Modern Sudanese 'Arm Daggers'

[Rumpel]

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...

[Rumpel]

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.

[Atlantia]

"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.

[Rumpel]

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.

[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?

[Rumpel]

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.

[Atlantia]

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?

[Iain]

Very interesting reading and photos. Thanks for posting this.

[Dom]

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

[Martin Lubojacky]

Hi Rumpel,
Thank you for shering this photos and very interesting remark about SPLM/North fighters !
Regards, Martin

[A.alnakkas]

Very interesting! certainly great to see these people still maintaining a part of their cultures.