Wadi Halfa وادي حلفا | |
|---|---|
City | |
 | |
  Wadi Halfa Location in Sudan | |
| Coordinates:21°47′N31°22′E / 21.783°N 31.367°E /21.783; 31.367 | |
| Country |  Sudan |
| State | Northern |
| Population (2007) | |
• Total | 15,725 |
Wādī Ḥalfā (Arabic:وادي حلفا,[1]Sudanese Arabic:[ˈwaːdiˈħalfa], "Esparto Valley") is a city in theNorthern state ofSudan on the shores ofLake Nubia near theborder withEgypt. It is the terminus of arail line fromKhartoum and the point where goods are transferred from rail to ferries going down the lake. As of 2007, the city had a population of 15,725.[2] The city is located amidst numerous ancientNubian antiquities and was the focus of much archaeological work by teams seeking to save artifacts from the flooding caused by the completion of theAswan Dam.
Wadi Halfa has ahot desert climate (Köppen climate classificationBWh) typical of theNubian Desert. Wadi Halfa receives each year the highest mean amount of bright sunshine, with an extreme value of 4,300 h,[3] which is equal to 97–98 % of possible sunshine.[4] In addition to this, the town receives a mean annual amount of rainfall of 0.5 millimetres or 0.020 inches.[3] Many years usually pass without any rain falling on the ground.
Wadi Halfa experiences long, hot summers and short, warm winters. The annual mean temperature is about 27 °C or 80.6 °F. From May to September, inclusively, the averages highs exceed 40 °C or 104 °F. The annual mean rate of potential evaporation is also among the highest found throughout the world, totalling as much as 5,930 millimetres or 230 inches.[5]
| Climate data for Wadi Halfa (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1961–2020) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 37.0 (98.6) | 41.6 (106.9) | 45.5 (113.9) | 47.0 (116.6) | 49.5 (121.1) | 48.7 (119.7) | 47.5 (117.5) | 47.6 (117.7) | 46.5 (115.7) | 45.0 (113.0) | 39.0 (102.2) | 36.0 (96.8) | 49.5 (121.1) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 23.5 (74.3) | 26.2 (79.2) | 30.7 (87.3) | 36.0 (96.8) | 39.9 (103.8) | 41.4 (106.5) | 41.6 (106.9) | 41.7 (107.1) | 39.9 (103.8) | 36.6 (97.9) | 29.6 (85.3) | 24.8 (76.6) | 34.3 (93.7) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 17.2 (63.0) | 19.3 (66.7) | 23.4 (74.1) | 28.3 (82.9) | 32.4 (90.3) | 33.9 (93.0) | 34.2 (93.6) | 34.8 (94.6) | 33.2 (91.8) | 30.1 (86.2) | 23.5 (74.3) | 19.1 (66.4) | 27.5 (81.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 10.9 (51.6) | 12.4 (54.3) | 16.1 (61.0) | 20.6 (69.1) | 24.9 (76.8) | 26.5 (79.7) | 26.8 (80.2) | 27.9 (82.2) | 26.5 (79.7) | 23.5 (74.3) | 17.4 (63.3) | 13.4 (56.1) | 20.6 (69.1) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 3.5 (38.3) | 2.5 (36.5) | 6.0 (42.8) | 10.5 (50.9) | 13.4 (56.1) | 15.5 (59.9) | 18.5 (65.3) | 17.8 (64.0) | 17.4 (63.3) | 12.3 (54.1) | 5.2 (41.4) | 2.0 (35.6) | 2.0 (35.6) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0.1 (0.00) | 0.5 (0.02) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0.6 (0.02) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 42 | 36 | 28 | 23 | 21 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 26 | 30 | 39 | 45 | 30 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 306.9 | 277.2 | 306.9 | 303.0 | 319.3 | 333.0 | 341.0 | 328.6 | 306.0 | 313.1 | 306.0 | 328.6 | 3,769.6 |
| Source:NOAA[6][7] | |||||||||||||
Archaeological evidence indicates that settlements have existed in the area since ancient times,[8] and during theMiddle Kingdom period, the Egyptian colony ofBuhen across the river existed until theRoman period.[9] The modern town of Wadi Halfa was founded in the 19th century, when it became a port on theNile for steamers from Aswan, such as theNubia.[10][11] During theTurko-Egyptian conquest of 1820,[12] Wadi Halfa was used as a stopping point for troops headed south. Communications developed in the latter half of the 19th century, with a telegraph line to Egypt connected in 1866 and ill-fated attempts to build a railway toKerma in 1873[10][verification needed] and 1877.[13] The eventual establishment of the Sudanese rail head at Wadi Halfa—connected via steamer to theEgyptian network via a port just south ofAsyut—caused the site to eclipse the former caravan site atKorosko.
In 1885, Wadi Halfa entered a period of turmoil after falling under theMahdist War regime. Conflicts frequently broke out on the border, and in 1889,Abd al-Rahman al-Mahdi's army entered the town on the way to theBattle of Tushki.[10] Wadi Halfa was briefly the headquarters of theBritish-ledEgyptian and British forces underKitchener seeking to defeat the forces ofMuhammad Ahmad, theMahdi proclaimed by his disciples, from 1881 to 1885. The rail line up the Nile was originally begun in 1897 to support this military buildup.[14] It extends, viaAtbara, toEl Obeid and beyond into southern and western Sudan.[15]
A river monitoring station functioned in Wadi Halfa between 1911 and 1931, to monitor changes associated with the Aswan reservoir, but from 1931 to 1962 it was moved toKajnarty, 47 kilometres to the north of the town.[16] A railroad hotel was built in the town during the 20th century, and duringWorld War II, Wadi Halfa was a communications post forAllied forces inAfrica. By 1956, the town had grown to a population of 11,000.[10] On 8 November 1959, the signing of the Sudanese-UAR Nile Water Agreement brought the area into much debate. This was because the agreement to flood the area upon the creation of theAswan Dam would directly affect some 52,000 people in the area who would have to be resettled over a four-year period from 1960.[2] Worst affected were the Nubians who demonstrated in Wadi Halfa on 23–24 October 1960 against being resettled. Subsequently, on 26 October demonstrations took place in the Sudanese capital,Khartoum, which had to be dispersed by police using tear gas.[2] The government was quick to suppress the agitation, placing Wadi Halfa under martial law and terminating communications with the rest of the country. Protests in Khartoum, mainly by students, led to the temporary closure of the Khartoum campus ofCairo University and about 50 arrests.[2] The old town was completely destroyed after the construction of the Aswan High Dam due to flooding in 1964. Most of the town was relocated, and by 1965 the population ofNew Halfa was just 3,200.[2] During the 1970s, the area was under intense scrutiny by archaeologists working to protect ancient Nubian monuments.[9]
Wadi Halfa was featured in part four, entitled "Shifting Sands", of the eight partMichael Palin television documentary seriesPole to Pole released by theBBC in 1992.[17]
In 2005, a museum and interactive Nubian village were planned for Wadi Halfa,[18] but by 2014 nothing had been done.[19]
Agriculture plays an important role in local economy.[10] The Chinese have invested in a fish processing plant in the town.
The trans-African automobile route — theCairo-Cape Town Highway passes through Wadi Halfa.
In 2012 agreement was achieved between Sudan and Egypt to complete aStandard gauge linkAswan and Wadi Halfa, whose progress was stalled bycivil unrest inSudan in 2023.[20]
Halfa.
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