Omdurman, Sudan · UTC+2 ☆

Omdurman is in the Central Africa Time timezone (CAT/UTC+2). Sudan observes no daylight saving, keeping a fixed clock year-round.

Omdurman and Khartoum face each other across the Nile, connected by bridges but distinct in character. Where Khartoum is the modern administrative capital, Omdurman is the historical Sudanese city: the seat of the Mahdist state in the late 19th century, the site of the 1898 Battle of Omdurman where Kitchener’s forces defeated the Mahdist army, and the city that most Sudanese consider their cultural and commercial heart. The souk in Omdurman is one of the largest traditional markets in East Africa.

Sudan uses Central Africa Time, UTC+2, year-round with no daylight saving. The IANA identifier is Africa/Khartoum. At 15.6 degrees north, the city’s daylight ranges from about 11 to 13 hours. The sun sets behind the Nile in the evening, and in the dry season the dust in the air turns the sunset a remarkable amber and orange.

The Nile gives Omdurman its orientation. The city faces the river, its markets and neighborhoods extending back from the waterfront. The confluence of the Blue and White Niles just south of the city is one of Africa’s most significant geographic features: two river systems merging into the world’s longest river and continuing north through Egypt to the Mediterranean.

the souk, the dervishes, and the Nile confluence

Whirling dervish ceremonies take place in Omdurman on Thursday evenings near the tomb of a local sheikh, a tradition that has drawn visitors and participants for generations.

9am in Omdurman is 7am in London.

Sources

• IANA Time Zone Database - Africa/Khartoum
• Central Bureau of Statistics Sudan