Sultan Amara Dunqas of Sennar took the title for himself, whether he had it or not, or whether other sultans took it. This verbal title goes back to the Amharic language of Abyssinia. We find that "Dunqas" is a distortion of "Dlan" and "naqs" among them means great or big. The word "naqs" (with a kasra on the noon and a damma on the qaf) originally means Negus, meaning "the great Negus." His adoption of this title meant that he considered his sultanate to be on a higher level than that of the Negus, the king of Abyssinia, and that his title was a challenge to the Negus.

The sultanate, in its early years, which exceeded two centuries, was ruled by sultans from the sons of Sultan Amara, the founder of the Sennar dynasty, in his capital in the Blue Nile basin. After the death of Amara, three sultans ruled the Funj kingdom. The sources did not pay attention to mentioning them because they did not undertake any actions worth mentioning or noting. However, when Sultan Dakin wad Nayil ascended the throne in 1569 AD, the sources mentioned him because it is known that Sultan Amara Dunqas died in 1535/940 AH. Therefore, these three sultans occupied the period from 1535 to 1569 AD, i.e., 34 thirty-four years. The actions undertaken by Sultan Dakin wad Nayil included some that are worth mentioning. It is said of him that he was one of the most distinguished Funj kings. He organized the diwans and established laws that no one in his entire kingdom could deviate from. He appointed a known leader for each region of his kingdom until his death in 1985 AD. Then several sultans succeeded him, but they did not attract the attention of those who chronicled this Funj sultanate until the mention of Sultan Adlan wadī in 1911 AD, who brought about an Islamic religious renaissance. The most important events of his era were that the Abd al-Labid sultanate in the villages reached the peak of its glory and power, where Sheikh Mujib al-Manjilak, the leader of the Qawasima, rebelled against the Funj and fought them. 160