Shoubra ( ar, شبرا, ;

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 ...

: '; also written Shubra or Shobra) is one of the largest districts 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 ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

and it is administratively divided into three areas:

Shubra Shoubra ( ar, شبرا, ; Coptic language, Coptic: '; also written Shubra or Shobra) is one of the largest districts of Cairo, Egypt and it is administratively divided into three areas: Shubra (administrative region), Shubra, Road El Farag, and E ...

Road El Farag Rod El Farag ( ar, روض الفرج, ; also spelled Road El Farag, Road Elfarag or Road Alfarag) is an administrative region forming about one third of Shobra in Cairo, Egypt. Rod El Farag neighbours the River Nile to the west, Boulaq to the south ...

, and

Elsahel El Sahel ( ar, الساحل ) is an administrative region forming more than half of Shubra in Cairo, Egypt. El Sahel neighbours the River Nile to the west, Rod El Farag and Shubra (administrative region) to the south, El Sharabeya to the eas ...

Etymology

Although Shoubra has been immensely large for the last few decades, the name originally derives from the

word ', which means a small village or field, as the area is well known for its rich fields that neighbour the

Nile River The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , 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 the longest rive ...

. In Egypt, there are many neighborhoods, towns and villages that bear the name of Shubra, for example, the administrative region of Shoubra that is within the large district of Shubra, both of which are not to be confused with one of

Qalyubia Qalyubia Governorate ( ar, محافظة القليوبية ' ) is one of the governorates of Egypt. Located in Lower Egypt. It is situated north of Cairo in the Nile Delta region. Its capital is Banha. Name Name of Qalubiyya governorate is driv ...

's industrial suburbs,

Shubra El-Kheima Shubra El Kheima, ( ar, شبرا الخيمة, lit=hamlet of the tent, , from ) is the fourth-largest city in Egypt after Cairo, Giza and Alexandria. It is located in the Qalyubia Governorate along the northern edge of the Cairo Governorate. It ...

. Of the less well-known areas — villages specifically — there are also several places that bear the name of Shoubra, such as the Shoubra Bekhoum village that is about 75 minutes away from Cairo. However, these areas are quite distinguishable as the word "Shoubra" has come to include only a general meaning and does not fully describe all of these regions in a literal sense.

Early history

During the rule of

Muhammad Ali of Egypt Muhammad Ali Pasha al-Mas'ud ibn Agha, also known as Muhammad Ali of Egypt and the Sudan ( sq, Mehmet Ali Pasha, ar, محمد علي باشا, ; ota, محمد علی پاشا المسعود بن آغا; ; 4 March 1769 – 2 August 1849), was ...

, Shubra was developed into a residential area after he built himself a palace in the area and extended Shubra street in 1808.

Modern Shubra

The present-day area is now heavily populated, with an estimated three million residents. Shubra has the highest concentration of Coptic Christians in Cairo. There are several churches throughout the district's neighborhoods, such as the decades-old Church of St. Mary in Massarra and St. George, El-Geushi. Shubra is served by the

Cairo Metro The Cairo Metro ( ar, مترو أنفاق القاهرة, Metro Anfāq al-Qāhirah, lit. "Cairo Tunnel Metro" or ) is the rapid transit system in Greater Cairo, Egypt. It was the first of the three full-fledged metro systems in Africa a ...

. There are a large number of mosques in Shubra. One of the most renowned mosques in Shubra is ''el Khazen Dar'' mosque, which is named after an occupation at the time of the Ottoman Empire. The palace of Muhammad Ali is the most renowned tourist attraction in Shubra, and cost more than 50 million Egyptian pounds to be restored.

Administrative regions

Due to the large population of the area of Shubra, it is divided into three administrative regions: #

Shubra (administrative region) Shubra (or Shobra, Shoubra) is an administrative region and forms a relatively small area that represents about one quarter of the district with the same name in Cairo, Egypt. It neighbours the areas of Elsahel to the north, Sharabeya to the eas ...

or Rhodhe روض : literally means garden which is in the Arabic translation of Rhodhe el farag

Notable residents

*In the 1940s and 1950s, Nazir Gayyed (before becoming

Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria Pope Shenouda III (; cop, Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ Ⲁⲃⲃⲁ Ϣⲉⲛⲟⲩϯ ⲅ̅ '; ar, بابا الإسكندرية شنودة الثالث '; 3 August 1923 – 17 March 2012) was the List of Coptic Orthodox Popes of Alexandria, 117th ...

in 1971) was notable in serving the

Coptic Orthodox The Coptic Orthodox Church ( cop, Ϯⲉⲕ̀ⲕⲗⲏⲥⲓⲁ ⲛ̀ⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ ⲛ̀ⲟⲣⲑⲟⲇⲟⲝⲟⲥ, translit=Ti.eklyseya en.remenkimi en.orthodoxos, lit=the Egyptian Orthodox Church; ar, الكنيسة القبطي� ...

communities in the district of Shubra, particularly Saint Antonious Church in Shubra. *Bishop Moussa, Bishop of Youth, attended and served the churches in Shubra before being a monk. *Bishop Raphael, General Bishop of down town Cairo, attended and served the churches in Shubra before being a monk. *Bishop Youssef, http://suscopts.org/diocese/bishop/, was also attending and serving Saint Antonious Church in Shubra, before joining St. Mary Monastery (EL-Sorian) as a monk. *Father Raphael Ava Mina (candidate of the 2012 Papacy elections) used to live in Shubra (Gezerat Badran). *The famous French-Egyptian-Italian singer

Dalida Iolanda Cristina Gigliotti (; 17 January 1933 – 3 May 1987), professionally known as Dalida, was an Italian-French singer and actress born in Egypt. She sang in eleven languages and sold millions of records internationally. Her best known son ...

was born in Shubra in 1933.DalidaFoxy Tunes
*The

ian

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...

Suad Nasr.

References

External links

Faculty of Engineering at Shoubra Community website

St Mary Coptic Orthodox Church at Massarra website
{{Authority control Districts of Cairo Coptic settlements