1. 4. XX. THE NON-ARAB RACES OF DARFUR 91

the districts lying west and south of Gebel Marra, and even in the

Gebel itself, and as far north as Gebel Si^.

XX Fur. The Fur, from whom, whatever their origin, Darfur

takes its name 2, form at the present day the most numerous part of

the sedentary population in its western half, and they are well

represented in all but the open rolling sandy country, some 130

miles across, which marches with Kordofan.

There is no doubt that the cradle and the stronghold of their

race is the vast range of Gebel Marra, the main watershed of Darfur. They are still its sole inhabitants from its southern extremity to Gebel Si in the north. Now the Fur of Gebel Marra and Si and the Fur of the west, in fact the Fur in general with the exception of the KuNGARA branch, are socially, physically and intellectually inferior

to the average of the tribes who are their neighbours to the east and

north. But it is the Kungara whose virility has preserved to the

race the predominance which was gained some three centuries ago by their ancestors, and this superiority of the Kungara is evidently due to an Arab strain which they have acquired. They are, generally

speaking, a people of better physique and higher intelligence, and

in their habits more cleanly, than the common Fur, and they are much better Muhammadans. Most of them now live east of the mountains, though many of the debased FuR in the south and west

lay claim to be wholly or half Kungara. For the maintenance of

their power from the beginning of the seventeenth century the Kungara Fur have relied very largely on the brute force of a slave army, but their main asset has been the Arab cross in their blood which has given them the qualities of leadership. An extra measure

of prestige has been theirs on account of the traditional connection

of their royal house, the Kayra, on the distaff side, with the Beni 'Abbas and the Beni Hilal.

The facts as usually given, though with many discrepancies, are,

briefly, that all the Fur were living in Gebel Marra (including Turra,

^ There is a section of "Fur" in Gebel Si called Karanga, i.e. "Kara folk," who admit their Kara (Fertft) origin. A Fur custom which savours of the negroes of the Bahr el Ghazal is that of spitting three times on the head by way of expressing a blessing. This was done to me by Feki Bahr el Dfn, the oldest Fur in Gebel Marra, aged 120, in return for a much desired concession. It was said to exemplify the scattering of cool water on the hot fires of vitality in order to preserve the

latter for as long as possible. For the Fertit tradition, too, cp. ABC, xxiii.

^ The Fur call themselves Furakang {suig. Furdongo). The Dagu of Darfur

call them Onage {shig. Wadache), the Dagu of Sula call them Yarge, the Birked

call them Kadirgi. To the people of Tama thej^ are known as Forok, to the Masallt as Furta, to the Zaghawa as Korra, and to the Mfdob people asj<^urka. The Fertft tribes also have different names for them: to the Digga they are Ura {i.e. "slaves"), to the Banda they are Poro, to the Sara they are Dum, to the Kara they are Dala and to the Gula they are Lali.