According to the 1981 census , the population of Sudan totaled 21 million people. The last census was conducted in 2008 [1] [2] . According to modern ( 2011 ) estimates and with the deduction of the population of South Sudan , the population should amount to 30.89 million people.
The constant movement of peoples, the ancient and Arab slave trade , the disintegration of ancient kingdoms and dynasties, caused by the invasion of Arabs and Europeans, gave rise to a population that is very different ethnically and linguistically, and with very different religious and cultural traditions.
At the same time, arbitrarily drawn borders with neighboring states are shared by such nations as the Nubians .
The population of the Khartoum metropolis (Khartoum - Omdurman - North Khartoum) is growing rapidly - already 6-7 million people, including about 2 million displaced people from war zones in the south of the country and agricultural regions affected by drought.
Sudan is characterized by the presence of two different cultural traditions - Arab and black African . Within each of them, there are hundreds of ethnic, tribal and linguistic differences, which makes effective cooperation between them extremely difficult.
Northern provinces occupy most of Sudan. Here is the majority of urban centers of the country. Most Sudanese people living here are Arabic-speaking Muslims ( Sunnis ) of various ethnic backgrounds, while most of them also use their native language. Everyone who speaks Arabic is automatically assigned to Arabs in Sudan, most of the so-called " Sudanese Arabs " also belong to the Negroid race , largely preserve tribal beliefs and languages, and use Arabic speech mainly for interethnic communication and bureaucratic needs.
In the south, west and east, black people of the Negroid race predominate. Most southerners retain local traditional animism and shamanism , or belong to various Christian denominations . The south is characterized by a rural economy based on subsistence farming . The Arab civil war against the peoples of southern Sudan , which lasted more than half a century since independence ( 1956 ), has catastrophic economic and demographic consequences and was accompanied by acts of genocide . The result of the war and international efforts was the formation of an independent state of South Sudan .
Most of the population is concentrated in the valleys of the Nile and its tributaries. The population density is especially high in the main cotton growing region of the country - the northern part of the interfluve of the White and Blue Nile . The northern and northwestern desert regions are almost uninhabited.
Cities are mainly located along the banks of the Nile and its tributaries. The largest cities are Khartoum , Omdurman , North Khartoum , Port Sudan .
Notes
- ↑ Administrative division of Sudan
- ↑ - In Sudan, for the first time in 15 years, a general census of the population Is held (inaccessible link) . Date of treatment November 22, 2016. Archived November 22, 2016.