Bahr el Ghazal (region of South Sudan)
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The Bahr el Ghazal is a region of northwestern
South Sudan South Sudan (; din, Paguot Thudän), officially the Republic of South Sudan ( din, Paankɔc Cuëny Thudän), is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered by Ethiopia, Sudan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the C ...
. Its name came from the river
Bahr el Ghazal Bahr el-Ghazal (Arabic بحر الغزال , also transliterated ''Bahr al-Ghazal'', ''Baḩr al-Ghazāl'', ''Bahr el-Gazel'', or versions of these without the hyphen) may refer to two distinct places, both named after ephemeral or dry rivers. Chad ...
. The name translates as "sea of gazelles" from Arabic.


Geography

Bahr el Ghazal borders the
Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR; ; , RCA; , or , ) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to the northeast, South Sudan to the southeast, the DR Congo to the south, the Republic of th ...
to the west. It is an area of swamps and ironstone plateaus inhabited mainly by the Dinka people, who make their living through subsistence farming and cattle herding plus
Luwo The Luwo (also called Jur Chol and Luo of Bahr el Ghazal) are a Nilotic ethnic group that live in the western parts of South Sudan. They are part of a larger group of ethno-linguistically related Luo peoples of East Africa. They speak the Jur lan ...
and Fartit tribes.


Administrative divisions

Bahr el Ghazal consists of the following states: *
Lakes A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...
*
Northern Bahr el Ghazal Northern Bahr el Ghazal is a state in South Sudan. It has an area of 30,543 km² and is part of the Bahr el Ghazal region. It borders East Darfur in Sudan to the north, Western Bahr el Ghazal to the west and south, and Warrap and the dis ...
* Warrap *
Western Bahr el Ghazal Western Bahr el Ghazal is a state in South Sudan. It has an area of and is the least populous state in South Sudan, according to the controversial Sudanese census conducted in 2008. It is part of the Bahr el Ghazal region. Its capital is Wau. ...
* '' Abyei Area'' Between October 2015 and January 2020, the region consisted of the following states: *
Eastern Lakes State Eastern Lakes State was a state in South Sudan that existed between 2 October 2015 and 22 February 2020. It was located in the Bahr el Ghazal region and it bordered Southern Liech to the north, Western States to the west, Amadi to the southwes ...
*
Gok State Gok was a state in South Sudan that existed between 2 October 2015 and 22 February 2020. It was located in the Bahr el Ghazal region, and was formerly part of the Lakes State. Gok State bordered Tonj to the west and Western Lakes to the east. The ...
*
Western Lakes State Western Lakes was a state in South Sudan that existed between 2 October 2015 and 22 February 2020. It was located in the Bahr el Ghazal region and was part of the former state of Lakes State. It bordered Amadi State, Eastern Lakes State, Gbudwe S ...
*
Aweil East State Aweil East also known as Abiem, was a state in South Sudan that existed between 2 October 2015 and 22 February 2020.It had an estimated population of 571,728 people and an area of 6,172.23 KM square. It was located in northern-western South Sudan. ...
* Aweil State *
Tonj State Tonj State was a state in South Sudan that existed between 2 October 2015 and 22 February 2020. It was located in the Bahr el Ghazal region and it bordered Wau to the west, Gbudwe to the southwest, Gogrial to the northwest, Northern Liech to the ...
*
Twic State Twic State was a state in South Sudan that existed between 2 October 2015 and 22 February 2020. It was located in the Bahr el Ghazal Bahr el-Ghazal (Arabic بحر الغزال , also transliterated ''Bahr al-Ghazal'', ''Baḩr al-Ghazāl'', ''Bah ...
* Lol State *
Wau State Wau may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Papua New Guinea * Wau, Papua New Guinea * Wau Airport (Papua New Guinea) * Wau Rural LLG, (local level government) South Sudan * Wau State * Wau, South Sudan City * Wau railway station * Wa ...
*
Gogrial State Gogrial, or Qaqriyal, is a town in South Sudan. Location Gogrial is located in ''center of the state'', Warrap (state), Warrap State, close to the borders with the Republic of Sudan and the Abyei region. This location lies approximately , by road ...
* '' Abyei Area''


History

It was historically subject to raids by the
Fur Fur is a thick growth of hair that covers the skin of mammals. It consists of a combination of oily guard hair on top and thick underfur beneath. The guard hair keeps moisture from reaching the skin; the underfur acts as an insulating blanket t ...
invaders from the neighboring region of Darfur. The
khedive Khedive (, ota, خدیو, hıdiv; ar, خديوي, khudaywī) was an honorific title of Persian origin used for the sultans and grand viziers of the Ottoman Empire, but most famously for the viceroy of Egypt from 1805 to 1914.Adam Mestyan"Kh ...
of
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
made Bahr al Ghazal his province in 1864. Powerful native merchants, who set themselves up as princes complete with armies, emerged in the area. The most powerful of them, al-Zubayr, fought and defeated a joint Turkish/Egyptian force sent to Bahr el Ghazal in 1873. The khedive conceded defeat and made Bahr el Ghazal a nominal province of Egypt, with al-Zubayr as its governor. It came under Mahdist control in 1884, when Karam Allāh Muḥammad Kurkusāwī was appointed governor in 1738. The region was visited by the
anthropologist An anthropologist is a person engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropology is the study of aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms and ...
E. E. Evans-Pritchard Sir Edward Evan Evans-Pritchard, Kt FBA FRAI (21 September 1902 – 11 September 1973) was an English anthropologist who was instrumental in the development of social anthropology. He was Professor of Social Anthropology at the University ...
in 1929. The region was later incorporated into Anglo-Egyptian Sudan and became the ninth province after being split from
Equatoria Equatoria is a region of southern South Sudan, along the upper reaches of the White Nile. Originally a province of Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, it also contained most of northern parts of present-day Uganda, including Lake Albert and West Nile. It ...
in 1948, and later a province, and then state, under the Republic of Sudan. In 1996, the region was divided into the four current districts as part of an administrative reorganization of the country. During the condominium period of joint British-Egyptian rule, the area was administered by British district officers; because of annual flooding and difficult traveling conditions, the area became part of what was known colloquially in the British Sudan Service as "The Bog", with British District Officers known as "Bog Barons" The region has been affected by civil war for many years. It was a scene of fighting in the
First Sudanese Civil War The First Sudanese Civil War (also known as the Anyanya Rebellion or Anyanya I, after the name of the rebels, a term in the Madi language which means 'snake venom') was a conflict from 1955 to 1972 between the northern part of Sudan and the sou ...
. In 1982, the
Sudan People's Liberation Army The South Sudan People's Defence Forces (SSPDF), formerly the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), is the army of the South Sudan, Republic of South Sudan. The SPLA was founded as a guerrilla movement against the government of Sudan in 198 ...
(SPLA) was formed there by
John Garang John Garang de Mabior (June 23, 1945 – July 30, 2005) was a Sudanese politician and revolutionary leader. From 1983 to 2005, he led the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) after the Second Sudanese Civil War, the comprehensive peace agreement ...
to fight the Northerners-dominated government in
Khartoum Khartoum or Khartum ( ; ar, الخرطوم, Al-Khurṭūm, din, Kaartuɔ̈m) is the capital of Sudan. With a population of 5,274,321, its metropolitan area is the largest in Sudan. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile, flowing n ...
. This was the beginning of what quickly became known as the
Second Sudanese Civil War The Second Sudanese Civil War was a conflict from 1983 to 2005 between the central Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army. It was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil War of 1955 to 1972. Although it originate ...
. The subsequent conflict lasted until 2003 and killed more than two million people. A substantial fraction of the population of the region is
internally displaced An internally displaced person (IDP) is someone who is forced to leave their home but who remains within their country's borders. They are often referred to as refugees, although they do not fall within the legal definitions of a refugee. A ...
or
refugee A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.
s in neighboring countries. Under legislation approved by the
government of South Sudan A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
in 2011, Bahr el Ghazal could host a
planned city A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...
at
Ramciel Ramciel is a location in South Sudan that will serve as the site of the future national capital. John Garang, the first president of Southern Sudan, allegedly wanted to place the national capital in Ramciel during his administration, but he died ...
intended to serve as the new national capital. If a new capital at Ramciel is built, it would mark a shift away from the power center in
Equatoria Equatoria is a region of southern South Sudan, along the upper reaches of the White Nile. Originally a province of Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, it also contained most of northern parts of present-day Uganda, including Lake Albert and West Nile. It ...
, though Ramciel is located very close to the border between
Lakes A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...
state and Central Equatoria.


See also

* 1998 Sudan famine


References

*Wyndham, R, 1936, ''The Gentle Savage, A Journey in the Province of Bahr El Ghazal'', commonly known as 'The Bog', (New York: William Morrow and Company).


External links


Bahr-el-Ghazal
The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition {{Authority control Regions of South Sudan Historical regions