   #copyright

Cairo

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: African Geography;
Geography of the Middle East

   The Triumphant City (ﻤﺪﻴﻨﺔ القاهرة)

   Official flag of The Triumphant City

                                       Official seal of The Triumphant City
   Flag                                Seal
   Cairo's location in Egypt
   Cairo's location in Egypt
   Coordinates: 30°03′N 31°22′E
   Governor Dr. Abdul Azim Wazir
   Area
    - City 210 km²
    - Metro 1,492 km²
   Population
    - City (2005) 7,438,376
    - Density 35,420/km²
    - Urban 10,834,495
    - Metro 15,200,000
   Time zone EET ( UTC+2)
    - Summer ( DST) EEST ( UTC+3)

   Cairo ( Arabic: القاهرة‎ ​ translit: al-Qāhirah) comes from the Arabic
   word "قاهرة" meaning "Triumphant". It is the capital city of Egypt
   (previously the United Arab Republic). It has a metropolitan area
   population of approximately 15.2 million people. Cairo is the
   seventeenth most populous metropolitan area in the world (the 10th
   according to 2004 statistics). Cairo is also the most populous
   metropolitan area and the most populous city in Africa. The city is
   located at 30°2' North, 31°13' East (30.03333, 31.21667).

   While al-Qāhirah is the official name of the city, in local speech it
   is typically called simply by the name of the country, Miṣr (Arabic,
   مصر) pronounced Maṣr in the local dialect.

Geography

   Cairo is located on the banks and islands of the Nile River in the
   north of Egypt, immediately south of the point where the river leaves
   its desert-bound valley and breaks into two branches into the low-lying
   Nile Delta region.

   The oldest part of the city is somewhat east of the river. There, the
   city gradually spreads west, engulfing the agricultural lands next to
   the Nile. These western areas, built on the model of Paris by Ismail
   the Magnificent in the mid-19th century, are marked by wide boulevards,
   public gardens, and open spaces. The older eastern section of the city
   is very different: having grown up haphazardly over the centuries it is
   filled with small lanes and crowded tenements. While western Cairo is
   dominated by the government buildings and modern architecture, the
   eastern half is filled with hundreds of ancient mosques that act as
   landmarks.

   Extensive water systems have also allowed the city to expand east into
   the desert. Bridges link the Nile islands of Gezira and Roda, where
   many government buildings are located and government officials live.
   Bridges also cross the Nile attaching the city to the suburbs of Giza
   and Imbabah (part of the Cairo conurbation).

   West of Giza, in the desert, is part of the ancient necropolis of
   Memphis on the Giza plateau, with its three large pyramids, including
   the Great Pyramid of Giza Approximately 11 miles (18 km) to the south
   of modern Cairo is the site of the ancient Egyptian city of Memphis and
   adjoining necropolis of Saqqara. These cities were Cairo's ancient
   predecessors, when Cairo was still in this approximate geographical
   location.

History of Cairo

Founding and early history

   Cairo's unique city scape with its ancient mosques
   Enlarge
   Cairo's unique city scape with its ancient mosques

   The current location of Cairo was too far from the ancient course of
   the Nile to support a city. Just to the south of the modern city's
   location are the ruins of Memphis, which was the capital of Ancient
   Egypt and was founded in around 3100 BC by Menes of Tanis after he had
   united the two kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt, although the capital
   later moved to Heliopolis, further south to Thebes, and, under the
   Ptolemaic dynasty, Alexandria.

   The first settlement on the location of modern Cairo was a Roman fort,
   known as Babylon Fort, built about AD 150, built near the settlement
   known as Babylon-in-Egypt, which lay close to an ancient Egyptian canal
   from the Nile to the Red Sea.

   A small town mostly of Coptic Christians slowly grew around the fort.
   Arab invaders, lead by Amr ibn al-As, took the fort town in 642 and
   also established their army in the location, rebuilding its defenses.
   The Arab tented camp outside the fortress, known as Al-Fustat, slowly
   became the permanent base of the Arab forces in Egypt under the
   Umayyads and Abbasids, and contains the first mosque in Africa.

   Slowly, the settlement grew into a small city. The North African Shi'i
   Fatimid Dynasty conquered Egypt in 972 and built a new capital,
   al-Mansuriyyah, north of the old settlement.

   The Al-Azhar mosque was founded the same year, and along with its
   accompanying university it made Cairo a centre of learning and
   philosophy. The school remains a major centre for Islamic study today.
   The Seljuks captured Cairo in the mid 1100s, and Saladin and his
   successors expanded the city further, including the construction of its
   massive citadel.

   The sack of Baghdad in 1258 heightened the importance of the city and
   it became the leading intellectual and artistic centre in the Middle
   East, and perhaps the world, for the next 250 years. It is believed
   that Cairo was the largest city in the world from 1315 to 1348 (years
   of the Black Death), though, as has been shown by Andre Raymond (Cairo:
   City of History. Cairo: AUC, 2001. P. 136-137), this is a gross
   exaggeration, and Cairo's population did not exceed 200,000 at this
   time. But power was shifting from the Arab world north to the Turks and
   Europeans.

   The city was taken by the Ottoman Empire under Selim I in 1517, but in
   the 17th and 18th centuries the ruling Mameluks returned to power as
   nominal vassals to the Ottoman Sultan.

   The family of 26th Ottoman sultan Selim III died on the way to Medina.
   They have been buried in an impressive Ottoman mausoleum in the old
   quarter of Cairo. The mausoleum is still a favorite place to visit for
   Turkish tourists.

Era of westernization

   Napoleon conquered Egypt in 1798, and Cairo was quickly surrendered to
   him by its Mameluk rulers. Napoleon left Egypt after his fleet was
   destroyed at the Battle of Aboukir Bay in August 1798, leaving General
   Kléber in charge. Kléber was assassinated in 1800 and the three-year
   French occupation had little lasting effect.

   The first hints of westernization began under the successors to Mehemet
   Ali with the introduction of a railway connection to Alexandria in
   1851. Significant change, however, did not occur until the reign of
   Isma'il Pasha when, in 1863, construction of the Suez Canal brought
   significant numbers of westerners to Egypt. A network of gas lighting
   was installed by a French company and the railway lines were greatly
   expanded.

   In 1867, Isma'il visited Paris to attend the Universal Exposition of
   1867. There he saw the newly redesigned city of Haussmann and, funded
   by a booming cotton trade, decided to rebuild Cairo on the model of a
   European capital. He hoped to have this done by 1869 when
   representatives from around the world came to Egypt for the opening of
   the Suez Canal.

   Rather than rebuild the old city, Isma'il elected to add a new quarter
   to the western section along the bank of the Nile. The project was
   carried out by Ali Pasha Mubarak and designed by the French urban
   planner Pierre Grand. A new area of luxurious villas and apartments was
   constructed and new government ministries were erected. Grand
   boulevards were opened through the old town and tram lines soon
   followed.

   The era of colonization in 1882 saw the rebuilding of Cairo continuing.
   A modern sewer system was installed and new suburbs such as Heliopolis
   were constructed in the desert. Cairo's population exploded, increasing
   from 374,000 in 1882 to 1,312,000 by 1937. The city was dominated by
   westerners, however, and city planners tended to emphasize Christian
   churches over mosques.

Modern Cairo

   Cairo Opera house
   Enlarge
   Cairo Opera house

   Cairo remained the central city of Egypt throughout the period of
   British rule and afterwards. The 20th century saw massive growth in the
   size of the city as peasants left the farmlands in pursuit of work in
   the factories and commerce of the metropolis. The city was especially
   burdened by refugees from the various wars with Israel: much of the
   population of the Sinai peninsula and the cities along the Suez Canal
   left for Cairo between 1967 and 1978.

   Today, Cairo is Africa's most populous city and the Arab world's
   cultural centre.

   Since the 19th century Cairo has also become a centre for tourism as
   people from around the world have come to see the monuments and
   artifacts of Ancient Egypt, especially the Pyramids. Laws against the
   export of these treasures has meant that the Egyptian Museum in Cairo
   is the only place in the world that many items can be seen.

   Cairo has many malls and shopping centers; the most popular is
   Citystars , which is the second largest mall in the world and has an 18
   screen cinema and theme park .

   Skyscrapers are now being built all over Cairo inculding Nile City
   Towers , The National Bank of Egypt Towers, The Fairmont Cairo , New
   Cairo City Towers and The New Saudi Arabian Embassy Tower.

Images

   View of Cairo from The Cairo Tower.

   A view of the modern city's skyline.

   Cairo's Skyline.

   A mosque at night during the month of Ramadan.

   A view of the Souk.

   El-Gamaa bridge.

   4 Seasons.

   Tahrir Square.

   A view for the Nile from The Tower of Cairo June, 2006.

   Shot of Modern Day Cairo.

   Marriot Palace Cairo

   Cairo Grand Hayatt

Infrastructure

Health

   Cairo, as well as neighbouring Giza, have been established as Egypt's
   main centre for medical treatment, as well as a major Health Centre in
   the Middle East. Some of Cairo's most famous hospitals are Al-Salam
   International Hospital, Ain-Shams University Hospital, as well as Qasr
   El Ainy General Hospital.

   See List of hospitals in Egypt.

Transport

   public transport system 1996
   Enlarge
   public transport system 1996

   The subway system, called 'The Metro' locally, is a fast and efficient
   way of getting around Cairo. It can get very crowded during rush hour.
   There is also usually a carriage at the front of the train that is
   reserved for women only.
     * Cairo International Airport
     * Cairo Metro
     * CTA
     * CitiCab

Education

   Cairo has long been the hub of education and educational services not
   only for Egypt but also for the whole world. Today, Cairo is the centre
   for the government offices governing the Egyptian educational system,
   has the largest number of educational schools, and higher learning
   institutes among other cities and governorates of Egypt.

   Some of the International Schools found in Cairo include:
     * British International School in Cairo (BISC)
     * Cairo American College (CAC)
     * Collège de la Ste Famille (CSF)
     * International School of Choueifat
     * Modern English School (MES)

   Universities in Cairo:
     * Ain Shams University
     * El Shorouk Academy
     * Al-Azhar University
     * AlAhram Canadian University (ACU)
     * American University in Cairo (AUC)
     * Arab Academy for Science & Technology and Maritime Transport
     * British University in Egypt (BUE)
     * Cairo University
     * French University in Egypt
     * German University in Cairo (GUC)
     * Helwan University
     * Higher Technological Institute (HTI)
     * Misr International University (MIU)
     * Misr University for Science and Technology(MUST)
     * Modern Academy In Maadi
     * Modern University for Sciences and Technology (MSA)
     * Sadat Academy For Management Science
     * Higher Technological Institute (HTI) 10th of Ramadan City

Sports

   Cairo has a number of sporting teams that compete in national and
   regional leagues. The best known teams are Al-Zamalek and Al-Ahly,
   whose annual football Local derby is perhaps the most watched sports
   event in Egypt as well as the Africa and Arab World. Both teams are
   known as the giants of Egyptian football, and are champions in the
   African continent and the Arab World. Both teams play their home games
   at Cairo International Stadium, which is Cairo's and Egypt's largest
   stadium and one of the largest in Africa

   The Cairo International Stadium was built in 1960 and its multipurpose
   sports complex that houses the main Soccer stadium, an indoor stadium,
   several satellite fields that held several regional, continental and
   global games, including the African Games, U17 Football World
   Championship and was one of the stadiums scheduled that hosted the 2006
   African Nations Cup which was played on January, 2006, which Egypt won
   its title for the record number of five times in African Continental
   Competition's history.

   Cairo failed at the applicant stage when bidding for the 2008 Summer
   Olympic Games, which will be hosted in Beijing China. Egypt was
   unsuccessful in bidding to host the 2010 Football World Cup, which will
   be held in South Africa. However, Egypt will host the Pan-Arab Games in
   2007.

   There are several other sports teams in the city that participate in
   several sports including Al Gezeera Sporting Club, Al Shams Club,
   Shooting club, Heliopolis Club and several smaller clubs, but the
   biggest clubs in Egypt (not in area but in sports) are Al Ahly &
   Al-Zamalek. They have the two biggest football teams in Egypt.

   Most of the sports federations of the country are also located in the
   city suburbs, including the Egyptian Football Association. The
   headquarters of the Confederation of African Football(CAF) was
   previously located in Cairo, before relocating to its new headquarters
   in 6th October City.

Pollution

   Cairo is a rapidly expanding city which has lead to many environmental
   problems. There are over 2,000,000 cars on the streets of Cairo, 60% of
   which are over 10 years old, and therefore lack modern emission cutting
   features like catalytic converters. Cairo also has many unregistered
   lead and copper smelters which heavily pollute the city. The results of
   this has been a permanent haze over the city with particulate matter in
   the air reaching over three times normal levels. It is estimated that
   10,000 to 25,000 people a year in Cairo die due to air
   pollution-related diseases. It is also estimated that the high lead
   content of the air can reduce a child's IQ on average by 4 points. In
   1995, the first environmental acts were introduced and the situation
   has seen some improvement with 36 air monitoring stations and emissions
   tests on cars. 20,000 buses have also been commissioned to the city to
   improve congestion levels, which are very high.
   Average temperature and precipitation values in Cairo
   Enlarge
   Average temperature and precipitation values in Cairo

   The city also suffers from a level of land pollution. Cairo produces
   10,000 tonnes of rubbish each day, 4,000 tonnes of which is not
   collected or managed. This once again is a huge health hazard and the
   Egyptian Government is looking for ways to combat this. The Cairo
   Cleaning and Beautification Agency was founded to collect and recycle
   the rubbish; however, they also work with the Zabbaleen, a Christian
   community that has been collecting and recycling Cairo's rubbish since
   the turn of the 20th century . Both are working together to pick up as
   much rubbish as possible within the city limits, though it remains a
   pressing problem.

   The city also suffers from water pollution as the sewer system tends to
   fail and overflow. On occasion, sewage has escaped onto streets
   creating a health hazard. This problem is hoped to be solved by a new
   sewer system funded by the European Union, which could cope with the
   demand of the city. The dangerously high levels of mercury in the
   city's water system has global health officials concerned over related
   health risks.

Housing

   Cairo is facing a housing problem. The lack of satisfactory and
   affordable housing for the rapidly growing population has forced many
   poor Egyptians to make cemeteries in the city of the Dead as their
   permanent homes. Among these cemeteries live a community of Egypt’s
   urban poor, forming an illegal but tolerated, separate society. More
   than five million Egyptians live in these cemeteries, and have formed
   their own enterprises. The population of the City of the Dead is
   growing rapidly because of rural migration and its complicated housing
   crisis is getting worse.

Famous Cairenes

     * Abu Sa'id al-Afif - Fifteenth Century Samaritian
     * Boutros Boutros-Ghali, former Secretary-General of the United
       Nations
     * Mohamed ElBaradei, 2005 Nobel Peace Prize laureate
     * Ahmed Hossam, football player
     * Naguib Mahfouz, 1988 Nobel Prize laureate in literature and
       novelist
     * Omar Sharif, Academy Award-nominated actor

Districts

   Districts of Cairo

   Agouza | Abbassia | Ain Shams | Bulaq | Dokki | Downtown Cairo |
   El-Manial | El-Marg | El-Quba | El-Tagamu El Khames | Embaba | Garden
   City | Giza | Haram | Heliopolis | Islamic Cairo | Kerdasa | Maadi |
   Mataria | Mohandessin | Muqatam | Nasr City | Old Cairo | Rhoda |
   Shoubra | Shubra El Khiema | Zaitun | Zamalek

Town Twinning (Sister Cities)

     * Germany Stuttgart, Germany (since 1979)
     * Turkey Istanbul, Turkey
     * Sudan Khartoum, Sudan
     * United States New York City, USA

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cairo"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
