The History of Medieval Nubia

Abstract

The history of the medieval Nubian state begins as it ends, in a state of decentralization. The core of that state emerges through the unification of Nobadia in the north and Makuria in the center of the Nubian heartland, perhaps at some point in the 7th century. Makuria’s relationship with Alwa to the south is less clear, but some unification seems to have obtained there as well, in the 11th century. The Nubian state’s relationship with the wider world is variable. Nubia sometimes ignores or challenges its northern Islamic neighbors, and at other times defers to them or aggressively courts their diplomatic favor. Dotawo, the indigenous name for Nubia at least in later centuries, is still strong in the face of invasions in the 12th century, but shows signs of internal dynastic instability in later periods. Ongoing Egyptian interference in Nubian civil wars, coupled with increasing levels of Arab immigration to Nubia, destabilizes the Nubian state and returns it to its original fragmentation.