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Periodical article | Leiden University catalogue | WorldCat |
Title: | Funj origins: a critique and new evidence |
Author: | Holt, P.M. |
Year: | 1963 |
Periodical: | The Journal of African History |
Volume: | 4 |
Issue: | 1 |
Pages: | 39-55 |
Language: | English |
Geographic term: | Sudan |
Subjects: | history Funj polity |
External link: | https://www.jstor.org/stable/179612 |
Abstract: | The Funj Sultanate was the most easterly of the chain of Muslim dynastic States which at one time stretched south of the Sahara through Bilad al-Su-dani: Fouded early in the 16th century by a king traditionally called 'Amara Dunqas, its centre was gn the Blue Nile at least as far north as the 3rd Cataract. The Sultanate lingered on until the early 19th century, when, in 1821, the last titular Funj ruler submitted to the Turco-Egyptian forces sent by Muhammad 'Ali. The problem of Funj origins is one of the most controversial in Sudanese history. Three hypotheses have crystallized out of the controversy: I. Funj from Abyssinia (Crawford; al-Shatir Busayll); II. Funj as a war-band of Shilluk, coming from a tribal homeland on the White Nile (Bruce; Arkell); III. The ruling dynasty of the Funj derives from a refugee prince from Bornu, who settled among the Shilluk (Arkell). Actual sources wiht data on Funj origins: David Reubeni's account (1523); The Umayyad genealogy of the Funj; James Bruce accoun (1772); The Funj Chronicle; Traditions current in the 19th and 20th centuries (Sudan Notes & Records); Linguistic data adduced by supporters of all 5 hypotheses. References; Appendix: Text of the passage in the Vienna Manuscript of the Funj Chronicle relating to the origins of the Funj (Arabic characters). |