Makuria: Encyclopedia II - Makuria - Culture

Makuria - Culture

Christian Nubia was long considered something of a backwater, mainly because its graves were small and lacking the grave goods of previous eras.^[31] Modern scholars realize that this was due to cultural reasons, and that the Makurians actually had a rich and vibrant art and culture.

One of the most important discoveries of the rushed work prior to the flooding of Lower Nubia was the Cathedral of Faras. This large building had been completely filled with sand preserving a series of magnificent paintings. Similar, but less well preserved, paintings have been found at several other sites in Makuria, including palaces and private homes, giving an overall impression of Makurian art.^[32] The style and content was heavily influenced by Byzantine art, and also showed influence from Egyptian Coptic art and from Palestine.^[33] Mainly religious in nature, it depicts many of the standard Christian scenes. Also illustrated are a number of Makurian kings and bishops, with noticeably darker skin than the Biblical figures.

Nubian pottery in this period is also notable. Shinnie refers to it as the "richest indigenous pottery tradition on the African continent." Scholars divide the pottery into three eras.^[34] The early period, from 550 to 650 according to Adams, or to 750 according to Shinnie, saw fairly simple pottery similar to that of the late Roman Empire. It also saw much of Nubian pottery imported from Egypt rather than produced domestically. Adams feels this trade ended with the invasion of 652; Shinnie links it to the collapse of Umayyad rule in 750. After this domestic production increased, with a major production facility at Faras. In this middle era, which lasted until around 1100, the pottery was painted with floral and zoomorphic scenes and showed distinct Umayyad and even Sassanian influences.^[35] The late period during Makuria's decline saw domestic production again fall in favour of imports from Egypt. Pottery produced in Makuria became less ornate, but better control of firing temperatures allowed different colours of clay.

There were a number of different languages in use in Makuria. In early centuries, when Byzantine influence was still strong, Greek was the primary written language and perhaps also the language used by the royal court. Greek continued to be used in later centuries for ceremonial purposes, such as on many gravestones, but these later inscriptions are marked by frequent spelling and grammar errors implying reduced knowledge of the language. Eventually Old Nubian, which was the language used by most of the population, became the main written language; Old Nubian translations of the bible and many other religious documents were used widely. One Arab traveler to the region stated that Nobatia and Makuria spoke different languages; almost all our documents are from what was Nobatia and this language seems ancestral to the modern Nobiin language still spoken in the region. Adams notes that the ancient border between Makuria and Nobatia today is close to the border between the Nobiin and Dongolawi languages. Another important language in Makuria was Coptic. Links with Egyptian Christians were strong and Makuria seems to have made wide use of Coptic religious literature. Makuria also saw regular influxes of Coptic-speaking Christian refugees from Egypt. In the later years of the kingdom's existence, Arabic became an increasingly important tongue. Arab traders were important throughout the area and Arabic seems to have become the language of commerce. As these traders settled, each major community gained an Arab quarter.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Culture", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki