Damietta Governorate

Damietta Governorate
—  Governorate of Egypt  —
Flag
Damietta Governorate on the map of Egypt
Country	Egypt
Seat	Damietta (capital)
Area
– Total	1,029 km2 (397.3 sq mi)
Population (2006)
– Total	1,092,316
– Density	1,061.5/km2 (2,749.4/sq mi)
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)

Damietta Governorate (Arabic: ‏محافظة دمياط‎ Muḥāfaẓat Dumyāṭ) is one of the governorates of Egypt. It is located in the northeastern part of the country, and has a population of over 1 million. Its capital is the city of Damietta.

Damietta (city) is famous for its guava farms, as well as the palm trees that cover the coast from Ras El Bar in the east to Gamasa in the west. The governorate exports millions of palm trees to many countries every year, including Greece and China. Damietta also produces wheat, maize, cotton, rice, potatoes, lemon, grapes and tomatoes. It is also famous for its sweet industry, sardine packing, and Domiati cheese. Ras El Bar, one of the oldest summer resorts in Egypt, is located at the point where the The Nile meets the Mediterranean Sea.

History

The Fifth and Seventh Crusades

Further information: Seventh Crusade

The European Crusaders temporarily occupied the city of Damietta for two years from 1219 to 1221, during the Fifth Crusade. During the Seventh Crusade, Baibars and the Mamluks defeated the Crusaders at Damietta.

Demographics

The governorate's area is 1.029 km² or about 5% of the Delta's area, and about 1% of the area of Egypt. The inhabited area is about 589.2 km². Its population – according to a 1999 census – was 953,430. The average rate of population growth is 2.09% per year.

Administrative divisions

The governorate consists of 4 central administrations, 10 cities, 35 local villager unit, 59 villages and 722 sub-villages. The names of the central administrations are Damietta Central (Markaz Dumyat), Faraskur Central (Markaz Faraskur), Zarqa Central (Markas Al-Zarqa), and Kafr Saad Central (Markaz Kafr Saad). The governorate includes 7 colleges and institutes, 19 professional training centers, and 657 pre-college schools.

Furniture industry

The city of Damietta is famous of its skilled carpenters and furniture. These productions are not only sold inside of Egypt, but also in the Middle East, Europe and the USA. 80% of the governorate's income is related to furniture.

See also

• Battle of Al Mansurah
• Battle of Fariskur
• Damietta
• Damietta Port
• Ras El Bar
• Siege of Damietta (1218)
• Siege of Damietta (1249)

External links

• Damietta Governorate official website