The Bishari (, or ,

romanized Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...

: ; Beja: ) are an ethnic group who live in parts of Northeast Africa. They are one of the major divisions of the Beja people. Apart from local dialects of Arabic, the Bishari speak the

Beja language Beja ( or ) is an Afroasiatic language of the Cushitic branch spoken on the western coast of the Red Sea by the Beja people. Its speakers number around one to two million individuals, and inhabit parts of Egypt, Sudan and Eritrea. Name The name ...

, which belongs to the Afroasiatic family.

Demographics

The Bishari live in the eastern part of the Nubian Desert in

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

and southern Egypt. They reside in the Atabai (also spelled Atbai) area between the

Nile River The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest rive ...

and the Red Sea, north of the

Amarar Amarar (or Amenreer Wagerdac Amarer) is a Cushitic nomadic tribe of the Beja people inhabiting the mountainous country on the west side of the Red Sea from Somalia Dhabad Suakin northwards and Eritrea towards Sudan. Between them and the Nile are the ...

and south of the Ababda people between the Nubian desert and the

Nile valley The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest rive ...

, an area of limestone, mountains, with sandstone plateaus. The Bishari population numbers around 42,000 individuals. Most people of the tribe move within the territory of Sudan, where members have political representation in the

Beja Congress , lang1 = , name_lang1 = , lang2 = , name_lang2 = , lang3 = , name_lang3 = , lang4 = , name_lang4 = , logo = , colorcode ...

Language

The Bishari speak the

as a mother tongue. It belongs to the Cushitic branch of the Afroasiatic family. The Beja inhabiting Sudan also speak

Sudanese Arabic Sudanese Arabic, also referred to as the Sudanese dialect (), Colloquial Sudanese () or locally as Common Sudanese () refers to the various related varieties of Arabic spoken in Sudan as well as parts of Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Chad. Sudane ...

as a second language. In 1949, a member of the Bishari tribe stated that when they meet a stranger, they immediately ask "'Are you ''biggaweijet'' (=Bišari) or ''belaeijt'' (Arab)?'" and continued "‘...We call our language ''biggawija'' and it contains many elements of Arabic (''belaeijet'').'"

Economy

The Bishari are traditionally nomadic people, working in husbandry of camels, sheep, and goats in the southern part of the Eastern Desert. This area is largely unexplored. Of all the tribes in the area, they live in the more remote areas. The Bishari and the Bishari Qamhatab, believed to be ancient Bishari, have traded agricultural commodities with other people since ancient times.

Religion

The Bishari are mostly

Sunni Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

s. In the 10th century CE, the Muslim geographer Al-Maqdisi wrote that the Bishari were Christians. Throughout their history, the Bishari tribes have practised numerous different religions, including varieties of paganism, then Christianity and now Islam. Although they are recognised as Muslims, Islam is not deep rooted in the culture. Often of equal importance are traditional beliefs. Many continue to fear the influence of jinn, or bad spirits, which they believe are all around and cause sickness and disputes between neighbours.

Demographics

Language

Economy

Religion

See also

References

Further reading