Earthblog

Egypt is the bastion of faith and the faithful on earth, the connecting link between the past and the present and truly the “cradle of civilisation”. This is proved by the history of the Ancient Egyptian civilisation: Egypt was the world’s first state to emerge as a stable, central political unit, when its people permanently settled on the banks of the River Nile.
Under the rule of King Menes, the First of Egypt’s Pharaohs, its provinces were united at the beginning of the third millennium BC. At that time, there emerged the greatest and most advanced civilisation known to the Ancient World, namely the Pharaonic Civilisation. The monuments and landmarks of this civilisation are still extant, bearing witness to the greatness of the Ancient Egyptians, who understood “total development”, and, therefore, accorded due attention to all economic considerations in the areas of agriculture, industry, trade and irrigation.

Herodotus´ statement that “Egypt is the Gift of the Nile” is only half-true. In point of fact, Ancient Egyptian civilisation evolved as a result of creative interaction between the Ancient Egyptians and their physical surroundings. This fact is more clearly reflected in the words of the modern Egyptian historian Shafiq Ghorbal: “Egypt is the gift of the Egyptians.”
Throughout times of strength, as well as weakness, Egypt has maintained its unique identity, formed through a process of interaction between its unique cultural characteristics and other civilisations, including the Pharaonic, Greek, Roman, Coptic and Islamic peoples. While being a melting-pot for all such civilisations, Egypt has over the years maintained its own distinct identity through the unity of culture and language.