Faiyum ( ) is one of the

governorates of Egypt Egypt is administratively organized under a dual system that may consist of either two or three tiers, with further subdivisions occasionally resulting in an additional layer. It follows a centralized system of local government, officially term ...

in the middle of the country. Its capital is the city of

Faiyum Faiyum ( ; , ) is a city in Middle Egypt. Located southwest of Cairo, in the Faiyum Oasis, it is the capital of the modern Faiyum Governorate. It is one of Egypt's oldest cities due to its strategic location. Name and etymology Originally f ...

, located about 81 mi (130 km) south west of

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

. It has a population of 3,848,708 (2020).

Etymology

The name Faiyum comes from Coptic / ''efiom/peiom'' (whence the proper name ), meaning ''the Sea'' or ''the Lake'', which in turn comes from late

Egyptian ''Egyptian'' describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of year ...

''pA y-m'' of the same meaning, a reference to the nearby

Lake Moeris Lake Moeris (, genitive Μοίριδος) was an ancient endorheic freshwater lake located in the Faiyum Oasis, southwest of Cairo, Egypt, which persists today at a fraction of its former size as the hypersaline Lake Qarun (Arabic: بركة ق� ...

Overview

The rate of poverty is more than 60% in this governorate but recently some social safety networks have been provided in the form of financial assistance and job opportunities. The funding has been coordinated by the country's Ministry of Finance and with assistance from international organizations.

Municipal divisions

The governorate is divided into the following municipal divisions for administrative purposes, with a total estimated population as of April 2025 of 4,206,852. In some instances there is a markaz and a kism with the same name.

Geography

The governorate of Faiyum includes: * The large fertile

Faiyum Oasis The Faiyum Oasis ( ''Wāḥat al-Fayyum'') is a depression or basin in the desert immediately west of the Nile river, 62 miles south of Cairo, Egypt. The extent of the basin area is estimated at between 1,270 km2 (490 mi2) and 1,700&nb ...

, which comprises farmland,

, and some cities. * South of the Faiyum Oasis, a smaller depression contains the town of El Gharaq el Sulţāni. It is also irrigated from the

Nile The Nile (also known as the Nile River or River Nile) is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa. It has historically been considered the List of river sy ...

. * A dry barren depression named

Wadi El Rayan Wadi El Rayan is a unique nature protectorate in Faiyum Governorate, Egypt, under the supervision of the Ministry of Environmental Affairs (EEAA). History Wadi el Rayan is mentioned in Coptic sources as Pilihēy (), a salt lake west of Kalam ...

, which covers 280 mi² (725 km²), west of the El Gharaq el Sulţāni depression. * Desert and dry mountains, which mostly surround the depressions.

Population

According to population estimates from 2015 the majority of residents in the governorate live in rural areas, with an urbanization rate of only 22.5%. Out of an estimated 3,170,150 people residing in the governorate, 2,456,368 people lived in rural areas and only 713,782 lived in urban areas.

Industrial zones

According to the Governing Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI), the following industrial zones are located in Faiyum:

Notable people

Aly Lotfy Mahmoud Aly Lotfy Mahmoud (; 6 October 1935 – 27 May 2018) was an Egyptian politician and prime minister. He was the minister responsible for finance from 1978 to 1980. He served as Prime Minister of Egypt A prime number (or a prime) is a natu ...

Ahmed Fakhry Ahmed Fakhry () (born in Faiyum Governorate in 1905 – Paris, 7 June 1973) was an Egyptian archaeologist who worked in the Western desert of Egypt (including in 1940 dig at El Haiz, and then at Siwa), and also in the necropolis at Dahshur. ...

Arafa El Sayed Arafa El-Sayed (; born 23 October 1988) is an Egyptian footballer who plays for Wadi Degla as a center forward. Honors Zamalek SC: * Egypt Cup The Egypt Cup (also known as the Egyptian FA Cup and formerly as the King Farouk Cup) is the main ...

Fawzia Fahim Fawzia Abbas Fahim (born 9 December 1931) is an Egyptian biochemist and environmental biologist known for her work on the anti-tumoral effects of snake venom and iodoacetate. She is currently Professor of Biochemistry at Ain Shams University, E ...

Hamdi Abu Golayyel Hamdi Abu Golayyel (; 1968 – 12 June 2023) was an Egyptian writer. The author of several novels and collections of short stories, he is known as one of the new voices in Egyptian fiction. Among other awards, he won the Banipal Prize for Arabic ...

* Pope John XVIII of Alexandria *

Magdy Atwa Magdy Atwa or Magdi Atwa () is an Egyptian football midfielder. He currently plays for Al-Sekka Al-Hadid. Career Atwa was born in Fayoum and is one of 8 siblings. He claims his lifelong dream was to play for Zamalek, which became evident when h ...

Mariam Fakhr Eddine Mariam Mohamed Fakhr Eddine (, 8 September 1933 – 3 November 2014) was an Egyptian film and television actress, and was the second wife of prominent filmmaker Mahmoud Zulfikar (1914 – 1970). She was nicknamed the "Belle of the Screen" (). Be ...

* Mohamed Abdelwahab * Mohamed Ihab *

Saadia Gaon Saʿadia ben Yosef Gaon (892–942) was a prominent rabbi, Geonim, gaon, Jews, Jewish philosopher, and exegesis, exegete who was active in the Abbasid Caliphate. Saadia is the first important rabbinic figure to write extensively in Judeo-Arabic ...

Sayed Abdel Hafeez Sayed Mohamed Mohamed Abdel Hafeez (; born 27 October 1977) is an Egyptian retired professional footballer who played as a winger. Personal life Sayed is the father of Al Ahly right-back Youssef Abdel Hafeez. Career statistics International ...

* Sayed Moawad *

Sabri Raheel Sabri El-Sayed Abdalmonteleb Mayhoub Raheel (; born on 2 October 1987) is an Egyptian professional footballer who plays as a Defender (association football)#Full-back, left-back for Egyptian Premier League side Al Ittihad Alexandria Club, Al Itt ...

Sufi Abu Taleb Sufi Abu Taleb (; January 27, 1925 – February 21, 2008) was an Egyptian politician. He served as Speaker of the People's of Assembly from 1978 to 1983 and, following the assassination of Anwar Sadat on 6 October 1981, assumed the duties of ...

Tefta Tashko-Koço Tefta Tashko-Koço (; 2 November 191022 December 1947) was an Albanian singer and soprano. She was a leading figure in the regional music industry and is considered one of the most influential personalities of the 20th century in the Albanian- ...

Youssef Wahbi Youssef Abdallah Wahbi Qotb () (14 July 1898 – 17 October 1982) was an Egyptian stage, film actor and director, a leading star of the 1930s and 1940s and one of the most prominent Egyptian stage actors of all time, who also served on the ...

* Yousef Wali * Zakariyya Ahmad

References

External links

El Wattan News of Faiyum Governorate
* {{Authority control Governorates of Egypt