it is modern yet firmly rooted in the
past the Nubian wedding ritual shared by
the entire village for seven days and
nights the air is perfumed by incense
and filled with the sound of beating
drums and joyful Nubian songs two years
ago sharise family told him it was time
to get married he visited every home in
the village looking for the right girl
then with one look at a beer he ran home
to tell his mother he had found his
bride they didn’t meet again until just
before their Muslim wedding
Alana shook the first time I saw her
when the shift came to sign the book I
looked at her picture to make sure it
was her Amara
young body could
after the legal papers are signed seven
days of celebration began each day early
in the morning the party spills into the
village streets the bride becomes a
canvas painted from head to toe with
henna one day before the ceremony
the groom’s bed is taken outside to be
bathed in sandalwood incense Sharif is
also perfumed the sense which will last
for weeks are meant to get his blood
moving and give him stamina the Nubians
traditionally lived along the banks of
the Nile River in what is now southern
Egypt and Sudan but in the 1960s that
changed in Egypt the Nubian population
was moved by the Egyptian government and
their ancient lands were flooded when
the Aswan Dam was built Mohammed Neuer
migrated here at the age of 12 his
family left their mud-brick home for one
of cement built by the government even
though they’re in the old village there
was no electricity or means of
transportation like we have here now
still life there was better there we
used to keep our nubian traditions and
union language Libyan language could be
endangered here today
on the final night of the wedding the
village is served a feast of meat and
rice in front of the groom’s house
I’m going to come
armed with the sword and whip the groom
leaves his parents home and leads his
neighbors through the streets chanting
Islamic songs
well after midnight the groom at last
picks up the bride and they arrive at
the party
they spend all night dancing and singing
from sunset to knew the word Nubia
derives from an ancient term for gold
and refers to the gold mines for which
the area was once famous that gold still
shines today as the bride is draped with
jewelry as if she were royalty it’s now
past 3:00 in the morning but by nubian
standards the party has just begun after
the exchange of rings mother kisses her
son and his new bride as they began
their life together carrying on their
ancient customs Egyptian by nationality
but Nubian by tradition
past the Nubian wedding ritual shared by
the entire village for seven days and
nights the air is perfumed by incense
and filled with the sound of beating
drums and joyful Nubian songs two years
ago sharise family told him it was time
to get married he visited every home in
the village looking for the right girl
then with one look at a beer he ran home
to tell his mother he had found his
bride they didn’t meet again until just
before their Muslim wedding
Alana shook the first time I saw her
when the shift came to sign the book I
looked at her picture to make sure it
was her Amara
young body could
after the legal papers are signed seven
days of celebration began each day early
in the morning the party spills into the
village streets the bride becomes a
canvas painted from head to toe with
henna one day before the ceremony
the groom’s bed is taken outside to be
bathed in sandalwood incense Sharif is
also perfumed the sense which will last
for weeks are meant to get his blood
moving and give him stamina the Nubians
traditionally lived along the banks of
the Nile River in what is now southern
Egypt and Sudan but in the 1960s that
changed in Egypt the Nubian population
was moved by the Egyptian government and
their ancient lands were flooded when
the Aswan Dam was built Mohammed Neuer
migrated here at the age of 12 his
family left their mud-brick home for one
of cement built by the government even
though they’re in the old village there
was no electricity or means of
transportation like we have here now
still life there was better there we
used to keep our nubian traditions and
union language Libyan language could be
endangered here today
on the final night of the wedding the
village is served a feast of meat and
rice in front of the groom’s house
I’m going to come
armed with the sword and whip the groom
leaves his parents home and leads his
neighbors through the streets chanting
Islamic songs
well after midnight the groom at last
picks up the bride and they arrive at
the party
they spend all night dancing and singing
from sunset to knew the word Nubia
derives from an ancient term for gold
and refers to the gold mines for which
the area was once famous that gold still
shines today as the bride is draped with
jewelry as if she were royalty it’s now
past 3:00 in the morning but by nubian
standards the party has just begun after
the exchange of rings mother kisses her
son and his new bride as they began
their life together carrying on their
ancient customs Egyptian by nationality
but Nubian by tradition
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