Major Facts about Egypt - Essay Example

Egypt Geography of Egypt Egypt is located in Northern Africa and is bounded by the Mediterranean Sea on the North and by the Red Sea on the East. It covers a very large area and it latitude and longitude ranges from 22°N to 31°N and 25°E and 35°E. Its neighboring countries include Libya in the West, Israel and Gaza Strip in the East, and Sudan in the South. Egypt covers a total area of 1,001,449 km2 and is double the size of France in terms of area (“Geography of Egypt”, n.pag.). Egypt possesses a long coastline around the Mediterranean Sea, Gulf of Suez, Red Sea, and Gulf of Aqaba (“Geography of Egypt”, n.pag.). The country has twenty six provinces, also known as governorates, among which the most prominent ones include the city provinces of Alexandria, Cairo, Port Said, and Suez. Furthermore there are several other governorates in the Upper Region and Lower Region of Egypt. Egypt essentially ahs a large area covered by deserts. Due to the arid and desert-like climate, a very small percentage of the total area of the land is fit for agriculture thus only a small fraction of land is cultivable. Due to the naturally unique location of the Suez Canal which provides a very short route to the East, Egypt benefits from the short trade link it provides thereby incurring lower transportation costs. Also, its presence in the North East of Africa having two seas, Mediterranean Sea and Red Sea, provides a favorable coastline to the country for easier trade and shipping. Fig. 1. Political Map of Egypt. [Map] n.d. Geology. Web. 11 Dec 2013. The main physical regions of Egypt are divided into four parts consisting of the Nile Valley and Delta, the Libyan Desert, the Eastern Desert, and the Sinai Peninsula (Fig. 2). River Nile is the longest river of the world and its Valley and Delta are perhaps the most important regions to the country surrounded by areas of arable land. River Nile is an important source for fish and the area surrounding the river provides sustenance for majority of the Egyptian population. Nile Valley occupies a region which is known as the Upper Egypt whereas the Nile Delta occupies a place which comes under Lower Egypt. These two regions are of significant importance for Egypt as they make the surrounding area fit for agriculture and farming. Fig. 1. Physical Map of Egypt. [Map] n.d. Free World Maps. Web. 11 Dec 2013. Without the presence of River Nile, the vast area of land in Egypt would have been dominated by the Sahara Desert. The Nile Valley and Nile Delta have been a result of the flow of River Nile in the region. River Nile has three man sources which originate from the Central African sources: White Nile, Blue Nile, and Atbara. White Nile, which emerges from Uganda, contributes about twenty eight percent of River Nile’s water. Blue Nile originates from Ethiopia and contributes the largest amount to River Nile’s waters which accounts for about fifty eight percent. And the Atbara River starts in Ethiopia and supplies about fourteen percent of River Nile’s waters. Thus, River Nile receives water from all these sources which contribute a significant percent of the water during high seasons. The high volume of water in River Nile deposit silt and other minerals as Nile spreads out into a delta. Today, River Nile only has two branches called Damietta and Rosetta. A number of irrigation canals connect from these branches so as to provide water for the irrigation and farming of arable lands. Thus the silt deposited by the river and the water provided is important for farming and agriculture in the area as it supports almost the entire population of Egypt. The Art Art, music, and culture evolved greatly in Egypt particularly after the fall of the former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Egypt has also been a central place for the recording of Arabic music and Egyptian music derives greatly from Arabic music. In particular, the music reflects Arabic and Islamic influences. There are various genres of Egyptian music and they are enjoyed by different classes of the Egyptian society. While traditional classical music is heard mostly by the upper classes, Shaabi or popular music is heard by mostly the working classes (“Egyptian Popular Music”, n.pag.). A new genre of music, electro-shaabi has evolved from Shaabi music which mixes digitally produced music with Shaabi music. Famous electro-shaabi Disk Jockeys and artists include DJ Amr 7a7a (pronounced Ha Ha), Figo, Alaa Fifty Cent, and Al-Sadat (El-Saket, n.pag.). The genre is soon gaining popularity as its artists spread the culture in traditional settings of concerts as well as in formal settings such as weddings. Timeline 1859-69: Building of the Suez Canal The Suez Canal which is 163 kilometers long is an important canal which connects the Gulf of Suez with the Mediterranean Sea and provides a short route for the transportation of goods vie sea route. The construction of Suez Canal has a long history however the most formal work on the Suez Canal started in 1859 and the Suez Canal was officially opened in 1869. The Suez Canal was an important development as it provided the shortest link to the East for trade and other transportation purposes. 1922: Independence of Egypt The Independence of Egypt took place after World War I when a war was decared on the Ottoman Empire by the British. During this time, the British appointed Husayn Kamil as the sultan and although Egypt did not take part in the war in terms of army, it was severely affected. Husayn Kamil was then succeeded by Ahmad Fuad who later became the King Fuad I and declared independence (“Egypt”, n.pag.). 1928: Muslim Brotherhood was founded The Muslim Brotherhood was created by Hassan al-Banna as an Islamic socio-political movement in 1928. The Muslim Brotherhood proved to be an important force in voicing against British rule in Egypt and was a key opposition force in the country. 1948: Israel as attacked by Egypt, Iraq, Jordan and Syria In 1948, a combined assault was carried out on Israel by the Arab countries of Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, and Syria. During the war thousands of refugees were displaced from Palestine and thousands of Jews residing in Arab countries immigrated to Israel. This attack was considered as the second attempt in the Palestinian War to reclaim Palestinian areas. 1953: Declaration of Egypt as a Republic In 1953, Egypt was declared a republic and Muhammad Najib became the President in a military coup. The declaration of The Republic of Egypt immediately followed the Egyptian Revolution of 1952. Egypt remained as a republic until 1958 when it decided to unite with Syria. 1954: The signing of the Evacuation Treaty The signing of the Evacuation Treaty in 1954 finally resulted in the British withdrawal from Egypt. The withdrawal started in 1936 and in 1954 the signing of the treaty resulted in the final evacuation of the British from Egypt. 1956 (July): Nationalization of the Suez Canal The Prime Minister, Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal. The nationalization was done in order to raise funds to finance the Aswan High Dam. However, the nationalization was not approved by major countries. 1956 (October): Invasion of Egypt Egypt was invaded by France, Britain, and Israel following the nationalization of the Suez Canal. The nationalization was seen as an act which would control the trade via Suez Canal. However, a month later a ceasefire caused the retreat of Britain, France, and Israel. 1973 October: War with Israel along with Syria Egypt and Syria went to war with Israel as it celebrated the ceremony of Yom Kippur. The war was meant to reclaim the lost land, including the region of Sinai, during the war in 1967. Negotiations began that demanded the return of Sinai region back to Egypt. 1975 (June): The Suez Canal is re-opened. It had been closed since the 1967 war. The Suez Canal was reopened on June 1975. After the war of 1967 with Israel, the Suez Canal had been closed which was reopened in 1975. This marked the beginning of a profitable trade route for Egypt. Egyptian Revolution The role of social media and technology has been significant in organizing and coordinating collective action during Egyptian Revolution of 2011 resulting in the fall of the Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarak (Eltantawy and Wiest, 1207). Social media has played a vital role in providing the people with a platform to plan and coordinate collective action against the former government under the ex-President Hosni Mubarak. The Egyptian Revolution is recognized as a highly organized and critical social and political movement which involved massive support from the public. Public involvement in the movement was also immense and a large amount of support was gathered through internet and social media. By means of mass protests and occupation of streets in Egypt, the 30 year dictatorial rule under Hosni Mubarak was brought to an end. Egypt had been under great control by the government which restricted the media and prevented the freedom of speech. Protests were inhibited by the government which prevented action and voice by the government. Social media provided a central platform for the public to communicate and organize collective action. The main advantage of the internet as a tool was its ability to quickly disseminate the information to a large audience. The protests and occupations were so effective that they lead to the resignation of the President Hosni Mubarak who had held office for 30 years. Post-Revolutionary Egypt The use of social media allowed the public to overthrow the former President Hosni Mubarak as Egyptian citizens used it as a tool for collective action. However, the citizens are not the only ones to use the social media to express their opinions. The government is also using the medium as a channel to propagandize the counter-revolutionary notions. Among the government body using the social media for propaganda purposes, SCAF (Supreme Council of the Armed Forces) remains the prominent player (El-Khalili, n.pag.). In order to bridge the gap between the government and the Egyptian youth, SCAF made an effort by creating a Facebook page as well as a Twitter handle. In this way, it aimed at dedicating the pages to the revolution. However, the online presence of the SCAF may have deeper purposes than just celebrating the revolution and connecting with Egyptian youth. Although it apparently seemed like an attempt to communicate with the youth, the SCAF is also involved in counter-revolutionary propaganda (El-Khalili, n.pag.). Thus, the aim of the propaganda is to acquire the cooperation of neutral individuals so as to demotivate them from undesired actions thereby inhibiting pro-revolutionary drives. Works Cited El-Khalili, Sara. "Social media as a government propaganda tool in post-revolutionary Egypt." First Monday [Online], 18.3 (2013): n. pag. Web. 11 Dec. 2013 Eltantawy, Nahed and Julie B Wiest. "Social media in the Egyptian revolution: Reconsidering resource mobilization theory." International Journal of Communication, 5. (2011): 1207-1224. Print. "Egyptian popular music." Foot Print Travel Guides, 2013. Web. 11 Dec 2013. . "Egypt: World War I and independence." Encyclopedia Britannica, 2013. Web. 11 Dec 2013. . "Geography of Egypt." Princeton, 2013. Web. 11 Dec 2013. . "The Shaabi music breakthrough." Egypt Independent, 2011. Web. 11 Dec 2013. . Read More