The Bisharin are a mostly Sufi Muslim tribe of the Beja nomadic ethnic group. They inhabit the eastern part of the Nubian Desert in Sudan and southern Egypt, living in the Atbra between the Nile River and the Red Sea, north of the Amarar and south of the Ababda. The population is about 42,000. Most of the tribe move within the territory of Sudan, where they have political representation in the Beja Congress. "Bisharin" is also the name of their spoken dialect.
The Bisharin tend animals, including camels, sheep, goats, buffalo and cattle. They have a breed of chicken named after them called Bigawi, which was carried to Fayoum in ancient times. This important African breed is better known as the Fayoumi. For those along the Nile River, farming is a way of life; they grow cotton, sugar cane, corn, dura, wheat, sesame, fruits and vegetables and raise poultry.
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