Page "Ababda people" Paragraph 3

They were constantly at war with the Romans, who eventually conquered them.

In the Middle Ages, they were known as Beja, and convoyed pilgrims from the Nile valley to Aidhab, the port of embarkation for Jeddah.

From time immemorial, they have acted as guides to caravans through the Nubian desert and up the Nile valley as far as Sennar.

They intermarried with the Nubians, and settled in small colonies at Shendi and elsewhere up to Muhammad Ali's conquest of the region in the early 19th century.

They are still great trade carriers, and visit very distant districts.