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Wandering

The Great Zensunni Wandering

Mixed Canonicity
This article or section refers to elements from both Original Dune and Expanded Dune.

The Zensunni Wanderers or Wandering Zensunni were the ancestors of the Fremen, who traveled from one world to another in search of freedom from persecution and enslavement by the Imperial raiders. This long journey was known collectively as the Zensunni Wandering. They followed the Zensunni religion, which was based largely on the Sunni branch of Islam, with Zen Buddhist influences.

Migration of the Wandering Zensunni[]

According to some historical accounts such as those recorded in the Shah-Nama, the Zensunni ancestors of the Fremen arrived on Arrakis from many different planets.

Though much of the history of the Wandering Zensunni was lost to the Fremen, some information was kept alive through oral tradition. However, even prior to the emergence of the prescient Paul Atreides, many non-Fremen expressed doubts over the validity of the stories, thanks to linguistic and mythological traditions. Reverend Mother Darwi Odrade recalled the tribal leaders of the Wandering through Other Memory.

According to Fremen legend, the migration of the Zensunnis saw them move through the following planets:

  1. Nilotic al-Ourouba
  2. Poritrin
  3. Salusa Secundus
  4. Bela Tegeuse
  5. Rossak
  6. Thurgrod[1]
  7. Harmonthep
  8. Arrakis

It is clear that their migration is more complicated than their tradition states. The actual route was probably diverse and non-sequential, and was often unique to an individual or group of individuals. The only certainty is that the Wandering Zensunni originated on Earth (with Nilotic al-Ourouba more likely than not being the Nile Valley in Africa), like all other humans.

Appearances[]

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