Ethnographic Arms & Armour
 

Go Back   Ethnographic Arms & Armour > Discussion Forums > Ethnographic Weapons

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
Old 17th July 2012, 12:33 PM   #1
Rumpel
Member
 
Rumpel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 63
Default Modern Sudanese 'Arm Daggers'

I've just come back from a 5-week embed with the SPLA-N rebels of Sudan's Blue Nile state, and was surprised and gratified to find the traditional Sudanese 'arm dagger' is still very much a current accoutrement to war.

In truth, few soldiers wear them on their arms; those that do seem mostly to come from the nomadic, Muslim Ingessena tribe from the Baw mountain range in North-Central Blue Nile. Most wear them in their webbing, tucked away with their AK magazines.

The knives I saw were all made in the market town and refugee camp of Bunj, in Maban County, South Sudan, by Blue Nile refugees. The steel is recycled, apparently, from railway sleepers 'borrowed' from the Sennar-Ed Damezin-Khartoum railway, deep in government territory. The blades rust quickly in the dampness of rainy season, and are restored with a vigorous rub with charcoal.

Sheaths are either of hammered aluminium or orange-dyed goatskin with lizard-skin detailing. Prices vary between $5 and around $8, depending on size. The largest I saw, about the size of a yataghan, belonged to a Jumjum tribal chief and rebel officer (unfortunately, no photos).

They are called either 'siqin' (Arabic) or 'kantal' (Uduk), in both cases meaning simply 'knife.' They are used as general purpose tools, from chopping kindling and slaughtering and butchering goats to fixing broken electronics (stripping wiring, and as inefficient screwdrivers).

I bought a couple (actually, I bought three, but my colleague lost one in the confusion of an aborted ambush, annoyingly). Photos to follow.

I wore one (faintly ridiculously) on my belt the whole time, to universal approval. "Tamam (good)," one soldier said, "when you wear a siqin you feel like a man."

The point of the post is, partly, to illustrate that crude, modern versions of traditional knives aren't necessarily purely for the tourist market...
Attached Images
      
Rumpel is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 17th July 2012, 12:39 PM   #2
Rumpel
Member
 
Rumpel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 63
Default

More photos.

The first is of a knife dealer in Yabus-Bala suq in Blue Nile: the knives are actually made South Sudan's Bunj/Doro refugee camp, and imported for sale by traders affiliated with the SPLA-N.
Attached Images
      

Last edited by Rumpel; 17th July 2012 at 02:40 PM.
Rumpel is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 17th July 2012, 12:45 PM   #3
Atlantia
Member
 
Atlantia's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: The Sharp end
Posts: 2,928
Default

"I've just come back from a 5-week embed with the SPLA-N rebels of Sudan's Blue Nile state, and was surprised and gratified to find the traditional Sudanese 'arm dagger' is still very much a current accoutrement to war."

Which makes you officially the most committed researcher of Sudanese arm daggers in the world ever!


Seriously though. Interesting pictures and info thanks for sharing.
Atlantia is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 17th July 2012, 01:47 PM   #4
Rumpel
Member
 
Rumpel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 63
Default

Atlantia: thanks!

Below are my daggers (cigarette for scale...).

The symbols are makers' marks but- so the smiths say- "mean nothing."

Note incipient rust: tsk. The daggers were bought on the day of manufacture, in late June. Damp place, Blue Nile.
Attached Images
   
Rumpel is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 17th July 2012, 01:52 PM   #5
Atlantia
Member
 
Atlantia's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: The Sharp end
Posts: 2,928
Default

Hi Rumpel,
What are they making them out of> What's the source for the steel?
Is it just a guy with a few basic tools and a fire or are they made in little workshops?
Atlantia is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 17th July 2012, 01:58 PM   #6
Rumpel
Member
 
Rumpel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 63
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Atlantia
Hi Rumpel,
What are they making them out of> What's the source for the steel?
Is it just a guy with a few basic tools and a fire or are they made in little workshops?
The steel comes from railway sleepers, so they say.

They're forged in little outdoor ateliers in Bunj suq. Two or three smiths, each with a teenage apprentice or two. Then they're handed to two sheath-makers, one who hammers the metal sheaths together, and one who sews together leather/lizardskin sheaths. They also make fearsome-looking barbed spearheads from (I think) old steel oil drums, though unfortunately i didn't bring one back.

Officers tend to carry axes instead of daggers, as a mark of status. I'll dig up some photos.
Attached Images
  
Rumpel is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 17th July 2012, 03:32 PM   #7
Atlantia
Member
 
Atlantia's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: The Sharp end
Posts: 2,928
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rumpel
The steel comes from railway sleepers, so they say.

They're forged in little outdoor ateliers in Bunj suq. Two or three smiths, each with a teenage apprentice or two. Then they're handed to two sheath-makers, one who hammers the metal sheaths together, and one who sews together leather/lizardskin sheaths. They also make fearsome-looking barbed spearheads from (I think) old steel oil drums, though unfortunately i didn't bring one back.

Officers tend to carry axes instead of daggers, as a mark of status. I'll dig up some photos.

VERY Interesting! Those are very reminiscent of Jerz axes.
Where's Stu?
Atlantia is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 17th July 2012, 02:17 PM   #8
Iain
Member
 
Iain's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Olomouc
Posts: 1,680
Default

Very interesting reading and photos. Thanks for posting this.
Iain is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 18th July 2012, 01:48 AM   #9
Dom
Member
 
Dom's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Paris (FR*) Cairo (EG)
Posts: 1,142
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rumpel
The symbols are makers' marks but- so the smiths say- "mean nothing."
may be, to avoid to give a long explanation, and more specially to a foreigner (may be not Muslim)
who hasn't been initialized about "talismans and charms"

for time being, I'm reading a book, title
- Pagan survivals in Mohammedan civilization by Edvard Westermarc - (1937)
Professor of Sociology at London University - the book is in French, after been translated

but what I'm seeing in your pic, is (according with the book) ;
- a human representation, with; arms and legs opened
- 2 x 5 fingers, talismanic evocation, to combat the "evil eye"
5 being, as his multiples, a "sacred number"
- cross, possible to be a "charm" to attract the attention of "evil eye", also, to help the dispersion of forces malignant

the "logic" in all that, it's to avoid to be under target of "Jinns" - evil spirits

all what is on above, it's pure speculation from my part, and absolutely subjective

otherwise, very interesting report about the propagation of same edged weapons,
by new fabrications through centuries, even at era of AK47

à +

Dom
Attached Images
   
Dom is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 18th July 2012, 08:48 AM   #10
Martin Lubojacky
Member
 
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Czech Republic
Posts: 836
Default

Hi Rumpel,
Thank you for shering this photos and very interesting remark about SPLM/North fighters !
Regards, Martin
Martin Lubojacky is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 18th July 2012, 12:48 PM   #11
A.alnakkas
Member
 
A.alnakkas's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Kuwait
Posts: 1,336
Default

Very interesting! certainly great to see these people still maintaining a part of their cultures.
A.alnakkas is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 02:38 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Posts are regarded as being copyrighted by their authors and the act of posting material is deemed to be a granting of an irrevocable nonexclusive license for display here.