Egypt Fact Book
EGYPT
Fact Book
Introduction
Officially: "The Arab Republic of Egypt", a country in northeastern Africa and southwestern Asia. It is bounded on the north by the Mediterranean Sea, on the east by Israel and the Red Sea, on the south by Sudan, and on the west by Libya. The country has a maximum length from north to south of about 1085 km (about 675 mi) and a maximum width, near the southern border, of about 1255 km (about 780 mi). It has a total area of about 1,001,450 sq km (about 386,662 sq mi). Cairo is the capital and largest city.
The land of the Nile River, Egypt is the cradle of one of the world's greatest ancient civilizations and has a recorded history that dates from about 3200 BC. The descriptive material that follows is pertinent to modern Egypt. The History section covers Egypt from ancient times, including the Dynastic Period (3200 BC-343 BC), the Hellenistic Period (332 BC-30 BC), Roman and Byzantine Rule (30 BC-AD 638), the Caliphate and the Mamelukes (642-1517), Ottoman Domination (1517-1882), and British colonialism (1882-1952) as well as modern, independent Egypt (1952- )
Land and Resources
Less than one-tenth of the land area of Egypt is settled or under cultivation. This territory consists of the valley and delta of the Nile, several desert oases, and land along the Suez Canal. More than 90 percent of the country consists of desert areas, including the Libyan Desert in the west, a part of the Sahara, and the Arabian Desert (also called the Eastern Desert), which borders the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez, in the east. The Libyan Desert (also known as the Western Desert) includes a vast sandy expanse called the Great Sand Sea. Located here are several depressions with elevations below sea level, including the Qattarah Depression, which has an area of about 18,000 sq km (about 7000 sq mi) and reaches a depth of 133 m (436 ft) below sea level, the lowest point in Africa; also found here are the oases of Siwah, Kharijah, Bahriyah, Farafirah, and Dakhilah. Much of the Arabian Desert occupies a plateau that rises gradually east from the Nile Valley to elevations of about 600 m (about 2000 ft) in the east and is broken along the Red Sea coast by jagged peaks as high as about 2100 m (about 7000 ft) above sea level. In the extreme south, along the border with Sudan, is the Nubian Desert, an extensive region of dunes and sandy plains. The Sinai Peninsula consists of a sandy desert in the north and rugged mountains in the south, with summits looming more than about 2100 m (about 7000 ft) above the Red Sea. Jabal Katrina (2637 m/8652 ft), the highest elevation in Egypt, is in the Sinai Peninsula, as is Mount Sinai, where, according to the Old Testament, Moses received the Ten Commandments.
The Nile enters Egypt from Sudan and flows north for about 1545 km (about 960 mi) to the Mediterranean Sea. For its entire length from the southern border to Cairo, the Nile flows through a narrow valley lined by cliffs. Lake Nasser, a huge reservoir formed by the Aswan High Dam, extends south across the Sudan border. The lake is about 480 km (about 300 mi) long and is about 16 km (10 mi) across at its widest point. About two-thirds of the lake lies in Egypt. South of a point near the town of Idfu, the Nile Valley is rarely more than 3 km (2 mi) wide. From Idfu to Cairo, the valley is about 23 km (about 14 mi) in width, with most of the arable portion on the western side. In the vicinity of Cairo the valley merges with the delta, a fan-shaped plain, the perimeter of which occupies about 250 km (about 155 mi) of the Mediterranean coastline. Silt deposited by the Rosetta (Arabic Rashid), Damietta (Arabic Dumyat), and other distributaries has made the delta the most fertile region in the country. However, the Aswan High Dam has reduced the flow of the Nile, causing the salty waters of the Mediterranean to erode land along the coast near the Nile. A series of four shallow, brackish lakes extends along the seaward extremity of the delta. Another larger lake, Birkat Qarun, is situated inland in the desert north of the town of Al Fayy?m. Geographically and traditionally, the Nile Valley is divided into two regions, Lower Egypt and Upper Egypt, the former consisting of the delta area and the latter comprising the valley south of Cairo.
Although Egypt has about 2450 km (about 1520 mi) of coastline, two-thirds of which are on the Red Sea, indentations suitable as harbors are confined to the delta. The Isthmus of Suez, which connects the Sinai Peninsula with the African mainland, is traversed from the Mediterranean to the Gulf of Suez by the Suez Canal.
Climate
Natural Resources
Plants and Animals
The vegetation of Egypt is confined largely to the Nile Delta, the Nile Valley, and the oases. The most widespread of the few indigenous trees is the date palm. Others include the sycamore, tamarisk, acacia, and carob. Trees that have been introduced from other lands include the cypress, elm, eucalyptus, mimosa, and myrtle, and various types of fruit trees. The alluvial soils of Egypt, especially in the delta, sustain a broad variety of plant life, including grapes, many kinds of vegetables, and such flowers as the lotus, jasmine, and rose. In the arid regions alfa grass and several species of thorn are common. Papyrus, once prevalent along the banks of the Nile, is now limited to the extreme south of the country.
Because of its arid climate, Egypt has few indigenous wild animals. Gazelles are found in the deserts, and the desert fox, hyena, jackal, wild ass, boar, jerboa, and ichneumon inhabit various areas, mainly the delta and the mountains along the Red Sea. Among the reptiles of Egypt are lizards and several kinds of poisonous snakes, including the asp and the horned viper. The crocodile and hippopotamus, common in the lower Nile and Nile delta in antiquity, are now restricted to the upper Nile. Birdlife is abundant, especially in the Nile Delta and Nile Valley. The country has approximately 300 species of birds, including the sunbird, golden oriole, egret, hoopoe, plover, pelican, flamingo, heron, stork, quail, and snipe. Birds of prey found in Egypt include eagles, falcons, vultures, owls, kites, and hawks. Many species of insects are found in Egypt—beetles, mosquitoes, flies, and fleas being especially numerous; scorpions are found in desert areas. About 100 species of fish can be found in the Nile and in the deltaic lakes.
Population
Population Characteristics
Political Division and Principle Cities
Agriculture
Egypt is predominantly an agricultural country, with about 40 percent of the labor force engaged in crop farming or herding. The pattern of landownership was greatly altered by the Agricultural Reform Decree of 1952, which limited individual holdings to about 80 hectares (about 200 acres), a figure revised in 1961 to about 40 hectares (about 100 acres), and revised again to about 20 hectares (about 50 acres) in 1969. Lands requisitioned by the government were distributed to the fellahin (peasants), but an economic gap still remained between the middle-class farmers and the fellahin. Government programs have expanded arable areas through reclamation, irrigation (notably since the completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1970), and the use of advanced technology (fertilizers, mechanized equipment).
The yields of Egyptian farmlands are now among the highest in the world. Egypt is one of the world's leading producers of long-staple (long-fibered) cotton. Annual cotton lint production in the early 1990s was about 324,000 metric tons. Warm weather and plentiful water permit as many as three crops a year, giving Egypt abundant agricultural yields. In the early 1990s principal cr, ranked by estimated value and annual production in metric tons, including rice (3.9 million), tomatoes (4.7 million), wheat (4.6 million), maize (5.2 million), sugarcane (11.6 million), potatoes (1.8 million), and oranges (1.7 million). A wide variety of other vegetables and fruits are also grown.
The principal pastoral industry of Egypt is the breeding of beasts of burden. The livestock population in the early 1990s included about 3 million cattle, 3 million buffalo, 4.4 million sheep, 4.8 million goats, 1.6 million asses, and 44 million poultry.
Fishing
Religion
Islam is the official religion, and about 80-90 percent of all Egyptians are Muslims, most of them members of the Sunni sect. According to official Egyptian estimates, the Coptic Orthodox church, a Christian denomination, has no more than 8 million adherents and constitutes the largest religious minority; Copts themselves claim some 15 million members. An estimated 1 million people belong to the Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Armenian, and various Protestant churches. The country has a very small Jewish community.
Language
Education
Education is free and compulsory for children between the ages of 6 and 14. Graduates of the primary schools may attend either a general intermediate school, which prepares for secondary education, or a technical intermediate school specializing in industrial and agricultural subjects. The secondary school system is similarly divided into general schools, with curricula designed to prepare students for a university education, and technical schools. About 48 percent of the adult population is literate.
Elementary and Secondary Schools
In the early 1990s, more than 7 million children attended about 16,500 primary schools. In the same period, secondary schools had a total enrollment of about 5.9 million, including enrollment of about 1.1 million in vocational and teacher training schools.
Universities and Colleges
Egypt has 13 universities. Al Azhar University at Cairo, founded in AD 970 as a school of Islamic studies, enrolls about 90,000 students and is the oldest continually existing institution of higher learning in the world. Faculties of engineering, medicine, business administration, and agriculture were added in 1961, and women were first admitted in 1962. Ayn Shams University (1950) in Cairo has 100,000 students, and the University of Cairo (1908) has nearly 77,000 students. Other leading universities include the University of Alexandria (1942), the University of Asyout (1957), and the American University in Cairo (1919). Egypt also has many technical colleges and institutes of art and music.
Culture
The Ministry of Culture directs cultural activities in Egypt. The country has various cultural facilities, including the Pocket Theater, the National Puppet Theater, the Opera House, and the National Symphony. Since the early 1960s, there has been a growing interest in folk dancing, which is performed by two national dance groups. Egypt is the principal filmmaking country in the Arab world, with a state-operated cinema corporation and numerous private film companies. Among the many outstanding museums in Cairo is the Egyptian Museum, also known as the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, which houses a vast collection of relics and artifacts from almost every period of ancient Egypt. For more information on the rich and varied heritage of Egypt, see Egyptian Art and Architecture; Egyptian Literature. Egyptian novelist Naguib Mahfouz won the 1988 Nobel Prize for literature, becoming the first Arabic writer to do so.
Economy
With the promulgation of a series of laws beginning in 1961, the economy of Egypt was rapidly socialized. Foreign trade, wholesale trade, banking, insurance, and most manufacturing enterprises were taken over by the government. Although agriculture, urban real estate, and some manufacturing concerns remained in private hands, stringent regulations were imposed. An economic development plan introduced in 1960 brought about a considerable expansion of industry and an increase in production during the succeeding five years. The plan was replaced in 1965 by a seven-year plan that was less successful, partly because of insufficient foreign investment; a comparatively modest three-year plan was introduced in 1967. Losses suffered during the Arab-Israeli War of June 1967, and the general economic dislocation that persisted afterward seriously retarded social and economic development. Egypt's economic ills were a major reason for the peace efforts of the late 1970s because the country could not afford another war. Although the economy grew rapidly during the late 1970s and early 1980s, the collapse of world oil prices in the mid-1980s, followed by the Persian Gulf crisis of 1990, left Egypt in difficult financial straits.
With one of the highest ratios in the world of population to cultivable land, Egyptian government leaders have acknowledged population growth as the principal cause of the country's economic difficulties. The economy also is burdened by foreign debt, which in the early 1990s was more than twice the size of the country's annual budget. In the early 1990s, Egypt began putting into place economic reforms recommended by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, including relaxed price controls, reduced subsidies, and a liberalization of trade and investment.
The estimated annual national budget in the mid-1990s included about $16.8 billion in revenues and $19.4 billion in expenditures.
Mining
Crude petroleum, which accounts for about one-half of export earnings, is the most important mineral product of Egypt. Production was about 26.4 million barrels annually in the early 1960s. As a result of the discovery in the 1950s and 1960s of large new fields in the Al ‘Alamayn and Gulf of Suez areas, and a major exploration effort in the 1970s, annual production of crude petroleum increased to approximately 312.2 million barrels in the early 1990s. Proven reserves stood at 6.2 billion barrels in 1992 as Egypt renewed exploration, signing 12 agreements with foreign companies to drill new wells. The country is encouraging natural gas production to supply domestic energy needs, with annual extraction in the early 1990s of 11.6 billion cu m (410 billion cu ft).
Other important products of the mining industry in the early 1990s included phosphate rock (1.5 million metric tons), iron ore (1.2 million tons metal content), and salt (1.1 million tons). Uranium ore began to be mined near Aswan in 1991.
Ancient Egypt History
Pharaoh
Thebes
Thebes (Egypt) (Egyptian Weset or Newt), an ancient city and, for many centuries, the capital of ancient Egypt, on both sides of the Nile River, about 725 km (about 450 mi) south of present-day Cairo. It is partly occupied today by the modern towns of Al Karnak and Luxor. It was named Thebes by the Greeks, who knew it also as Diospolis (“heavenly city”); it is the city identified in the Old Testament as No (“city”) or No-Amon (“city of Amon”). Scattered over the site are the remnants of numerous temples, tombs, and other ancient monuments. Of prehistoric origin, Thebes began to figure in the recorded history of Egypt during the Old Kingdom (circa 2755-2255 BC). Tombs dating from the 6th Dynasty (circa 2407-2255 BC) of Egyptian pharaohs have been discovered in the original necropolis, which is on the west side of the Nile. As the biblical name of Thebes indicates, the local deity of the city was Amon, originally the Egyptian god of the reproductive forces and, later Amen-Ra, the “father of the gods.” The ruined temple of Amon, which ranks among the best-preserved and most magnificent structures of Egyptian antiquity, is at Al Karnak.
Under the pharaohs of the 9th and 10th dynasties (circa 2230-2035 BC), Thebes emerged as the administrative center of a powerful line of nomarchs (governors). The Theban nomarchs successfully challenged the Heracleopolitan pharaohs, winning complete control of Egypt in about 2035 BC. With this event and the establishment of the Theban dynasty of pharaohs, Thebes became the capital of Egypt. The city retained this status until the reign (1350-1334 BC) of Akhenaton. Many of the great temples, the avenue of sphinxes, several beautiful tombs, and numerous other lasting monuments were erected in and around Thebes during the period. Thebes was re-established as the seat of the Egyptian government shortly after the death of Akhenaton. Subsequently, in particular, during the 19th and 20th dynasties (1293-1070 BC), the pharaohs made additional contributions to the architectural splendor of the city. The Assyrians sacked Thebes in the 7th century BC. Although it was later partly restored, the city declined steadily after the collapse (332 BC) of the 31st Dynasty. Thebes was destroyed by the Romans late in the 1st century BC.
Several of the chief ruins of Thebes are described in the articles dealing with Al Karnak and Luxor. Among the ruined Theban edifices of great archaeological importance are the tombs of the pharaohs (see Valley of the Kings). Other celebrated Theban ruins are the Ramesseum, a temple built during the reign (1279-1212 BC) of Ramses II, the temple of Ramses III (1182-1151 BC), and the temple of Queen Hatshepsut.
صورة الإله أنوبيس، إله الموتى و التحنيط عند المصريين القدماء
Egyptian Art and Architecture
Predynastic Period
The early prehistoric dwellers on the Nile inhabited the terraces or plateaus left by the river as it cut its bed. The remains of their tools and implements show their gradual development from hunters to settled agriculturists. By 4000 BC the civilization of Egypt was in its earliest formative stages; the Predynastic period, which lasted until about 3100 BC, had begun.
Evidence of organized settlements has been found; the art produced during this time was discovered mainly in their cemeteries. Objects were put into the grave with the body for the use of the spirit in the next life, thus preserving a great quantity of such personal goods as pottery, tools, and weapons. The pottery is often decorated with a painting that reflects the life of the time. Images of birds and animals common to the land bordering the Nile abound, and from the latter part of the Predynastic period come elaborate depictions of many-oared Nile boats. Copper was used in limited quantities for beads and simple tools, but most implements were chipped from stone. Cosmetic palettes made of stone were used for grinding eye paint. Small sculptures and figurines were either carved from ivory and bone or modeled in clay.
Old Kingdom
Old Kingdom - Architecture
The kings of the early dynasties had tombs at Abydos and Saqqara built in imitation of palaces or shrines. From these tombs have come large amounts of pottery, stonework, and ivory or bone carving that attest to a high level of development in Early Dynastic Egypt. The Egyptian language, written in hieroglyphics, or picture writing, was in its first stages of evolution.
In the 3rd Dynasty the architect Imhotep built for Zoser (reigned about 2737-2717 BC) a complex at Saqqara, the burial ground near the capital of Memphis, that included a stepped pyramid of stone and a group of shrines and related buildings. Designed to protect the remains of the king, the Great Step Pyramid is the oldest monumental architecture preserved; it also illustrates one of the phases toward the development of the true pyramid (see Pyramids).
The architecture of the Old Kingdom—the designation used by historians for the 3rd through the 6th dynasties—can be described as monumental in the sense that native limestone and granite were used for the construction of large-scale buildings and tombs. Of the temples built during this period little remains.
The pyramid complex at Giza where the kings of the 4th Dynasty were buried illustrates the ability of Egyptian architects to construct monuments that remain wonders of the world. The Great Pyramid of Khufu originally stood about 146 m (480 ft) high and contained about 2.3 million blocks with an average weight of 2.5 metric tons each. Many theories have been advanced to explain the purpose of pyramids; the answer is simple: They were built to preserve and protect the bodies of the kings for eternity. Each pyramid had a valley temple, a landing and staging area, and a pyramid temple or cult chapel where religious rites for the king's spirit were performed. Around the three major pyramids at Giza a necropolis (city of the dead) grew up, which contained mastaba (Arabic mastabah, “mud-brick bench”) tombs, so called because they resembled the sloped mud-brick benches in front of Egyptian houses. The mastabas were for the members of the royal family, high officials, courtiers, and functionaries. For the most part, these tombs were constructed over shafts that led to a chamber containing the mummy and the offerings, but some tombs were cut into the limestone plateau and not constructed from blocks of stone.
From the tombs at Giza and Saqqara, it is clear that the houses they imitate were arranged on streets in well-planned towns and cities. Little is known for certain about the domestic architecture of the Old Kingdom because houses and even palaces were built of unbaked mud brick and have not survived. The temples and tombs, built of stone and constructed for eternity, provide most of the available information on the customs and living conditions of the ancient Egyptians.
Old Kingdom - Sculpture
From the early figures of clay, bone, and ivory in the Predynastic period, Egyptian sculpture developed quickly. By the time of Zoser large statues of the rulers were made as resting places for their spirits. Egyptian sculpture is best described by the terms cubic and frontal. The block of stone was first made rectangular; the design of the figure was then drawn on the front and the two sides. The resulting statue was intended to be seen mainly from the front. Since it was meant to be a timeless image intended to convey the essence of the person depicted, there was no need for it to be composed in the round.
The Egyptian artist was not interested in showing movement as this term is understood today. Standing figures are not posed as if they were walking but rather at rest. From the beginning of the dynastic period, human anatomy was understood but given an ideal form. Images of the kings, in particular, were idealized and given great dignity. A seated stone figure (circa 2530 BC, Egyptian Museum) of Khafre, builder of the second largest pyramid at Giza, embodies all the qualities that make Egyptian royal sculpture memorable. The king sits on a throne decorated with an emblem of the united lands, with his hands on his knees, head erect, and eyes gazing into the distance. A falcon of the god Horus behind his head symbolizes that he is the “living Horus,” one with the gods. All parts of the diorite statue are unified and balanced, creating a potent image of divine kingship.
Several forms were developed for the depiction of private persons. In addition to seated and standing single figures, paired and group statues of the deceased with family members were made. The sculpture was of stone, wood, and (rarely) metal; paint was applied to the surface; the eyes were inlaid in other materials, such as rock crystal, to heighten the lifelike appearance. Only persons of importance could have such statues made; a type of sculpture does exist, however, depicting workmen and women engaged in food preparation and crafts. These were made to be included in the tomb to serve the spirit in the next life.
Sculpture in relief served two important purposes: On the walls of temples it glorified the king; in the tombs, it provided the spirit with the things it would need through eternity. The chambered superstructures of private tombs were usually decorated with scenes of the occupant enjoying and supervising those activities in which he took part in life. The method of representing the human figure in two dimensions, either carved in relief or painted, was again dictated by the desire to preserve the essence of what was shown. As a result, the typical depiction combines the head and lower body as seen from the side, with the eye and upper torso as seen from the front. The most understandable view of each part was used to create a complete image. This rule, or canon, was applied to the king and members of the nobility, but the representation of servants and field workers was not so rigidly enforced. It is clear that some complicated actions had to be conveyed with the use of other views of parts of the body, but the face was rarely shown from the front. Relief carving was usually painted to complete the lifelike effect, and many details were added only in paint; purely painted decoration, however, is seldom found in remains from the Old Kingdom.
An understanding of much of Egyptian life and customs can be derived from tomb reliefs. The varieties of food and their preparation, the methods of caring for flocks and herds, the trapping of wild animals, the building of boats, and the processes of the other crafts are All illustrated. Such activities were arranged on the wall in bands or registers that can be read as continuing narratives, not as happenings in actual time but as timeless occupations. The sculptors working in relief or in the round acted as teams, with different stages of the work assigned to different members of the group. The artist in ancient Egypt was content to follow the rules and was proud to be part of a highly regarded craft.