Faiyum Governorate ( ar, محافظة الفيوم ) is one of the

governorates of Egypt Egypt has a Centralisation, centralised system of local government officially called local administration as it is a branch of the Executive (government), Executive. The country is divided into twenty-seven governorates ( '; ; genitive case#Ara ...

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

Faiyum Faiyum ( ar, الفيوم ' , borrowed from cop, ̀Ⲫⲓⲟⲙ or Ⲫⲓⲱⲙ ' from egy, pꜣ ym "the Sea, Lake") is a city in Middle Egypt. Located southwest of Cairo, in the Faiyum Oasis, it is the capital of the modern Faiyum ...

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

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

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

Etymology

The name Faiyum comes from

Coptic Coptic may refer to: Afro-Asia * Copts, an ethnoreligious group mainly in the area of modern Egypt but also in Sudan and Libya * Coptic language, a Northern Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Egypt until at least the 17th century * Coptic alphabet ...

/ ''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 years of ...

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

Lake Moeris Lake Moeris ( grc, Μοῖρις, genitive Μοίριδος) is an ancient lake in the northwest of the Faiyum Oasis, southwest of Cairo, Egypt. In prehistory, it was a freshwater lake, with an area estimated to vary between and . It persists ...

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 July 2017 of 3,615,486. 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 ( ar, واحة الفيوم ''Waḥet El Fayyum'') is a depression or basin in the desert immediately to the west of the Nile, or just 62 miles south of Cairo in Egypt. The extent of the basin area is estimated at between 1,270 ...

, 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, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin language, Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered ...

. * 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 Egyptian Governing Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI), in affiliation with the Ministry of Investment (MOI), the following industrial zones are located in this governorate: *Kom Oshim *New Kom Oshim *Kouta *(New urban community industrial zone) New Fayoum

Notable people

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

Ahmed Fakhry Ahmed Fakhry ( ar, أحمد فخري) (born in Faiyum Governorate in 1905 – 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 ...

* Arafa El Sayed *

Fawzia Fahim Fawzia Abbas Fahim (born December 9, 1931, in Al-Fayoum, Egypt) 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 ...

Hamdi Abu Golayyel Hamdi Abu Golayyel (Arabic: حمدي أبوجليل) is an Egyptian writer. Early life He was born in 1967/68 in a Bedouin village in the Fayoum region. His ancestors arrived from Libya in the early 19th century to settle in Fayoum. Abu Golayyel ...

Pope John XVIII of Alexandria Pope John XVIII of Alexandria (Abba Youannis), 107th Pope of Alexandria & Patriarch of the See of St. Mark. Pope John XVIII was born in Fayoum, Egypt. His lay name was Joseph. He became a monk in the Monastery of Saint Anthony. At the depart ...

Magdy Atwa Magdy Atwa or Magdi Atwa ( ar, مجدي عطوة) 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 ...

Mariam Fakhr Eddine Mariam Mohamed Fakhr Eddine ( ar, مريم محمد فخر الدين , 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 nickna ...

Mohamed Abdelwahab Mohamed Abdelwahab ( ar, محمد عبد الوهاب, 1 October 1983 – 31 August 2006) was an Egyptian footballer. He played in the defensive left back position. He was an important part of the Egyptian squad that went on to win the 2006 Af ...

Mohamed Ihab Mohamed Ehab Youssef Ahmed Mahmoud (born 21 November 1989), known as Mohamed Mahmoud or Mohamed Ehab, is an Egyptian weightlifter, and World Champion competing in the 77 kg category until 2018 and 81 kg starting in 2018 after the Inter ...

Saadia Gaon Saʻadiah ben Yosef Gaon ( ar, سعيد بن يوسف الفيومي ''Saʻīd bin Yūsuf al-Fayyūmi''; he, סַעֲדְיָה בֶּן יוֹסֵף אַלְפַיּוּמִי גָּאוֹן ''Saʿăḏyāh ben Yōsēf al-Fayyūmī Gāʾōn''; ...

Sayed Abdel Hafeez Sayed Mohamed Mohamed Abdel Hafeez ( ar, سيد محمد محمد عبد الحفيظ; born 27 October 1977) is an Egyptian retired professional footballer who played as a winger. Career statistics International International Goals :''Sc ...

Sayed Moawad Sayed Moawad Mohamed Abdelwahed ( ar, سيد معوض عبد الواحد محمد; born 25 May 1979) is an Egyptian retired professional footballer who played as a left-back. Moawad represented Al Ahly in FIFA Club World Cup three times in 2008 ...

* Sabri Raheel *

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

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 ( ar, يوسف عبد الله هديب وهبي قطب) (14 July 1902 – 17 October 1982) was an Egyptian stage and film actor and director, a leading star of the 1930s and 1940s and one of the most prominent ...

* Yousef Wali *

Zakariyya Ahmad Zakariyya Ahmad ( ar, زكريا أحمد; born 1896 in Faiyum, Egypt –1961) was an Egyptian musician and composer. He mainly sang religious songs as a member of several groups from 1919 to 1929, having studied recitation of the Qur'an u ...

References

External links

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