Al-Khalifa District is one of the districts of the southern region of Cairo Governorate, Egypt.[1] It is known for its historical and religious monuments,[2] as it encompasses the southern portion of Historic Cairo and of the Qarafa cemetery (City of the Dead).
Al-Khalifa | |
|---|---|
District | |
| Al-Khalifa District | |
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 Flag  Seal | |
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| Coordinates: 30°01′00″N 31°15′16″E / 30.01667°N 31.25444°E | |
| Country |  Egypt |
| Area | |
• Total | 12.79 ha (31.60 acres) |
| Population | |
• Total | 112,568 |
| Time zone | GMT 3 |
| Website | khalifa |
Name
editThe district is named after the Fatimid caliph Al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah, who founded Cairo.[3]
Infrastructure
editAl-Khalifa district includes several service institutions, including Al-Khalifa police station, the civil registry building for the district, Al-Khalifa General Hospital, and several sports centers for the neighborhood's youth, including the Mubarak Youth Center in Al-Amin and Al-Tunisi.[4]
Geography
editLocated in the middle of Cairo, Al-Khalifa is the link between residents of the Basateen, Maadi, and Sayeda Zeinab neighborhoods and downtown Cairo.[5] The most important streets are Al-Alfy Street and Shaikhon Street.[citation needed]
Divisions
editAl-Khalifa neighborhood consists of fourteen chiefdoms,[6] which are:
- Abagiya
- Imamin
- Al-Baqali
- Al-Tunisi
- Al-Hattaba
- Helmiya
- Khalifa
- Sayda Aisha
- Saliba
- Al-Qadiriya
- Mahgar
- Darb Ghaziya
- Darb al-Hasar
- Arab al-Yasar
Areas
editAl-Tunisi is considered an important area of Al-Khalifa district, bordered on the east by the Autostrad Cemetery area and Mokattam Hill, on the west by the Imam Al-Shafi'i Cemetery and Imam Al-Shafi'i area, on the south by the Basateen Cemetery and Basateen neighborhood, and on the north by the area and cemeteries of Sayeda Aisha.[citation needed]
Landmarks
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The area contains many historical mosques and monuments, as it overlaps with Historic Cairo and the large historic Qarafa cemetery. The Cairo Citadel or Citadel of Saladin overlooks the district and the city from the nearby Mokattam Hills. Begun by Saladin (Salah ad-Din) in 1176, it was the seat of government of Egypt from Saladin's time until the beginning of the rule of the Muhammad Ali dynasty. It contains additional monuments and cultural attractions such as the Muhammad Ali Mosque, al-Nasir Muhammad Mosque, and the Egyptian National Military Museum.[7]
Outside the Citadel, important concentrations of monuments are found in many areas. Around Salah al-Din Square (at the foot of the Citadel), is the Mosque-Madrasa of Sultan Hasan and the Al-Rifa'i Mosque, along with other Mamluk-era and Ottoman-era mosques.[7] Along Saliba Street (west of Salah ad-Din Square) is the 9th-century Ibn Tulun Mosque, one of the oldest mosques in the city, as well as various other landmarks from later periods, including the Mosque and Khanqah of Shaykhu, the Sabil of Umm Abbas, the Madrasa of Sarghatmish, and the Salar and Sangar al-Gawli Mausoleum.[7]
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Along al-Khalifa Street (south of Saliba), are several important mosques and shrines dedicated to members of the Ahl al-Bayt (the family and descendants of Muhammad), including the Sayyida Nafisa Mosque, the Sayyida Aisha Mosque, the Mashhad of Sayyida Ruqayya, the Mausoleum of Shajar al-Durr, and the Mosque of Sayyida Sukayna.[7][8][9][10] Further south, across a major road, stretches the Southern Cemetery (Qarafa) of Cairo. The northern edge of this cemetry, near the Citadel, contains several Mamluk and Ottoman-era monuments such as the Sultaniyya Mausoleum and the Mausoleum of Amir Qawsun. To the south is the Imam al-Shafi'i neighbourhood, an important area that includes the Mausoleum of Imam al-Shafi'i, the Hosh al-Basha, and other historic tombs.[7][8]
References
edit- ^ "Khalifa District". www.cairo.gov.eg. Archived from the original on 2023-09-29. Accessed on 2023-12-27.
- ^ "Al-Khalifa - Tadamun". Archived from the original on 2023-03-23. Accessed on 2023-12-27.
- ^ Phillip، Thomas؛ Haarmann، Ulrich، (1999). The Mamluks in Egyptian politics and society. Cambridge studies in Islamic civilization. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-59115-7.
- ^ Youth Centers in the Southern Region
- ^ Ali Mubarak: The New Plans C5, pp. 89-91.
- ^ Southern District. Cairo Governorate, Access date: February 2, 2016. Southern Archived 2018-04-26 at Wayback Machine [dead link]
- ^ a b c d e Williams, Caroline (2018). Islamic Monuments in Cairo: The Practical Guide (7th ed.). Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press. ISBN 9789774168550.
- ^ a b El Kadi, Galila; Bonnamy, Alain (2007). "The Southern Necropolis: The Qarafa". Architecture for the Dead: Cairo's Medieval Necropolis. Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press. pp. 21–126. ISBN 9789774160745.
- ^ "The tombs of the Ahl al-Bayt in the Khalifa neighborhood. Here lies the daughter of Ali ibn Abi Talib and the uncle of Mrs. Nafisa." The seventh day. January 6, 2020. Archived from the original on 2020-07-19. Accessed on 2023-12-27.
- ^ Mohamed, Amira (November 25, 2020). "'Neighborhood of the Caliphate': Tales from the heart of the Al-Bayt shrines". Bab Misr. Archived from the original on 2022-09-29. Accessed on 2023-12-27.
