Kerma

kerma [′kər·mə]

(nucleonics)

The kinetic energy imparted to charged particles in a unit mass of material by uncharged particles such as neutrons; it may be expressed as joules per kilogram or ergs per gram.

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Kerma 

(ancient Egyptian, Inbu Amenemhet—“Walls of Amenemhet”), a Cushitic settlement south of the third cataract of the Nile, on its right bank (Sudan). Excavations conducted from 1913 to 1916 have revealed a settlement dating from the time of Egypt’s Middle Kingdom (20th-18th centuries B.C.), a necropolis of local rulers buried with their relatives and slaves (as many as 400 persons in one burial); and numerous remains of material culture and art, both of local and Egyptian origin. Kerma lost its importance after Cush was conquered by Egypt (by the 15th century B.C.).

REFERENCES

Katsnel’son, I. S. “Problemy istoricheskogo razvitiia drevneishei Nubii.” Vestnik drevnei istorii, 1948, no. 2.
Reisner, G. A. Excavations at Kerma, vols. 1–2. Cambridge, 1923.
Hintze, F. “Das Kerma-Problem.” Zeitschrift für ägyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde, 1964, vol. 91.