Professor Ali Othman Mohamed Saleh
Absent, yet the fragrance of you remains within me; the homeland is gathered in your thoughts; between the pores and the spirit your voice remains, your face remains. We love sitting with you, drawing from the nectar of your knowledge, and sharing conversation—how wonderful you are.
Born in 1946 in Mishkila, Al-Mahas, Northern State. Married on 15 August 1974 to Naima Idris Khairy, and father of a son and a daughter.
He earned a Bachelor of Arts in archaeology and history, graduating with first-class distinction from the University of Khartoum in 1970.
He earned a Master of Arts in archaeology from the University of Alberta, Canada, in 1973.
He earned a PhD in Eastern studies from Christ College, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom, in 1978.
He also specialised in archaeology, cultures, and civilisations as a continuing programme of research and teaching. His research and academic projects included:
1. The archaeology and history of African and Middle Eastern cultures and civilisations.
2. Cultural and civilisational coexistence and dialogue.
3. Field archaeology.
4. Cultural-resource management.
5. Archaeological and tourism development.
6. The archaeology, history, and languages of Nubian culture and civilisation in the Nile Valley.
Conference participation: Professor Ali attended a large number of specialist and academic conferences related to his fields. He represented Sudan at the following events:
1. The General Conference of UNESCO in Paris, France, 2005.
2. The World Conference on Cultural Policies and Development, UNESCO, Stockholm, Sweden, 1998.
3. The Islamic Conference of Ministers of Cultural Affairs in Doha, Qatar, 2001.
4. Conferences of Arab Ministers of Culture: the thirteenth conference in Amman, Jordan, and the fourteenth in Sana’a, Yemen.
5. The sixteenth General Conference of ALECSO in Tunis, 2002.
6. The meeting of Arab and South American cultural experts in Algiers, 2006.
He held a number of academic and administrative positions. He supervised research and postgraduate dissertations in the archaeology department at the University of Khartoum and served as a visiting professor at universities in Canada, the United States, the University of Hamburg in Germany, the University of Nairobi in Kenya, and the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom.
Membership of international scholarly organisations:
1. The International Society for Nubian Studies, Leiden, Netherlands, to the present.
2. The International Association for Nubian Studies, Paris, France, from 1970 to the present.
3. The General Union of African Writers, Accra, Ghana, from 1989 to the present.
4. The International Archaeologists Association, Calgary, Canada, from 2000 to the present.
5. The World Archaeological Congress, South Hamilton, United Kingdom.
Membership of Sudanese civil-society organisations:
1. The General Union of the Mahas, from 1969 to the present. He chaired the union in 1969–1971, 1979, and 1985.
2. The National Unionist Party, from 1968 to the present. He served as assistant secretary-general for African affairs from 1992 to 2003 and as assistant secretary-general for community forces from 2003 to the present.
3. The Sudanese Nubian Studies Society, 1983–1989, where he served as president throughout the period.
4. The Sudanese Writers Union, 1985–2003, where he served as treasurer and vice-president.
5. The Nubian Studies and Documentation Centre in Cairo, where he served as general coordinator.
6. The Popular Authority for the Development and Advancement of Nubian Land, where he served as secretary for culture and thought.
International honours: he was included in the 2000 edition of the World Dictionary of Distinguished Leaders, published by the American Institute for Biographical Research. He was also included among the 2,000 distinguished people of the twenty-first century by Cambridge.
We are proud that this scholar, professor, and authority comes from the same land to which we belong. Take pride, Nubian person: on your land, Eve gave birth to exceptional people.