The Funj are an ethnic group in present-day Sudan. Their origins are not clearly known, but they are recorded as moving into Nubia from the Sudd to the south in the early 16th century, fleeing the pressure of the Shilluk. Arriving in Nubia, they absorbed the empire built up by Abdallah Jamma and set up the Funj Sultanate of Sinnar that ruled the area for several centuries.