South Sudan

Where the name comes from

South Sudan names the southern part of the former Sudan; Arabic bilād al-Sūdān means “land of the Black people”, once used for the wider Sahel.

First people

Dinka, Nuer, Shilluk and other peoples have their own Nilotic-speaking histories.¹

Known for

South Sudan is known for the Sudd, one of the world’s largest wetlands, and for one of Africa’s largest animal migrations, of antelope across its plains.²

Outside contact

Joint British–Egyptian rule began in 1899 and ended with Sudan’s independence in 1956.¹

The modern country

South Sudan became independent on 9 July 2011 after a referendum promised by the 2005 peace agreement, which ended decades of civil war, and it is the newest UN member state.^3,4,5