The Bible tells us how Noah’s grandson was called Cush. Cush lived in the area we now call South Sudan. Ezekiel 29:10 explains how the land was named after him and where his lands were. The country of Cush probably went from Egypt and covered all of what is now Sudan and South Sudan. Egyptian influence was important in Cush, and the Cushites eventually became Pharoahs and even heard the gospel through Egyptian believers.
Until 2011 Sudan and South Sudan were one big country, but there had been differences between the north and south for centuries. One big difference was religion. The north used to be a Christian area, but when Muslim armies invaded it became Islamic. They adopted Arabic language and a lot of Muslim culture.
Being ruled by other countries emphasised the differences within Sudan. Under joint British and Egyptian control in the 19th century, you had to use a passport to travel from the north to the south, even though Sudan was one country.
In 1954 Sudan began to govern itself again. However, how the government was set up angered many in the south. In 1955 a branch of the army based in southern Sudan revolted. Then there was a long period of unrest until 2005, when there was an agreement which ended Africa’s longest-running civil war.
South Sudan eventually gained independence from Sudan on 9 July 2011, but civil war broke out again. A power-sharing agreement was signed between the warring parties in August 2018 to try and bring peace.
These icing sugar covered cookies are baked by both Christians and Muslims in South Sudan to celebrate holidays like Easter and Eid. Each family will have their own recipe, with different fillings. Find the recipe here, and why not add some fillings of your own?
