner of Marrah Mountains See Nachtigal, 1971 . The Daju appear to be the dominant ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Palm Tree
The Arecaceae is a family of perennial flowering plants in the monocot order Arecales. Their growth form can be climbers, shrubs, tree-like and stemless plants, all commonly known as palms. Those having a tree-like form are called palm trees. Currently, 181 genera with around 2,600 species are known, most of which are restricted to tropical and subtropical climates. Most palms are distinguished by their large, compound, evergreen leaves, known as fronds, arranged at the top of an unbranched stem. However, palms exhibit an enormous diversity in physical characteristics and inhabit nearly every type of habitat within their range, from rainforests to deserts. Palms are among the best known and most extensively cultivated plant families. They have been important to humans throughout much of history. Many common products and foods are derived from palms. In contemporary times, palms are also widely used in landscaping. In many historical cultures, because of their importance ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
