Fustat

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Fustat (Arabic: الفسطاط‎), also spelled Fostat, was the first capital city of Egypt under Arab rule. It was built by Amr ibn al-As right after the Arab conquest of Egypt in 641 CE. The city was eventually absorbed by Cairo, which was built to the north of Fostat during the Fatimid era. Fostat is now part of the 'Old Egypt' District in Cairo.

The city was Egypt's first on-Nile capital since the time of the Pharaohs, when Thebes and Memphis had been the capitals. After Alexander the Great's invasion and conquest of Egypt, Alexandria, on the Mediterranean coast, became Egypt's capital for hundreds of years.

The city's name comes from the Arabic word Fustat (فسطاط) which means tent. The traditional story of the establishment of the city is that Amr Ibn Al-As decided to build his capital city for Egypt at the spot where his tent was pitched. The name was taken from Misr al-Fustat ("The tented city"). From this also comes Misr, the Arabic name for Egypt.

[edit] Resources

Amitav Ghosh, In an Antique Land (Vintage Books, 1994). ISBN 0-679-72783-3
Janet L. Abu-Lughod, Cairo: 1001 Years of the City Victorious (Princeton University Press, 1971), ISBN 0691030855