Nubian

American  

[noo-bee-uhn, nyoo-] / ˈnu bi ən, ˈnyu- /

noun

1. a member of any of the various peoples inhabiting Nubia.

2. the Nilo-Saharan language of the Nubians.

3. Obsolete. a Nubian slave.

4. a Nubian horse.

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Nubia, its people, or their language.

Nubian British  

/ ˈnjuːbɪən /

noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Nubia, an ancient region of NE Africa

2. the language spoken by the people of Nubia

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adjective

1. of or relating to Nubia or its inhabitants

2. informal of or relating to Black culture

Etymology

Origin of Nubian

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; Nubia, -an

Example Sentences

Near her office, a towering figure of the Nubian god Apedemak stands guard next to the Blue Nile.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026

In 2019, Boston officials approved renaming the square in the historically Black neighborhood of Roxbury to Nubian Square from Dudley Square.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 24, 2023

Amit Eshel witnessed this tussle between two male Nubian ibexes in Israel's Zin Desert.

From BBC • Oct. 10, 2023

Their tracks, sung in Arabic, English and local Nubian languages, often focus on social issues such as the rights of children to a better future.

From Reuters • Sep. 27, 2023

Well, I’m a mother of black children, and nobody will ever deny me my children, and they can put that in their Nubian pipe and smoke it.

From "The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother" by James McBride