Qamnuriya was a Sudanese land in present-day Mauritania remembered in a tradition recorded by al-Idrisi in 1154. The tradition describes former Sudanese towns, local chiefs and elders administering affairs and justice, and the later devastation and dispersal of the population through attacks associated with the Zaghawa and Lamtuna of the desert. Survivors reportedly scattered into deserts, mountains, and coastal areas.
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The Story
Qamnuriya appears in a tradition recorded by al-Idrisi in 1154 and located in present-day Mauritania. The account recalls a country that formerly contained famous Sudanese towns. Its inhabitants were said to have been governed by chiefs and elders who administered communal affairs and dispensed justice.
The same tradition attributes the destruction of much of Qamnuriya’s population to the Zaghawa and Lamtuna of the desert, who coveted the country. Internal discord and raids followed, and the inhabitants fled toward the mountains, dispersed into the deserts, or accepted the protection of neighboring groups.
Only a small number of the people of Qamnuriya were said to remain, scattered across the deserts and near the coast. The account portrays their later condition as harsh and impoverished, with people wandering across the land after hostilities with their neighbors had been suspended.
Qamnuriya was a Sudanese land in present-day Mauritania remembered in a tradition recorded by al-Idrisi in 1154. The tradition describes former Sudanese towns, local chiefs and elders administering affairs and justice, and the later devastation and dispersal of the population through attacks associated with the Zaghawa and Lamtuna of the desert. Survivors reportedly scattered into deserts, mountains, and coastal areas.
Continue exploring
The Story
Qamnuriya appears in a tradition recorded by al-Idrisi in 1154 and located in present-day Mauritania. The account recalls a country that formerly contained famous Sudanese towns. Its inhabitants were said to have been governed by chiefs and elders who administered communal affairs and dispensed justice.
The same tradition attributes the destruction of much of Qamnuriya’s population to the Zaghawa and Lamtuna of the desert, who coveted the country. Internal discord and raids followed, and the inhabitants fled toward the mountains, dispersed into the deserts, or accepted the protection of neighboring groups.
Only a small number of the people of Qamnuriya were said to remain, scattered across the deserts and near the coast. The account portrays their later condition as harsh and impoverished, with people wandering across the land after hostilities with their neighbors had been suspended.