55 Interesting Facts About Egypt

Last updated on April 19th, 2022

Egypt, officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country in Northeast corner of Africa. It has an area of 1,001,450 square km. It is divided into 27 Governorates. The country’s capital city is Cairo. Arabic and Egyptian Arabic are its official and national languages, respectively. The Egyptian Pound (EGP) is its official currency. It has four bordering regions that include the Gaza Strip, Israel, Libya, and Sudan. Admittedly, Egypt is one of the most fascinating early ancient civilizations in human history. We have compiled together some of the most interesting facts about Egypt for your amusement. 

Egypt facts

1. Everyone knows about the pyramids of Egypt, but did you know that they were built as tombs for the pharaohs and their royal families to link them to Ra the sun god? In case you’re wondering, more than 130 pyramids have been discovered so far.

2. How huge do you think these pyramids are? Imagine a structure weighing six times more than a 100-floor modern skyscraper. Better still, imagine a structure occupying five football fields and looking down upon the statue of liberty. The pyramid of Giza, housing the King Khufu’s bones, or is it mummy, was this large.

3. What about the human side of the imposing pyramids? Well, it is believed that thousands, perhaps millions of Egyptians died building the pyramids. For their honored trouble though, they were buried in tombs near their pyramid they built for their revered pharaoh.

4. Oh and, by the way, the workers who built the pyramids were paid. Guess with what? A daily dose of a gallon of Beer. That’s the most interesting fact about Egypt, if you ask me.

5. Speaking of which, the first pyramid was built in 2600 BC by Egyptian architect Imhotep.

6. The Imhotep guy was again, the first recorded physician, engineer, and architect.

Flag of Egypt

Flag of Egypt
The national flag of Egypt. Image source – CIA

7. Cats were not your pet but were considered as sacred. For ancient Egyptians, having a cat in the purring in the house would guarantee good luck.

8. Cats were not the only lucky creatures, though. While modern women got to enjoy rights to property, and the world started seeing women doctors and women business moguls only in the 19th century, Egyptian women could own property, carry out business, make doctors and become priestesses. Hell, some churches are yet to accept priestess as word.

9. The gods of Egypt were so numerous that practically everything had a deity in control, from human emotions to natural order and disasters. Woe unto whoever went against the wishes of the more than 1,000 gods.

10. I mean every city had their favorite god.

Cairo, Egypt's Capital City - the city of 1000 minarets
Cairo – the city of 1000 minarets. Image credit – cnn.com

11. Although all gods were feared and held in awe, Ra the Egyptian god of the sun was the most revered of all.

12. But the honor of creation was bestowed on the river god Khnum.

Related: Sudan facts 

Egyptian mummies

13. Imagine stripping an Egyptian mummy naked! Well, if somehow you could have the guts to do it, you would find that the bandage could stretch up to 1.6 kilometers.

14. But why mummify dead guys? The answer is in the afterlife. By preserving the dead bodies, ancient Egyptians believed that the souls of the mummified would roam forever in the afterlife.

15. As mummification process, the intestines and all internal organs except the heart were removed and placed in canopic jars. They sucked the brains from the head through the nose. Did I hear a shocked “yuck?”

16. You would think mummification stopped with pharaohs, and the wealthy Egyptians, right? Wrong. Archeologists dug up a 15 ft mummified croc.

17 Talking of mummified pharaohs, Ramses II the greatest pharaoh ever ruled Egypt for 60 years and had over 90 children born to 8 wives and close to 100 concubines. Lucky chap.

Egypt on the map

Egyptian kings, queens, and pharaohs

18. The honor of the first Egyptian pharaoh though goes to King Menes, who had to die in the jaws of a hippo after ruling for 60 years from 3200 B.C

19. Ironically, the Egyptian goddess of childbirth and fertility portrayed a bipedal hippo with the legs of a feline or cat if you like. Creepy!

20. Another interesting fact about Egypt is that pharaohs hid their hair inside the crown or a headdress referred to as nemes.

21. While we’re dining with the Kings, meet the 6-year-old King Pepi II. The longest-serving Egyptian king, Pepi took the reign at the tender age of 6 and went on to rule for 94 years.

22. Talk of a six-year-old. Rather than face a tiny fly like a pharaoh, King Pepi was known to have slaves smeared with honey to attract flies away from him.

23. Beating King Pepi’s honey mischief, early pharaohs had their servants knocked dead to be buried with the king. Otherwise, who would serve the royal guys in the afterlife?

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