History of Sudan
The modern Republic of Sudan was formed in 1956 and inherited its boundaries from Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, established in 1899. For times predating 1899, usage of the term "Sudan" for the territory of the Republic of Sudan was somewhat anachronistic, and may have referred to the more diffuse concept of the Sudan.
Gender inequality in Sudan
Sudan is both "Arab" and "African" with much complexity that involves terms of ethnicity and identity politics. A variety of governments have ruled within the last two centuries: colonial regimes (Ottoman and "Anglo-Egyptian"), Islamic states (the Funj and the Mahdist), parliamentary democracies (1956-1989), military regimes, and later an incipient military theocracy. 
Mahdi is a reference to Shia Islam.