VIᵉ siècle – XIVᵉ siècle
Northern Nubia, north of the second cataract
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
Al-Maris was a northern Nubian province whose main towns included Bajrash and Ibrim. In the late tenth century, it contained Arab landholders and some Muslimized Nubians, while a powerful governor known as the “Lord of the Mountain” was responsible for controlling unauthorized entry into Nubia. Arab settlement nevertheless continued, contributing to the later Arabization and Islamization of Nubia and parts of the eastern Sudan.
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Le récit
Al-Maris, whose name is glossed as “the south” in Coptic, formed the northern province of Nubia described in the late tenth century. Its main towns were Bajrash and Ibrim, and the province lay north of the second cataract. It was a zone of contact where Egyptian Arabs, Nubian authorities, Muslim merchants, and local communities interacted along the Nile.
The province was governed by a powerful official titled the “Lord of the Mountain.” His principal duty was to prevent people, probably Arab Bedouin, from entering Nubia without authorization. The authority of the Nubian administration, however, was limited: Arab groups had already purchased land from local inhabitants and, by the time of Ibn Sulaym’s account, behaved in al-Maris as landlords.
Arab settlement in al-Maris was confirmed by tomb inscriptions whose dates demonstrated a continuing southward movement along the Nile. Some Nubians north of the second cataract had also converted to Islam. These developments formed early foundations for the broader Arabization and Islamization that later affected Nubia and large parts of the eastern Sudan.
VIᵉ siècle – XIVᵉ siècle
Northern Nubia, north of the second cataract
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
Al-Maris was a northern Nubian province whose main towns included Bajrash and Ibrim. In the late tenth century, it contained Arab landholders and some Muslimized Nubians, while a powerful governor known as the “Lord of the Mountain” was responsible for controlling unauthorized entry into Nubia. Arab settlement nevertheless continued, contributing to the later Arabization and Islamization of Nubia and parts of the eastern Sudan.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
Al-Maris, whose name is glossed as “the south” in Coptic, formed the northern province of Nubia described in the late tenth century. Its main towns were Bajrash and Ibrim, and the province lay north of the second cataract. It was a zone of contact where Egyptian Arabs, Nubian authorities, Muslim merchants, and local communities interacted along the Nile.
The province was governed by a powerful official titled the “Lord of the Mountain.” His principal duty was to prevent people, probably Arab Bedouin, from entering Nubia without authorization. The authority of the Nubian administration, however, was limited: Arab groups had already purchased land from local inhabitants and, by the time of Ibn Sulaym’s account, behaved in al-Maris as landlords.
Arab settlement in al-Maris was confirmed by tomb inscriptions whose dates demonstrated a continuing southward movement along the Nile. Some Nubians north of the second cataract had also converted to Islam. These developments formed early foundations for the broader Arabization and Islamization that later affected Nubia and large parts of the eastern Sudan.