Egypt (
Egyptian
: Kemet;
Coptic
:
Ⲭⲏⲙⲓ
Kīmi;
Arabic
:
مصر
Miṣr
Egyptian Arabic
:
Máṣr
), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country in
North Africa
that includes the
Sinai Peninsula
, a
land bridge
to
Asia
. Covering an area of about ,,square kilometers (,sqmi), Egypt borders
Libya
to the west,
Sudan
to the south and the
Gaza Strip
and
Israel
to the east. The northern coast borders the
Merranean Sea
; the eastern coast borders the
Red Sea
.
Egypt is one of the most populous countries in
Africa
. The great majority of its estimated million people () live near the banks of the
Nile River
, in an area of about ,square kilometers (,sqmi), where the only
arable
agricultural land is found. The large areas of the
Sahara
Desert
are sparsely inhabited. About half of Egypt's residents live in urban areas, with the majority spread across the densely-populated centres of greater
Cairo
,
Alexandria
and other major cities in the
Nile Delta
.
Egypt is famous for its
ancient civilization
and some of the world's most famous monuments, including the
Giza pyramid complex
and its
Great Sphinx
. The southern city of
Luxor
contains numerous ancient artefacts, such as the
Karnak
Temple and the
Valley of the Kings
. Egypt is widely regarded as an important political and cultural nation of the
Middle East
. |