Relief and Joy
0 Comments Published by Tom Gara on Thursday, September 25 at Thursday, September 25, 2008.
I always knew that my Hungarian ancestry and instinctive connection to Egypt could be resolved rationally, and now it has - I am a member of the Magyarab tribe of the Nile Valley:
As the locals in Southern Egypt say about their Magyarab neighbours, "Ras el Magyar zey el haggar" - "The Hungarian's head is as hard as stone."
I'm sure plenty of people who know me well will back up such sentiments.
The Magyarab are a people living along the Nile River in Egypt and Sudan. They are of Hungarian ancestry, probably dating back to the late 16th century.It's like all the pieces are slowly coming together, and it is a giant weight off my shoulders, identity-wise.
According to legend, Christian Hungarians who had only recently been brought under the control of the Ottoman Empire formed a part of the Ottoman army that was fighting in southern Egypt. Evidently, a portion or the entirety of the fighting unit remained there and intermarried with the local Nubian women.
As the locals in Southern Egypt say about their Magyarab neighbours, "Ras el Magyar zey el haggar" - "The Hungarian's head is as hard as stone."
I'm sure plenty of people who know me well will back up such sentiments.
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