Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0341/03411.txt

Text File | 1991-06-25 | 22KB | 412 lines

$Unique_ID{COW03411}
$Pretitle{227}
$Title{Sudan
Front Matter}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Harold D. Nelson}
$Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army}
$Subject{sudan
percent
country
population
national
area
foreign
southern
states
government}
$Date{1982}
$Log{Global Map*0341101.scf
Figure 1.*0341102.scf
}
Country:     Sudan
Book:        Sudan, A Country Study
Author:      Harold D. Nelson
Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army
Date:        1982

Front Matter

Foreword

     This volume is one of a continuing series of books written by Foreign
Area Studies, The American University, under the Area Handbook Program. Its
title, format and substance reflect modifications introduced into the series
in 1978. The last page of this book provides a listing of other country
studies published. Each book in the series deals with a particular foreign
country, describing and analyzing its economic, national security, political,
and social systems and institutions and examining the interrelationships of
those systems and institutions and the ways that they are shaped by cultural
factors. Each study is written by a multidisciplinary team of social
scientists. The authors seek to provide a basic insight and understanding of
the society under observation, striving for a dynamic rather than a static
portrayal of it. The study focuses on historical antecedents and on the
cultural, political, and socioeconomic characteristics that contribute to
cohesion and cleavage within the society. Particular attention is given to the
origins and traditions of the people who make up the society, their dominant
beliefs and values, their community of interests and the issues on which they
are divided, the nature and extent of their involvement with the national
institutions, and their attitudes toward each other and toward the social
system and political order within which they live.

     The contents of the book represent the work of Foreign Area Studies and
are not set forth as the official view of the United States government. The
authors have sought to adhere to accepted standards of scholarly objectivity.
Such corrections, additions, and suggestions for factual or other changes that
readers may have will be welcomed for use in future revisions.

William Evans-Smith
Director, Foreign Area Studies
The American University
Washington D.C. 20016

Acknowledgments

     The authors are grateful to those individuals in various agencies of the
United States government and in international and private organizations in
Washington, D.C. who gave of their time, data, special knowledge of Sudan, and
authoritative perspective. In particular they wish to thank Sudanese author
Dunstan Wai, American scholar Sally Ann Baynard, and Harmon E. Kirby, former
deputy chief of mission in the United States embassy at Khartoum.

     Gratitude is also extended to members of the Foreign Area Studies support
staff who contributed directly to the preparation of the book. These persons
include Karen R. Sagstetter, Kathryn R. Stafford, and Dorothy M. Lohmann, who
edited the manuscript, and Harriett R. Blood, who prepared the graphics with
the assistance of Gustavo Arce. The authors appreciate as well the assistance
provided by Gilda V. Nimer, librarian; Ernest A. Will, publications manager;
Eloise W. Brandt, administrative assistant; and John Dupont and Margaret
Quinn, who typed the manuscript.

     The quality of this volume has been greatly enhanced by Marty Ittner's
illustrations, which appear on the cover and title pages of the chapters. The
inclusion of photographs has been made possible in part by the generosity of
various individuals and public and private agencies. We acknowledge our
indebtedness especially to those persons who contributed original photographs
not previously published.

Preface

     This study replaces the Area Handbook for Sudan, which was completed in
1972-just as the country had concluded a seventeen-year civil war generated by
regional, ethnic, political, and religious differences. In light of the
Sudanese government's subsequent efforts to achieve and maintain national
reconciliation and unity, a fresh look at the country's society and its
changing role in world affairs appears to be warranted.

     Like its predecessor, Sudan: A Country Study seeks to provide a compact
and objective exposition of dominant social, economic, political, and national
security aspects and to give the reader some idea of the forces involved at
this time in the country's history. In presenting this new study, its authors
have relied primarily on official reports of governmental and international
organizations, journals, newspapers, and materials reflecting recent field
research by several scholarly authorities. Detailed information on many
aspects of the society were not always readily available, however, and gaps in
the data as well as varied interpretations of certain matters existed among
some of the sources consulted. Where appropriate, such gaps and differences
have been noted in the text. Should readers require greater detail on
appropriate subjects, the authors have noted the availability of amplifying
materials in final bibliographic statements at the end of each chapter. Full
references to these and other sources used or considered are included in the
detailed Bibliography.

     The available literature on Sudan is frequently confusing because of
various systems used by English-language writers in transliterating Arabic
words and phrases. Many of them, particularly those working with the Western
media, have continued to spell the names of Sudanese people and places
according to popularized forms that have existed since the era of the
Anglo-Egyptian Condominium (1899-1955). Most scholars and organizations such
as the Middle East Institute, however, prefer and use the transliteration
system adopted by the United States Library of Congress. Further confusion
arises from the inconsistent English versions used by Sudanese writers. This
is particularly true of personal names, the spelling of which often reflects
the form preferred by the name's owner or the degree of familiarity the writer
enjoys with that individual. The name of the country's president, for example,
appeared in no less than fifteen different forms in resource materials read
and analyzed during the course of this research effort. The authors of Sudan:
A Country Study have attempted to reduce this confusion and ensure consistency
throughout the book by adhering whenever possible to the system known as
BGN/PCGN, one agreed to by the United States Board on Geographic Names and
the Permanent Committee on Geographical Names for British Official Use; it is
essentially the one used by the Library of Congress.

     Place-names generally have been spelled in accordance with those
established by the United States Board on Geographic Names in its current
gazetteer (1962) and supplement of August 1972. An effort has been made to
limit the use of foreign and technical words. When this has not been
appropriate such terms have been defined briefly where they first appear in
any chapter, or reference has been made to the Glossary, which is included as
an appendix for the reader's convenience.

     All measurements are presented in the metric system. A conversion table
will assist those readers who may not be familiar with metric equivalents (see
table 1, Appendix).

Country Profile

[See Global Map: Map of Sudan on the globe.]

Country

     Formal Name: Democratic Republic of Sudan.

     Short Form: Sudan.

     Term for Citizens: Sudanese.

     Capital: Khartoum.

     Independence Achieved: January 1, 1956.

     Flag: Three equidistant horizontal red, white, and black stripes overlaid
by a green triangle on the staff side.

Geography

     Size: Land area 2,505,813 square kilometers; coastline 716 kilometers;
largest country in Africa.

     Topography: Plateau and plains predominate. Mountainous areas behind Red
Sea coast, in far south, and in far west. Only interior