Egypt People and Culture

By Andrew Muigai

By far, the majority of the people of Egypt are of Eastern Hamitic stock. Nubians, whose homeland is in the south of the country, Greeks, Armenians other Europeans represent the remainder. Though somewhat simplistic, four cultural groups can be delineated - Egyptian peasants or fellahin, Copts, Bedouins and Nubians. Fellahin is a rather dated classification as the majority of such people have immigrated to cities and transformed themselves. The traditional fellahin can however still be found in rural areas eking out a living from the land as they have done from the days of the Pharaohs. Copts are Christian adherents of the Eastern Orthodox Church. But they are of the same race and culture as other Egyptians.

Bedouins are a nomadic people who search the deserts for grazing and water for their camels and other livestock. Nobody really knows the desert more than the Bedouin. They know where to find water and get around by navigating by the stars. Like all nomads, they live a free and hardy lifestyle, and consider the sedentary ways of their compatriots as lacking in grace and dignity. But they also realize the advantages of a settled life and they have increasingly responded to efforts to ground them and give their children an education.

The Nubian are a dark skinned people whose ancestral land is to the south of Aswan. They have little relationship, cultural or genetic with other dark skinned Africans. Back in the days of the Pharaohs, they served very well in the military. In more recent times, they farmed the banks of the Nile River. Their lands have been mostly been inundated by the raising of the Aswan High Dam. Most Nubians have now migrated to towns and their lifestyle has changed.

Islam is the single most important influence on culture in Egypt. And this applies even for non-adherents like Coptic Christians. Perhaps for this reason, crime is virtually nonexistent. The society is conservative, especially on issues related to women. Women are expected to be modest in dress and manner- no flimsy attire or loud talking and laughing, for example. The men are very happy with their position in this patriarchal society. The people are generally friendly, hospitable and very accommodating especially towards visitors. But visitors need to keep their religion to themselves- proselytizing is illegal here.

The Lingua Franca is Arabic. But there are two versions- classical Arabic, the language of the Koran and the colloquial Arabic used in the street. English and French are widely used for business and by educated urbanites. In terms of culture, is important in the Arab world. And books, movies, music and TV programs produced here are popular throughout the Arabic speaking nations of the Middle East. The prolific Naguib Mahfouz gained worldwide fame and prestige when he won the literature Nobel Prize in 1998 for his book “The Cairo Trilogy”. His works are however not very popular with religious radicals and an attempt was made in 1995 to rub him out.

Egyptian cuisine is to the best tradition of Middle East cooking. You are advised to try local specialties such as roast pigeon, grilled aubergines, kebabs and chickpeas. The hotels in the tourist areas serve cosmopolitan fare. Though this is a Muslim country, imbibers of alcohol will not go thirsty. Beers, wines and other drinks are available in bars and restaurants, especially at hotels catering for tourists. But you should defer to local sensitivities and avoid drinking in daylight hours in the month of Ramadan.

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Ancient Egypt Culture