Culture and History- Exploring Egypt

Culture and History in Egypt – What Comes to your mind ?

What comes to mind immediately when you hear the word “Egypt”? Maybe “pyramids,” “pharaohs,” and “diving vacations in Hurghada?

Culture and History – The Meaning of Egyptian Culture

In school, we naturally learn about Egypt Culture, and how Egypt is closely associated with the concept of culture overall. “Egypt culture” – what does it mean?

Defining Culture: A Personal Perspective

But what exactly is culture? Essentially, it includes everything created and shaped by humans. This encompasses how people live together and express themselves in diverse ways worldwide.

Culture: A Subjective Experience

Culture can be defined academically, but its personal experience and meaning are deeply subjective. Understanding what culture means to oneself often becomes clearer when encountering other cultures—adapting to different cultural norms and interacting with people whose lifestyles differ from one’s own prompts questions like: What is my culture? What does it mean to me? Has my culture changed due to new places or encounters?

Culture and History: My First Visit to Egypt

Reflecting on my first visit to Egypt in 2009, intending to stay for a year but ultimately staying indefinitely, I noticed significant differences compared to Western cities, particularly in Cairo. Egyptians thrive in communal settings, finding comfort even in crowded spaces, where the constant background noise is essential.

Cultural Contrasts: Egypt vs. Germany

For instance, Egyptian friends found Germany too quiet to sleep in during visits, highlighting their preference for a livelier environment. In contrast, I consider myself an individualist, valuing time and space for personal solitude. Privacy provides me with a sense of security, which contrasts sharply with the Egyptian cultural norm of closely monitoring family members’ lives.

The Importance of Understanding Culture

This diversity in cultural values underscores the importance of history and culture in understanding different lands and peoples. Cultural experiences in Egypt are diverse.

UNESCO and Egypt’s Cultural Heritage

Recognizing the significance of cultural heritage, organizations like UNESCO strive to protect both tangible and intangible aspects worldwide. Egypt, with its seven UNESCO World Heritage sites—including Wadi El Hitan, Abu Simbel, Philae, Islamic Cairo, and St. Catherine’s Monastery in Sinai—is a testament to its rich cultural legacy.

The Depth of Egypt’s Cultural History

Egypt Culture, the culture that emerged from the desert, boasts the ancient Pharaonic civilization as a precursor to Western civilizations. Archaeologists initially sought the roots of this high culture in the Mediterranean and the Near East, but evidence in the sands of southern Egypt and northern Sudan reveals the tools, jewelry, and pottery of civilizations predating those along the Nile.

Culture and History: Egypt’s Ancient Societies

These societies thrived in the Sahara when it was a lush, lake-filled landscape some 10,000 years ago, fostered by warm monsoon rains. Thus, Egypt’s cultural depth spans millennia and continents, reflecting a complex tapestry of human history and adaptation to diverse environments.

Culture and History: Historical Tours in Egypt (Beyond the Mainstream)

The Rosetta Stone: A Gateway to Understanding

Culture and History: Did you know about Egypt Culture and the famous Rosetta Stone?
As with so many things, also concerning communication there are traces leading into the history of Egypt.

Discovery of the Rosetta Stone

In 1799, the famous “Rosetta Stone” was discovered in the little town called “Rosetta” known also as “Rashid” – a granite stele with texts incised in three languages, which made a major contribution to deciphering the hieroglyphs, a script made up of small pictures that was used originally in ancient Egypt for religious texts.

Rosetta: A Hub of Islamic Architecture

Rosetta – a port city of the Nile Delta, 65 km east of Alexandria – is considered a large open-air museum for Islamic architecture. The great number of Islamic monuments found here does not exist in any other city, except for Cairo.

The Rosetta Stone’s Historical Significance

The Rosetta Stone, a symbol for different things to different people, is a dark-colored granodiorite stela inscribed with the same text in three scripts – Demotic, hieroglyphic, and Greek. In July 1799, the stone was found in the city of Rosetta (modern el Rashid) by French soldiers during Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt.

The Impact of the Rosetta Stone on Egyptology

Since soldiers in Napoleon’s army discovered the Rosetta Stone in 1799 while digging the foundations of an addition to a fort near the town of el-Rashid (Rosetta). On Napoleon’s defeat, the stone became the property of the British under the terms of the Treaty of Alexandria (1801) along with other antiquities that the French had found.

Culture and History: The Importance of History in Understanding Peace

History teaches us also, that unfortunately it does not seem possible to have a world lasting peace. Suddenly we find ourselves in the middle of controversial parties; wars have shaped history. It seems all the more important to try to understand history in order to be able to face the future in peace.

El Alamein: A City Steeped in History 

One such piece of earth steeped in history is the city of El Alamein.
I talked to a nomad – here is his perspective:

A Nomad’s Perspective on El Alamein

“People call it a barren desert, but we call the land of my grandfathers and parents our country. I grew up here and moved around with my flock of sheep and goats. There was enough to eat and there were fig trees as far as the eye could see. The rain filled our cisterns and life was quiet and peaceful.

The Arrival of Modernity in El Alamein

One day, workers came and built a railway embankment. A little later one of these iron monsters drove through our country with a deafening noise. In addition, stations were built at equal distances all along the railway, which they called train stations.

The Impact of War on El Alamein

A station was also built on our land which was called “El Alamein”. After a few years strangers came, they were said to be soldiers who didn’t speak our language. But we understood that we had to leave our country because it was war now and our country the front line, whatever that meant. I no longer understood the world!

The Aftermath of War

We left and for months strangers killed each other and with all sorts of modern military equipment they left craters and corpses everywhere. One day, they were gone, leaving behind holes and bent tanks, vehicles, and possibly rubbish.

El Alamein Today

In the years that followed, other strangers came back and buried their dead and built memorials and cemeteries. Once a year in autumn the strangers come back and celebrate what they call a reconciliation. For us, life went back to normal as it always does one day.”

 Culture and History: Today Desert plants surround El Alamein War Cemetery’s headstones. Just outside town, the German War Memorial is a fortress-like structure with a central obelisk, built over a mass grave. The Italian War Memorial is a tower inscribed inside with names of the dead.

The Meaning of El Alamein

The meaning of El Alamein is “Two Words”, or “Two Flags”, it was the turning point of the North African Campaign – but also the homeland of local nomads. Remembering a war always means a memorial for peace! Egyptian cultural tours are sometimes eye-openers.

Recipe for Happiness Recipe for happiness:
A pinch of patience
A knife tip of goodness
A spoon full of joy
And a bunch of love!

Culture and History: Cultural Experiences in Egypt

Wadi El Hitan: The Valley of the Whales

Always worth a visit – a wonderful desert landscape including the cultural heritage of the valley of the Whales, Wadi El Hitan, the so-called Valley of the Whales. It is a paleontological site in the Fayum Governorate of Egypt, some 150 kilometers southwest of Cairo. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2005 for its hundreds of fossils of some of the earliest forms of whale, the archaeoceti.

Culture and History: Exploring the Valley’s Heritage

The new museum at the entrance will provide you with additional information about the evolution of the surrounding valley and the whales that used to live there.
Egypt Culture – The walk through the remains of the sea-world in the middle of the desert is a “must see” in Egypt.

Culture and History: A Unique Boat Trip on Lake Nasser

A Unique boat trip with „Dabuka Blue” on Lake Nasser
Aswan boasts stunning Nile Valley scenery, significant archaeological sites, and a peaceful aura. With warm weather year-round, it is a perfect winter destination for travelers seeking to escape the cold. Dabukas Aswan to Abu Simbel tour offers an immersive and unique experience that helps explore Egypt’s Culture and history and breathtaking landscapes.

Exploring Aswan’s Rich History

Culture and History: Immerse yourself in Aswan’s rich history and culture. This tour brings you closer to spectacular destinations and offers a personalized travel experience. Aswan hosts the majestic Philae Temple, the Unfinished Obelisk, and the Aswan High Dam, each telling its own story of ancient Egypt’s grandeur.

Personalized Travel Experience

Your journey begins with an individual boat tour designed to nourish both mind and soul. Picture sunrises and sunsets over the tranquil waters of the Nile, quiet gliding without noise or haste, and short stops for walks on land to explore hidden gems. Our small group sizes ensure a more intimate experience, with a dedicated crew ready to pamper you.