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{{Short description|Medieval kingdom in Upper Nubia}}
{{About||the saint|Nunilo and Alodia|the Filipina|Alodia Gosiengfiao}}
{{Featured article}}
{{Use shortened footnotes|date=November 2022}}
{{Infobox Former Country
| native_name            = 
| conventional_long_name = Alodia
| common_name            = Alodia
| region                 = 
| era                    = [[Middle Ages]]
| status                 = 
| status_text            = 
| empire                 = 
| government_type        = [[Monarchy]]
| year_start             = 6th century
| year_end               = {{circa}} 1500
| event_start            = First mentioned
| date_start             = 
| event_end              = Destroyed
| date_end               = 
| event1                 = 
| date_event1            = 
| event_pre              = 
| date_pre               = 
| event_post             = 
| date_post              = 
| p1                     = Kingdom of Kush
| s1                     = Funj Sultanate
| s3                     = Kingdom of Fazughli
| s4                     = Kingdom of al-Abwab
| image_flag             = Possible Flag of the Kingdom of Alodia (c. 1350).svg
| flag_border            = no
| flag                   = 
| flag_type              = Possible flag according to the [[Catalan Atlas]] of 1375
| image_coat             = 
| symbol                 = 
| symbol_type            = 
| image_map              = Approximate extension of Alodia based on accounts of Ibn Hawqal.png
| image_map_caption      = Approximate extent of Alodia in the 10th century
| image_map_alt          = A map showing the extent of Alodia in the 10th  /
| capital                = [[Soba (city)|Soba]]
| national_motto         = 
| national_anthem        = 
| common_languages       = [[Nubian languages|Nubian]]<br />[[Meroitic language|Meroitic]]<small>(Possibly still spoken)</small> <br />[[Medieval Greek|Greek]]<small> (liturgical)</small><br/> Others{{efn|name=fn1|[[Kordofanian languages]]; various [[Eastern Sudanic languages]] spoken in the [[Blue Nile|Upper Blue Nile Valley]] (for example [[Berta language|Berta]]); [[Arabic]], [[Beja language|Beja]];{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=89–90}} and [[Tigre language|Tigre]]{{sfn|Zaborski|2003|p=471}}}}
| religion               = [[Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria|Coptic Orthodox Christianity]]<br/>[[Traditional African religion]]<br/>[[Kushite religion]]
| currency               = 
| leader1                = 
| leader2                = 
| year_leader1           = 
| year_leader2           = 
| title_leader           = 
| today                  = [[Sudan]]<br>[[Eritrea]]
}}

'''Alodia''', also known as '''Alwa''' ([[Greek language|Greek]]: Αρουα, ''Aroua'';{{sfn|Lajtar|2009|pp=93–94}} {{langx|ar|علوة}}, ''ʿAlwa''), was a [[medieval]] kingdom in what is now central Sudan. Its capital was the city of [[Soba (city)|Soba]], located near modern-day [[Khartoum]] at the confluence of the [[Blue Nile|Blue]] and [[White Nile]] rivers.

Founded sometime after the ancient [[Kingdom of Kush]] fell, around 350 AD, Alodia is first mentioned in historical records in 569. It was the last of the three Nubian kingdoms to convert to [[Christianity]] in 580, following [[Nobadia]] and [[Makuria]]. It possibly reached its peak during the 9th–12th centuries when records show that it exceeded its northern neighbor, Makuria, with which it maintained close dynastic ties, in size, military power and economic prosperity. Alodia was a large, multicultural state administered by a powerful king and provincial governors appointed by him. The capital Soba, described as a town of "extensive dwellings and churches full of gold and gardens",{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=20}} prospered as a trading hub. Goods arrived from Makuria, the Middle East, western Africa, India and even China. Literacy in both [[Nubian languages|Nubian]] and [[Medieval Greek|Greek]] flourished.

From the 12th, and especially the 13th century, Alodia was declining, possibly because of invasions from the south, droughts and a shift of trade routes. In the 14th century, the country might have been ravaged by the [[plague (disease)|plague]], while [[Arab]] tribes began to migrate into the [[Nile#In Sudan|Upper Nile valley]]. By around 1500 Soba had fallen to either Arabs or the [[Funj]]. This likely marked the end of Alodia, although some Sudanese oral traditions claimed that it survived in the form of the [[Kingdom of Fazughli]] within the [[Ethiopia]]n–Sudanese borderlands. After the destruction of Soba, the Funj established the [[Sultanate of Sennar]], ushering in a period of [[Islamization]] and [[Arabization]].

==Sources==
[[File:Soba. Ruins of the Christian Church.png|thumb|upright=1.1|A [[Anglo-Egyptian Sudan|British colonial official]] inspecting the ruins of [[Soba (city)|Soba]], 1905|alt=Old photo of a man looking at a capital]]
[[File:Documenting excavations at Soba (Sudan).jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Soba during the excavations in late 2019|alt=A photo of the site of Soba]]
Alodia is by far the least studied of the three medieval [[Nubia]]n kingdoms,{{sfn|Welsby|2014|p=183}} hence evidence is very slim.{{sfn|Welsby|2014|p=197}} Most of what is known about it comes from a handful of medieval Arabic historians. The most important of these are the [[Geography and cartography in medieval Islam|Islamic geographers]] [[al-Yaqubi]] (9th century), [[Ibn Hawqal]] and [[al-Aswani]] (10th century), who both visited the country, and the [[Copts|Copt]] [[Abu al-Makarim]]{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=93}} (12th century).{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=15–23}} The events around the Christianization of the kingdom in the 6th century were described by the contemporary [[bishop]] [[John of Ephesus]];{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=12–15}} various post-medieval Sudanese sources address its fall.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=255}}{{sfn|Vantini|2006|pp=487–491}} Al-Aswani noted that he interacted with a [[Nubians|Nubian]] historian who was "well-acquainted with the country of Alwa",{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=19–20}} but no medieval Nubian [[Historiography|historiographical]] work has yet been discovered.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=9}}

While many Alodian sites are known,{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=58–70}} only the capital [[Soba (city)|Soba]] has been extensively excavated.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=25}} Parts of this site were unearthed in the early 1950s, further excavations taking place in the 1980s and 1990s.{{sfn|Edwards|2004|p=221}} A new multidisciplinary research project was scheduled to start in late 2019.{{sfn|Drzewiecki|Cedro|Ryndziewicz|Khogli Ali Ahmed|2018|p=28}} Soba is approximately {{cvt|2.75|km2|abbr=on}} in size and is covered with numerous mounds of brick rubble previously belonging to monumental structures.{{sfn|Edwards|2004|p=221}} Discoveries made so far include several churches, a palace, cemeteries and numerous small finds.{{sfn|Werner|2013|pp=161–164}}

==Geography==
Alodia was located in Nubia, a region which, in the [[Middle Ages]], extended from [[Aswan]] in southern [[Egypt]] to an undetermined point south of the confluence of the [[White Nile|White]] and [[Blue Nile]] rivers.{{sfn|Werner|2013|pp=28–29}} The heartland of the kingdom was the [[Al Jazirah (state)|Gezira]], a fertile plain bounded by the White Nile in the west and the Blue Nile in the east.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=41}} In contrast to the White Nile Valley, the Blue Nile Valley is rich in known Alodian archaeological sites, among them Soba.{{sfn|Welsby|2014|loc=Figure 2}} In the mid-19th century the right shore of the Blue Nile between Soba and the [[Rahad River|Rahad]] was reportedly still associated with the name of the kingdom.{{sfn|Gerhards|2021|p=446}} The extent of the Alodian influence to the south is unclear,{{sfn|Obluski|2017|p=15}} although it is likely that it bordered the [[Ethiopia]]n highlands.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=8}} The southernmost known Alodian sites are in the proximity of [[Sennar]].{{efn|name=fn2|"The most southerly church known, which presumably was within the kingdom of Alwa, lay at Saqadi 50 km to the west of Sennar",{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=86}} while "the most southerly find of Alwan material on the Blue Nile is a pottery chalice, from Khalil el-Kubra 40 km upstream of Sennar".{{sfn|Welsby|2014|p=185}}}}

To the west of the White Nile, Ibn Hawqal differentiated between Al-Jeblien, which was controlled by [[Makuria]] and probably corresponded with northern [[Kordofan]], and the Alodian-controlled Al-Ahdin, which has been identified with the [[Nuba Mountains]], and perhaps extended as far south as [[Jebel al Liri]], near the modern border to [[South Sudan]].{{sfn|Spaulding|1998|p=49}} Nubian connections with [[Darfur]] have been suggested, but evidence is lacking.{{sfn|Edwards|2004|p=253}}

The northern region of Alodia probably extended from the confluence of the two Niles downstream to [[Abu Hamad]] near [[Mograt Island]].{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=74}} Abu Hamad likely constituted the northernmost outpost of the Alodian province known as al-Abwab ("the gates"),{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=21–22}} although some scholars also suggest a more southerly location, nearer the [[Atbara River]].{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=26}} No evidence for a major Alodian settlement has been discovered north of the confluence of the two Niles,{{sfn|Welsby|2014|p=192}} although several forts have been recorded there.{{sfn|Welsby|2014|pp=188–190}}

Lying between the [[Nile]] and the Atbara was the [[Butana]],{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=62}} grassland suitable for [[pastoralism|livestock]].{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=74}} Along the Atbara and the adjacent [[Mareb River|Gash Delta]] (near [[Kassala]]) many Christian sites have been noted.{{sfn|Welsby|2014|p=187}} According to Ibn Hawqal, a vassal king loyal to Alodia governed the region around the Gash Delta.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=98}} In fact, much of the Sudanese-Ethiopian-[[Eritrea]]n borderlands, once under control of the Ethiopian [[Kingdom of Aksum]], appear to have been under Alodian influence.{{sfn|Fattovich|1984|pp=105–106}} The accounts of both Ibn Hawqal and al-Aswani suggest that Alodia also controlled the [[Eastern desert|desert]] along the [[Red Sea]] coast.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=8}}
<!--[[File:Regions and people of Medieval Sudan (9th-10th century).png|thumb|left|upright=3.25]]-->

==History==

===Origins===
The name Alodia might be of considerable antiquity, perhaps appearing first as ''Alut'' on the [[Kingdom of Kush|Kushite]] [[stela]] of king [[Nastasen]] from the late 4th century BC. It appeared again as ''Alwa'' on a list of Kushite towns by the [[Roman Empire|Roman]] author [[Pliny the Elder]] (1st century AD), said to be located south of [[Meroë]].{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=8}} Another town named ''Alwa'' is mentioned in a 4th-century Aksumite inscription on the [[Ezana Stone]], with the location of the town near the confluence of the Nile and the Atbara rivers.{{sfn|Hatke|2013|loc=§4.5.2.3}}

[[File:Gefesselter nubischer König.JPG|thumb|upright=1|[[Kingdom of Kush|Kushite]] bronze figurine, 1st century BC. The [[Meroitic language|Meroitic]] inscription on its underside identifies the captive individual as a [[Nubians|Nubian]] king.{{sfn|Rilly|2008|loc=Fig. 3}}|alt=Bronze figurine of a bound man.]]
By the early 4th century the Kingdom of Kush, which used to control much of Sudan's riverbanks, was in decline, and Nubians (speakers of [[Nubian languages]]) began to settle in the Nile Valley.{{sfn|Rilly|2008|p=211}} They originally lived west of the Nile, but changes in the climate forced them eastward, resulting in conflicts with Kush from at least the 1st-century BC.{{sfn|Rilly|2008|pp=216–217}} In the mid-4th century the Nubians occupied most of the area once controlled by Kush,{{sfn|Hatke|2013|loc=§4.5.2.3}} while it was limited to the northern reaches of the Butana.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=35}} An Aksumite inscription mentions how the warlike Nubians also threatened the borders of the Aksumite kingdom north of the [[Tekezé River|Tekeze River]], resulting in an Aksumite expedition.{{sfn|Hatke|2013|loc=§4.5.2.1., see also §4.5. for the discussion of a Greek inscription with similar content}} It describes a Nubian defeat by Aksumite forces and a subsequent march to the confluence of the Nile and Atbara. There the Aksumites plundered several Kushite towns, including Alwa.{{sfn|Hatke|2013|loc=§4.5.2.3}}
[[File:Early medieval fort at Jebel Umm Marrahi (Sudan).jpg|thumb|upright=1.0|The remains of the fortress of Umm Marrahi near [[Omdurman]], dating to the 6th century|alt=Aerial photography of fort remains]]
Archaeological evidence suggests the Kingdom of Kush ceased to exist in the middle of the 4th century. It is not known whether the Aksumite expeditions played a direct role in its fall. It seems likely that the Aksumite presence in Nubia was short-lived.{{sfn|Hatke|2013|loc=§4.6.3}} Eventually, the region saw the development of regional centers whose ruling elites were buried in large [[tumulus|tumuli]].{{sfn|Welsby|2002|pp=22–23}} Such tumuli, within what would become Alodia, are known from [[El-Hobagi]], [[Jebel Qisi]] and perhaps [[Jebel Aulia Dam|Jebel Aulia]].{{sfn|Welsby|2014|p=191}} The excavated tumuli of El-Hobagi are known to date to the late 4th century,{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=28}} and contained an assortment of weaponry imitating Kushite royal funerary rituals.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|pp=40–41}} Meanwhile, many Kushite temples and settlements, including the former capital Meroë, seem to have been largely abandoned.{{sfn|Edwards|2004|p=187}} The Kushites themselves were absorbed into the Nubians{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=39}} and their [[Meroitic language|language]] was replaced by Nubian.{{sfn|Edwards|2004|p=182}}

How the Kingdom of Alodia came into being is unknown.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=45}} Its formation was completed by the mid-6th century, when it is said to have existed alongside the other Nubian kingdoms of [[Nobadia]] and Makuria in the north.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=26}} Soba, which by the 6th century had developed into a major urban center,{{sfn|Welsby|1998|p=20}} served as its capital.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=26}} In 569 the Kingdom of Alodia was mentioned for the first time, being described by John of Ephesus as a kingdom on the cusp of [[Christianization]].{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=45}} Independently of John of Ephesus, the kingdom's existence is also verified by a late 6th century [[Medieval Greek|Greek]] document from [[Byzantine Egypt]], describing the sale of an Alodian slave girl.{{sfn|Pierce|1995|pp=148–166}}

===Christianization and peak===
[[File:Greek cross, Musawwarat es-Sufra (Sudan).jpg|thumb|Cross [[Graffito (archaeology)|graffito]] from [[Musawwarat es-Sufra]]|alt=Graffito in the form a cross carved into a brick.]]
[[File:Michael monograms, Meroe quarry.jpg|thumb|[[Monogram]]s of [[Archangel Michael]] in a quarry near [[Meroe]]. Such monograms seem to have been the most popular epigraphic expression in Alodia, while longer inscriptions are comparably rare.{{sfn|Tsakos|Kleinitz|2018|p=127}}]]
John of Ephesus' account describes the events around the Christianization of Alodia in detail. As the southernmost of the three Nubian kingdoms, Alodia was the last to be converted to Christianity. According to John, the Alodian King was aware of the conversion of Nobadia in 543 and asked him to send a bishop who would also baptize his people. The request was granted in 580 and [[Longinus (missionary)|Longinus]] was sent, leading to the baptism of the King, his family and the local nobility. Thus, Alodia became a part of the Christian world under the [[Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria|Coptic Patriarchate of Alexandria]]. After conversion, several pagan temples, such as the one in [[Musawwarat es-Sufra]], were probably converted into churches.{{sfn|Werner|2013|pp=51–62}} The extent and speed with which Christianity spread among the Alodian populace is uncertain. Despite the conversion of the nobility, it is likely that Christianization of the rural population progressed only slowly, if at all.{{sfn|Edwards|2001|p=95}} John of Ephesus' report also implies tensions between Alodia and Makuria. Several forts north of the confluence of the two Niles have recently been dated to this period. However, their occupation did not exceed the 7th century, suggesting that the Makurian-Alodian conflict was soon resolved.{{sfn|Drzewiecki|Cedro|2019|p=129}}

Between 639 and 641, Muslim Arabs [[Muslim conquest of Egypt|conquered Egypt]] from the [[Byzantine Empire]].{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=68}} Makuria, which by this time had been unified with Nobadia,{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=77}} fended off two subsequent [[Islam|Muslim]] invasions, one in [[First Battle of Dongola|641/642]] and another in [[Second Battle of Dongola|652]]. In the aftermath, Makuria and the Arabs agreed to sign the ''[[Baqt]]'', a peace treaty that included a yearly exchange of gifts and socioeconomic regulations between Arabs and Nubians.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|pp=68–71}} Alodia was explicitly mentioned in the treaty as not being affected by it.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=77}} While the Arabs failed to conquer Nubia, they began to settle along the western coast of the Red Sea. They founded the port towns of [[Aydhab]] and [[Badi, Sudan|Badi]] in the 7th century and [[Suakin]], first mentioned in the 10th century.{{sfn|Power|2008}} From the 9th century, they pushed further inland, settling among the [[Beja people|Beja]] throughout the Eastern Desert. Arab influence would remain confined to the east of the Nile until the 14th century.{{sfn|Adams|1977|pp=553–554}}
<!--[[File:Tombstone of king David.tif|thumb|upright=1.1|Tombstone of king David from Soba. Davids's reign was initially dated to 999-1015, but is now disputed.]]-->
[[File:Nubia on al-Idrisi's map (12th century).jpg|thumb|left|[[South-up map orientation|South-up map]] of Nubia by [[al-Idrisi]] (1192 AD). Alodia ("galua") is erroneously depicted as being north of [[Makuria]] ("domkola", after [[Old Dongola|Dongola]], the Makurian capital).|alt=A Medieval map showing the Nile region below Egypt]]

Based on the archaeological evidence it has been suggested that Alodia's capital Soba underwent its peak development between the 9th and 12th centuries.{{sfn|Shinnie|1961|p=76}} In the 9th century, Alodia was, albeit briefly, described for the first time by the Arab historian al-Yaqubi. In his short account, Alodia is said to be the stronger of the two Nubian kingdoms, being a country requiring a three-month journey to cross. He also recorded that Muslims would occasionally travel there.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=16–17}}

A century later, in the mid-10th century, Alodia was visited by traveler and historian Ibn Hawqal, resulting in the most comprehensive known account of the kingdom. He described the geography and people of Alodia in considerable detail, giving the impression of a large, polyethnic state. He also noted its prosperity, having an "uninterrupted chain of villages and a continuous strip of cultivated lands".{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=17–19}} When Ibn Hawqal arrived, the ruling king was named Eusebius, who was, upon his death, succeeded by his nephew Stephanos.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=17}}{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=261}} Another Alodian king from this period was David, who is known from a tombstone in Soba. His rule was initially dated to 999–1015, but based on [[paleography|paleographical]] grounds it is now dated more broadly, to the 9th or 10th centuries.{{sfn|Lajtar|2003|p=203}}

Ibn Hawqal's report describing Alodia's geography was largely confirmed by al-Aswani, a [[Fatimids|Fatimid]] ambassador sent to Makuria, who went on to travel to Alodia. In a similar manner to al-Yaqubi's description of 100 years before, Alodia was noted as being more powerful than Makuria, more extensive and having a larger army. The capital Soba was a prosperous town with "fine buildings, and extensive dwellings and churches full of gold and gardens", while also having a large Muslim quarter.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=20}}
[[File:King Moses George of Makuria.jpg|thumb|King Moses Georgios, who probably ruled Makuria and Alodia simultaneously. [[Faras]], late 12th century.|alt=A painting of a man wearing red and white regal clothing and a crown.]]
Abu al-Makarim (12th century){{sfn|Werner|2013|p=93}} was the last historian to refer to Alodia in detail. It was still described as a large, Christian kingdom housing around 400 churches. A particularly large and finely constructed one was said to be located in Soba, called the "Church of Manbali".{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=22–23}} Two Alodian kings, Basil and Paul, are mentioned in 12th century Arabic letters from [[Qasr Ibrim]].{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=261}}

There is evidence that at certain periods there were close relations between the Alodian and the Makurian royal families. It is possible that the throne frequently passed to a king whose father was of the royal family of the other state.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=89}} Nubiologist [[Włodzimierz Godlewski]] states that it was under the Makurian king [[Merkurios of Makuria|Merkurios]] (early 8th century) that the two kingdoms began to approach each other.{{sfn|Godlewski|2012|p=204}} In 943 [[Al-Masudi|al Masudi]] wrote that the Makurian king ruled over Alodia, while Ibn Hawqal wrote that it was the other way around.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=89}} The 11th century saw the appearance of a new royal crown in Makurian art; it has been suggested that this derived from the Alodian court.{{sfn|Danys|Zielinska|2017|p=184}} King [[Moses Georgios of Makuria|Moses Georgios]], who is known to have ruled in Makuria in the second half of the 12th century, most likely ruled both kingdoms via a [[personal union]]. Considering that in his royal title ("king of the Arouades and Makuritai") Alodia is mentioned before Makuria, he might have initially been an Alodian king.{{sfn|Lajtar|2009|pp=89–94}} <!--Werner 168-->

===Decline===
[[File:Incense burner made of bronze, Soba.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Bronze incense burner, bearing a damaged [[Coptic language|Coptic]] inscription. Allegedly discovered in Soba.|alt=A bronze incense burner with a Nubian inscription]]
Archaeological evidence from Soba suggests a decline of the town, and therefore possibly the Alodian kingdom, from the 12th century.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=252}} By {{circa}} 1300 the decline of Alodia was well advanced.{{sfn|O'Fahey|Spaulding|1974|p=19}} No pottery or glassware postdating the 13th century has been identified at Soba.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=34}} Two churches were apparently destroyed during the 13th century, although they were rebuilt shortly afterwards.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=9}} It has been suggested that Alodia was under attack by an African, possibly [[Nilotes|Nilotic]],{{sfn|Beswick|2004|p=24}} people called Damadim who originated from the border region of modern Sudan and South Sudan, along the [[Bahr el Ghazal River]].{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=115}} According to geographer [[Ibn Sa'id al-Maghribi]], they attacked Nubia in 1220.{{sfn|Vantini|1975|p=400}} Soba may have been conquered at this time, suffering occupation and destruction.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=115}} In the late 13th century, another invasion by an unspecified people from the south occurred.{{sfn|Hasan|1967|p=130}} In the same period poet [[al-Harrani (poet)|al-Harrani]] wrote that Alodia's capital was now called Waylula,{{sfn|O'Fahey|Spaulding|1974|p=19}} described as "very large" and "built on the west bank of the Nile".{{sfn|Vantini|1975|p=448}} In the early 14th century geographer [[Al-Dimashqi (geographer)|Shamsaddin al-Dimashqi]] wrote that the capital was a place named Kusha, located far from the Nile, where water had to be obtained from wells.{{sfn|Adams|1977|pp=537–538}} The contemporary [[Italy|Italian]]-[[Mallorca]]n [[Angelino Dulcert|Dulcert]] map features both Alodia ("Coale") and Soba ("Sobaa").{{sfn|Hirsch|1990|p=88}}

Economic factors also seem to have played a part in Alodia's decline. From the 10th to 12th centuries the [[East Africa]]n coast saw the rise of new trading cities such as [[Kilwa]]. These were direct mercantile competitors since they exported similar goods to Nubia.{{sfn|Grajetzki|2009|pp=121–122}} A period of severe droughts occurring in Sub-Saharan Africa between 1150 and 1500 would have affected the Nubian economy as well.{{sfn|Zurawski|2014|p=84}} [[Paleoethnobotany|Archeobotanical]] evidence from Soba suggests the town suffered from [[overgrazing]] and overcultivation.{{sfn|Cartwright|1999|p=256}}

By 1276 al-Abwab, previously described as the northernmost Alodian province, was recorded as an [[Kingdom of al-Abwab|independent splinter kingdom]] ruling over vast territories. The precise circumstances of its secession and its relations with Alodia thereafter remain unknown.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=254}} Based on pottery finds it has been suggested that al-Abwab continued to thrive until the 15th and perhaps even the 16th century.{{sfn|Werner|2013|pp=127, 159}} In 1286 a [[Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo)|Mamluke]] prince sent messengers to several rulers in central Sudan. It is not clear if they were still subject to the king in Soba{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=99}} or if they were independent, implying a fragmentation of Alodia into multiple petty states by the late 13th century.{{sfn|O'Fahey|Spaulding|1974|p=19}} In 1317 a Mamluk expedition pursued Arab brigands as far south as Kassala in Taka (one of the regions which received a Mamluk messenger in 1286{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=99}}), marching through al-Abwab and Makuria on their return.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=138}}

[[File:Migration of Arabs into Sudan.jpg|thumb|upright=1.6|Map depicting the migration routes employed by the [[Arab]] tribes to push into [[Sudan]]|alt=A map of Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti and northern Ethiopia.]]

During the 14th and 15th centuries much of what is now Sudan was overrun by [[Arab]] tribes,{{sfn|Hasan|1967|p=176}} while the [[Adal Sultanate]] exerted some influence over the area around Suakin.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Owens |first1=Travis |title=Beleaguered Muslim Fortresses and Ethiopian Imperial Expansion From the 13th to the 16th Century |publisher=Naval Postgraduate School |page=23 |url=https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a483490.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112020204/https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a483490.pdf|url-status=live|archive-date=November 12, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Pouwels |first1=Randall |title=The History of Islam in Africa |date=31 March 2000 |publisher=Ohio University Press |page=229 |isbn=978-0-8214-4461-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J1Ipt5A9mLMC&q=Sawakin+adal&pg=PA229}}</ref> The bedouin may have profited from the [[Plague (disease)|plague]] which has been suggested to have ravaged Nubia in the mid-14th century killing many sedentary Nubians, but not affecting the nomadic Arabs.{{sfn|Werner|2013|pp=142–143}} They would have then intermixed with the remaining local population, gradually taking control over land and people,{{sfn|Hasan|1967|p=128}} greatly benefiting from their large population in spreading their culture.{{sfn|Hasan|1967|p=175}} The first recorded Arab migration to Nubia dates to 1324.{{sfn|Hasan|1967|p=106}} It was the disintegration of Makuria in the late 14th century that, according to archaeologist [[William Y. Adams]], caused the "flood gates" to "burst wide open".{{sfn|Adams|1977|p=556}} Many, initially coming from Egypt, followed the course of the Nile until they reached [[Al Dabbah]]. Here they headed west to migrate along the [[Wadi Al-Malik]] to reach Darfur or Kordofan.{{sfn|Braukämper|1992|pp=108–109, 111}} Alodia, in particular the Butana and the Gezira, was the target of those Arabs who had lived among the Beja{{sfn|Hasan|1967|p=145}} in the Eastern Desert for centuries.{{sfn|Adams|1977|p=554}}

Initially, the kingdom was able to exercise authority over some of the newly arrived Arab groups, forcing them to pay tribute. The situation grew increasingly precarious as more Arabs arrived.{{sfn|Hasan|1967|pp=129, 132–133}} By the second half of the 15th century, Arabs had settled in the entire central Sudanese Nile valley, except for the area around Soba,{{sfn|Hasan|1967|p=128}} which was all that was left of Alodia's domain.{{sfn|Adams|1977|p=545}} In 1474{{sfn|Vantini|1975|p=784}} it was recorded that Arabs founded the town of [[Arbaji]] on the Blue Nile, which would quickly develop into an important centre of commerce and Islamic learning.{{sfn|McHugh|1994|p=38}} In around 1500 the Nubians were recorded to be in a state of total political fragmentation, as they had no king, but 150 independent lordships centered around castles on both sides of the Nile.{{sfn|O'Fahey|Spaulding|1974|p=19}} Archaeology attests that Soba was largely ruined by this time.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=255}}
<!--[[File:Medieval plaque from Soba, Sudan.tif|thumb|upright=0.7|Fragmentary copper alloy plaque from Soba, very likely depicting the lower quarter of a bishop.]]-->

===Fall===
[[File:ArnoldvHarff3holzschn1859.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Late 15th century illustration of Arab horseman by [[Arnold von Harff]]|alt=A pen and ink drawing of a mounted man wearing Arab dress and carrying a spear]]
It is unclear if the Kingdom of Alodia was destroyed by the Arabs under [[Abdallah Jammah]] or by the [[Funj]], an African group from the south led by their king [[Amara Dunqas]].{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=255}} Most modern scholars agree now that it fell due to the Arabs.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=25}}{{sfn|Adams|1977|p=538}}

Abdallah Jammah ("Abdallah the gatherer"), the eponymous ancestor{{sfn|Adams|1977|p=539}} of the Sudanese [[Abdallabi tribe|Abdallab tribe]], was a [[Rufa'a Arabs|Rufa'a]]{{sfn|Hasan|1967|p=132}} Arab who, according to Sudanese traditions, settled in the Nile Valley after coming from the east. He consolidated his power and established his capital at [[Qerri]], just north of the confluence of the two Niles.{{sfn|O'Fahey|Spaulding|1974|p=23}} In the late 15th century he gathered the Arab tribes to act against the Alodian "tyranny", as it is called, which has been interpreted as having a religious-economic motive. The Muslim Arabs no longer accepted the rule of, nor taxation by, a Christian ruler. Under Abdallah's leadership Alodia and its capital Soba were destroyed,{{sfn|Hasan|1967|pp=132–133}} resulting in rich booty such as a "bejeweled crown" and a "famous necklace of pearls and rubies".{{sfn|O'Fahey|Spaulding|1974|p=23}}

[[File:Tribal_scarification_of_the_Abdallabs,_Sudan.jpg|thumb|left|upright=0.80|An [[Abdallabi tribe|Abdallab]] with the typical tribal [[scarification]]. The Abdallab trace their origin to [[Abdallah Jammah]], the alleged destroyer of Alodia.|alt=Portrait of brown-skinned man wearing a white turban and with scarification on his cheek]]

According to another tradition recorded in old documents from [[Shendi]], Soba was destroyed by Abdallah Jammah in 1509 having already been attacked in 1474. The idea of uniting the Arabs against Alodia is said to have already been on the mind of an [[emir]] who lived between 1439 and 1459. To this end, he migrated from [[Barah, Sudan|Bara]] in Kordofan to a mountain near [[Ed Dueim]] on the White Nile. Under his grandson, called Emir Humaydan, the White Nile was crossed. There he met other Arab tribes and attacked Alodia. The king of Alodia was killed, but the "patriarch", probably the [[archbishop]] of Soba, managed to flee. He soon returned to Soba. A puppet king was crowned and an army of Nubians, Beja and [[Ethiopian Empire|Abyssinians]] was assembled to fight "for the sake of religion". Meanwhile, the Arab alliance was about to fracture, but Abdallah Jammah reunited them, while also allying with the Funj king Amara Dunqas. Together they finally defeated and killed the patriarch, razing Soba afterwards and enslaving its population.{{sfn|Vantini|2006|pp=487–491}}

The ''[[Funj Chronicle]]'', a multi-authored{{sfn|Hasan|1967|p=213}} history of the [[Funj Sultanate]] compiled in the 19th century, ascribes the destruction of Alodia to King Amara Dunqas; he was also allied with Abdallah Jammah.{{sfn|Adams|1977|p=538}} This attack is dated to the [[Hijri year|9th century after the Hijra]] ({{circa}} 1396–1494). Afterwards, Soba is said to have served as the capital of the Funj until the foundation of Sennar in 1504.{{sfn|Vantini|1975|pp=786–787}} The ''[[Tabaqat Dayfallah]]'', a history of [[Sufism]] in Sudan ({{circa}} 1700), briefly mentions that the Funj attacked and defeated the "kingdom of the Nuba" in 1504–1505.{{sfn|Vantini|1975|pp=784–785}}
<!--The Funj chronicle is regarded as state propaganda seeking to legitimize Funj rule by claiming direct succession from Alodia.{{sfn|Adams|1977|pp=538–539}} Furthermore, its claim of Soba serving as Funj capital is not supported by the archaeological evidence. Another significant error was highlighted by Welsby and Daniels, who noted that the chronicle borrowed passages from al Aswani while describing Soba as a prosperous place before the Funj occupied it.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=9}} The destruction of Soba is also remembered in Sudanese oral traditions as a symbol of total annihilation. It remained inhabited until at least the early 17th century,{{sfn|Crawford|1951|pp=28–29}} but during the early 19th century many of the remaining [[Brick#Fired brick|bricks]] in Soba were plundered for the construction of [[Khartoum]], the new capital of the [[History of Sudan (1821–85)|recently colonized Sudan]].{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=43}}
Funj subjects of Alodia Adams 1977 p=600
Mogharba occupying the area around Soba {{MacMichael|1922|p=318}}-->

===Legacy===
[[File:King_sennar_1821.jpg|thumb|Early 19th century [[Funj Sultanate|Funj]] ''manjil'' ("kinglet") of [[Fazughli]] as depicted by [[Frédéric Cailliaud]]. On his head he wears a ''taqiya umm qarnein''.|alt=A robed man with a sword]]
Historian [[Jay Spaulding]] proposes that the fall of Soba was not necessarily the end of Alodia. According to the [[Judaism|Jewish]] traveler [[David Reubeni]], who visited the country in 1523, there was still a "Kingdom of Soba" on the eastern bank of the Blue Nile, although he explicitly noted Soba itself was in ruins. This matches the oral traditions from the Upper Blue Nile, which claim that Alodia survived Soba's fall and still existed along the Blue Nile. It had gradually retreated to the mountains of [[Fazughli]] in the Ethiopian-Sudanese borderlands, forming the [[Kingdom of Fazughli]].{{sfn|Spaulding|1974|pp=12–21}} Recent excavations in western Ethiopia seem to confirm the theory of an Alodian migration.{{sfn|Gonzalez-Ruibal|Falquina|2017|pp=16–18}} The Funj eventually conquered Fazughli in 1685 and its population, known as [[Hamaj]], became a fundamental part of Sennar, eventually [[Hamaj Regency|seizing power]] in 1761–1762.{{sfn|Spaulding|1974|pp=21–25}} As recently as 1930{{sfn|Adams|1977|p=539}} Hamaj villagers in the southern Gezira would swear by "Soba the home of my grandfathers and grandmothers which can make the stone float and the cotton ball sink".{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=99}}

In 1504–1505 the Funj founded the Funj sultanate, incorporating Abdallah Jammah's domain, which, according to some traditions, happened after a battle where Amara Dunqas defeated him.{{sfn|O'Fahey|Spaulding|1974|pp=25–26}} The Funj maintained some medieval Nubian customs like the wearing of crowns with features resembling [[bovinae|bovine]] horns, called ''taqiya umm qarnein'',{{sfn|Zurawski|2014|pp=148–149}} the shaving of the head of a king upon his coronation,{{sfn|Zurawski|2014|p=149}} and, according to Jay Spaulding, the custom of raising princes separately from their mothers, under strict confinement.{{sfn|Spaulding|1985|p=23}}

The aftermath of Alodia's fall saw extensive [[Arabization]], with the Nubians embracing the tribal system of the Arab migrants.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=156}} Those living along the Nile between al Dabbah in the north and the confluence of the two Niles in the south were subsumed into the [[Ja'alin tribe]].{{sfn|Adams|1977|pp=557–558}} To the east, west and south of the Ja'alin the country was now dominated by tribes claiming a [[Juhaynah]] ancestry.{{sfn|Adams|1977|p=558}} In the area around Soba, the tribal Abdallab identity prevailed.{{sfn|O'Fahey|Spaulding|1974|p=29}} The Nubian language was spoken in central Sudan until the 19th century, when it was replaced by [[Sudanese Arabic|Arabic]].{{sfn|Edwards|2004|p=260}} [[Sudanese Arabic]] preserves many words of Nubian origin,{{sfn|Abu-Manga|2009|p=377}} and Nubian place names can be found as far south as the [[Blue Nile (state)|Blue Nile state]].{{sfn|Taha|2012|p=10 (Taha ascribes these names a [[Dongolawi language|Dongolawi Nubian]] origin)}}

The fate of Christianity in the region remains largely unknown.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=171}} The church institutions would have collapsed together with the fall of the kingdom,{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=156}} resulting in the decline of the Christian faith and the rise of Islam in its stead.{{sfn|Adams|1977|p=564}} [[Islamization|Islamized]] groups from northern Nubia began to proselytize the Gezira.{{sfn|McHugh|1994|p=59}} As early as 1523 King Amara Dunqas, who was initially a Pagan or nominal Christian, was recorded to be Muslim.{{sfn|Werner|2013|pp=170–171}} Nevertheless, in the 16th century large portions of the Nubians still regarded themselves as Christians.{{sfn|Zurawski|2014|pp=84–85}} A traveler who visited Nubia around 1500 confirms this, while also saying that the Nubians were so lacking in Christian instruction they had no knowledge of the faith.{{sfn|Hasan|1967|pp=131–132}} In 1520 Nubian ambassadors reached Ethiopia and petitioned the Emperor for priests. They claimed that no more priests could reach Nubia because of the wars between Muslims, leading to a decline of Christianity in their land.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=150}} A [[Radiocarbon dating|radiocarbon dated]] Christian burial at Geili south of the 6th cataract also dates to the 16th century.{{sfn|Caneva|1988|pp=212–214}} In the first half of the 17th century, a prophecy made by the Sudanese Sheikh Idris Wad al-Arbab mentioned a church in the Nuba Mountains.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=181}} As late as the early 1770s there was said to be a Christian princedom in the Ethiopian-Sudanese border area, called Shaira.{{sfn|Spaulding|1974|p=22, note 31}} [[Apotropaic magic|Apotropaic rituals]] stemming from Christian practices outlived the conversion to Islam.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=177}} As late as the 20th century several practices of undoubtedly Christian origin were "common, though of course not universal, in [[Omdurman]], the Gezira and Kordofan",{{sfn|Crowfoot|1918|p=56}} usually revolving around the application of crosses on humans and objects.{{efn|name=fn3|In 1918 it was recorded that in parts of Omdurman, the Gezira and Kordofan, practices of Christian origin included the marking of crosses on foreheads of newborns or on stomachs of sick boys as well as putting straw crosses on bowls of milk.{{sfn|Crowfoot|1918|pp=55–56}} In 1927 it was recorded that along the White Nile, crosses were painted on bowls filled with wheat.{{sfn|Werner|2013|pp=177–178}} In 1930 it was not only recorded that youths in Fazughli and the Gezira would be painted with crosses, but also that coins with crosses were worn to provide assistance against illnesses.{{sfn|Chataway|1930|p=256}} A very similar custom was known from Lower Nubia, where women wore such coins on special holidays. It seems likely that this was a living memory of the [[Jizya]] tax, which was enforced on Christians who refused to convert to Islam.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=178}} Christianizing rituals are also known from the Nuba mountains: crosses were painted on foreheads and breasts and were applied to blankets and baskets.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=182}}}}

Soba, which remained inhabited until at least the early 17th century,{{sfn|Crawford|1951|pp=28–29}} served, among many other ruined Alodian sites, as a steady supply of [[Brick#Fired brick|bricks]] and stones for nearby [[Qubba|Qubba shrines]], dedicated to Sufi holy men.{{sfn|McHugh|2016|p=110}} During the early 19th century many of the remaining bricks in Soba were plundered for the construction of [[Khartoum]], the new capital of [[Turkish Sudan]].{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=43}}

==Administration==
[[File:Tombstone of king David.tif|thumb|[[Greek language|Greek]] tombstone of king David (9th or 10th century) found at Soba]]
While information about Alodia's government is sparse,{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=97}} it was likely similar to [[Makuria#Government|that of Makuria]].{{sfn|Obluski|2017|p=16}} The head of state was the king who, according to al-Aswani, reigned as an [[Absolute monarchy|absolute monarch]].{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=97}} He was recorded to be able to enslave any of his subjects at will, who would not oppose his decision, but prostrated themselves before him.{{sfn|Vantini|1975|p=614}} As in Makuria, succession to the Alodian throne was [[Matrilineal succession|matrilineal]]: it was the son of the king's sister, not his son who succeeded to the throne.{{sfn|Obluski|2017|p=16}} There might be evidence a mobile royal encampment existed, although the translation of the original source, Abu al-Makarim, is not certain.{{sfn|Seignobos|2015|p=224}} Similar mobile courts are known to have existed in the early Funj sultanate, Ethiopia and [[Darfur Sultanate|Darfur]].{{sfn|Spaulding|1972|p=52}}

The kingdom was divided into several provinces under the sovereignty of Soba.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=100}} It seems delegates of the king governed these provinces.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=97}} Al-Aswani stated that the governor of the northern al-Abwab province was appointed by the king.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=19}} This was similar to what Ibn Hawqal recorded for the Gash Delta region, which was ruled by an appointed Arabophone (Arabic speaker).{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=98}} In 1286, Mamluk emissaries were sent to several rulers in central Sudan. It is unclear whether those rulers were actually independent,{{sfn|O'Fahey|Spaulding|1974|p=19}} or if they remained subordinate to the king of Alodia. If the latter was the case, this would provide an understanding of the kingdom's territorial organization. The "[[Sahib]]" of al-Abwab{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=99}} seems certain to have been independent.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=254}} Apart from al-Abwab, the following regions are mentioned: Al-Anag (possibly Fazughli); Ari; Barah; Befal; Danfou; Kedru (possibly after Kadero, a village north of Khartoum); Kersa (the Gezira); and Taka (the region around the Gash Delta).{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=98–100}}

State and church were intertwined in Alodia,{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=165}} with the Alodian kings probably serving as its patrons.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=101}} Coptic documents observed by [[Johann Michael Vansleb]] during the later 17th century list the following bishoprics in the Alodian kingdom: Arodias, Borra, Gagara, Martin, Banazi, and Menkesa.{{sfn|Crawford|1951|p=26}} "Arodias" may refer to the bishopric in Soba.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=165}} The bishops were dependent on the patriarch of Alexandria.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=20}}

Alodia may have had a standing army,{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=98–100}} in which cavalry likely projected force and symbolized royal authority deep into the provinces.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=22}} Because of their speed, horses were also important for communication, providing a rapid courier service between the capital and the provinces.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=22}} Aside from horses, boats also played a central role in transportation infrastructure.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=85}}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Kings of Alodia
! scope="col"| Name
! scope="col"| Date of rule
! scope="col"| Comment
|-
!scope="row"| Giorgios
| ?
| Recorded on an inscription at Soba.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=261}}
|-
! David
| 9th or 10th century
| Recorded on his tombstone at Soba. Initially thought to have ruled from 999 to 1015, but now proposed to have lived in the 9th / 10th centuries.{{sfn|Lajtar|2003|p=203}}
|-
!scope="row"| Eusebios
| {{circa}} 938–955
| Mentioned by Ibn Hawqal.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=261}}{{sfn|Vantini|1975|p=153}}
|-
!scope="row"| Stephanos
| c. 955
| Mentioned by Ibn Hawqal.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=261}}{{sfn|Vantini|1975|p=153}}
|-
!scope="row"| Moses Georgios
| c. 1155–1190
| Joint ruler of Makuria and Alodia. Recorded on letters from Qasr Ibrim and a graffito from Faras.{{sfn|Lajtar|2009|pp=89–94}}
|-
!scope="row"| ?Basil
| 12th century
| Recorded on an Arabic letter from Qasr Ibrim{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=261}} and a graffito from Meroë(?).{{sfn|Munro-Hay|1982|p=113}}
|-
!scope="row"| ?Paul
| 12th century
| Recorded on an Arabic letter from Qasr Ibrim.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=261}}
|}

==Culture==
===Languages===
[[File:Nubian inscriptions Musawwarat.jpg|thumb|Nubian graffiti from Musawwarat es-Sufra. Sketch by [[Louis Maurice Adolphe Linant de Bellefonds|Linant de Bellefonds]].|alt=A sketch of Nubian inscriptions]]

[[File:Marble stone with southern-Nubian inscription, Soba.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Fragmentary marble stone from Soba with Nubian inscription. Found and drawn by [[Karl Richard Lepsius|Karl Lepsius]].|alt=A drawing of fragments of marble bearing inscriptions in Nubian]]

While Alodia was polyethnic, and hence polylingual,{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=88–90}} it was essentially a Nubian state whose majority spoke a Nubian language.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=46}} Based on a few inscriptions found in Alodian territory it has been suggested that the Alodians spoke a dialect distinct from [[Old Nubian|Old Nobiin]] of northern Nubia, dubbed as ''Alwan-Nubian''. This assumption rests primarily on the script used in these inscriptions,{{sfn|Breyer|2014|pp=188-189}} which, while also being based on the [[Greek alphabet]],{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=186, note 6}} differs from that employed in Makuria by making no use of [[Coptic alphabet|Coptic]] [[diacritic]]s and instead having special characters based on Meroitic [[hieroglyphs]]. However, ultimately the classification of this language and its relationship to Old Nobiin has yet to be specified.{{sfn|Breyer|2014|pp=189-190}} It appears to have become extinct by the 19th century, when it had been replaced by Arabic.{{sfn|Gerhards|2023|p=147}} A few 19th century travellers reported that [[Dongolawi]] or a closely related dialect was still spoken as far south as the 5th cataract, if not Shendi.{{sfn|Gerhards|2023|p=140–141}}

Although Greek, a prestigious sacral language, was used, it does not appear to have been spoken.{{sfn|Ochala|2014|pp=43–44}} An example of the use of Greek in Alodia is the tombstone of King David from Soba, where it is written with quite correct grammar.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|pp=274–276}} Al-Aswani noted that books were written in Greek and then translated into Nubian.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=20}} The Christian [[liturgy]] was also in Greek.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=197}} [[Coptic language|Coptic]] was probably used to communicate with the Patriarch of Alexandria,{{sfn|Obluski|2017|p=16}} but written Coptic remains are very sparse.{{sfn|Ochala|2014|p=37}}

Apart from Nubian, a multitude of languages were spoken throughout the kingdom. In the Nuba mountains several [[Kordofanian languages]] occurred together with [[Hill Nubian language|Hill Nubian]] dialects. Upstream along the Blue Nile Eastern Sudanic languages like [[Berta language|Berta]] or [[Gumuz language|Gumuz]] were spoken. In the eastern territories lived the Beja, who spoke their own [[Cushitic languages|Cushitic]] [[Beja language|language]], as did the [[Semitic languages|Semitic]] Arabs{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=89–90}} and the [[Tigre people|Tigre]].{{sfn|Zaborski|2003|p=471}}<!--In the case of Alodia, the latter can be attested to by two types of sources: First, ostraca and other incised pottery, as well as a few incised bricks mainly from Soba and second, graffiti, incised into former Meroitic monuments and sites. The graffiti from Meroitic sites have been hitherto largely ignored by scholars and therefore comprise only a fraction of all known written sources,{{sfn|Tsakos|2016}} but a publication on Medieval graffiti in the ancient [[quarrie]] near Meroe is in preparation.{{sfn|Tsakos|Kleinitz|n.d.}}

In total, only around 5% of all known written records of Christian Nubia come from Alodia, although this can be mostly attributed to the uneven distribution of excavations.{{sfn|Ochala|2014|pp=22–23}} Old Nobiin might have been used by the royal court due to its relations with the Makurian court.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=188}}-->

===Church architecture===
Most of the 400 churches reportedly existing throughout Alodia have yet to be located.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=153}} Only seven have been identified so far, of which are five in Soba, one in Saqadi and one in Musawwarat es-Sufra.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=149, note 38}} 19th century sources noted ruined churches in [[Tuti Island]], [[Burri Almahas|Burri]], [[Wad Medani]] and Sennar,{{sfn|Gerhards|2021|pp=445–447}} while in recent years archaeologists identified potential churches in Soba,{{sfn|Drzewiecki|Ryndziewicz|Ciesielska|Kurcz|2022|p=218}} [[Hamadab]]{{sfn|Wolf|Wolf|Onasch|Hof|2009|p=252}} and Abu Erteila{{sfn|Baldi|Varriale|2010|pp=284–288}} near Meroe as well as Hosh el-Kab{{sfn|Drzewiecki|Cedro|2022|pp=124–125}} near Omdurman. The seven Alodian churches have been categorized into three classes: large [[basilica]]s, "normal" churches and insertions into pre-existing structures.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=153}} While Nubian church architecture was greatly influenced by that of Egypt, [[Syria]] and [[Armenia]]{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=155}} the relations between the church architecture of Makuria and Alodia remain uncertain.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=149}} What seems clear is that Alodian churches lacked eastern entrances and [[tribune (architecture)|tribunes]], features characteristic for churches in northern Nubia.{{sfn|Welsby|1996|p=189}} Furthermore, Alodian churches used more wood.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=164}} Similarities with medieval Ethiopian church architecture are harder to find, only a few details matching.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=322}}

====Soba====

On "Mound B" in Soba lay the standalone complex of the three churches "A", "B" and "C", a layout likely reflecting Byzantine influences.{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=164}} Churches "A" and "B", both probably built in the mid-9th century, were large buildings, the first measuring {{convert|28|x|24.5|m|abbr=on}} and the second {{convert|27|x|22.5|m|abbr=on}}. Church "C" was much smaller{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=163}} and built after the other two churches, probably after {{circa}} 900.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=34}} The three churches had many similarities, including having a [[narthex]], wide entrances on the main east-west axis and a [[pulpit]] along the north side of the [[nave]]. Differences are evident in the thickness of the bricks used. Church "C" lacked outer [[aisle]]s.{{sfn|Welsby|1996|p=188}} It seems probable that the complex was the ecclesiastical center of Soba, if not the entire kingdom.{{sfn|Edwards|2004|p=222}}
Church "E", on a natural mount, was {{convert|16.4|x|10.6|m|abbr=on}} in size (and like all red brick structures in Soba heavily robbed).{{sfn|Welsby|1998|pp=28–29}} Its layout was unusual,{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=154}} such as its L-shaped narthex.{{sfn|Welsby|1998|p=275}} The roof was supported by wooden beams resting on stone [[pedestal]]s. The internal walls used to be covered by painted whitewashed mud; the external walls were rendered in white lime mortar.{{sfn|Welsby|1998|pp=30–32}} The "Mound C" church, perhaps the oldest of the churches of Soba,{{sfn|Welsby|1996|p=187}} was around {{cvt|13.5|m}} in length. It was the only Alodian church known to have incorporated stone columns.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=153}} Very little remains of it and its walls, probably made of red bricks, have completely disappeared. Five [[Capital (architecture)|capitals]] have been noted, belonging to a style that appeared in Nubia at the turn of the 8th century.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|pp=321–322}}

====Others====

The church of Musawwarat es-Sufra, called "Temple III A", was initially a pagan temple but was converted into a church, probably soon after the royal conversion in 580.{{sfn|Török|1974|p=100}} It was rectangular and slightly skewed, being {{convert|8.6|–|8.8|x|7.4|–|7.6| m|abbr=on}} in size. It was divided into one large and three small rooms.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=154}} The roof, of an indeterminate shape, was supported by wooden beams.{{sfn|Török|1974|p=95}} Despite originally being a Kushite temple it still bears similarities to purpose-built churches, for example having an entrance on both the north and south sides.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=154}}

The church in Saqadi is the southernmost known Nubian church.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=86}} It is a red brick building{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=322}} inserted into a pre-existing building of unknown nature.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=153}} It had a nave, where two L-shaped walls projected, and at least two [[Aisle#Church architecture|aisles]] with rectangular brick piers between, as well as a range of possibly three rooms across the western end, which was a typically Nubian arrangement.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=322}}

<gallery heights="160" widths="230" caption="Gallery">
File:Soba 3 churches.gif|Church complex of "Mound B", Soba, including, from up to bottom: church "A", church "B" and church "C"|alt=Ground plan of church
File:Ground plan of Mound C church, Soba.jpg|Suggestive ground plan of the "Mound C" church, Soba|alt=Ground plan of church complex
File:Small finds from Soba (Duemichen).jpg|19th-century drawing of [[Capital (architecture)|capitals]] of "Mound C" church, Soba, and other small finds |alt=Pen and ink drawing of ornamented [[Capital (architecture)|capitals]]
File:Temple 3 A, Musawwarat es-Sufra.png|upright=0.85|Temple-church, Musawwarat es-Sufra|alt=Ground plan of church
File:Excavations_at_Seqadi-Sagadi_%28%3F%29%2C_A._E._Sudan%28Jebel_Moya%29_Wellcome_M0008632.jpg|The unearthing of the [[Saqadi]] church in 1913|alt=A black and white photograph of an archaeological excavation site
</gallery>
<!--
along with a residential Building "D", formed a standalone complex. It was a multi-storied mud brick building with at least two levels,{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=317}} within which were found the remains of painted wall plaster fragments, probably dating to the 9th–12th century and bearing stylistic similarities with murals from Makuria.{{sfn|Danys|Zielinska|2017|p=183}} The scale of the structure is suggestive of a palatial estate, possibly the residence of the bishop of Soba, or perhaps the king of Alodia.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=318}}

At Soba, the remains of circular timber structures have been discovered, probably belonging to huts.{{sfn|Welsby|1998|p=269}} Such timber huts, both circular and rectangular in shape, were perhaps the most common type of domestic architecture in Alodia.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=166}} Other types of domiciles may have been similar to those used today, from simple huts of matting over walls constructed with rammed earth to rectangular, brick-walled houses with flat, rain-proof roofs made of palm and mud plastering.{{sfn|Shinnie|1961|p=78}}

====Fortresses====
Not many fortresses are known and their chronology is often uncertain.{{sfn|Drzewiecki|2016|p=16}} During the early Middle Ages, Meroitic fortresses were reoccupied and their walls restored.{{sfn|Drzewiecki|2016|p=8}} Only a few fortresses were apparently built from scratch, two from the late Middle Ages are known: [[Jebel Irau]] and [[Fangool (Sudan)|Fangool]].{{sfn|Drzewiecki|2016|p=47}}
-->

===Pottery===
[[File:Soba Ware Pottery.png|thumb|"[[Soba Ware]]" from Soba discovered in 2021–2022]]
In medieval Nubia, pottery and its decoration were appreciated as an art form.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=194}} Until the 7th century, the most common pottery type found at Soba was the so-called "Red Ware". These [[potter's wheel|wheel-made]] hemispherical bowls were made of red or orange [[slip (ceramics)|slip]] and painted with separated motifs such as boxes with inner cross-hatchings, stylized floral motifs or crosses. The outlines of the motifs were drawn in black while the interiors were white. In their design, they are a direct continuation of Kushite styles, with possible influences from Aksumite Ethiopia. Due to their relative rarity, it has been suggested that they were imported, although they bear similarities to the pottery type, known as "[[Soba Ware]]", that succeeded them.{{sfn|Danys|Zielinska|2017|pp=177–178}}

"Soba Ware" was a type of wheel-made{{sfn|Danys|Zielinska|2017|p=182}} pottery with a distinctive decoration very different from that found in the rest of Nubia.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=234}} The shape of the pottery was diverse, as was the repertoire of painted decoration. One of the most distinctive features was the use of faces as painted decoration. They were simplified, if not geometric, in form and with big round eyes. This style is foreign to Makuria and Egypt, but bears a resemblance to paintings and manuscripts from Ethiopia.{{sfn|Danys|Zielinska|2017|pp=179–181}} It is possible the potters copied these motifs from local church murals.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=235}} Also unique was the application of animal-shaped bosses ([[protome]]s).{{sfn|Danys|Zielinska|2017|p=180}} [[Ceramic glaze|Glazed]] vessels were also produced, copying [[Persia]]n [[aquamanile]]s without reaching their quality.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|pp=194–195}} Beginning in the 9th century, "Soba Ware" was increasingly replaced by fine ware imported from Makuria.{{sfn|Danys|Zielinska|2017|p=183}}
<!--The majority of the Soba Ware is decorated with. The material culture of Alodia bore similarities to that of today.{{sfn|Shinnie|1961|p=78}}-->

==Economy==
===Agriculture===
[[File:L'univers Sénégambie et Guinée (...)Tardieu Amédée bpt6k6209333w 621.jpg|thumb|A Nubian [[Saqiyah|sakia]] in the 19th century|alt=Old drawing of a sakia waterwheel]]
[[File:Sorghum sudanese.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|[[Sorghum]] was the [[staple food]] of medieval Nubia.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=185}}|alt=A close up photograph of a fully grown sorghum plant]]

Alodia was in the [[Sahel|savannah belt]], giving it an economic advantage over its northern neighbor Makuria.{{sfn|Welsby|2014|p=183}} According to al-Aswani the "provisions of the country of Alwa and their king" came from Kersa, which has been identified with the Gezira.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=100}} North of the confluence of the two Niles agriculture was limited to farms along the river{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=74}} watered by devices like the [[shadoof]] or the more sophisticated [[sakia]].{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|pp=77–79}} In contrast, the farmers of the Gezira profited from sufficient rainfall to make rainfall cultivation the economic mainstay.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=75}}
Archaeological records have provided insight into the types of food grown and consumed in Alodia. At Soba, the primary cereal was [[sorghum]], although [[barley]] and [[millet]] were also known to be consumed.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|pp=265–267}} Al-Aswani noted that sorghum was used to make [[beer]] and said that [[vineyard]]s were quite rare in Alodia compared to Makuria.{{sfn|Vantini|1975|p=613}} There is archaeological evidence of grapes.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=186}} According to al-Idrisi, [[onion]]s, [[horseradish]], [[cucumber]]s, [[watermelon]]s and [[rapeseed]] were also cultivated,{{sfn|Vantini|1975|p=274}} but none were found at Soba.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=273}} Instead, [[Common fig|figs]], [[acacia|acacia fruits]], [[Hyphaene thebaica|doum palm fruits]] and [[date (fruit)|dates]] have been identified.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|loc=Table 16}}

Sedentary farmers formed one part of Alodia's agriculture, the other consisted of nomads practicing animal husbandry.{{sfn|Obluski|2017|p=16}} The relationship between these two groups was symbiotic, resulting in an exchange of goods.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=188}} Al-Aswani wrote that [[beef]] was plentiful in Alodia, which he attributed to the bountiful grazing land.{{sfn|Vantini|1975|p=614}} Archaeological evidence from Soba attests to the relevance [[cattle]] had there,{{sfn|Welsby|1998|p=245}} as most animal bones are attributed to that species, followed by those of [[sheep]] and [[goat]]s.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=187}} [[Domesticated chicken|Chickens]] were probably also bred at Soba,{{sfn|Welsby|1998|p=245}} although available archaeological proof is very limited, probably due to the fragile nature of bird bones.{{sfn|Welsby|1998|p=241}} No remains of [[Domestic pig|pigs]] have been identified.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=187}} Camel remains have been noted, but none bore signs of butchery.{{sfn|Welsby|1998|p=240}} Fishing and hunting made only minor contributions to the overall diet of Soba.{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=188}}

===Trade===
Trade was an important source of income for the people of Alodia. Soba served as a trading hub with north-south and east-west trade routes; goods arrived in the kingdom from Makuria, the [[Middle East]], western Africa, [[India]] and [[China]].{{sfn|Werner|2013|p=166}} Trade with Makuria probably ran through the [[Bayuda Desert]], following [[Wadi Abu Dom]] or [[Wadi Muqaddam]], while another route went from near Abu Hamad to [[Korosko]] in [[Lower Nubia]]. A route going east originated around Berber near the confluence of the Nile and the Atbara, terminating in Badi, Suakin and [[Dahlak archipelago|Dahlak]].{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=213}} Merchant [[Benjamin of Tudela]] mentions a route heading west, going from Alodia to [[Zwila|Zuwila]] in [[Fezzan]].{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=87}} Archaeological evidence for trade with Ethiopia is virtually absent,{{sfn|Welsby|2002|pp=214–215}} although trading relations are suggested by other evidence.{{efn|name=fn4|John of Ephesus wrote of Aksumites in Alodia, possibly referring to merchants,{{sfn|Hatke|2013|loc=§5.3}} while the contemporary [[Cosmas Indicopleustes]] reported Aksumite trade expeditions into the Blue Nile Valley, so arguably in the Alodian sphere of influence. In the 12th century al-Idrisi made mention of a trading town in the northern Butana, a place "where merchants from Nubia and Ethiopia gather together with those from Egypt".{{sfn|Welsby|2002|p=215}} Historian [[Mordechai Abir]] suggests that merchants from the [[Zagwe dynasty|Zagwe kingdom]] traveled through Alodia to reach Egypt.{{sfn|Abir|1980|p=15}} Some Ethiopian traditions recall a people named "''Soba Noba''".{{sfn|Brita|2014|p=517}}}} Trading with the outside world was handled predominantly by Arab merchants.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=86}} Muslim merchants were recorded as having traversed Nubia, some living in a district in Soba.{{sfn|Hasan|1967|p=46}}

<!--
Imports from Makuria were not common.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=334}}
Hasan merchants p. 46
Paul Berber p. 141
al-Umari p. 160 Shunqayr 161
-->Exports from Alodia likely included raw materials such as [[gold]], [[ivory]], [[salt]] and other tropical products,{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=84}} as well as hides.{{sfn|Zarroug|1991|p=82}} According to an oral tradition Arab merchants came to Alodia to sell silk and textiles, receiving beads, elephant teeth and leather in return.{{sfn|Abd ar-Rahman|2011|p=52}} At Soba silk and flax have been found, both probably originating from Egypt.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=307}} Most of the glass found there was also imported.{{sfn|Welsby|Daniels|1991|p=9}} Benjamin of Tudela claimed merchants traveling from Alodia to Zuwila carried hides, wheat, fruits, legumes and salt, while carrying gold and precious stones on their return.{{sfn|Hess|1965|p=17}}
Slaves are commonly assumed to have been exported by medieval Nubia.{{sfn|Edwards|2011|pp=87–88}} Adams postulates that Alodia was a specialized slave-trading state that exploited the pagan populations to the west and south.{{sfn|Adams|1977|p=471}} Evidence for a regulated slave trade is very limited.{{sfn|Edwards|2011|p=103}}{{efn|name=fn5|The African slave armies that were deployed in Egypt by the [[Tulunids]], [[Ikhshidids]] and [[Fatimids]] are often cited as evidence for a Nubian slave trade, but it is more likely these slaves came from the [[Chad basin]] instead. (In Fatimid sources they appear as ''Zuwayla'', indicating an origin from Zuwila in Fezzan.){{sfn|Edwards|2011|pp=89–90}}}} It is only from the 16th century, after the fall of the Christian kingdoms, that such evidence begins to appear.{{sfn|Edwards|2011|pp=95–96}}
<!--

Pottery from northern Nubia is rare <ref>Welsby 1991, p. 9</ref> -->

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist|24em}}

=== Sources ===
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{{Refend}}
{{Coord|15|31|26|N|32|40|51|E|region:SD-07_type:landmark_source:kolossus-dewiki|display=title}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite journal |last1=Drzewiecki |first1=Mariusz |last2=Michalik |first2=Tomasz |year=2021 |title=The beginnings of the Alwan capital of Soba in light of new archaeological evidence |url=https://pam-journal.pl/resources/html/article/details?id=227030 |pages=419–438 |issn=2083-537X |journal=Polish Archaeology in the Mediterranean |publisher=University of Warsaw |volume=30/2|issue=30/2 |doi=10.31338/uw.2083-537X.pam30.2.09 |s2cid=247652880 |doi-access=free }}
*{{cite journal |last1=Drzewiecki |first1=Mariusz |last2=Ryndziewicz |first2=Robert |title=Developing a New Approach to Research at Soba, the Capital of the Medieval Kingdom of Alwa |year=2019 |journal=Archaeologies: Journal of the World Archaeological Congress |issn=1935-3987 |volume=15 |issue=2 |url=https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007%2Fs11759-019-09370-x.pdf |pages=314–337 |doi=10.1007/s11759-019-09370-x |s2cid=200040640 }}

==External links==
* [http://centrumnubia.org/en/projects/builders-of-forts/ Builders of forts. Did Meroitic rulers build fortifications? Fortified sites and politics in Upper Nubia during the fall of Meroe and rise of the Kingdom of Alwa] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200223144223/http://centrumnubia.org/en/projects/builders-of-forts/ |date=2020-02-23 }}
*[http://soba.uw.edu.pl/en/ Soba. The Heart of Alwa]

{{Sahelian kingdoms}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:States and territories established in the 6th century]]
[[Category:States and territories disestablished in the 15th century]]
[[Category:History of Nubia]]
[[Category:Countries in ancient Africa]]
[[Category:Countries in medieval Africa]]
[[Category:Former monarchies of Africa]]
[[Category:6th-century establishments in Africa]]
[[Category:16th-century disestablishments in Africa]]
[[Category:Medieval Islamic world]]
[[Category:Spread of Islam]]
[[Category:Sahelian kingdoms]]
[[Category:Christianity in the Middle Ages]]
[[Category:Christianity in Sudan]]
[[Category:Coptic Orthodox Church]]