This is a list of known ancient Egyptian towns and cities. The list is for sites intended for permanent settlement and does not include fortresses and other locations of intermittent habitation.
List of ancient Egyptian towns
Aphroditopolis
Aphroditopolis or Aphrodite Polis is the Greek name of several places in ancient Egypt:
- Aphroditopolis in the Antaiopolite Nome, also called Aphrodito, ancient Per-Wadjet, now the village of Kom Ishqaw
- Aphroditopolis in the Aphroditopolite Nome, now the village of Atfih
- Aphroditopolis in the Faiyum Oasis, village attested between the 3rd century BC and the 3rd century AD
- Aphroditopolis in the Pathyrite Nome, now the village of Gebelein
Avaris
Avaris (/ˈævərɪs/; Egyptian: ḥw.t wꜥr.t, sometimes hut-waret; Ancient Greek: Αὔαρις, romanized: Auaris; Greek: Άβαρις, romanized: Ávaris; Arabic: حوّارة, romanized: Hawwara) was the Hyksos capital of Egypt located at the modern site of Tell el-Dab’a in the northeastern region of the Nile Delta. It was occupied from about the 18th century BC until its capture by Ahmose I. As the main course of the Nile migrated eastward, its position at the hub of Egypt’s delta emporia made it a significant capital suitable for trade.
Bubastis
Bubastis was an ancient Egyptian city, also known in Arabic as Tell-Basta or in Egyptian as Per-Bast. Bubastis is often identified with the biblical Pi-Beseth (Hebrew: פי-בסת py-bst, Ezekiel 30:17). It was the capital of its nome, located along the Nile River in the Delta region of Lower Egypt. It was notable as a centre of worship for the feline goddess Bastet and, therefore, the principal depository in Egypt of mummies of cats.
Buhen
Buhen (Ancient Greek: Βοὥν Bohón) was an ancient Egyptian settlement situated on the West bank of the Nile below (to the north of) the Second Cataract in what is now Northern State, Sudan. It is currently submerged in Lake Nasser, Sudan. On the East bank, across the river, there was another ancient settlement where the town of Wadi Halfa now stands. The earliest mention of Buhen comes from stelae dating to the reign of Senusret I. Buhen is also the earliest known Egyptian settlement in Nubia.
Coptos
The ruins of the ancient Coptos lie in the centre of the modern city of Qift. The locals here rebelled during Diocletian’s rule, and for this, the city was destroyed, so little remains to tell the tale of the glory of this ancient city. Its position of importance was superseded in the Mameluke period by Qus to the south and in modern times by Qena in the North.
Tanis
Tanis, biblical Zoan, modern San Al Hagar Al Qebleyah, was an ancient city in the Nile River delta, the capital of the 14th nome (province) of Lower Egypt and, at one time, of the whole country. The city was important as one of the nearest ports to the Asiatic seaboard.
Memphis
Memphis, or Men-nefer, was the ancient capital of Inebu-hedge, the first nome of Lower Egypt known as mḥw (“north”). Its ruins are located near the modern town of Mit Rahina (Arabic: ميت رهينة), 20 km (12 mi) south of Giza in Greater Cairo, Egypt.
During its golden age, Memphis thrived as a regional commerce, trade, and religion centre. According to legends related in the early third century BC by Manetho, a priest and historian who lived in the Ptolemaic Kingdom during the Hellenistic period of ancient Egypt, the city was founded by King Menes. It was the capital of ancient Egypt (Kemet or Kumat) during the Old Kingdom and remained an important city throughout ancient Egyptian history. It occupied a strategic position at the mouth of the Nile Delta and was home to bustling activity. Its principal port, Peru-nefer (not to be confused with Peru-nefer at Avaris), features a high density of workshops, factories, and warehouses distributing food and merchandise throughout the ancient kingdom.
Memphis was believed to be protected by the god Ptah, the patron of craftsmen. Its great temple, Hut-ka-Ptah (meaning “Enclosure of the ka of Ptah”), was one of the most prominent structures in the city. The name of this temple, rendered in Greek as Aἴγυπτoς (Ai-gy-ptos) by Manetho, is believed to be the etymological origin of the modern English name Egypt.
The history of Memphis is closely linked to that of the country itself. Its eventual downfall is believed to have been due to the loss of its economic significance in late antiquity, following the rise of coastal Alexandria. Its religious value was diminished after the abandonment of the ancient religion following the Edict of Thessalonica (380 AD), which made Nicene Christianity the sole religion of the Roman Empire.
Today, the ruins of the former capital offer fragmented evidence of its past. Along with the pyramid complex at Giza, they have been preserved as a World Heritage Site since 1979. The site is open to the public as an open-air museum.
Thebes
Thebes (Arabic: طيبة, Ancient Greek: Θῆβαι, Thēbai), known to the ancient Egyptians as Waset, was one of the most famous ancient Egyptian towns located along the Nile about 800 kilometres (500 mi) south of the Mediterranean. Its ruins lie within the modern Egyptian city of Luxor.
Thebes was the principal city of the fourth Upper Egyptian Nome (Sceptre Nome) and was the capital of Egypt for long periods during the Middle Kingdom and New Kingdom eras. It was close to Nubia and the Eastern Desert, with valuable mineral resources and trade routes. It was a cult centre and the most revered city during many periods of ancient Egyptian history. The site of Thebes includes areas on both the eastern bank of the Nile, where the temples of Karnak and Luxor stand and where the city was situated and the western bank, where a necropolis of large private and royal cemeteries and funerary complexes can be found. In 1979, the ruins of ancient Thebes were classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
