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Hidden Histories: 3 Famous Coptic Christian Neighborhoods in Cairo

July 30, 2022

Etched into Egypt’s history is its Coptic Christian community. In its pure form, the word ‘Copt’ or ‘Coptic’ is linguistically translated to Egypt or Egyptians.’ Though Christians coexist all around Egypt, some districts stand out as heartening models of Coptic identity to the world. “One does find large concentrations of Christians in certain Cairene districts, like Shubra, Faggala, and [El-]Daher – which date back to the end of the nineteenth century,”explains Sana Hassan in the book ‘Christians versus Muslims in Modern Egypt’ in 2003. Shubra The word ‘Shubra’ translates to ‘village’ in the Coptic language. In essence, Shubra, located in the north of Cairo, is a cultural melting pot in Egypt, where Muslims and Christians intertwine and connect in ways that are scarcely found anywhere else. According to a source in 2019, Shubra has approximately 700,000 inhabitants, most of them Christian. It is dubbed a ‘Christian stronghold in downtown Cairo’ with the area hosting 22 churches. It had a popularity of being a home to many foreigners, including Armenians, Italians, and Greeks up until the mid-20th century, and it remains a home to a great number of Copts today. “Most…


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