ARABIC-EGYPTIAN Egyptian men, Assuit Governorate Flickr/USAID Egypt DLIFLC DEFENSE LANGUAGE INSTITUTE FOREIGN LANGUAGE CENTER CULTURAL ORIENTATION | Arabic-Egyptian Profile Introduction ................................................................................................................... 6 Geographic Divisions .................................................................................................. 7 Nile River Valley and Delta ................................................................................8 Western Desert (Al-Ṣaḥraʾ al-Gharbiyyah) .....................................................8 Eastern Desert (Al-Ṣaḥraʾ al-Libiyah) ..............................................................9 Sinai Peninsula (Shibh Jazirat Sina) ................................................................9 Climate ..........................................................................................................................10 Bodies of Water ...........................................................................................................11 Nile River (Baḥr Al-Nil) ..................................................................................... 11 Lake Nasser ........................................................................................................ 12 Suez Canal ......................................................................................................... 12 Mediterranean Sea ............................................................................................ 13 Red Sea (Al-Baḥr Al-Aḥmar, or Bahr al-Qalzam) ........................................ 13 Major Cities ..................................................................................................................14 Cairo (al-Qahira) ................................................................................................14 Alexandria ...........................................................................................................15 Luxor ....................................................................................................................16 Suez ..................................................................................................................... 17 Port Said .............................................................................................................18 Aswan .................................................................................................................. 18 History ...........................................................................................................................19 Introduction .........................................................................................................19 British Colonialism and the Suez Canal.........................................................20 Nasser and Independence ...............................................................................22 Anwar Sadat and Peace with Israel ................................................................23 Arab Spring .........................................................................................................24 Aftermath.............................................................................................................24 Recent Events ....................................................................................................25 Media ........................................................................................................................... 26 Economy ..................................................................................................................... 27 Current Socioeconomic Climate .....................................................................28 Languages and Ethnic Groups ................................................................................ 28 Bedouins .............................................................................................................29 Beja ......................................................................................................................30 Berbers ................................................................................................................31 Copts .................................................................................................................... 31 Greeks .................................................................................................................32 Nubians ...............................................................................................................32 2 CULTURAL ORIENTATION | Arabic-Egyptian Dom......................................................................................................................33 Assessment ................................................................................................................ 43 Religion Introduction ................................................................................................................. 44 Islam ............................................................................................................................. 45 The Five Pillars of Islam ...................................................................................46 Care and Treatment of the Quran ................................................................... 47 Sufism ..................................................................................................................48 Alternative Forms of Islamic Worship .............................................................48 Coptic Orthodox Christianity .................................................................................... 49 The Role of Religion in the Government ............................................................... 50 Religion in Daily Life ...................................................................................................51 Prayer .................................................................................................................. 51 Cleansing ............................................................................................................52 Religious Holidays ..................................................................................................... 52 Ramadan .............................................................................................................52 Eid ........................................................................................................................53 Mawlid al-Nabi ...................................................................................................54 Christmas ............................................................................................................54 Easter...................................................................................................................55 Buildings of Worship .................................................................................................. 55 Mosques ..............................................................................................................55 Churches .............................................................................................................56 Behavior in Places of Worship ................................................................................ 57 Mosques ..............................................................................................................57 Coptic Christian Churches ...............................................................................58 Assessment ................................................................................................................ 63 Traditions Introduction ................................................................................................................. 64 Honor and Values ..................................................................................................... 65 Greetings ..................................................................................................................... 65 Etiquette and Terms of Respect ......................................................................67 Customary Behaviors and Gestures ..............................................................68 Hospitality and Gift Giving ....................................................................................... 68 Dress ............................................................................................................................ 70 Traditional Dress ................................................................................................70 Contemporary Urban Dress ............................................................................. 71 Dress Codes .......................................................................................................72 Cuisine ......................................................................................................................... 72 3 CULTURAL ORIENTATION | Arabic-Egyptian Gender Roles and Relationships .............................................................................74 Gender Roles ............................................................................................................ 75 Status of Women ....................................................................................................... 75 Female Circumcision ........................................................................................77