 |
|
ASWAN |
|
 |
|
Aswan, Egypt's
sunniest southern city and ancient frontier town
located about 81 miles south of Luxor, has a distinctively
African atmosphere. Small
enough to walk around and graced with
the most beautiful setting on the Nile,
the pace of life is slow and relaxing. Days can be spent
strolling up and down the broad Corniche watching the
sailboats etch the sky with their tall masts or sitting in
floating restaurants listening to Nubian music and eating
freshly caught fish.
In Aswan the Nile is at its most beautiful, flowing through
amber desert and granite rocks, round emerald islands covered in
palm groves and tropical plants. Explore the souk, full of the
scent and color of spices, perfumes, scarves and baskets. Aswan
has been a favorite winter resort since the beginning of the
nineteenth century, and it's still a perfect place to get away
from it all.
Our residence is the village of Nagh el Kuba on the West bank of the Nile river; within walking distance from the ferryboat to the centre of Aswan. Nagh el Kuba is the first of a row of Nubian villages. It’s a perfect starting place for trips on the West bank. |
About the Nubians
The Nubian civilization is one of the oldest in the world. Unfortunately, only the spoken Nubian language survived through the ages. There is no written language left, which makes it very hard to do research about the Nubian culture. That’s a pity, because the Nubian history is a very rich one: the old Nubia itself owned gold mines and the most important business route with the rest of Africa run through the Nubian area. Moreover, in the pharaonic period 2500 years ago the Nubians ruled over Egypt. In this period of the “black pharaoh’s”, Egypt reached great wealth.
|
 |
The Nubians - the primary people of the Nile between Aswan and Khartoum - are seemingly unrelated to other Nilotic or desert tribes of the same region, where they have lived as long as anyone can establish. In ancient times, when the region was known as Kush (covering parts of modern-day Egypt and Sudan), the pharaohs used the Nubians as mercenaries and traders - roles in which they are often depicted in tomb and temple art. Almost all of the XXV Dynasty ("Ethiopian" or "Kushite") pharaohs were of Nubian birth, and some claim that Cleopatra (or Kilu baba tarati - "Beautiful Woman") was a Nubian born near Wadi Halfa. |
Traditional Nubian life centred
around villages of extended families, each with its own
compound of domed houses. The people made a livelihood
farming the verges of the river, planting date palms, corn
and durra melons, as well as fishing and transporting trade
goods. Socially and spiritually, the Nile formed the basis
of their existence. The whole village celebrated births,
weddings and circumcision ceremonies with Nile rituals, and,
despite converting first to Christianity and then to Islam,
they retained a belief in water spirits, petitioning them
for favours. They also brewed beer and date wine. This way
of life - which had existed pretty much unchanged for five
millennia - was shattered by the Aswan Dams The first dam,
built in 1902 and successively raised, forced the Nubians to
move onto higher, unfertile ground: unable to subsist on
agriculture, many of the menfolk left for Cairo and the
cities, sending back remittances to keep the villages going.
With construction of the High Dam, the Nubians' traditional
homeland was entirely submerged, displacing the entire
800,000-strong community. Around half of them moved north,
settling around Aswan and Kom Ombo, where the government
provided homes and assistance with agriculture and
irrigation. The rest were repatriated to Sudan, where many
ended up in the Kassala/New Halfa area, a thousand miles to
the south.
In Egypt, the
Nubian community has done well. Many have taken advantage of
higher education and business opportunities, making their
mark in government, commerce and tourism (85 percent of
Nubian males in Aswan earn their living from tourism).
Others from the first wave of emigration continue to provide
the backbone of Cairo's janitors and servants; Nubians as a
whole have always been noted for their honesty and
reliability. Remarkably, the community has maintained its
cultural identity, with the resettled villages (which took
their old names) acting as guardians of tradition.
|
 |
Nubian music
 |
|
Nubian culture resonates in its music. Drums and clapping hands dominated the music of old Nubia.
Now,
musicians are plugging in new instruments.
The Nubian drummers
Mahmoud Fadl, Ali Hassan Kuban, and others have
updated Nubian music with electronic instruments. The change has been cheered by the young,
and even many old-timers are swaying to the new beat.
More information
One of the most famous Nubian musician is
Hamza el Din.
His music had large influence on African Americans. This
even intensified when he resettled in Berkeley, California.
Hamza el Din, known as the "Father of Nubian Music," was
born in Toshka, Nubia, Egypt.
El Din is often
credited as being the first Nubian musician to compose for
the oud (a fretless, short-necked lute) as a solo
instrument. He also played the tar (the ancient
single-skinned frame drum of the upper Nile). He first came
to the attention of American audiences in 1964 when he
performed at the Newport Folk Festival. Folk singer Joan Baez
became a fan and brought him to the attention of Vanguard
Records, which released his album, Music Of Nubia. El Din's
1971 album, Escalay: The Water Wheel, released as part of
the Nonesuch Explorer series, is generally agreed to be the
most popular recording of traditional Egyptian folk music in
the West.
More information
The Nubian singer
Mohamed Mounir (born 1954) exerts
great influence, especially among teenagers in the
Arab-speaking countries. Mohamed Mounir was born in Aswan.
His pop-oriented music has its roots in the various genres
of traditional Egyptian and African music and also Reggae,
Jazz and Nubian music. His lyrics are often social and
political, with which Mounir sees himself as the voice of
the cultural and religious togetherness of the Orient and
Occident. Mounir is considered the darling of Egyptian
youth.
More information
Also the Sudanese artist Mohamed Wardi
pursued a great career, performing with different
instruments including the Nubian tanbur and singing in
Arabic and Nubian languages. Many consider him as
"Africa's top singer", with fans mainly in the horn of
Africa. His songs touched numerous topics including
romance, passion, Nubian folklore and heritage,
revolution and patriotism. Other songs were politically
spiced up that ensured him trips to jail cells more than
once. In 1989, he traveled to voluntary exile and
returned after spending 13 years outside Sudan. He was
also awarded an honorary doctorate in literature from
the University of Khartoum for his continuous exposure
and research of Nubian language.More
information
|
|
 |
|
|
|
