Culture

People
Population: 72,062,000 ( about 95% of Egyptians living along the Nile)
The Nile Valley is one of the world's most densely populated areas.
Most Egyptians are Muslim Arabs, but there is a sizeable Coptic Christian population of seven million. Main Languages: Arabic, English, and French

Events

Ras as-Sana – The celebration of the Islamic New Year

Moulid an-Nabi – The celebration of the prophet Mohammed's birthday; occurs around May.
     These two celebrations include:
          Parades in the city streets
          Feast
          Drummers
          Special sweets

Ramadan – An event where the faithful take neither food nor water until after sunset each day. It occurs during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar (around November), this is when the Quran was revealed to Mohammed. At the end the fasting breaks and there is a large celebration.

Eid al-Adha – This is the time of the pilgrimage to Mecca. Each Muslim is expected to make this pilgrimage at least once in a lifetime. During this time the streets are decorated with colored lights and children play in their best clothes. Mahmal is a ritual preformed in each village and passing pilgrims are given carpets and shrouds to take on the journey; occurs around February.