|
|
The Fayoum city
|
|
|
Fayoum Governorate is one of the governorates of Egypt and its capital is Fayoum City. It represents the largest natural oasis in Egypt. The governorate is located in the northern Upper Egypt region, which includes three governorates: Fayoum, Beni Suef, and Minya. It is located in the middle of the governorates of Central Egypt: Giza, Beni Suef, and Minya. The desert surrounds the governorate from all sides except for its southeast, which connects to Beni Suef Governorate. Fayoum is famous for having many natural sites, the most famous of which are Lake Qarun Reserve, Wadi El Rayan Reserve, and Wadi El Hitan, which is registered as a World Heritage Site, in addition to its moderate climate and its location close to the Egyptian capital, Cairo. It also has a variety of Pharaonic, Roman, Coptic, and Islamic monuments, which qualified it to be one of Egypt's tourist attractions. The governorate celebrates its national holiday on March 15th every year, commemorating the stand of the Fayoum people against the British occupation of the 1919 revolution led by Hamad Pasha Al-Basil
The origin of the name
The name Fayoum is derived from the ancient Egyptian name (Pa-yuum) or (Pa-yom) which means sea or lake, and it was given this name in reference to Lake Maurice. Fayoum was formerly called (Chdat or Chedit) which means island; because it was located inside Lake Maurice. Religiously, Fayoum was called (Per Sebek) which means the house of the crocodile; as the people of Fayoum used to worship the crocodile in the past, and the Romans also called it (Crocodilopolis) which means the city of the crocodile for the same reason. Then Ptolemy II Philadeph named Fayoum (Arsinoe) after his wife.
Then he called it Bayyum which means the base of the country of the lake, and it means the sea or lake or sea, and from Bayyum the Arabs took the word Fayoum and added the definite article to it, so Fayoum became its Arabic name.
Another opinion says that its name came in the Pharaonic era as "Biyum" meaning lake or water, then it was mentioned in the Coptic era as "Fayoum" and with the spread of Arabic, the definite article was added to it, so Fayoum became its Arabic name. The governorate is called "Little Egypt" due to what it represents as a miniature geographical image of the Egyptian country, as the Bahr Yusuf is similar to Fayoum's Nile River for Egypt, and Lake Qarun is similar to its northern coast, as it represents the Mediterranean Sea for Egypt.
The population of the governorate in 2024 was about 4,115,608 people.
Fayoum society is characterized by its diverse cultural features, and is divided into a Bedouin society and a rural society, each with its own traditions, customs and culture.
The entrance to Fayoum city is located in the Obelisk Square, where stands the obelisk of King Senusret I, which was originally located in the village of Abgig, south of Fayoum, and which was erected about 4,000 years ago. Downtown Fayoum is considered the commercial center of the governorate, where Qarun Square is located on the Bahr Youssef, which includes the famous Fayoum waterwheels and the Fayoum Culture Palace building with its unique architectural style, as it is an engineering masterpiece designed in the shape of an inverted pyramid. Fayoum city is witnessing a boom and educational renaissance at various levels (university and pre-university education) and it includes Fayoum University, which includes 21 colleges and institutes, representing a scientific edifice and a leading research center.
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |