Sudan - Info and Slideshow about Sudan

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Sudan: Flag and Anthem
Republican Palace in Khartoum :
The Republican Palace, home of the president of Sudan, stands in the capital of Khartoum. The city was founded in 1821 as an Egyptian military post. Beginning in 1899 Khartoum was developed as the capital of the Anglo-Egyptian administration of Sudan, and in 1956 it became the capital of the newly independent country.
Village on the Nile, Sudan :
The Nile River is the most dominant physical feature in Sudan. Because water is a valuable resource in the east African country’s arid regions, the Nile and its tributaries are valued for providing much of the irrigation that sustains agricultural development. Small villages, such as this Shilluk settlement, use water from the river for subsistence farming.
Vast Swampland of Sudan :
The As Sudd, which means barrier, is a vast, desolate swampland in south central Sudan. On its northerly course through Sudan, the White Nile-also called Bahr el-Jebel River-overflows into a saucerlike clay pan. The river's course is impeded by floating vegetation, known as sudd in Arabic, and it loses half its volume through evaporation and plant transpiration. North of the As Sudd at Lake No, the White Nile returns to a permanent channel when it receives the water of the Ba?r al Ghazal flowing from the west.
Red Sea Anemonefish ( East sudan ):
The two-band anemonefish, Amphiprion bicinctus, is among the many species of fish found in the Red Sea, a body of water known among divers and underwater enthusiasts for its stunning coral reefs. Sudan, the largest country in Africa, claims more than 850 kilometers (more than 525 miles) of coastline along the Red Sea.
Sudan's Traditional Housing :
The traditional dwellings of central and southern Sudan are round, with conical roofs, and made from locally available materials. In the north, traditional houses are built from sun-baked bricks and have flat roofs. Since the 1950s, Sudan has experienced high rates of rural-to-urban migration. The continuous flood o migrants and civil-war refugees has created a severe housing shortage in the cities. Existing housing there is usually of poor quality, and adequate sanitation facilities are generally lacking.
Pyramids of Meroë, Sudan :
These pyramids were built by the Cushite people of ancient Sudan to house the bodies of departed kings. They were located in Meroë, the last significant Cushite state. The Cushite civilization thrived from about 1000 bc to ad 350. Located on the River Nile in what is now northern Sudan, the Cushite people were profoundly influenced by the ancient Egyptians, whom they conquered and ruled for about 100 years.
Jebel Marra Massif :
The jagged peaks of the Jebel Marra massif dominate the landscape in central Darfur, a region in western Sudan. The valleys of Jebel Marra contain the most fertile land of the region.
Nubian Desert, Sudan :
These dwellings with their conical roofs are well suited to the arid climatic conditions of the Nubian Desert of Sudan, where the average daily temperature in June, the hottest month, is 45°C (110°F).
Music in Sudan :
A musician plays a tanbura for passersby in Sudan. The tanbura is a bowl lyre and is found, with a variety of names and in differing sizes, throughout northern Africa and the Gulf States. It is thought to have originated in Sudan and Egypt.
Fishing the White Nile in Sudan :
A fisher casts a net into the White Nile, which flows northward through Sudan from the Ugandan border and meets the Blue Nile at Khartoum. Fish from the river, particularly perch, supplement a local diet of grains, vegetables, and fruits such as bananas, mangoes, and dates. The White Nile also forms part of a network of waterways through which steamers navigate throughout the entire year.
Women's Dress in Sudan :
In Sudan's capital city of Khartoum, Muslim women wear traditional garments called tobes, which consist of about 9 meters (about 29.5 feet) of semitransparent cloth. Usually worn over a gown, the tobe is wrapped around the head and upper body. Khartoum office workers sometimes wear a plain white version, while women i n eastern Sudan often choose brown or black tobes and cover their faces with veils that reveal only their eyes As a mark of beauty, some Sudanese women scar the skin on their faces and bodies with lines or small bumps.
Crossing the Sudanese Nile :
A group of Sudanese men cross the Nile in a metal rowboat. The Nile is central to the livelihood of many Sudanese as a source of fresh water and fish, and as a means of transportation.
Body Painting Among the Nuba started from sudan :
In many parts of Africa adornment of the body is part of religious rituals. Here, a Nuba man in Sudan has had his body painted with mud and ash before a funeral dance.
Tobacco Farming, Sudan :
Agriculture employs about two-thirds of Sudan’s population, although only a small percentage of the land is cultivated. Here, two workers examine a tobacco plant.
The Nile at Khartoum :
Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, is situated where the Blue Nile and White Nile merge into a single river. The Nile River and its two tributaries are important transportation routes, although less so now than in the past because of the construction of good roads. Traditional flat-bottomed Nile steamers, like the one pictured here, still carry passengers and freight along the rivers.
Dal Cataract of the Nile :
The ruins of a stone and mud-brick fort overlook the Dal Cataract of the Nile River in northern Sudan. This cataract (waterfall) of the river is located in the Nubia region, which was once part of the ancient kingdom of Kush. Ancient and medieval ruins lie along the Nile in this region, although many ruins were submerged under Lake Nasser after the Aswan High Dam was built in the 1960s.
Tomb of the Mahdi, Sudan :
A man prays beside a shrine at the tomb of the Mahdi in Omdurman, Sudan. Muhammed Ahmad, a nationalist religious leader in the 19th century, believed that he had been divinely chosen to champion Islam. Claiming to be the Mahdi, the Muslim messiah, he attracted many disciples. He and his followers conquered Khartoum in 1885 and made the neighboring town of Omdurman the seat of their theocracy
Gaafar Muhammad Nimeiry :
Elected president of the Sudan in 1971, Gaafar Muhammad al-Nimeiry ended a civil war but failed to improve his country’s economic woes. He was ousted from office in 1985 in a military coup.
Omar Hassan al-Bashir :
Omar Hassan al-Bashir became president of the Sudan, in Africa, during a military coup in 1989.
Hassan al-Turabi :
As the leader of Sudan’s National Islamic Front, Hassan al-Turabi helped mold Sudan into a fundamental Islamist state after the coup that brought Omar al-Bashir to power in 1989. Under Bashir, Turabi became speaker of the National Assembly and had a great deal of influence over the government. In the late 1990s a power struggle developed between the two leaders, and in 2000 Bashir stripped Turabi of his powers.
Refugees in Darfur, Sudan :
Civil war erupted in Darfur, a region in western Sudan, in 2003. Since then more than 2 million people have fled their homes to seek shelter in refugee camps like this one at Zamzam in northern Darfur. The war has claimed more than 200,000 lives.

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