Cairo Tourist Information

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Cairo Tourist Information

"Cairo (Arabic: القاهرة‎ al-Qāhira, literally "The Victorious") is the capital of Egypt, and the third largest city in Africa, and the Arab World, as well as one of the most densely-populated cities in the world.  Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a center of the region's political and cultural life. Even before Cairo was established in the tenth century, the land composing the present-day city was the site of national capitals whose remnants remain visible in parts of Old Cairo. Cairo is also associated with Ancient Egypt due to its proximity to the Great Sphinx and the pyramids in adjacent Giza.
Egyptians today often refer to Cairo as Maṣr (Arabic: مصر‎), the Egyptian Arabic pronunciation of the name for Egypt itself, emphasizing the city's continued role in Egyptian influence. Cairo has the oldest and largest film and music industries in the Arab World, as well as the world's second-oldest institution of higher learning, al-Azhar University. Many international media, businesses, and organizations have regional headquarters in the city, and the Arab League has been based in Cairo for most of its existence.
With a population of 6.8 million spread over 214 square kilometers (83 sq mi), Cairo is by far the largest city in Egypt. With an additional ten million inhabitants just outside the city, Cairo resides at the center of the largest metropolitan area in Africa and the eleventh-largest urban area in the world. Cairo, like many large cities in developing countries, suffers from high levels of pollution and traffic, but its metro – currently the only on the African continent – also ranks among the fifteen busiest in the world, with over 700 million passenger rides annually.
The name Al-Qahirah has been said to mean "the Subduer", and is often translated as "the Victorious". The origin of Al-Qahirah is said to come from the appearance of the planet Mars during the foundation of the City of Cairo. The planet Mars, which in Greek was called Ares, was associated with ruin or destruction and was called Al Najm Al Qahir in Arabic. Al Najm Al Qahir is transliterated as "the destroyer star [planet]". The legacy of the name evolved into “Qahirat Al Adaa” meaning “the subduer of the enemies”. This title was given to the city as many armies were destroyed in attempts to invade Cairo or defeated elsewhere by troops sent from the settlement.
The Arabic word "qa'id" means commander of the castle or fortress. "Alqaida" means base or camp. The root of these words is seen in the Romanized Arabic word "qa'ad", which means to live, dwell, or sit, which in Swahili is "kaa". This connection is questionable, however, because the Arabic roots 'qaf-alif-dal', meaning "to lead" (and from whence comes the word "qa'id", meaning "commander, and 'qaf-'ayin'-dal", meaning "to sit" (hence qa'ida - base) are not related, despite their similar appearance in English. "Qa" corresponds to the Latin word "cola" meaning seat [tail] and cultivated land. The prefix of Cairo may also mean the landing or the quay, the small hill by the river, that serves as a wharf. In Swahili, "harabu" means to ruin or destroy, and the Persian word "karo" means army or the camp of an army."

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