Owing to its location between Europe, Africa and Asia and to its occupational history, Egypt is said to have a complex identity.It is the land of the pharaohs.It is an Islamic country where Christianity has in fact been established first and in the early 20th century it was home to millions of Jews before almost all of them immigrated to Israel.21st century Egypt is an Islamic country because out of 81 million Egyptians only 9 are Christians, nevertheless Christians and Muslims live harmoniously and the culture of Egypt remains neutrally Egyptian.
Egyptians are friendly and full of warm feelings. They are hospitable, generous and easily-trusting. They always go out of their way to help others, giving Egypt its safe and cosy ambiance. In addition, most Egyptians don't expect something in return when they help others, they consider it normal to help and be helped. In Egypt, family ties are very important and so it is not customary for either a boy or a girl to move out of their parents' house unless they are married. Moreover, the majority of Egyptian parents take full responsibility for their children, even when they are adults.
More than 90% of the population of Egypt are Egyptians; a factor that gives Egyptians a sense of unity. Yet that same factor plays a role in Egyptians' conservatism. Not being exposed to many differences has made it rather difficult for the Egyptian culture to accept what is new and different. As a result, unfortunately, the Egyptian culture could be deemed narrow-minded. Yet, recently, due to globalization the culture of Egypt has been exposed to various cultures and Egyptians have started to respect and accept individuality a lot more than they have in the past.
All Arab countries speak Arabic but in Egypt the spoken and the written are very different.The correct Arabic is the classical,mainly influenced by the Qur'an and isused in any formal writing or speaking.Nevertheless,every day Arabic in Egypt is purely colloquial and is understood throughout the Arab world due to the spread of Egyptian media.
Most Egyptians are caught in the vicious circle of money and education, where it is very hard to have one without having the other, in hopes to go up the ladder of social classes.
With education being very expensive, the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer, the social classes in Egypt are further drifting apart and so leaving one nation divided into groups of people with different educational, social and financial backgrounds and prospects.
Although Arabic and common culture make Egypt a member of the middle East,its five thousand-year old history gives it a distinct identity. In fact, the past and the present of Egypt are what will always make it conspicuous. Its modern culture is a melting pot of the old and the new, it is very rich connecting all Egyptians together and is trying to hold on to its authenticity in a continuously-globalizing world.
(I wrote this in April/May 2010-before the Egyptian Revolution-I think I'm going to write another post-revolution)
Egyptians are friendly and full of warm feelings. They are hospitable, generous and easily-trusting. They always go out of their way to help others, giving Egypt its safe and cosy ambiance. In addition, most Egyptians don't expect something in return when they help others, they consider it normal to help and be helped. In Egypt, family ties are very important and so it is not customary for either a boy or a girl to move out of their parents' house unless they are married. Moreover, the majority of Egyptian parents take full responsibility for their children, even when they are adults.
More than 90% of the population of Egypt are Egyptians; a factor that gives Egyptians a sense of unity. Yet that same factor plays a role in Egyptians' conservatism. Not being exposed to many differences has made it rather difficult for the Egyptian culture to accept what is new and different. As a result, unfortunately, the Egyptian culture could be deemed narrow-minded. Yet, recently, due to globalization the culture of Egypt has been exposed to various cultures and Egyptians have started to respect and accept individuality a lot more than they have in the past.
All Arab countries speak Arabic but in Egypt the spoken and the written are very different.The correct Arabic is the classical,mainly influenced by the Qur'an and isused in any formal writing or speaking.Nevertheless,every day Arabic in Egypt is purely colloquial and is understood throughout the Arab world due to the spread of Egyptian media.
Most Egyptians are caught in the vicious circle of money and education, where it is very hard to have one without having the other, in hopes to go up the ladder of social classes.
With education being very expensive, the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer, the social classes in Egypt are further drifting apart and so leaving one nation divided into groups of people with different educational, social and financial backgrounds and prospects.
Although Arabic and common culture make Egypt a member of the middle East,its five thousand-year old history gives it a distinct identity. In fact, the past and the present of Egypt are what will always make it conspicuous. Its modern culture is a melting pot of the old and the new, it is very rich connecting all Egyptians together and is trying to hold on to its authenticity in a continuously-globalizing world.
(I wrote this in April/May 2010-before the Egyptian Revolution-I think I'm going to write another post-revolution)
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