SENNAAR, a country of Nubia, in Africa, forming that peninsula of land which lies between the two main branches of the Nile, immediately prior to their junction. From the confluence of the Bahr el Abiad, and the Bahr el Azrek, in north latitude 15° 34' 40'', and east longitude 32° 11' 25', to the town of Sennaar, on the Bahr el Azrek, may be about a hundred and twenty miles; but the sway of the pasha of Egypt extends two hundred miles farther southward between the two rivers, so that the length of the country, which appears to have no other distinctive name but Sennaar, may be estimated at above three hundred miles. On account of its wedge-like shape, its breadth is various, from a point to a hundred and fifty or two hundred miles. Eastward from the Bahr el Azrek or eastern branch of the Nile, there is an immense tract of country nearly enclosed by the above-named river, and the Atbara or Tacazze, the great tributary of the Nile. In many maps and geographical works this is laid down as a part of Sennaar, and it certainly at one time bore that name. But it is now distinguished by the appellation of Atbari, and corresponds to the Meröe of the ancients, to which article the reader is referred. The territory included between the Abiad and the Azrek, and to which we limit the name of Sennaar, is usually called El Gezira, or the Island, because, in the season of the rains, the numerous streams which flow into these rivers from the mountains in the south encompass several districts with their spreading waters. But, viewed as a whole, the country has no pretensions to the name of island; for there is no large insulating stream cutting it off from the mainland. With more propriety, it is sometimes called Dar Fungi, or the land of Fungi, that is, the Conqueror, a negro tribe, which in 1504 descended from the interior of Ethiopia, and founded the kingdom of Sennaar. A race of hereditary monarchs, called Muck or Melek, continued to rale the country from that period till 1821, when the pasha of Egypt despatched an expedition into these regions, by which they were subdued. The former sovereign retired, on a pension (which was never paid), to the government of a small and obscure colony, over which he was not permitted to exercise any authority.

Sennaar is, for the most part, an elevated plain, which, except during the rainy season, is not only dry, but well ventilated by the breezes from the south and the east. These winds are generally cool, because they come either from the mountains of Abyssinia, or from the huge ridges that compose the Gebel el Gamara. The climate is healthy, except during the Khareef, the period which succeeds the rains; yet even then Sennaar is the most healthy of the Soudan possessions of the pasha. In summer the heat is represented as by no means oppressive, where there is any protection from the direct rays of the sun. The soil is capable of cultivation after the rains, when the doura is sown, the principal product of the country. This being reaped, the land is allowed to remain undisturbed till after the next rains, when the process is renewed. Camels, cattle, and sheep, are abundant in some parts, the plains frequently producing excellent pasture, and the superintendence of flocks and herds forming one of the chief occupations of the inhabitants. The woods abound in various kinds of birds, including ostriches, whose feathers constitute an article of trade. Elephants, lions, tigers, camelo pards, monkeys, and other denizens of the forest, are found in Sennaar, and frequently carry off the cattle and sheep. There is likewise a rare animal called maraseen very abundant here. It is described as being in appearance “more like the hyena than the wolf,” measuring six feet in length from head to tail, and standing above three feet in height. Guinea-fowl are very plentiful in the woods and on the banks of the rivers.

Sennaar, the capital of the country, formerly a large, well-built, and populous city, is now little more than a heap of ruins. In the days of Poncet it contained 100,000 inhabitants; but they are now reduced to 9000. It is situated on the western bank of the Bahr el Azrek, in a bare plain, and presents the appearance of a long, low, straggling ruin. There are indeed in some of its quarters several hundred habitable but almost deserted houses; and at every step the traveller treads upon portions of burned bricks, amongst which are often found fragments of porcelain, and even of marble. The most conspicuous buildings of fine baked brick which remain are the mosque, and a palace adjoining to it. The former is in a state of good preservation. Its windows, the work of India, are covered with bronze gratings skilfully manufactured, and the doors are handsomely and curiously carved. The palace is large, but in ruins, except a single pile of building in the centre, which is six stories in height, and has five rows of windows. The houses themselves are rarely of more than one story in height, and generally built of mud or straw. There is a bazaar, a wretched establishment, ill supplied with goods. Sennaar is situated in north latitude 13° 36' 51", and east longitude 33° 30’ 30".

A great number of villages are scattered over the country, and especially along the banks of the rivers. One of these, called Misselemich, situated some fifty miles below Sennaar, on the same river, is famous for its market, and is the resort of many merchants from Souakin, who bring cotton, spices, and perfumes to exchange for gold. One great staple of commerce in Sennaar is slaves, who are either taken in war, or stolen from Abyssinia, or sold from Darfur and other places where the inhabitants are born slaves. A considerable portion of the population of this country is free, but vast numbers are slaves. The natives are of two sorts, the free cultivators and the Mowelleds. The latter are a peculiar race; they are the descendants of slaves who for many generations have lived at large, and pay the masters to whom they belong, as locomotive property, a part of their monthly gains. Some of the great sheicks possess six or eight hundred of these Mowelleds, who may be sold like other slaves. The province below the town of Sennaar, and as far down as Berhee, is governed by a bey. The country above this town is divided into two commands, those who hold them having to pay an annual contribution to the pasha of Egypt, of so many ounces of gold, which, of course, is rigorously exacted from the inhabitants. The capital of one of these districts is called Goleh; it is said to be as large as Sennaar, and famous for its workers in iron. Reysenas is the name of another place of some consequence. (r. r. r .)