Egypt
African Country
Festivals and Holidays of Egypt
This are the festivals:
Wepet Renpet Ancient Egyptians celebrated the new year with a festival called Wepet Renpet, or "opening of the year." The Egyptian New Year was not celebrated on an exact date because it corresponded with the Nile River's annual flooding. This typically occurred during the month of July. This event was significant to ancient Egyptians because it ensured the fertility of the farmlands for the following year. Wepet Renpet was celebrated with feasts and community gatherings.
The Sed Festival, also known as Heb Sed and Feast of the Tail, was an ancient Egyptian festival that celebrated the 30th year of a pharaoh's rule. This festival was held every three years until the end of a pharaoh's rule. Sed Festivals included several temple rituals, offerings and the raising of adjed, the spine of a bovine that represented the strength of the pharaoh. A feast was also offered to the pharaoh to give him strength to continue his rule.
The Opet Festival was a celebration of the Theban Triad, which is the collective name of three Egyptian Gods. This festival occurred on the 19th day of the second month of Akhet, the first season in the Egyptian calendar. During the festival, the statues of the Theban Triad were brought by boat from the temple of Amun to the temple of Luxor. In later festivals, the statues were transported on a road connecting the two temples. Along the way, the procession would stop at several chapels where the community would gather and bring offerings. The statues remained at the temple of Luxor for three weeks before returning to their respective temples in Karnek, where they remained until the next Opet festival.
The Festival of Khoiak, also known as ka-her-ka or sustenance upon sustenance, originated from myths regarding the Egyptian god Osiris. It is believed that Osiris was murdered by his brother Seth, but revived by his sister-wife Isis. The death and revival of Osiris was observed during the fourth month of the season of the flood. As soon as the Nile River receded, Egyptians celebrated the Festival of Khoiak by shaping earth to look like Osiris' profile. Seeds were placed in the "Osiris beds" to guarantee the crops would flourish and be revived like Osiris was.
This are the Holidays:
- January 7 Christmas Celebrates the nativity of Jesus Christ, according to the Coptic Calendar (29 Koiak)
- January 25 National Police Day-2011 Revolution Day celebrates the anniversary of Police officers resistance against the British Army in 1952 and the day of the beginning of the Egyptian revolution of 2011
- April 25 Sinai Liberation Day Celebrates the final withdrawal of all Israeli military forces from the Sinai Peninsula in 1982.
- May 1 Labour Day
- July 23 Revolution Day Celebrates the Egyptian Revolution of 1925
- October 6 Armed Forces Day it Celebrates Egypt's victory in the October War
Places To Visit
This are the 10 top places
- Giza Necropolis
- Luxor
- Cairo
- Aswan
- Dahshur
- Sharm el-Sheikh
- Siwa Oasis
- Dahab
- Alexandria
- Hurghada
Did you know...
Political Map of Egypt
Capital of Egypt: Cairo
Flag of Egypt
The Free Officers who toppled King Farouk in the Revolution of 1925 assigned specific symbolism to each of the three bands of the Arab Liberation flag. The red band symbolises the period before the Revolution, a time characterized by the struggle against the monarchy, and the British occupation of the country. The white band symbolizes the bloodless nature of the Revolution itself. The black band symbolizes the end of the oppression of the Egyptian people at the hands of the monarchy, and foreign imperialism.
Things to do when you go to Egypt!
- If you go to The Great Pyramids of Giza don't forget to hop a camel or a horse and have a ride on the top of the hills to have a overlooking of the pyramids.
- If you go to Cairo you must take a selfie or picture if the Sphinx-Giza
- You have to go the Egyptian Museum of Cairo because it has the largest number of antiquities on display in the world.
- Valley of the Kings and Queens in here there are over 60 Pharaohs buried in the Valley of the Kings and well over 100 Queens and royal children buried in the Valley of the Queens and you're allow to see only 7 tombs between the 2 areas.
- The Aswan High Dam is something that he government created with help of other nations and the purpose is in order to control the flooding of the Nile River. and it creates energy for all Egypt!
- Abu Simbel-Temple of Ramses ll is the location of the most famous temple of Ramses ll and his wife Nefertari.
Important Cultural Aspects
Religion
About 90% of Egypt's population is Muslim, with a Sunni majority. About 9% of the population is Coptic Christian; other religions and other forms of Christianity comprise the remaining one percent.
Egyptian art in ancient times
The Egyptians were one of the first major civilizations to codify design elements in art. The wall painting done in the service of the Pharaohs followed a rigid code of visual rules and meanings. Early Egyptian art is characterized by absence of linear perspective, which results in a seemingly flat space. These artists tended to create images based on what they knew, and not as much on what they saw. Objects in these artworks generally do not decrease in size as they increase in distance and there is little shading to indicate depth. Sometimes, distance is indicated through the use of tiered space, where more distant objects are drawn higher above the nearby objects, but in the same scale and with no overlapping of forms. People and objects are almost always drawn in profile. Also, you may notice the people in Egyptian art are never facing forward. Archaeologists are not yet sure of why, but they are leaning towards the fact that artists status was low in the hierarchy so they could never be in front of a higher authority figure, and never be faced towards them.
Sport
Football is the most popular sport in Egypt. Egyptian football clubs especially El Ahly and El Zamalek are known throughout the Middle East and Africa and enjoy the reputation of long-time champions of the sport regionally. They enjoy popularity even among non-Egyptians.
The Egyptian national football team won the African Cup of Nations seven times setting a new record in Africa (years: 57, 59, 86, 98, 06, 08, 10). Egypt was the first African country to join FIFA, but it has only made it to the FIFA World Cup twice, in 1934 and 1990. In the World Military Cup Egypt won the title 5 times, and was the runner-up another 2 times.
Music
Egyptian music is a rich mixture of indigenous Egyptian, African and Western influences.
Cuisine
Egyptian cuisine consists of local culinary traditions such as Full medames, Kushari, and Molokhia. It also shares similarities with food found throughout the eastern Mediterranean like kebab and falafel.