or Darroor, a considerable kingdom of Central Africa, occupying a large tract of the country lying between Abyssinia and Bornu. The boundaries of this kingdom are not well defined. According to the best authorities, it has on the east Kordofan and the country of the Shillaks, which separate it from Sennar and Abyssinia; on the west Bergu, which divides it from Begherme and Bornu; whilst the regions to the south are occupied by barbarous nations, extending to and inhabiting the Mountains of the Moon, and the early course of the Balh-el-Abiad.

Darfur is destitute of any great river or lake; and accordingly during the dry season the aspect of the country is parched and sterile. The rainy season commences in June and continues till September. Then the fields are clothed with luxuriant verdure, and the empty ravines Darfur. filled with water. This is the season for sowing, at the commencement of which, the king, with his attendants, goes out into the fields, and with his own hand makes several holes in the ground for the reception of the seed. The vegetable productions of Darfur are found chiefly to the south, where water is most abundant. The ground is extensively covered with trees, amongst which the tamarind, plane, and sycamore are found, but not in great abundance. The hogtie and the nebbek are two species peculiar to Darfur; their wood is hard, and they are very thorny. There are also two small trees or shrubs called the enneb and shair. The other plants copiously produced are the mimosa nilotica, the gum of which is carried into Egypt; the watermelon, the gourd, hemp, capsicum, and tobacco. The date tree is here small, and of inferior quality. Camels of all forms and sizes are exceedingly abundant. The wild animals are principally the lion, hyena, wolf, jackal (Canis aureus), and wild buffalo. These, however, are chiefly confined to the uncultivated parts of the country, except the jackal and hyena, herds of which enter the villages at night and commit great ravages. Here also are found the elephant, rhinoceros, camelopard, hippopotamus, and crocodile. Darfur has no good horses except those obtained from Dongola, and no good asses except those from Egypt. The sheep are inferior to the Egyptian, and their wool is very coarse. Goats and horned cattle are numerous, and their flesh is good. Very fine copper is brought from the south; and gold is plentiful in the east and west, but it is conveyed to Northern Africa by other channels. The rocks of Darfur consist chiefly of gray granite. Various kinds of marble, alabaster, fossil salt, and sulphur are also found. Thermal springs are said to exist in a mountain called Gebel Maris.

The national industry is directed chiefly to agriculture. Wheat is raised only in small quantities: the principal grains are the doka, which seems to be a species of millet, and another of larger size called kassob. The harvest is conducted by the women and slaves, who break off the ears with their hands and carry them away in baskets; whilst the straw is left standing to be employed in building, &c. The grain, after being threshed, is buried in the earth, and is thus tolerably well preserved. The houses are built of clay, sometimes embellished with a coating of plaster; the roofs are flat, and formed of light beams of wood, with a covering of clay. An apartment of about 20 feet by 12, and secured by a rude door with a padlock, is used as the repository of all property belonging to the family; another, called houmra, somewhat larger than the above, but without a door, serves for sitting and sleeping in; and a third, somewhat similar to the latter, is appropriated to the women.

The population is supposed by the most recent travellers not to exceed 200,000. Cobbe, the capital, has not more than 6000 inhabitants. There are only eight other considerable places, the remaining collective residences being only small villages. The population of the towns, and especially of the capital, consists in a great measure of foreign traders, from Egypt, and from the eastern countries of Dongola, Sennar, and Kordofan. Many of the various tribes of Arabs which wander in the surrounding deserts have also settled in the interior of Darfur.

The government, like that of other Mohammedan countries, is despotic. Beyond the Koran, which is inviolable, the will of the king is unlimited. The Fulkara or ecclesiastics alone are entitled to remonstrate; but if their warning be rejected, they have no means of enforcing it. A very formidable power resides in the army, which consists of about 2000 men; and no sovereign can with impunity act in opposition to that body. On the death of the monarch, the crown constitutionally descends to the eldest son; but is liable to be seized by any stronger or more popular member of the royal family. The revenue of the sovereign is derived from various sources; from a duty on all merchandise imported, amounting in most instances to about a tenth; fines for misdemeanours; and to which is added, in case of murder, a certain proportion of the property of the village in which the murder has been perpetrated; presents received continually from the nobles and merchants, and the tribute of the bordering Arab tribes. Lastly, the king is an extensive merchant, with means of procuring a market which are not enjoyed by private individuals.

The Darfurians differ from the negroes on the coast of Guinea, though their complexion is black, and their hair generally short and woolly. In their dispositions they are cheerful; and the females are not immured, nor, unless among the great, are their faces concealed by a veil. Notwithstanding the law of the prophet, a fermented liquor is used by persons of both sexes, and sometimes to a great extent.

The only commerce of Darfur is inland; but this is extensive, and the merchants are the most important persons in the country. The chief intercourse is with Egypt, and it is carried on entirely by the African system of caravans. These are not only very uncertain in their journeys, but are exposed to great dangers from the attacks of wild Arabs. Among the articles sent into Egypt, the most important are slaves, camels, ivory, the horns, teeth, and hides of the rhinoceros and hippopotamus, ostrich feathers, gum, pimento, parrots in abundance, and a small quantity of white copper. The imports are extremely various, comprising beads of all sorts, toys, glass, arms, light cloths of different kinds, &c. Commerce is carried on entirely by barter, which greatly increases the difficulty of conducting it. The intercourse with Mecca is considerable; and in this the objects of trade and religion are combined. (See Browne's Travels.)