TRIBES AND SUFIS OF EASTERN SUDAN

KASSALA, SUDAN

Eastern Sudan is at a fascinating crossroad of cultures and traditions. Bordering Eritrea, Ethiopia, the Red Sea and the rest of Sudan, this unique region is a multi-cultural melting pot of people from vast swathes of Africa and the Middle East, ranging from northern Nigeria to Somalia and the Arabian Peninsula.

The tribes here exist in relative harmony with each other, most all follow a form of Sunni Islam, with the mystic Sufi orders popular.

Given its multi-border status, eastern Suda has complex and well-developed smuggling networks, transporting goods, weapons, and people across Africa and the Middle East, with the Rashaida tribe largely responsible for the establishment of these networks.

The Rashaida themselves migrated to this region from Hejaz in the Arabian Peninsula over a century and a half ago in search of new grazing lands for their goats and camels. Today, they maintain much of their bedouin traditions through hunting and living out in the open desert.