Mohamed Altoum had faint childhood memories of his father’s stories about their Nubian culture from their ancestral village in north Sudan. Yet when his father, Osman, an accountant who also wrote poetry, recounted them again in 2010, Mohamed paid close attention.

His father was dying from liver cancer. So while Mohamed and his family cared for Osman around the clock at their home in Khartoum, Sudan, his father’s stories rekindled something deep inside him.

“He spoke about the music, literature and culture,” Mohamed said, “and told me that I needed to discover my roots in the Nubian community.”