Sulayman Solong Sulayman Solong ( ) ( c . 1550 – c . 1637 ) was the first historical sultan of Darfur . According to several sources , he ruled the Sultanate of Darfur from 1596 to 1637 . However , because of the lack of contemporary references , estimates of his reign dates diverge widely , with some modern scholars stating that he probably reigned between 1660 and 1680 . Biography . The region of Darfur is named after the Fur people inhabiting it . The Fur succeeded the Tunjur as the dominant people in the region . The royal Keira ( also spelled Kayra ) clan sprang from the Kunjara , one of the three Fur tribes . Although Fur tradition speaks of early rulers such as Daali and Kuuruu , they are generally regarded as folk heroes . Sulaiman Solong is considered the first historical ruler of the Keira dynasty . According to traditional accounts , a land dispute erupted between Sulaiman ' s father Kuuruu and his uncle Tunsam , which forced Kuuruu to flee with Sulaiman to Dar Masalit in the west . Sulaiman grew up there among his mother ' s Masalit tribe , to whom an Arab origin is generally ascribed . When he became strong enough , he overthrew his uncle Tunsam , recaptured Jabal Marra from him and forced him to flee east to the border with Kordofan . Modern historians hypothesize that the civil war between Kuuruu and Tunsam may be linked to the collapse of the Tunjur empire . Little is known of Sulaiman ' s reign beyond vague generalities . The traditions surrounding him were recorded two centuries later . Sulaiman ' s nickname " Solong " means " the red - faced " or " the Arab " in the Fur language , in reference either to his complexion or to his mother ' s origins . He is remembered as a warrior and conqueror who led 33 military campaigns , thereby transforming his Fur tribal kingdom into a multiethnic empire in succession to the Tunjur . He conquered Kordofan and for a time extended his dominions over Sennar , which was weakened due to a series of civil wars . His conquests were mainly aimed at increasing the number of slaves he held , which he could then barter with merchants from surrounding regions for arms , war - horses and fine cloth . Nevertheless , Sulaiman ' s sultanate lagged behind other Sub - Saharan African states in terms of modern weaponry . Unlike the Bornu or Songhai empires , Darfur did not use firearm s . The monarchy Sulaiman founded followed the then common African model of divine kingship , which was later transformed under the impact of Islam . Sulaiman is traditionally credited with making Islam the sultanate ' s state religion . The prior religion of his semi - legendary predecessors is unclear , with some sources suggesting that it was paganism . Sulaiman built mosques for his subjects and encouraged Islamic practices such as circumcision . However , the Islamization of the Keira state was a slow process , and the monarchy retained pre - Islamic rituals throughout its existence . Sulaiman was married to an Arab woman . He was succeeded on his death by his son Musa Sulayman and was buried on Jabal Marra , which went on to become the ancestral cemetery of the Fur sultans . Sulaiman was considered the " founding father " of the Keira state , a status that was highlighted in the oral traditions as well as on the seals of succeeding sultans , which often gave a pedigree back to Sulaiman . Nevertheless , historian Peter Malcolm Holt writes in the " Encyclopaedia of Islam " that Sulaiman was probably not the founder of the Keira dynasty , but simply its first Muslim ruler . Sulaiman ' s descendants continued to reign over Darfur until Ali Dinar ' s death in battle at the hands of the British in 1916 .