Fur people
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| (about 500,000 in 1983, about 744,000 as of 2004) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Sudan 894000, Chad 17000, Egypt 3100 | |
| Languages | |
| Fur | |
| Religion | |
| Islam (Sunni) |
The Fur (Fur: fòòrà, Arabic: فور Fūr) are an ethnic group inhabiting western Sudan. They are concentrated in the Darfur region, where they are the largest tribe. They speak the Fur language, which belongs to the Nilo-Saharan family.
The Fur are the largest ethnic group in the Darfur region of western Sudan. They are also sometimes referred to by the names Fora, Fordunga, Furawi, Konjara, or Kungara. They are an active agricultural people and may also herd cattle. Some Fur families who have accumulated a substantial cattle herd developed a more nomadic lifestyle like that of their herding neighbors, the Baqqara (Baggara) Arabs. Culturally, those cattle-herding Fur are now considered to be Baqqara. The Fur are nominally Sunni Muslims following the Maliki school of Islamic law.
They are a Western Sudanese people who practice sedentary herding and agriculture, mainly the cultivation of millet. Their society is a traditional one governed by village elders. They speak Fur, a Nilo-Saharan language, and are Muslims, having adopted the religion following the region's conquest by the Kanem-Bornu Empire during the Middle Ages. Some of them have come to speak Arabic in recent years.
The name of Darfur comes from the name of this tribe and means "the home of the Fur". Most of the well known governors of Darfur such as Deriage and Tegani Seisei are members of the Fur. The Fur established the historical Sultanate of Darfur which governed Darfur until 1916 (see History of Darfur).
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