Kerma in the context of "Kingdom of Kush"

The Kingdom of Kerma or the Kerma culture was an early civilization centered in Kerma, Sudan. It flourished from around 2500 BC to 1500 BC in ancient Nubia. The Kerma culture was based in the southern part of Nubia, or "Upper Nubia" (in parts of present-day northern and central Sudan), and later extended its reach northward into Lower Nubia and the border of Egypt. The polity seems to have been one of a number of Nile Valley states during the Middle Kingdom of Egypt. The Kerma civilization was an ethnic melting pot, with origins tied to a complex web of cultures native to both the Sahara, and, farther south, parts of Central Africa. In the Kingdom of Kerma's latest phase, lasting from about 1700 to 1500 BC, it absorbed the Sudanese kingdom of Sai and became a sizable, populous empire rivaling Egypt. Around 1500 BC, it was absorbed into the New Kingdom of Egypt, but rebellions continued for centuries. By the eleventh century BC, the more-Egyptianized Kingdom of Kush emerged, possibly from Kerma, and regained the region's independence from Egypt.

The Kushites were a powerful force for over a thousand years in what is now Sudan, building a distinctive civilization south of Egypt. Ancient sources used terms like Cushite, Kushite, and Ethiopian to describe the dark-skinned African peoples of this region, though these terms referred broadly to a diverse, multi-ethnic cultural zone rather than a single group. They founded royal dynasties, built monumental architecture, and gained renown for their craftsmanship in pottery, metalwork, and faience. They emerged from indigenous communities around Kerma, from where they initially expanded their social and political institutions. Over centuries, the Kushites shaped a civilization that rivaled Egypt in both military strength and cultural influence, ultimately developing into the Kingdom of Kush.

The Western Deffufa, located in the ancient city of Kerma in northern Sudan, is one of the oldest known monumental structures in the Nile Valley, dating back to at least 2500 BC. Rising about 20 meters (65 feet) high, it was built entirely from sun-dried mudbricks. Inside, the structure consists of a series of chambers and courtyards, thought to have been used for religious activities, rituals, and ceremonies central to the Kerma civilization. The word "Deffufa" comes from the Nubian language, referring to buildings made of mudbrick, which were common Kerma’s architectural style.

The Western Deffufa has been the focus of significant archaeological interest since its discovery in the early 20th century. Excavations led by Charles Bonnet and his team have revealed much of the site's layout and have uncovered numerous artifacts, including pottery, religious icons, and tools, all of which offer insight into the daily and spiritual life of the Kerma civilization.

Black-topped pottery is a specialized type of Ancient Egyptian pottery that became the main pottery of the Egyptian Badarian culture, down to Naqada I and the middle of the Naqada II culture. The oldest finds are from Nubian archaeological sites, including Elephantine, an island on the Nile River, Nabta Playa in the Nubian Desert, and Kerma in present-day Sudan. This type of artifact dates predominantly to the Predynastic Period, but “a handful of examples made in the Early Dynastic Period are known to exist.” These vessels were used “exclusively for ritual and funerary purposes” and were discovered in ancient cemeteries and settlements. The majority of these pots are variations of the Egyptian hes-jar form and feature red bodies with black tops and interiors. The red color is derived from the natural iron that occurs within Nile silts which oxidizes upon firing, and the black top and interior is a product of reduction firing and carbon smudging.

Dongolawi is a Nubian language of northern Sudan. It is spoken by a minority of the Danagla people in the Nile Valley, from roughly south of Kerma upstream to the bend in the Nile near al Dabbah, Sudan.

Dongolawi is an Arabic term based on the town of Old Dongola, the centre of the historic Christian kingdom of Makuria (6th to 14th century). Today's Dongola was founded during the 19th century on the western side of the Nile. The Dongolawi call their language Andaandi [andaːndi] "the language of our home".