Islamic documentary science

New Kush, Arkamani's page for issues of modern and contemporary Sudanese history

Islamic documents in Sudan

Prepared by Dr. Qasim Othman Nour*

Islamic documentary science

The science of documents is one of the sciences that has origins, rules, and roots that are deeply rooted in Islamic history. The science of documents is deeply and strongly linked to the history of Islamic peoples. By the word “history,” we do not mean the conventional linguistic meaning of the word, but rather it means civilizational, economic, political, literary, and cultural history, which is the history of the lives of peoples, and not the history of kings, kings, rule, and rulers, as some people think. Muslim scholars have given great importance to the works that dealt with this science, and among those works are: the book Subh al-A’sha by al-Qalqashandi, the book of Ibn Munjid al-Sayrafi, the book Diwan al-Risala, and other works that confirm that the science of documents has deep roots in the history of the Arab and Islamic peoples, and not, as some claim, that the science of documents dates back to the eighteenth or nineteenth century AD or the Charlemagne era, for the Arab and Islamic works preceded that era by several centuries.

Document: What is meant by a document is what a person leaves behind in terms of papers and records of ancient written materials in all their traditional and non-traditional forms and containers, and all of them are considered documents. Documents include books, historical literature, documents, correspondence and court records. This is the type of correspondence that was issued by the various state bureaus. These bureaus, over the centuries and ages, left us with various remnants, documents, and works, which were able to be transmitted to us in the form of writings and compositions by historians and writers throughout the Islamic eras, such as: Al-Tabari, Al-Yaqoubi, Ibn Al-Atheer, Ibn Khaldun, and others.

Diwani documents: Muslims have known diwans since the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs. They were first created by Caliph Omar ibn al-Khattab (around the year 20 AH). He was the first to establish the Diwan of the Soldiers. Caliph Omar made the first document treasury “the House of Qurtis.” With the passage of time and the expansion of the Islamic State and the succession of rulers and governors, many diwans were established. There were: the Diwan of Excise, the Diwan of the Soldiers, the Diwan of Posts, and the Diwan of Letters (establishment), and they were chosen. The heads of bureaus are from among the writers, scholars, and jurists, especially the writers of letters and writings... until some writers assumed the position of ministry during the Abbasid and Fatimid eras. Diwaniyah documents

Organizational tools and equipment: The Arab and Islamic bureaus knew the equipment and tools used in organizing and performing these tasks. From that, they knew the cards, which were called (tickets) and the files, which were called folders. They knew the royal and royal seals, they knew the types of paper, the covers, and the shelves. They knew the drawings and inscriptions on the letters. They also knew the wax and ink of its various types and colors. They also had expertise in translation and sought help from translators in translating outgoing and incoming letters. They also paid attention to calligraphy, decorating letters, organizing them, decorating them, and binding them.

The Islamic document in Sudan

The Islamic history of Sudan in general and the history of Sudan and the Nile Valley in particular goes back to the beginning of the Muhammadan call, but what is historically proven is that the beginning of contact with the land of Nubia took place during the rule of Amr ibn al-Aas in the year 21 AH, and the second during the reign of Abdullah ibn Abi Sarh in the year 31 AH, who led an army of about five thousand fighters, but the Nuba armies prevented the fall of the Christian kingdom of Makuria and its capital, Dongola, and the Nubians withstood the Muslim armies... and the people of Nubia were religious. They are Christian and have a church in Dongola. Abdullah bin Abi al-Sarh hoped to limit the Nuba attacks on Upper Egypt. He tended to make peace with them, and that peace was concluded, which was known in history as the Baqt Treaty or the Nubia Era. It was a safety truce or non-aggression treaty to which both parties adhered. This covenant remained in place between Muslim countries and Nubia for a period of approximately six centuries.

Nubia was placed in a special position between the House of Islam and the House of War. During those centuries, Islamic influences seeped in gradually, quietly and slowly, as some Arab tribes settled in Nubia, penetrated south, and expanded their political influence as a result of their assimilation with the national population. They benefited from the customs prevailing at that time in Nubia in inheriting the rule from the daughter’s son, and they succeeded in marrying into the ruling families, so the rule passed to their children and grandchildren later. In addition to the conversion of the Islamic religion by some of the ruling families and many of the common people and their elite.

The Baqt Treaty is considered one of the first Islamic documents in Sudan. Baqt is a Latin word that became famous in the Byzantine Empire, which Muslims controlled large parts of. It means a set of mutual obligations and subsequent payments.

Finally, the Muslim Arabs were able to eliminate the Christian Kingdom of Alwa in the middle of the fifteenth century AD. And upon its ruins was established the Islamic Sultanate of Funj, which was also known in history as the Zarqa Sultanate and the Sultanate of Sennar. It extended its influence in most parts of Sudan and the Nile Valley with the help of tribal connections and alliances such as the alliance that linked the Funj and the Abdlab, and this (Sinarian) state continued to extend its military and political influence starting from the beginning of the fifteenth century. AD 1504 AD until its fall in 1821 AD following the Turkish-Egyptian invasion of Sudan during the reign of Muhammad Ali Pasha, the governor of Egypt.

In the middle of the seventeenth century AD, the Islamic Sultanate of Fur was established. The headquarters of the ruling family was in Jebel Marra in Darfur, located in western Sudan and adjacent to the Kingdom of Ouadi (currently Chad). Small kingdoms and states also arose, such as the kingdoms of Taqali and Al-Sabaaat, which ruled parts of Sudan. Arab books and sources dealt with the news of those kingdoms, such as what was contained in the Book of Sermons and Consideration, the book of Ahmed bin Sulaym, the Fatimid preacher, the book Futouh al-Buldan by al-Baladhuri, the book of Ibn Abd al-Hakam, the History of al-Yaqoubi, Ibn Khaldun’s book Lessons and the Diwan al-Mubtada wa al-Khabar, the History of the Messengers and Kings by al-Tabari, and other early historical works. In the geographical field, the book of Al-Idrisi, the journey of Ibn Jubayr, the journey of Ibn Battuta, and the book of Ibn Hawqal.. Among the books of biographies: the book Al-Rawd Al-Zahir in the biography of Al-Malik Al-Zahir by Ibn Abdul-Zahir, and the kingdoms of visions in the kingdoms of Al-Amsar by Ibn Fadl Allah Al-Amri, and the book Nihayat Al-Arb in the knowledge of the genealogies of the Arabs by Al-Qalqashandi. Among the Sudanese sources and references, the book “Tabaqat” by Wad Dhaif Allah is an important source from those eras, as well as the book “The History of the Kings of Sennar” by Ahmed bin Ali, Kateb Al-Shunah, which chronicles the history of the Sinarian Kingdom and its rulers, and the book “Shaping the Minds with the Biography of the Arabs and the Sudan” by Muhammad bin Omar Al-Tunisi. All of them are early works in the Arabic language. In addition to the works and writings written by foreigners about those kingdoms, perhaps the most important and famous are the writings of the Scottish traveler James Bruce, who visited Sennar in 1762 AD and wrote a book in a number of volumes about that trip. Among the foreign travelers were the books of the Austrian traveler John Louis Burckhardt, the Frenchman Caillaux, de Cadlavin, Poncet and Daoud Robini.

Among the recent works are the writings of Naoum Shuqair, Makki Shabika, Crawford, Youssef Fadl, Muhammad Ibrahim Abu Salim, and Muhammad Saeed al-Qaddal. All of these works and all authors who dealt with the history of Sudan through observation, analysis, and commentary relied in their writings and writings on primary sources represented by documents, basic sources, and blogs, despite their scarcity and scarcity in some eras. Oral sources constituted only a few and were not relied upon conclusively.

Lineage trees: Lineage trees are among the most important manuscripts that most Arab tribes and Sudanese households have kept. They are lists that chronicle the lineage of a tribe, a branch of a tribe, or a family. These papers extend to following up the history of those tribes and families to add them to the history of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, or one of his successors, or one of his companions. They also follow most of the Sudanese tribes until they reach the Arab tribes of the Arabian Peninsula.

These trees and their divisions remain a record kept by tribes and families, and are usually a subject of interest and pride. Many families, especially religious homes, still keep these trees until they have gained some respect and appreciation, and looking at them has become a matter of blessing. Many of these papers were lost due to natural factors and wars that took place in Sudan throughout previous eras. Many of them were lost and many of them were destroyed, but the National Archives in Khartoum still maintains collections of them. The British historian Sir Harold McMichael, the Administrative Secretary of the Government of Sudan during the period of dual rule of Sudan, was able to collect a large amount of genealogy papers, including his two books, which were published in English with the titles:

- Tribes of North and Central Kordofan (1912 AD)

- History of the Arabs in Sudan (1922 AD)

The legendary book on the genealogies of the Arabs of Sudan that Sudanese genealogists talk about dates back to Imam al-Samarqandi, who is said to have compiled it about the Arab tribes in the Arabian Peninsula, but some historians (Yusuf Fadl Hassan) believe that this book does not exist in reality. But the frequency of narrations about him and the abundance of talk suggest that he existed in some form. There is a huge collection of printed and manuscript Sudanese books and literature that dealt with issues of genealogy and history of the Sudanese Arab tribes.

Land ownership documents: Land and its ownership are among the most important gains that agricultural and pastoral communities are keen to take into account and follow up with documentation and preservation. Such papers and documents that prove ownership of the land to a tribe, a family, or an individual are very keen on preserving it, because it simply represents their means of making a living and establishes the argument with the rulers and authorities of ownership and legitimacy. Therefore, it is not surprising if we find the allocation of a group of studies on land documents in Sudan, and among the most important Those studies that dealt with the subject of those documents were a trilogy by Dr. Muhammad Ibrahim Abu Salim, in which he dealt with the land in the Funj state, the land in the Fur kingdom, and the land in Mahdia, and those works were issued successively. It deals with the land and the documents related to it in the Arab and African worlds. In terms of seniority, it is second only to the Egyptian Records House, as its historical roots go back to the year 1916 AD when the British administration began collecting and organizing financial and judicial papers, then establishing the Sudan Archives Office in 1948 AD. This office, in addition to collecting official government documents of all types and topics, was concerned with collecting private documents in the possession of some families, individuals, and households. Among the most famous of these collections are: the collection of masters of cupboards, which was discovered in the Al-Kadro area, south of Khartoum, and the collection of masters of paddles, which were found in Al-Damer in northern Sudan, all of which date back to the second half of the Funj era. The name of the Sudan Archives Office was changed after independence (1956 AD) to become the Central National Records House, and under a law issued in 1982 AD, it became called the National Archives. Under this law, the house has broad powers in terms of supervision and management of the department’s archives. Governmental and semi-governmental.

Three people took over the management of the house, the first of whom was Peter Holt, the British professor, who supervised it in 1948. He was destined to supervise an entire generation of postgraduate students from Khartoum University College in the field of Sudanese history. He was assisted in the administration by Professor Muhammad Ibrahim Abu Salim, who was a young graduate from Khartoum University College. After Mr. Holt retired and traveled to Britain in 1955, Mr. Abu Salim took over the management of the house and became its director. He continued to work there until his retirement in 1995. During the four decades he provided great service to the documents and history of Sudan, both ancient and modern. Thanks to his efforts in collecting Sudanese documents of all kinds and his constant effort and diligence in collecting many Sudanese documents on various topics, he was able to provide the opportunity to benefit from the Sudanese document stores. He archived and archived many of them and issued a collection of books that exceeded sixty books in total, all of which relied on the Document House and its stock of Sudanese documents. Most of his books depend on primary sources, of which documents represent a high percentage. Abu Salim devoted himself to organizing, compiling, and evaluating these documents until he reached retirement age, and was succeeded by Dr. Ali Saleh Karar, following the same approach and path that his predecessor had taken.

Document House Collections

The National Archives contains about thirty million documents, which together constitute a very important national wealth, not only from the point of view of Sudan, but also in relation to many neighboring Arab and African countries. These documents include, in addition to lineage papers and publications of land, rulers, and leaders, they also include state documents, including historical, legal, and constitutional documents. In addition to private collectibles belonging to families and individuals. These documents include groups: the Funj, the Fur, the period of Turkish rule, the Mahdist period, the period of dual rule, then independence and after independence.

Mahdia Documents (1882 AD - 1898 AD)

The period of time that extended from 1882 AD until 1898 AD, amounting to about seventeen years, is the period of time during which Imam Muhammad Ahmad al-Mahdi and his successor, Abdullah al-Taayshi, ruled Sudan. This was after Imam Muhammad Ahmad al-Mahdi announced his revolution against Turkish rule in Sudan, and Sudan condemned him with all its geographical borders extending from Upper Egypt in the north to the equator in the south, east to the Ethiopian border and the Red Sea, and west to the borders of Chad and Central Africa.

The Mahdist revolution left behind a huge number of documents, represented in the letters of Imam Mahdi, his speeches and publications to leaders, commanders and citizens, the letters of his first successor, Caliph Abdullah al-Taayshi, then the letters and correspondence of the Mahdist state of all types and topics, in addition to the writings and publications that were written during the days of Mahdism, such as books of warnings, the salary of Imam Mahdi and other publications and publications. The Egyptian Army Intelligence played a major role in collecting Mahdist documents, especially its British director, “Wingat.” The Egyptian Military Intelligence continued to be keen on collecting documents and letters that fell into the hands of the armies following the military sites and battles that broke out between the Mahdist armies and the Egyptian military armies and forces, which were fighting for control and returning Sudan under Egyptian-Turkish rule. Intelligence relied on knowing the conditions of the Mahdist state based on the letters that fell into its hands, and most of the current groups were formed from the spoils of those facts. The most important of these groups are:

Toshka Collection: This is the group known as the Toshka manuscript attributed to the leader Abd al-Rahman al-Nujoumi. It is the manuscript edited by Dr. Muhammad Ibrahim Abu Salim, in which he obtained a doctorate from the History Department of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Khartoum. He was destined to publish its three parts, in addition to a classified index of the letters of that manuscript. The collection dates back to 1889 AD. Toshki group

Eastern SudanGroup: During the Mahdist period, eastern Sudan took place in a number of battles that broke out between the Mahdist armies and the Egyptian and British armies. The Mahdist armies were under the command of the field commander, Prince Othman Digna. These include the following groups:

(1) A collection of letters exchanged between the Mahdi and Caliph Abdullah and between Uthman Digna and the princes who were with him on the other hand.

(2) Abdullah Al-Majzoub Collection: It is a huge collection of documents representing official letters related to eastern Sudan and its administrations, which includes groups of letters and publications containing all the documents sent by Al-Mahdi and his deputy to the princes and leaders. And the fact book in which he recorded the events and battles that took place between the invading forces and the Mahdist forces. In addition to the Money Collection, which deals with financial and administrative conditions in the East.

(3) Collection of Dongola Chronicle (June 1896 AD): It consists of documents and letters exchanged between the princes of the provinces and Caliph Abdullah. Intelligence found it after the Battle of Dongola in June 1896

(4) The Omdurman Incident group: In which the main group of Mahdist documents took place following the Battle of Karari in September 1898 AD, where the Egyptian and British forces entered Omdurman, the capital of the Mahdist state, defeating the Mahdist armies and dispersing. After the battle, Commander Winjat and his assistant Naoum Shuqair collected the documents and documents found in the treasury and in the homes of the leaders, princes, and writers of the Caliph Abdullah. These collections were seized and kept in Prince Yacoub’s house. Naoum Choucair monitored these documents, classified them, and packaged them into groups based on administrative regions. They amounted to more than eighty packages, and were then sent to Cairo to be studied by the intelligence services. It was returned to Sudan again in 1913 AD.

(5) Durham Collection: The collection of Sudanese documents kept in the library of the British University of Durham represents the largest collection of Sudanese documents abroad. In addition to the Mahdia documents and documents, there are thousands of files and archives maintained by the British University Library, and all of these collections were donated by British administrators who worked in the administration of the government of Sudan during the period of dual rule (1898-1955 AD). The “Wangit” collection and the Sultan collection are among the largest of these collections, and the number of Britons who donated collections is About four hundred Britons sent their documents to that library. The British historian Mr. Richard Hull, who was an employee in the British administration, worked on these documents. Richard Hull was able to compile indexes and classified lists for many of these important groups. Work is still underway to discover and document the rest of the groups, especially the period of dual rule.

(6) The Cairo Collection: It represents the documents, documents, and letters obtained by Egyptian intelligence during the Mahdist period. Some of these documents also date back to the period of Turkish-Egyptian rule. This group also includes a number of letters and writings that were placed in the Mahdist era. This collection is still out of the hands of researchers, despite the passage of more than a hundred years. It has not been classified and no longer has any lists or indexes.

(7) The Paris Collection: These are collections of documents, perhaps the most important of which is a manuscript located in three parts, compiled by Sheikh Majzoub bin Al-Taher Al-Majzoub. It is not known how this manuscript made its way to Paris and is still kept by the French Archives.

Among the collections abroad there is also the American Bell Collection, a collection in the library of the African Institute in Cairo, and the Ankara Collection in Turkey, all of which are collections that are still out of the reach of researchers and not much is known about them.

Features of Sudanese documents

If we look at the Sudanese documents in their various stages according to their chronology: starting with the documents of the Islamic Funj state, the documents of the Islamic Fur state, then the Mahdist documents, there are a number of observations that can be summarized as:

Form of the document (diwaniyah letters): It usually consists of three main sections: the introduction, the body, and the conclusion. The Diwaniyah document begins with the basmalah, religious supplication, blessings upon the Messenger, and supplication for him. Then comes the royal letters: “the royal seal,” or the seal of a minister, ruler, prince, or leader. The seal was an important tool of proof indicating the authenticity of what was stated in the document. The seal gives it legal status. The seal is followed by a statement of the correspondence, such as the sender and the addressee, and then after that is the body of the message, which varies and varies depending on its topics. Then comes the final stage, which is the conclusion, which also varies depending on the type of document. In legal and legal documents, it begins by mentioning the witnesses who witnessed the event or incident, and then at the end of the message, the writer of the document comes with a mention of the date and ends with a prayer for the Prophet. In private letters, they end with a greeting, noting that the letter writer does not write his name, and a seal may be placed at the bottom of the letter. Document format (diwaniyah letters)

Document style: The styles in which the documents were written vary. In the Funj and Fur documents, it is noted that the document is written in a style that combines classical and colloquial language. As for the Mahdist letters, the method followed is to use the classical language, citing Qur’anic verses and noble Prophetic hadiths, and paying attention to the preamble. Most of these documents and manuscripts share the same lines of decoration and color. One of the important notes in the documents and documents of the Funj sultans is that they are devoid of signatures, whether the signature of the sultan or witnesses, and they were content with the royal seal, which is usually placed at the top of the document. The Fur documentation, in its entirety, takes on the origins and features of the same documentation as the Funj in terms of form and basic stages, but it is lower in style and lower in documentary performance than the Funj document, with an increase in colloquial and local words and words, but the similarity is clear in all the steps and stages of the Funj and Furawiya documents. The source is one and the culture relied upon is the same, which is the Arab-Islamic culture.

Mahdist documents: The main elements of Mahdist messages are represented in the introduction of the document, which are the preamble, the sender, the addressee, the supplication, then the body, then the elements that come at the end of the document, which are the conclusion, date, and seal. Mahdia

A - Preamble: It is a supplication intended for help and blessing. Imam Mahdi used two traditional preambles for his correspondences, one for correspondence and the other for sermons, and it consists of three elements: the basmalah, then praise be to God, then prayers upon the Prophet.

B - Communication data: It begins with the word (and after) and is considered the true beginning of the document. It may be accompanied by a salutation if it is in the form of a letter, but if it is not like that, it is devoid of communication tools. Al-Mursal: The name of the Mahdi was mentioned at the end of the document in the period preceding his call, and in the following periods until the end of Mahdiyya, the name of the Messenger came first and was preceded by some words indicating humility and servitude to God (the servant who lacks God... etc.).

C - The text: Al-Mahdi writes his manuscripts in a direct style in which there is no trace of cost or workmanship. There is a strength and fervor in his style that indicates deep faith. His style is also characterized by the use of the classical Arabic language in most of his messages, with simplicity and the use of rhetorical words according to the person or group he is addressing. It is noticeable in all of Al Mahdi’s writings that there is a large number of citations of the Noble Qur’anic verses, the noble Prophet’s hadiths, and the holy hadiths. This represented an important pillar of his editors. In some of his letters, he used symbolic stories and scenes to bring the meaning closer to the mind of the addressee.

At the end of his messages, he would end the message by saying peace or there is no power nor strength except in God. And so on. After that, the date of the document (Hijri) comes with the day, month and year. Then comes the seal, which appears directly after the written word...and the lines are dominated by the Sahrawi script, which is derived from the Moroccan script and is known for its thick and dry script. As for the ink used, it is the ink made from soot (smoke) after mixing it with glue, adding some materials to it, and boiling it with fire. Reed pens are used that are cut according to the types of written messages. In all of these letters and written documents, calligraphy and different types of paper are used in a variety of sizes and shapes.

Conclusion

It is clear that there are several factors in common between Sudanese documents in their three eras: the Funj, the Fur, and the Mahdiya. The single source was reliance on Islamic and Arab legacies, as all letter writers in those eras were those who received Islamic education or training. The Islamic influence is clear in all these correspondences and documents, and it can be said that the Sudanese documents still require the effort of researchers to study them in depth and carefully. What we have presented is nothing more than a passing overview in which we tried to give the reader a quick idea about the Sudanese documents and the extent of their connection and influence with the Arab-Islamic document.

New Kush References│Home Pagethe reviewer