- Capital: Cairo
- Official Language: Arabic
- Government: Republic
- Legislative Authority: People’s Assembly
- Establishment: 3200 BC
- The National Day: 23 July
- Population: 97,041,072 (July 2017 est.)
- Time Zone: (UTC + 2)
- Currency: Egyptian Pound (to view the exchange rate please click here)
Administrative Division: The Arab Republic of Egypt is administratively divided into 27 governorates. The governorates are either completely urban, or a blend of urban and rural areas.
Cities and Ports: With over 95 million citizens, Egypt is the most populous country in North Africa and the Arab world, the third-most populous in Africa (after Nigeria and Ethiopia), and the fifteenth-most populous in the world. About half of Egypt’s residents live in urban areas, with most spread across the densely populated centres of greater Cairo, Alexandria and other major port cities in the Nile Delta, including Damietta, Suez and Port Said.
National Anthem: “Bilady, laki hubbi wa fu’adi (“My homeland, you have my love and my heart”; Arabic: بلادي لك حبي و فؤادي) – or simply “Bilady, Bilady” – is the national anthem of Egypt. The melody was composed by Sayed Darwish (1892–1923) and was adopted in 1979. Egypt adopted the anthem in 1979. (Click here to listen to the National Anthem)
The Flag: The flag of Egypt consists of three equal horizontal red, white and black bands of the Arab Liberation flag dating back to the Egyptian Revolution of 1952. The flag bears Egypt’s national emblem, the gold Eagle of Saladin, in the center white band with a shield superimposed on its chest above a scroll. It was adopted on October 4, 1984.
National Holidays and Religious Events:
Official Islamic holidays (Hijri Calendar):
- Islamic New Year: 1st of Muharram
- Birth of Prophet Muhammed: 12th of Rabi’ al-Awal
- Eid al-Fitr: on 1st of Shawwal
- The Day of `Arafah: 9th of Zul Hijjah
- Eid al-Adha: 10th of Zul Hijjah
Other Public Holidays:
- 25 April: Sinai Liberation Day – Celebrates the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Sinai Peninsula in 1982
- 23 July: National Day of Egypt – Celebrates the Revolution of 1952
- 6 October: Armed Forces Day – Celebrates Egypt’s victory in the October War
- 7 January: Coptic Christmas
- 25 January: Revolution Day – Celebrates the beginning of the Egyptian revolution of 2011
- 25 January: National Police Day