Egypt
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
- For other uses, see Egypt (disambiguation).
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| National anthem: Bilady, Bilady, Bilady | |||||
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| Official language | Arabic | ||||
| Other widely spoken languages | English, French | ||||
| Capital and Largest City | Cairo | ||||
| President | Hosni Mubarak | ||||
| Prime Minister | Dr Ahmed Nazif | ||||
| Area - Total - % water |
Ranked 29th 1,001,450 km² 0.6% |
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| Population - Total (2005) - Density |
Ranked 15th 77,505,756 75/km² |
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| HDI (2003) | 0.659 (119th) – medium | ||||
| Partial Independence - Granted - Total Independence |
from the UK 28 February 1922 18 June 1953 |
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| Currency | Egyptian Pound (LE/£E/EGP) | ||||
| Time zone - in summer |
EET (UTC+2) EEST (UTC+3) |
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| National anthem | Biladi, Biladi | ||||
| Internet TLD | .eg | ||||
| Calling Code | 20 | ||||
The Arab Republic of Egypt, commonly known as Egypt, (in Arabic: مصر, romanized Misr, in Egyptian Arabic Másr), is a republic in North Africa. While it is geographically located in Africa, it is sometimes associated with the Middle East for political reasons.
Covering an area of about 1,020,000 km², Egypt shares land borders with Libya to the west, Sudan to the south, and Israel and the Gaza Strip to the northeast and has coasts on the north and east by the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea, respectively.
Egypt is the second-most-populous country in Africa, second only to Nigeria, and the vast majority of its 77 million population (2005) live near the banks of the Nile River (about 40,000 km²), where the only arable agricultural land is found. Large areas of land are part of the Sahara Desert and are sparsely inhabited. The majority of Egyptians today are urban, living in the great Arab population centers of greater Cairo, the largest city in Africa, and Alexandria.
Egypt is famous for its ancient civilization and some of the world's most stunning ancient monuments, including the Giza Pyramids, the Karnak Temple and the Valley of the Kings; the southern city of Luxor contains a particularly large number of ancient artifacts. Today, Egypt is widely regarded as the main political and cultural centre of the Arab and Middle Eastern regions.
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Origin and history of the name
Misr, the Arabic and official name for modern Egypt, is of Semitic origin directly cognate with the Hebrew מִצְרַיִם Misráyim meaning "the two straits", and possibly means "a country" or "a state." The ancient name for the country, kemet, or "black land," is derived from the fertile black soils deposited by the Nile floods, distinct from the 'red land' (deshret) of the desert. This name became keme in a later stage of Coptic. The English name "Egypt" came via the Latin word Aegyptus derived from the ancient Greek word Αίγυπτος Aiguptos (see also List of traditional Greek place names), which in turn is derived from the ancient Egyptian phrase ḥwt-k3-ptḥ ("Hwt ka Ptah") meaning "home of the Ka (part of the soul) of Ptah," the name of a temple of the god Ptah at Memphis. For details see the article Copt.
History
Main article: History of Egypt
The regularity and richness of the annual Nile River flood, coupled with semi-isolation provided by deserts to the east and west, allowed for the development of one of the world's great civilizations. A unified kingdom was founded circa 3200 BC by King Menes, and a series of dynasties ruled in Egypt for the next three millennia. The last native dynasty, known as the Thirtieth Dynasty, fell to the Persians in 341 BC who dug the predecessor of the Suez canal and connected the Red Sea to the Mediterranean. Later, Egypt fell to the Greeks, Romans, Byzantines and Persians again.
It was the Muslim Arabs who introduced Islam and the Arabic language in the seventh century changing Egypt into a linguistically and mostly ethnically "Arab" nation. Muslim rulers nominated by the Islamic Caliphate remained in control of Egypt for the next six centuries. A local military caste, the Mamluks took control about 1250 and continued to govern even after the conquest of Egypt by the Ottoman Turks in 1517.
Following the completion of the Suez Canal in 1869, Egypt became an important world transportation hub; however, the country also fell heavily into debt. Ostensibly to protect its investments, Britain seized control of Egypt's government in 1882, but nominal allegiance to the Ottoman Empire continued until 1914.
Partially independent from the UK in 1922, Egypt acquired full sovereignty following World War II. Between 1924-1936 there existed a short-lived attempt to model Egypt's constitutional government after the European style of government; known as Egypt's Liberal Experiment. In 1952 a popularly-supported military coup d'état forced King Farouk I, a constitutional monarch, to abdicate in support of his son King Ahmed Fouad II. Finally, the Egyptian Republic was declared on 18 June 1953 with General Muhammad Naguib as the first President of the Republic. After Naguib resigned in 1954, Gamal Abdel Nasser, the real architect of the 1952 Revolution, assumed power as President and nationalized the Suez Canal leading to the 1956 Suez Crisis. Nasser came out of the war an Arab hero, and Nasserism won widespread influence in the region. Between 1958 and 1961 Egypt and Syria formed a union known as the United Arab Republic. Three years after the 1967 Six Day War, in which Egypt lost the Sinai to Israel, Nasser died and was succeeded by Anwar Sadat, who presented his takeover in terms of a Corrective Revolution. Sadat switched Egypt's Cold War allegiance from the Soviet Union to the United States, expelling Soviet advisors in 1972, and launched the Infitah economic reform, while violently clamping down on religious and secular opposition alike.
In 1973, Egypt, along with Syria, launched a surprise attack on Israel in the October War, which, despite not being a complete military success, was by most accounts a political victory. Both the United States and the USSR intervened, and a cease-fire was reached between Egypt and Israel. In 1979, Sadat made peace with Israel in exchange for the Sinai, a move that sparked enormous controversy in the Arab world and led to Egypt's expulsion from the Arab League (it was readmitted in 1989). Sadat was murdered by a religious fundamentalist in 1981, and succeeded by Hosni Mubarak.
Politics
Main article: Politics of Egypt
Egypt has been a republic since 18 June 1953. President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak has been the President of the Republic since October 14, 1981, following the assassination of former-President Anwar Sadat on October 6, 1981. Mubarak is currently serving his fifth term in office. He is the leader of the ruling National Democratic Party. Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif was sworn in as Prime Minister on 9 July 2004, following the resignation of Dr. Atef Ebeid from his office.
The permanent headquarters for the League of Arab States is located in Cairo. Egypt was the first Arab state to establish peace with the State of Israel after the signing of the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty after the Camp David Accords. Egypt also has a major influence on the other Arab states. Historically, Egypt has played the role of a mediator in resolving disputes of various Arab nations. Most Arab nations still use Egypt in that role.
Egypt supposedly operates under a multi-party semi-presidential system, whereby the executive power is divided between the President and the Prime Minister. Egypt holds regular single-candidate presidential and multi-party parliamentary elections. The last presidential election was held in September 2005, in which Mubarak won again. However, after the September elections, there has been expressed concern from international human rights observers concerning freedom of speech, government interference in local elections and vote-rigging.
In late-February 2005, Mubarak announced on a surprise television broadcast that he has ordered the reform of the country's presidential election law, paving the way for multi-candidate polls in the coming election. For the first time in Egypt's history, the people will have a chance to elect their leader in a closely-watched election. The President said his initiative came "out of my full conviction of the need to consolidate efforts for more freedom and democracy." However, the new law places draconian restrictions on the filing of presidential candidacies designed to pave the road for Mubarak's easy re-election. As a result, most Egyptians are sceptical about the process of democratisation and the role of elections. As expected, Mubarak was re-elected. Newspapers however have exhibited an increasing freedom in criticizing the president, and the results of the parlimentary elections genuinely indicate that a democratic transition is underway, as evidenced by the strong showing of rival political parties.
Military
Main article: Military of Egypt
The Egyptian Armed Forces (Arabic: القوات المسلحة المصرية) consists of the Army, Air Force, Navy and Air Defense. The Coast Guard and Border Guard operate as subordinates to the Navy and Army Command respectively.
The Egyptian military is the strongest military power on the African continent, and the second-largest in the Middle East, the largest being that of Israel - (Source: Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies' annual Middle East Strategic Balance). The Egyptian Armed Forces also ranks among the most battle-trained armed forces in the region. Its inventory includes F-16s, Mirage 2000 aircraft, MiG-29 fighters, Apache helicopters, M1 Abrams Tanks and medium-long range missiles. The Egyptian Armed forces, has a combined troop strength of 450,000 active personel.
The Commander-in-Chief is Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi.
The Chief of Staff is Lt. Gen. Sami Hafez Enan.
Conscription is compulsory for egyptian men of 18 years of age. Full-time students may defer their service until the age of 28. The length of the service depends on the level of education achieved by the conscripted.
Military relations between Egypt and the US are strong. Military cooperation between the two countries covers a number of strategic areas, including cooperation in the ongoing process of modernising Egyptian armaments and training the Egyptian armed forces.
While military cooperation between the US and Egypt is close and diversified, this does not constitute a form of military alliance. Nothing could furnish clearer proof of this than the high degree of transparency surrounding all aspects of Egyptian-US military cooperation. Bilateral exercises and mutual training are carried out regularly, and, according to one US source, reflect the high level of professionalism and the growing excellence of the fighting men and women in the various branches of the Egyptian armed forces.
Egypt takes part regularly in military exercises with the US and other European and Arab allies, including the manoeuvres that take place in Egypt every two years.
Egypt continues to contribute regularly to United Nations peacekeeping missions, most recently in East Timor, Sierra Leone, and Liberia.
Governorates
Main article: Governorates of Egypt
Egypt is divided into 26 governorates (Muhafazat; singular – Muhafazah):
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Foreign relations
- Main article: Foreign relations of Egypt
Geography, population, history, military strength, and diplomatic expertise give Egypt extensive political influence in the Middle East. Cairo has been a crossroads of Arab commerce and culture for millennia, and its intellectual and Islamic institutions are at the center of the region's social and cultural development.
The League of Arab States headquarters is in Cairo. The Secretary General of the League has traditionally been an Egyptian. Former Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa is the present Secretary General of the Arab League.
Egyptian Deputy Prime Minister Boutros Boutros-Ghali served as Secretary General of the United Nations from 1991 to 1996.
Egypt is on good terms with all of its neighbours, and was the first Arab nation to make peace with Israel. It has a territorial dispute with Sudan over the Hala'ib Triangle.
Economy
Main article: Economy of Egypt
Egypt's economy depends mainly on agriculture, media, petroleum exports, and tourism; there are also more than 5 million Egyptians working abroad, mainly in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf area like UAE, and Europe. The United States as well has a large population of Egyptian immigrants.
The completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1971 and the resultant Lake Nasser have altered the time-honored place of the Nile River in the agriculture and ecology of Egypt. A rapidly-growing population (the largest in the Arab world), limited arable land, and dependence on the Nile all continue to overtax resources and stress society.
The government has struggled to prepare the economy for the new millennium through economic reform and massive investment in communications and physical infrastructure, much financed from U.S. foreign aid (since 1979, an average of 2.2 billion dollars per year). Egypt is the third-largest recipient of such funds from the United States following the Iraq war. Economic conditions are starting to improve considerably after a period of stagnation due to the adoption of more liberal economic policies by the government, as well as increased revenues from tourism and a booming stock market. In its annual report, the IMF has rated Egypt as one of the top countries in the world undertaking economic reforms.
Demographics
Main article: Demographics of Egypt
Egypt is the most populous country in the Arab world, at about 77,500,000 people. Nearly all the population is concentrated along the River Nile, notably Alexandria and Cairo, and along the Nile Delta and near the Suez Canal. Approximately 90% of the population adheres to Islam and most of the remainder to Christianity (primarily the Coptic denomination).
The Egyptians are a fairly homogeneous people. In the northern part of the country, North African and Mediterranean elements are more predominant, and the south is home to populations more closely related to Ethiopians and Somalis from the Horn of Africa. The bulk of the modern Egyptian people still maintain a homogenous genetic tie to ancient Egyptian society, which has always been regarded as rural and most populous compared to the neighboring demographics. The Egyptian people have spoken only languages from the Afro-Asiatic family (previously known as Hamito-Semitic) throughout their history, starting with Old Egyptian to modern Egyptian-Arabic.
Ethnic minorities include a small number of Bedouin Arab nomads in the Sinai and eastern and western deserts, as well as a Nubian minority clustered along the Nile in Upper (southern) Egypt who are estimated for about 0.8% of the population. The once-vibrant Jewish community in Egypt has disappeared, but several important archeological and historical sites remain.
Geography
Main articles: Geography of Egypt
Towns and cities include Alexandria, Aswan, Asyut, Cairo, El-Mahalla El-Kubra, Giza, Hurghada, Luxor, Kom Ombo, Port Safaga, Port Said, Sharm el Sheikh, Shubra-El-Khema, Suez, Zagazig,Al-Minya.
Deserts: Egypt includes parts of the Sahara Desert and of the Libyan Desert
Oases include: Bahariya Oasis, Dakhleh Oasis, Farafra Oasis, Kharga Oasis, Siwa Oasis.
Egypt borders on Libya on the west, on Sudan on the south and on Israel on the northeast. It controls the Suez Canal between the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea.
Egypt's important role in geopolitics stems from its strategic position: as a land bridge between Africa and Asia, and as a passage between the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean through the Suez Canal.
Culture
Main article: Culture of Egypt
Egypt's capital city, Cairo, is Africa's largest city and has been renowned for centuries as a center of learning, culture and commerce. The Egyptian Academy of the Arabic Language is responsible for regulating the Arabic Language throughout the world.
Egypt also hosts two major religious institutions. Al-Azhar University is the oldest Islamic institution for higher studies (founded around 970 CE), with its corresponding mosque Al-Azhar. The head of Al-Azhar is traditionally regarded as the supreme leader of Sunni Muslims all over the world. Egypt also has a strong Christian heritage as evidenced by the existence of the Coptic Orthodox Church headed by the Patriarch of Alexandria, which has a following of approximately 50 million Christians worldwide (one of the famous Coptic Orthodox Churches is Saint Takla Haimanot Church in Alexandria http://www.St-Takla.org).
Though considered a low-income country, Egypt has a thriving media and arts industry, with more than 30 satellite channels and more than 100 motion pictures produced each year. To bolster its media industry, especially with the keen competition from the Persian Gulf states and Lebanon, it has built a large media city that it has promoted as the "Hollywood of the East." Egypt is the only Arab country with an opera house.
Some famous Egyptians include:
- Gamal Abdel Nasser (former president)
- Boutros Boutros-Ghali (former Secretary General of the United Nations)
- Naguib Mahfouz (Nobel Prize-winning novelist)
- Umm Kulthum (singer)
- Omar Sharif (actor)
- Ahmed Zewail (Nobel Prize-winning chemist)
- Mohamed ElBaradei (Head of the International Atomic Energy Agency and Winner of the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize)
- Anwar Sadat (former president and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize)
See also
- Communications in Egypt
- Coptic Christianity
- Egyptian mythology
- Egyptian pyramids
- History of the Jews in Egypt
- History of Armenians in Egypt
- List of Egypt-related topics
- List of Egyptian companies
- List of famous Egyptian people
- List of writers from Egypt
- Military of Egypt
- Music of Egypt
- Transportation in Egypt
References
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This article contains material from the CIA Factbook website which, as a US government publication, is in the public domain.
- This article contains material from the Department of State's Background Notes which, as a US government publication, is in the public domain.
External links
Dictionary definitions from Wiktionary
Textbooks from Wikibooks
Quotations from Wikiquote
Source texts from Wikisource
Images and media from Commons
News stories from Wikinews
Government
- Official Egyptian Government Portal
- Egyptian Investment Portal official government site
- Egypt State Information Service official government site
- The Egyptian Presidency
- The People Assembly of Egypt
- Egyptian Shoura Council
News
- Al-Ahram Weekly
- AllAfrica – Egypt news
- Egypt Today magazine
- Business Today Egypt magazine
- Yahoo! News Full Coverage – Egypt headline links
Overviews
- BBC News Country Profile - Egypt
- CIA World Factbook - Egypt
- US State Department - Egypt includes Background Notes, Country Study and major reports
- Open Directory Project - Egypt directory category
- Joinafrica.com - Egypt
Education
See: List of Egyptian universities
Tourism
- Travel guide to Egypt from Wikitravel
- Tour Egypt (Association of Egyptian Travel Businesses)
- Egypt Hotel & Travel Guide
- Journey through Eternal Egypt
- History of Ancient Egypt
Other
- CAIRO - 1001 Years of Islamic Art and Architecture (Video series in four parts)
- Egypt Maps - Perry-Castañeda Map Collection
- Egypt Photo Galleries Pictures from a visit in December 2004
- Egypt through the ages..
- Egyptian Mythology
- Khnumhotep & Niankhkhnum
- Egyptian law from Jurispedia
- Photographs of Egypt Pictures from a visit in May/June 2005
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