Imbaba ( ', ) is a working-class neighbourhood in northern

Giza Giza (; sometimes spelled ''Gizah, Gizeh, Geeza, Jiza''; , , ' ) is the third-largest city in Egypt by area after Cairo and Alexandria; and fourth-largest city in Africa by population after Kinshasa, Lagos, and Cairo. It is the capital of ...

, Egypt, located west of 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 ...

and northwest of and near

Gezira Island Gezira is an island in the Nile, in central Cairo, Egypt. The southern portion of the island contains the Gezira district, and the northern third contains the Zamalek district. Gezira is west of downtown Cairo and Tahrir Square, connected acr ...

and

downtown Cairo Downtown Cairo ( "middle of town") is the colloquial name given to the 19th-century western expansion of Egypt's capital Cairo, between the historic medieval Cairo, and the Nile, which became the commercial center of the city during the 20th c ...

, within the

Giza Governorate Giza ( ') is one of the Subdivisions of Egypt#Governorates, governorates of Egypt. It is in the center of the country, situated mostly on the west bank of the Nile River opposite Cairo. Its capital is the city of Giza. It includes a stretch of ...

. The district is located in the historic upper

Nile Delta The Nile Delta (, or simply , ) is the River delta, delta formed in Lower Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the world's larger deltas—from Alexandria in the west to Port Said in the eas ...

, and is part of the

Greater Cairo The Greater Cairo () is a metropolitan area centered around Cairo, Egypt. It comprises the entirety of the Cairo Governorate, the cities of Imbaba and Giza in the Giza Governorate, and the city Shubra El Kheima in Qalyubia Governorate. Its def ...

metropolitan area. Imbaba is the most densely populated city subdivision in the world. Imbaba is also the name of an adjacent

administrative centre An administrative centre is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune, is located. In countries with French as the administrative language, such as Belgi ...

() in rural Giza Governorate, which has 18 villages in its jurisdiction.

Etymology

The origin of the name Imbaba is not certain. Some sources claim that it comes from the Amharic word for African fan palm () and that the area was called so by

Ethiopian Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...

camel merchants and herders to describe the place where they met to do business. However, the fan palm does not grow in Egypt and older versions of the name that do not correspond to the Amharic word are attested – ''Nababa'' () and ''Ambuba'' ().

History

For centuries Imbaba was the final destination for camels brought from as far as

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

and the

Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...

, to be sold in the village's Friday market. The market still exists, but is no longer as important as it was up to the turn of the 20th Century due to increasing urbanisation. A map created by the General Authority for Physical Planning in 2012, shows details of areas within Imbaba which were unplanned, and that at the time, were considered unsafe. Imbaba is densely populated. Pigeon breeding is a favorite activity of some of the neighborhood residents with access to rooftops.

Battle of the Pyramids

The Battle of the Pyramids, also known as the Battle of Embabeh, was a battle fought on July 21, 1798, between the French army in Egypt under

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, and local

Mamluk Mamluk or Mamaluk (; (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural); translated as "one who is owned", meaning "slave") were non-Arab, ethnically diverse (mostly Turkic, Caucasian, Eastern and Southeastern European) enslaved mercenaries, slave-so ...

forces. It occurred during France's Egyptian Campaign and was the battle where Napoleon put into use one of his significant contributions to tactics, the massive divisional square. Napoleon named the battle after the Egyptian pyramids, although they were only faintly visible on the horizon when the battle took place.

Siege of Imbaba

In late 1992, the "Islamic Group" ( ''al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya'') expanded its influence in parts of Imbaba. In November, the group purportedly announced the establishment of the "Emirate of Imbaba" (some accounts claim that foreign news media coined the term, not the group itself). This challenge to the sovereignty of the Egyptian state triggered the siege of Imbaba, beginning on December 8. In its course, the government deployed over 12,000 police and state Security forces, along with one hundred personnel carriers and bulldozers, all of which put an end to the Emirate.

Imbaba's districts

* Madinat Al-Umal * Bashtil * Madinat Al-Tahrir * Al-Muniera * Ard Al-Gameya

Notable people

Ali El Haggar Ali El Haggar (, born on 4 April 1954 in Imbaba, Giza), he is an Egyptian singer, artist, composer, and actor. Collaborations El-Haggar works with famous composers and lyricists as well as with other singers in duets whenever possible. "In due ...

– singer * Mohamed Henedi – actor * Ibrahim Youssef – soccer player * Ismail Youssef – soccer player * Mohamed Esmat – Aviation Industry

References

External links

"Few Focus on Religion in One Cairo Neighborhood" by Anthony Shadid
''New York Times'' February 15, 2011. {{Egyptian Cities Populated places in Giza Governorate Districts of Greater Cairo Districts of Giza