The Rashaida are the country's only ethnic Arabs.Mainly pastoralists and traders, the rashaida migrated to northeast Africa in the 19th century from the Hejaz. They are Arabic-speaking Muslims, living along the northern coast and along the Sudan border in tightly-knit, patrilineal clan. rashaida women are noted for their red-and-balck patterned dresses and their long heavy veils, often embroidered with silver, beads and seed pearls.