Overview
Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It is Africa's third-largest country by area, occupying 1,886,068 square kilometres (728,215 square miles). As of 2025, Sudan has a population of 51.8 million people. The capital and most populous city is Khartoum.
Geography and Borders
Sudan shares borders with several countries and bodies of water. Its neighbors include the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the southeast, and South Sudan to the south. To the east, Sudan is bounded by the Red Sea.
Etymology
The country's name Sudan derives from the Arabic bilād as-sūdān (بلاد السودان), meaning "The Land of the Blacks," a reference to the dark skin of the indigenous people. Historically, Sudan referred to a larger Sahel region stretching from Senegal on the Atlantic Coast to Northeast Africa. Prior to this, the region was known as Nubia and called Ta Nehesi or Ta Seti by Ancient Egyptians, named for the Nubian and Medjay archers. Since 2011, Sudan is sometimes referred to as North Sudan to distinguish it from South Sudan.
Early History
The area of modern Sudan has a rich prehistoric and ancient past. The Affad 23 archaeological site in northern Sudan contains well-preserved remains of prehistoric camps, including relics of the oldest open-air hut in the world, dating back some 50,000 years. By the eighth millennium BC, Neolithic peoples had settled into a sedentary lifestyle in fortified mudbrick villages along the Nile, supplementing hunting and fishing with grain gathering and cattle herding.
The Kingdom of Kerma flourished from around 2500 BC to 1500 BC in ancient Nubia, centered in what is now northern and central Sudan. In its latest phase, lasting from about 1700–1500 BC, the Kerma Kingdom became a sizable empire that rivaled Egypt and absorbed the Sudanese kingdom of Saï.
Ancient and Medieval Periods
Around 1504 BC, Egypt annexed Nubia during the New Kingdom period. The Egyptian King Thutmose I occupied Kush and destroyed its capital, Kerma. Despite initial rebellions that continued for centuries, Nubia eventually became a key province of the Egyptian New Kingdom, economically, politically, and spiritually significant. Major pharaonic ceremonies were held at Jebel Barkal near Napata.
After the fall of the Kingdom of Kush (c. 785 BC – 350 AD), Nubians formed three Christian kingdoms: Nobatia, Makuria, and Alodia. Between the 14th and 15th centuries, most of Sudan was gradually settled by Arab nomads. From the 16th to the 19th centuries, central and eastern Sudan were dominated by the Funj sultanate, while Darfur ruled the west and the Ottomans controlled the east.
Colonial Period and Independence
In the 19th century, Egypt under the Muhammad Ali dynasty conquered the entirety of Sudan. A religious-nationalist uprising, the Mahdist Uprising, occurred but was eventually defeated by a joint Egyptian-British military force. In 1899, under British pressure, Egypt agreed to share sovereignty over Sudan with the United Kingdom as a condominium, and Sudan was effectively governed as a British possession.
Following the Egyptian revolution of 1952, Muhammad Naguib, one of the revolution's co-leaders and Egypt's first President, prioritized Sudanese independence as he was half-Sudanese and had been raised in Sudan. On January 1, 1956, Sudan was declared an independent state.
Post-Independence Conflicts
After independence, Sudan experienced significant internal conflict. The Gaafar Nimeiry regime began Islamist rule, which deepened rifts between the Islamic North and the Animist and Christian South. A civil war between government forces and southern rebels, particularly the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), eventually led to the independence of South Sudan in 2011. Sudan was the largest country in Africa until South Sudan's secession following the referendum.
Recent History and Governance
Between 1989 and 2019, Sudan was ruled by a military dictatorship led by Omar al-Bashir and the National Congress Party (NCP). This period was marked by widespread human rights abuses, including torture, persecution of minorities, alleged sponsorship of global terrorism, and ethnic genocide in Darfur from 2003–2020. The regime killed an estimated 300,000 to 400,000 people. Protests erupted in 2018 demanding Bashir's resignation, resulting in a coup d'état on April 11, 2019, and Bashir's imprisonment.
Islam was Sudan's state religion and Sharia law was applied from 1983 until 2020, when the country became a secular state. Since 2023, Sudan has been embroiled in a third civil war, between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
Economy and Development
Sudan is a least developed country and among the poorest countries in the world, ranking 170th on the Human Development Index as of 2024 and 185th by nominal GDP per capita. The economy largely relies on agriculture due to international sanctions and isolation, as well as a history of internal instability and factional violence. Over 60% of Sudan's population lives in poverty, and the large majority of the country is dry.
International Memberships
Sudan is a member of the United Nations, Arab League, African Union, COMESA, Non-Aligned Movement, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.