Sudan
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Somewhat more than half Sudan's population was Muslim in the early 1990s. Most Muslims, perhaps 90 percent, lived in the north, where they constituted 75 percent or more of the population.
Data on Christians was less reliable; estimates ranged from 4 to 10 percent of the population. At least one-third of the Sudanese were still attached to the indigenous religions of their forebears.
Most Christian Sudanese and adherents of local religious systems lived in southern Sudan. Islam had made inroads into the south, but more through the need to know Arabic than a profound belief in the tenets of the Quran. The SPLM, which in 1991 controlled most of southern Sudan, opposed the imposition of the sharia (Islamic law).
Library of Congress Country Studies
Country Data
Location: Northern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Egypt and Eritrea
Geographic coordinates: 15 00 N, 30 00 E
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of the Sudan
conventional short form: Sudan
local long form: Jumhuriyat as-Sudan
local short form: As-Sudan
former: Anglo-Egyptian Sudan
Government type: transitional - previously ruling military junta; presidential
and National Assembly elections held in March 1996; new constitution drafted by Presidential
Committee, went into effect on 30 June 1998 after being approved in nationwide referendum
Capital: Khartoum
Administrative divisions: 26 states (wilayat, singular - wilayah); A'ali
an Nil, Al Bahr al Ahmar, Al Buhayrat, Al Jazirah, Al Khartum, Al Qadarif, Al Wahdah,
An Nil al Abyad, An Nil al Azraq, Ash Shamaliyah, Bahr al Jabal, Gharb al Istiwa'iyah,
Gharb Bahr al Ghazal, Gharb Darfur, Gharb Kurdufan, Janub Darfur, Janub Kurdufan,
Junqali, Kassala, Nahr an Nil, Shamal Bahr al Ghazal, Shamal Darfur, Shamal Kurdufan,
Sharq al Istiwa'iyah, Sinnar, Warab
Independence: 1 January 1956 (from Egypt and UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 1 January (1956)
Constitution: 12 April 1973, suspended following coup of 6 April 1985;
interim constitution of 10 October 1985 suspended following coup of 30 June 1989;
new constitution implemented on 30 June 1998
Legal system: based on English common law and Islamic law; as of 20 January
1991, the now defunct Revolutionary Command Council imposed Islamic law in the northern
states; Islamic law applies to all residents of the northern states regardless of
their religion; some separate religious courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction,
with reservations
Suffrage: NA years of age; universal, but noncompulsory
Economy - overview:
Sudan is buffeted by civil war, chronic political instability, adverse weather, high
inflation, a drop in remittances from abroad, and counterproductive economic policies. The
private sector's main areas of activity are agriculture and trading, with most private
industrial investment predating 1980. Agriculture employs 80% of the work force. Industry
mainly processes agricultural items. Sluggish economic performance over the past decade,
attributable largely to declining annual rainfall, has kept per capita income at low
levels. A large foreign debt and huge arrears continue to cause difficulties. In 1990 the
International Monetary Fund took the unusual step of declaring Sudan noncooperative because
of its nonpayment of arrears to the Fund. After Sudan backtracked on promised reforms in
1992-93, the IMF threatened to expel Sudan from the Fund. To avoid expulsion, Khartoum
agreed to make payments on its arrears to the Fund, liberalize exchange rates, and reduce
subsidies, measures it has partially implemented. The government's continued prosecution of
the civil war and its growing international isolation continued to inhibit growth in the
nonagricultural sectors of the economy during 1998. Hyperinflation has raised consumer
prices above the reach of most. In 1998, a top priority was to develop potentially
lucrative oilfields in southcentral Sudan; the government is working with foreign partners
to exploit the oil sector.
Disputes - international:
Administrative boundary with Kenya does not coincide with international boundary; Egypt
asserts its claim to the "Hala'ib Triangle," a barren area of 20,580 sq km under
partial Sudanese administration that is defined by an administrative boundary which
supersedes the treaty boundary of 1899
Source: CIA
Articles
-->Christianity in the Sudan
English and Christianity have become symbols of resistance to the Muslim government in the north, which has vowed to destroy both.Christian Nubia
The Christian Nubian kingdoms, which survived for many centuries, achieved their peak of prosperity and military power in the ninth and tenth centuries. However, Muslim Arab invaders, who in 640 had conquered Egypt, posed a threat to the Christian Nubian kingdoms.Indigenous Religions of Sudan
Each indigenous religion is unique to a specific ethnic group or part of a group, although several groups may share elements of belief and ritual because of common ancestry or mutual influence. The group serves as the congregation, and an individual usually belongs to that faith by virtue of membership in the group. Believing and acting in a religious mode is part of daily life and is linked to the social, political, and economic actions and relationships of the group.Arrival of Islam in Sudan
The coming of Islam eventually changed the nature of Sudanese society and facilitated the division of the country into north and south. Islam also fostered political unity, economic growth, and educational development among its adherents; however, these benefits were restricted largely to urban and commercial centers.Islamic Movements in the Sudan
Islam made its deepest and longest lasting impact in Sudan through the activity of the Islamic religious brotherhoods or orders. These orders emerged in the Middle East in the twelfth century in connection with the development of Sufism, a mystical current reacting to the strongly legalistic orientation of orthodox Islam.Tenets of Islam
Sudanese Muslims are adherents of the Sunni branch of Islam, sometimes called orthodox, by far the larger of the two major branches; the other is Shia, which is not represented in Sudan.Islamic Banking
The prohibitions against interest are founded on the Islamic concept of property that results from an individual's creative labor or from exchange of goods or property. Interest on money loaned falls within neither of these two concepts and is thus unjustified.Status of Women in Sudan
In Sudan, the extended family provided social services. Traditionally, the family was responsible for the old, the sick, and the mentally ill, although many of these responsibilities had been eroded by urbanization. Whether in rural or urban society, however, the burden of these social services fell upon the women.Regionalism & Ethnicity in Sudan
The long war in Sudan had a profound effect not only on ethnic groups but also on political action and attitudes. The north-south distinction and the hostility between the two regions were grounded in religious conflict as well as a conflict between peoples of differing culture and language.
