Nubians

Nubians (<a href="/facts/Nobiin_language/mvA6S0s0">Nobiin</a>: Nobī; <a href="/facts/Arabic_language/A1e66hVV">Arabic</a>: النوبيون) are a <a href="/facts/Nilo-Saharan_languages/jVN5pesl">Nilo-Saharan</a> speaking <a href="/facts/Ethnic_group/XSp5l24t">ethnic group</a> indigenous to the region which is now northern <a href="/facts/Sudan/yGeaNdvS">Sudan</a> and southern <a href="/facts/Egypt/8Ttg0JwB">Egypt</a>. They originate from the early inhabitants of the central <a href="/facts/Nile/vGoXVUFH">Nile</a> valley, believed to be one of the earliest <a href="/facts/Cradle_of_civilization/slYINUco">cradles of civilization</a>. In the southern valley of Egypt, Nubians differ culturally and ethnically from <a href="/facts/Egyptians/kBkt6yV8">Egyptians</a>, although they intermarried with members of other ethnic groups, especially <a href="/facts/Arabs/E77duPsg">Arabs</a>. They speak <a href="/facts/Nubian_languages/CbvchQSq">Nubian languages</a> as a mother tongue, part of the <a href="/facts/Northern_Eastern_Sudanic_languages/Q26woqPk">Northern Eastern Sudanic languages</a>, and <a href="/facts/Arabic/A1e66hVV">Arabic</a> as a second language.
<a href="/facts/Neolithic/wRS0Bnh4">Neolithic</a> settlements have been found in the central Nubian region dating back to 7000 BC, with <a href="/facts/Wadi_Halfa/khUqv49h">Wadi Halfa</a> believed to be the oldest settlement in the central Nile valley. Parts of Nubia, particularly <a href="/facts/Lower_Nubia/strRwvWq">Lower Nubia</a>, were at times a part of ancient Pharaonic Egypt and at other times a rival state representing parts of <a href="/facts/Mero%25C3%25AB/nwB13uWT">Meroë</a> or the <a href="/facts/Kingdom_of_Kush/8BorCh8R">Kingdom of Kush</a>. By the <a href="/facts/Twenty-fifth_Dynasty_of_Egypt/53Y1YQfB">Twenty-fifth Dynasty</a> (744 BC–656 BC), all of Egypt was united with Nubia, extending down to what is now <a href="/facts/Khartoum/qLorvydI">Khartoum</a>. However, in 656 BC, the native <a href="/facts/Twenty-sixth_Dynasty_of_Egypt/7PPYC65S">Twenty-sixth Dynasty</a> regained control of Egypt. As warriors, the ancient Nubians were famous for their skill and precision with the <a href="/facts/Bow_and_arrow/Ch6Thysp">bow and arrow</a>. In the <a href="/facts/Middle_Ages/RqzEKB9v">Middle Ages</a>, the Nubians converted to <a href="/facts/Christianity/nKyJHlqq">Christianity</a> and established three kingdoms: <a href="/facts/Nobatia/AEk9Tdyq">Nobatia</a> in the north, <a href="/facts/Makuria/dE9Uq180">Makuria</a> in the center, and <a href="/facts/Alodia/0Hj6KbaD">Alodia</a> in the south. They then converted to <a href="/facts/Islam/zDLbL45C">Islam</a> during the <a href="/facts/Islamization_of_the_Sudan_region/YNd36sKb">Islamization of the Sudan region</a>.
Today, Nubians in Egypt primarily live in <a href="/facts/Southern_Egypt/D5NeTQhE">southern Egypt</a>, especially in <a href="/facts/Kom_Ombo/qhUNqEab">Kom Ombo</a> and Nasr al-Nuba (<a href="/facts/Arabic_language/A1e66hVV">Arabic</a>: نصر النوبة) north of <a href="/facts/Aswan/gI6G1Ho5">Aswan</a>, and large cities such as <a href="/facts/Cairo/dXjj60ar">Cairo</a>, while Sudanese Nubians live in northern Sudan, particularly in the region between the city of <a href="/facts/Wadi_Halfa/khUqv49h">Wadi Halfa</a> on the <a href="/facts/Egypt%25E2%2580%2593Sudan_border/waLaekPg">Egypt–Sudan border</a> and <a href="/facts/Al_Dabbah%2c_Sudan/Voe5MloY">al Dabbah</a>. Some Nubians were forcibly moved to <a href="/facts/Khashm_el_Girba/xIYkUCc7">Khashm el Girba</a> and <a href="/facts/New_Halfa/PHIaW3nT">New Halfa</a> upon the construction of the High Dam in Egypt which flooded their ancestral lands. Additionally, a group known as the <a href="/facts/Midob_people/MgGBDmur">Midob</a> live in northern <a href="/facts/Darfur/g6NlXSgc">Darfur</a>, a group named Birgid in Central Darfur and several groups known as the <a href="/facts/Hill_Nubians/TFmtFyRo">Hill Nubians</a> who live in Northern Kordofan in <a href="/facts/Haraza_language/Yhn9cfcg">Haraza</a> and a few villages in the northern <a href="/facts/Nuba_Mountains/vCysIjxu">Nuba Mountains</a> in <a href="/facts/South_Kordofan/rTfNLmNC">South Kordofan</a> state.
The main Nile Nubian groups from north to south are the Kenzi (<a href="/facts/Kenzi_language/CMFATFHo">Kenzi/Mattokki-speaking</a>), Faddicca (<a href="/facts/Nobiin_language/mvA6S0s0">Nobiin-speaking</a>), Halfawi (<a href="/facts/Nobiin_language/mvA6S0s0">Nobiin-speaking</a>), Sukkot (<a href="/facts/Nobiin_language/mvA6S0s0">Nobiin-speaking</a>), Mahas (<a href="/facts/Nobiin_language/mvA6S0s0">Nobiin-speaking</a>), and <a href="/facts/Danagla/3U5S3Qbf">Danagla</a> (<a href="/facts/Dongolawi_language/tUmTNUbK">Andaandi-speaking</a>).

Nubians open-in-new

Nubians