Bus Ride Day 196: South Sudan Trivia Quiz

Answer: swamp

The Sudd is an area of swampy wetlands running generally from northwest to southeast through the central portion of South Sudan. It is one of the largest wetland areas in the world. The area consists of very flat land, where, according to some sources, average slope from south to north for 400 km is only 0.01%. This posed a great challenge to early explorers of the area, who had to go around it to proceed westward across the continent.

"The Sudd" is generally thought to be derived from an early term meaning "obstacle". Although most people attribute the title "Sudan" as having an original meaning of "country of black men", some scholars believe Sudd and Sudan come from a similar root, the Egyptian "Sut", meaning "sedge swamp".

The area of the Sudd varies with weather conditions-when it is rainy, its size increases.

Answer: White Nile

The White Nile, together with the Blue Nile, form the Nile River. The White Nile originates far to the south of South Sudan, at Lake Victoria in Tanzania.
It flows northward to meet the Blue Nile at Khartoum. It bisects South Sudan east and west.

South Sudan's capital city, Juba, is located on the White Nile, and is the southernmost point at which the river is navigable.

Answer: That people, animals and inanimate objects have souls

Animism involves the belief that we humans are not the only entities that have souls-we share this trait with some animals and nonliving objects. It is not an organized religion with a formal doctrine or scripture; rather, there are many forms of belief that incorporate animistic elements. There is no one form of practice associated with the belief. It is often melded with another faith.

Many animists believe that there is one supreme God, but that s/he was displeased with humans and has withdrawn from close contact with them. However, there is a multitude of lesser gods and spirits to which animists offer homage. These gods are tied to specific things like rivers, caves, lightning, or other natural or geographic phenomena. Ancestor worship is another common feature of animism.

Answer: English

Not too surprisingly, given that they were the occupying country for nearly 60 years beginning in 1899, the British left an imprint on the whole of Sudan. English is the official language of South Sudan, but there is a multiplicity of languages spoken by its indigneous people. Arabic is also commonly spoken.

Answer: Greeks

Juba lies at the southernmost point where the White Nile is navigable by boat. This gave it great importance in moving goods and people both north and south through the continent. From Juba heading south, overland travel and transport took place, making it a hub for commerce. Tradespeople from a number of nations congregated there to sell their wares.

Greek traders supplying the British army (Britain took over the area of Sudan in 1899) formally established Juba as a town in 1922.

Answer: George Clooney

Clooney became involved in Sudan's situation in the early 2000s, because of ethnic-cleansing atrocities committed by its leaders in Darfur. He worked for a cease-fire and a peace agreement between the two sides involved in Sudan's long-running civil war, and he was in the capital of Juba on election day in 2011, when the people of south Sudan voted by more than 98% in favor of splitting off from the north and establishing a new country.

He continued his efforts to help the fledgling country strengthen itself, this time by working to get the Nespresso country to support the coffee-producing industry there.

Answer: False

Due in large measure to events during its long civil war preceding independence, many of the schools in South Sudan have been destroyed and many of its teachers fled the country during the war. Illiteracy rates continue to be among the highest in the world as of 2015, according to some sources. A shortage of English-speaking teachers contributes to the problem, as well as lack of funding for education.

Answer: Oil

South Sudan is rich in oil - its resources are the third-largest in sub-Saharan Africa. Sudan and South Sudan were to split the oil reserves when the south voted for independence in 2011, but they had difficulty agreeing to terms on what percentage of oil revenues each side should receive and what charges South Sudan should incur for running oil to ports in Sudan for export.

Oil reportedly represents more than 97% of the revenue available to the government of South Sudan.

Answer: A gold star on a blue triangle

The two flags share four colors-three horizontal bars of black, red and green separated by narrow white bands. South Sudan's has two additions: a blue triangle represents the Nile - specifically the White Nile, which supplies much of South Sudan's water; and a single yellow star represents the unification of South Sudan's individual states.

Answer: False

South Sudan is a member of both organizations, as well as the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa. It is the 193rd UN member country.