The Importance of Egypt

‘Place’ and ‘space’ are two co-dependent notions; the existence of space requires movement between places, while space is vital to identifying a place. The main distinction between the two is the insinuation that space is temporal, whereas place is physical[1]. A place is defined when it is given meaning by humans as part of the vast undifferentiated space surrounding us, from which a location can be separated by virtue of naming or identification. Derived from this recognition is the social phenomenon ‘sense of place’, used as a model for community based psychosocial support programs[2], which is characteristic of locations bearing a special relationship to their societal and geographic(al) setting. Strength of a location’s ‘sense of place’ is independent of an individual’s perception, but relies on human engagement, building identity through culture, nature and occupants, often enhanced by constituents of the arts such as literature and theatre. I believe importance of a place corresponds directly to this strength, which is determined by its significance in both past and present times. This means the ‘most important place in the world’ must be a location with both physical and temporal connotations where culture, nature and its occupants have a clear identity within their own cultural landscape.

Egypt, for my part, is the only landscape with cultural properties that represent the combined works of nature and of man.[3] While Egyptian identity is unique, it is often said to be the centre and “cultural hub” of the Arab world. Very few countries are so tightly and inextricably linked with so many others: in Egypt’s case, twenty one which together make up the Arab World. Evidence of Egypt’s paramountcy includes the Egyptian dialect being the most understood version of the Arabic language in the Arab world due to Egypt’s dominant role in the Arabic movie industry.

The incredibly complex yet evidently stable Ancient Egyptian culture has influenced those of contemporary Europe, the Near East and Africa, and this is recorded over five millennia. As one of the oldest civilisations, Egypt introduced and developed a huge range of architecture and arts including advanced writing systems and pottery. Ancient Egypt’s meticulous designs built the foundation for machinery today, and the political world is still hugely influenced by Egypt’s activities. The Egyptian Revolution of 2011 exhibited how an information revolution is reconstructing world politics, through both power transition and power diffusion. The increasing availability of information is diffusing power from the control of governments into that of bodies such as demonstrators, who have advantages including the narrative of democracy in addition to the ability to organise and perform demonstrations.[4] This power diffusion is illustrated by the effect of the 18 day protest in January 2011 in Egypt: despite the Egyptian government’s attempts to eliminate the nation’s internet access, media activism prevailed in the protesters’ favour, forcing President Hosni Mubarak to undergo an almost immediate government dismissal and Vice President appointment. By the end of the social media driven revolution, Mubarak had not only ceded all presidential power, but was convicted to life imprisonment. It is arguable that in order to lead the Arab world into a new era, Egypt must complete their transition to democracy for a new chance at prosperity, for if dictatorship is restored in Egypt, advancements in the rest of the Arab states are improbable. Egypt’s position as an opinion leader for much of the Arab world is due to its invention of pan-Arabism under Gamal Nasser and foundation for Middle East peace under Anwar Sadat. With a population of 82.06 million, it outweighs Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Syria combined in terms of numbers, but also with regard to its tenacious society, media, political forces and judiciary system.

Egypt even resounds with the economic importance of place. The pace of the world’s development today is largely determined by international trade. This allows nations to profit from an expanded market, benefiting from lower production costs, specialised industries and therefore greater efficiency. Thus those places participating in the exchange of capital, goods, and services internationally have great influence on the world as a whole. In November of 1869, six months after the American transcontinental railroad was completed, the Suez Canal was opened, immediately impacting world trade. The Suez Canal linked the Mediterranean Sea at Port Said and the Red Sea at Suez, providing a vital connection between the East and the West, contributing immensely to European colonisation of Africa. Today, maritime transport is the cheapest means by which volume may be transported; 8-12% of all international trade passes through Egypt’s Suez Canal, without which 4,300 miles would be added to each journey made by ships between Asia, Europe and North America, causing a rise in distance, time and operating costs for vessels and therefore an overall rise in commodity prices. One of the biggest components of international trade is oil, and by 1955 about two-thirds of Europe’s oil passed through the Suez Canal. In 2008, 21,415 vessels passed through the canal and the receipts totalled $5.381 billion.[5] Due to globalisation, there are few economies today who are not dependent on global trade, thus Egypt is a major country important to the trade, security and prosperity of nations all over the world.

The Erythraean Sea itself is of the utmost importance to many religious groups. Both the Bible and the Qur’an make reference to the parting of the sea, when divine intervention caused redemption from slavery and sin: “the LORD swept the sea back …and turned the sea into dry land, so the waters were divided. The sons of Israel went through the midst of the sea on the dry land, and the waters were like a wall” [6];

فَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَى مُوسَى أَنِ اضْرِب بِّعَصَاكَ الْبَحْرَ فَانفَلَقَ فَكَانَ كُلُّ فِرْقٍ كَالطَّوْدِ الْعَظِيمِ

(Then we told Moses by inspiration: "Strike the sea with thy rod." So it divided, and each separate part became like the huge, firm mass of a mountain.)[7] Recent research has been done by oceanographer Naum Volzinger to conclude that 3,500 years ago, a 67 mile per hour sustained wind over the Erythrian Sea overnight could have exposed a 7-kilometre reef, extending from a northern part of the Gulf of Suez, over which the 600,000 Israelites could have passed over a period of four hours, after which the sea would rise once more and block the Egyptian soldiers in pursuit.[8] This is not the only theory in place to explain the ‘miracle’, thus the sea and its alleged history play a huge part in allowing science and faith to work in harmony and contribute to one another, meaning the two disciplines may be compatible through the right interpretation of religious texts[9].

Modern modes of codification also give a place a sense of value. “World Heritage Sites” are places deemed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization to be of special cultural or physical significance. Egypt is home to seven of these sites, from the ruins of ancient Thebes to Memphis and its Necropolis, each of which was built with the utmost ingenuity and imagination. Also standing in Egypt is the only remaining Wonder of the Ancient World still undestroyed by tectonic or human activity: Great Pyramid of Giza, an engineering marvel recognised to be an outstanding testament to the capabilities of humans, having proudly retained the title of tallest man-made structure in the world for over 3,800 years[10].

On a personal level, the importance of a place depends on one’s ‘primal landscape’. As the place with which one can most readily identify, this develops as a result of a child’s interaction with the environments they encounter in early life, not only contributing to the formation of their identity, but also constituting a point of comparison against which to consider subsequent places. Places of value in later life may resemble this landscape enough to stimulate an, often subconscious, emotional response. More commonly, a place holds significance due a stark contrast it marks with the subject’s baseline landscape, arousing powerful feelings ranging from reverence to consternation. New cultures and systems are experienced by visiting diverse, customarily foreign, places. Egypt, which links northeast Africa to the Middle East, hosts fifteen million visitors every year who come to relish its nature and wildlife, religion and heritage. As an incredibly cosmopolitan country hosting a fusion of multiple cultures and ethnic traditions as well as a highly liberal ambiance, it is the perfect example of a place which challenges visitors though displaying a preponderance of diverse characteristics. Across the globe, on a primal level, every person has an image of Egypt, whether correct, informed or orientalist.

The most important place in the world is that with the most significance and culture; both historical and current, without which a place is considered ‘placeless’, dehumanised by lack of attachment, described accurately by Gertude Stein’s “there is no there there”[11]. James Still argues that “undefined space is as necessary to the making of meaning as is a known place – a home – from which to ponder on what waits to be defined”[12]; although Egypt hosts an abundance of divergent communities and ideas, this creates a perpetually developing culture which is essential to transcending placelessness. This unique contiguous Eurafrasian nation holds the utmost importance on a global level due to its civil society, independent media, discrepancy of its political forces and esteemed judiciary, but also on a personal level as a result of the remarkable contrast its culture strikes with that of every other nation in the world.

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[1] Tuan, Yi-Fu, Space and Place: The Perspective of Experience. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1977.

[2] Prewitt Diaz, J.O. and Dayal, A. (2008). Sense of Place: A Model for Community Based psychosocial support programs. Australasian Journal of Disaster and Trauma Studies.

[3] UNESCO (2012) Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention. UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Paris. Page 14.

[4] The Future of Power – 13 Dec 2011 by Joseph S. Nye Jr.

[5] Suez Canal Authority http://www.suezcanal.gov.eg

[6] The Bible, Book of Exodus 13:17-14:29

[7] Qur'an in Surah 26: Al-Shu'ara' (The Poets)

[8] The Washington Times - Thursday, January 22, 2004

[9] Drews, Carl, Between Migdol and the Sea: Crossing the Red Sea with Faith and Science, 2014

[10] Collins (2001), p. 234

[11] Anyone's Autobiography, 1937: see Gertrude Stein.

[12] Still, James, Critical Essays on the Dean of Appalachian Literature (Contributions to Southern Appalachian Studies). University of Michigan, Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland, 2007.