Coral reef and mangrove landscapes for pastoralists of the arid tropics: case analysis of place names on Sudanese Red Sea coast

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to reveal coral reef and mangrove landscapes for pastoralists of the arid tropics, based on a case analysis of place names on Sudanese Red Sea coast. I have interviewed five informants of the Beja around 'Agetai village on Sudanese Red Sea coast. They gave me forty-five place names, and explained or interpreted those names.They named “intestines of dogs” for the long and narrow part of the particular island and the attached coral reef flat where local people can cross by riding on camels carefully. On the other hand, they named “horns of gazelles” for the high trees of mangroves along the shoreline of the island which were left over by cutting down its branches and foliage for camel forage. They compare coral reef and mangrove landscapes to body parts of dogs and gazelles that they either take care of or hunt. Therefore, Is can characterize that they replace the physical and biological environments at macro-level in the sea (coral reef and mangrove landscapes) for biological environments at micro-level on the land (particular body parts of domesticated animals and wild animals). However, they do not have any general names (classified categories) for topographical features of coral reef.