Masalit people

The Masalit (masara in Masalit; Arabic: ماساليت‎) are a nation of people of Darfur in western Sudan and Wadai in eastern Chad. They speak Masalit, a Nilo-Saharan language of the Maba group. They numbered about 440,000 in 2011.[1]

Between 1884 and 1921 they established a state called Dar Masalit.

The Masalit are well known for their Muslim piety.[2]

They have a common language, Shuwa Arabic, which is one of the regional varieties of Arabic. They also have a common traditional mode of subsistence, nomadic cattle herding, although nowadays many lead a settled existence. Nevertheless, collectively they do not all necessarily consider themselves one people, i.e., a single ethnic group. The term "baggara culture" was introduced in 1994 by Braukämper.[7]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "A language of Sudan". Ethnologue: Languages of the World. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  2. ↑ de Waal, Alex (July 25, 2004). "Darfur's deep grievances defy all hopes for an easy solution". The Observer of London. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved September 4, 2007.

External links

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