Neighbourhoods of Omdurman

This following text was first exhibited at the Khalifa House Museum

Open Gallery

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23/10/24

Author:

Khalifa House Museum

Editor:

Translator:

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Omdurman was the place the Imam Al Mahdi chose as a camp before the siege of Khartoum on 26^th of January 1885, while his followers moved there after the liberation of Khartoum. Al Mahdi lived in a small room next to the Grand Mosque in Omdurman which later became the site of his burial tomb.

During Al Khalifa Abdullah’s rule, the mosque where Al Mahdi was buried became the nucleus around which the city of Omdurman formed. Al Khalifa built a domed shrine for Al Mahdi and built his own house next to it. Others followed suit, building their homes out of mud and bricks around the tomb hoping that proximity would bestow blessings upon them.

Members of the same tribe preferred to live in adjacent houses which led to the creation of various neighbourhoods in four directions. Each neighbourhood developed around a particular tribe, and related tribes settled in specific areas of the city. The city then expanded north and south along the length of the Nile with daily life and activities revolving around the ports.

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Khartoum 1896 Image extracted from page 701 of Fire and Sword in the Sudan. A personal narrative of life during Mahdiya. 1879-1895, by SLATIN, Rudolf Carl - Sir, K.C.M.G. Originally held and digitised by the British Library.

No items found.

23/10/24

Author:

Khalifa House Museum

Editor:

Translator:

‍

Omdurman was the place the Imam Al Mahdi chose as a camp before the siege of Khartoum on 26^th of January 1885, while his followers moved there after the liberation of Khartoum. Al Mahdi lived in a small room next to the Grand Mosque in Omdurman which later became the site of his burial tomb.

During Al Khalifa Abdullah’s rule, the mosque where Al Mahdi was buried became the nucleus around which the city of Omdurman formed. Al Khalifa built a domed shrine for Al Mahdi and built his own house next to it. Others followed suit, building their homes out of mud and bricks around the tomb hoping that proximity would bestow blessings upon them.

Members of the same tribe preferred to live in adjacent houses which led to the creation of various neighbourhoods in four directions. Each neighbourhood developed around a particular tribe, and related tribes settled in specific areas of the city. The city then expanded north and south along the length of the Nile with daily life and activities revolving around the ports.

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Neighbourhoods of Omdurman

Omdurman was the place the Imam Al Mahdi chose as a camp before the siege of Khartoum on 26^th of January 1885, while his followers moved there after the liberation of Khartoum. Al Mahdi lived in a small room next to the Grand Mosque in Omdurman which later became the site of his burial tomb.

Omdurman was the place the Imam Al Mahdi chose as a camp before the siege of Khartoum on 26^th of January 1885, while his followers moved there after the liberation of Khartoum. Al Mahdi lived in a small room next to the Grand Mosque in Omdurman which later became the site of his burial tomb.

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Water preservation in Kordofan

Street Life

Memorialization within the Deathscapes of Khartoum

How cities grow

Suakin

Neighbourhoods of Omdurman

Maps as an archive

Gordon’s Khartoum

Forces of power

Omdurman Through the Times

Archival films

Neighbourhoods of Omdurman

Omdurman was the place the Imam Al Mahdi chose as a camp before the siege of Khartoum on 26th of January 1885, while his followers moved there after the liberation of Khartoum. Al Mahdi lived in a small room next to the Grand Mosque in Omdurman which later became the site of his burial tomb.

Omdurman was the place the Imam Al Mahdi chose as a camp before the siege of Khartoum on 26th of January 1885, while his followers moved there after the liberation of Khartoum. Al Mahdi lived in a small room next to the Grand Mosque in Omdurman which later became the site of his burial tomb.

Heading 1

Heading 2

Heading 3

Heading 4

Heading 5

Heading 6

Water preservation in Kordofan

Street Life

Memorialization within the Deathscapes of Khartoum

How cities grow

Suakin

Neighbourhoods of Omdurman

Maps as an archive

Gordon’s Khartoum

Forces of power

Omdurman Through the Times

Archival films

Omdurman was the place the Imam Al Mahdi chose as a camp before the siege of Khartoum on 26^th of January 1885, while his followers moved there after the liberation of Khartoum. Al Mahdi lived in a small room next to the Grand Mosque in Omdurman which later became the site of his burial tomb.

Omdurman was the place the Imam Al Mahdi chose as a camp before the siege of Khartoum on 26^th of January 1885, while his followers moved there after the liberation of Khartoum. Al Mahdi lived in a small room next to the Grand Mosque in Omdurman which later became the site of his burial tomb.