The area now called Nubia extends along the Nile from the South of Aswan to the town of Dabba, near the Fourth cataract, linking Egypt - i.e. the northern part of the Nile valley - to the Sudan in the South. The name Nubia is first mentioned in Strabo's Geographica; the Greek author is believed to have visited Egypt c. 29 BC.

The etymology of the name Nubia is uncertain, but some researchers believe it is derived from the Ancient Egyptian nbu, meaning gold, referring to the gold mines for which Nubia was famous. The name does not appear in Ancient Egyptian texts. They refer to Nubia generally as Ta-Seti, meaning "Land of the Bow", a clear reference to the weapon favoured by the Nubians.