Zagazig


Zagazig is a city in Lower Egypt. Situated in the eastern part of the Nile delta, it is the capital of the governorate of Sharqia.
It is located on the Muweis Canal and is a hub of the corn and cotton trade. There is a museum of antiquities, the Sharkeya National Museum that contains many important archaeological exhibits.
Zagazig University, one of the largest universities in Egypt, is also located in the city, with colleges in different fields of science and arts. The exhibits significant finds from the nearby sites, Bubastis and Kufur Nigm. Also there is a branch for Al-Azhar University, the largest Islamic university in the world.
Zagazig is the birthplace of famous Coptic Egyptian journalist, philosopher and social critic, Salama Moussa.
The most notable streets in Zagazig are Farouk Street, Government Street, and El Kawmia Street.

History

The city was found in the 19th century on a place of a village called Nazlat az-Zaqāzīq which was named after the Zaqzuq family. The family's name itself comes form a dialectal word zaqzuq or ziqziq which means "a small creature" and comes from a Coptic word ϫⲉⲕϫⲓⲕ "ant or other insect".
The ruins of the ancient Egyptian city of Bubastis are located southeast of town. Bubastis was the ancient capital of the 18th nome, and is home to the feast celebrating the cat goddess Bastet.
Bubastis is the Greek version of the Egyptian language name Pr-Bastet "House of Bastet". Bubastis became the capital of Egypt in the 22nd and 23rd Dynasties. There are remains of the temples built by Osorkon II and Nectanebo II. Catacombs where the sacred cats were buried are located behind an Old Kingdom chapel remains that are from the period of Pepi I Meryre.

Climate

classifies its climate as hot desert, as the rest of Egypt.

Notable people