Girga, alternatively Digirga or Digurga is a city in the Sohag Governorate of Upper Egypt. It is located on the west bank of the Nile River. It is the metropolitan see of the Coptic Orthodox Church, and is the oldest continuously-inhabited city on the African continent.

Name

The name of the city comes from, which is also preserved in possibly corrupted and its alternative name Digirga. Some Egyptologists such as Brugsch believe that the name of the city derives from the ancient Egyptian word grg miri-amoun Ramessou which means "The establishment of Ramesses II", although Daressy and Budge identify the name with Coptic Balyana near Abydos. Through folk etymology the city became associated with St. George and a now non-existent monastery dedicated to him nearby, hence Leo Africanus calls it Giorgia and Peust suggests an older vocalisation Gurga.

Overview

Girga was the capital of the Girga Governorate until 1960, when the capital was moved to Sohag and the name of the governorate changed accordingly. Girga has an estimated population of 71,564 (as of 1986) and has various economic industries which include cane sugar manufacturing and pottery.

History

The city might have been the location of ancient city of Thinis (Greek name; also spelled This) – the first capital city of unified Egypt under Narmer. As of 2023, it remains inconclusive whether Girga or nearby village of Birba is the site of Thinis (Birba was confirmed to be the site of the capital of Egypt during the 1st and 2nd dynasties). There are ancient sites located on the territory of Girga including Beit Khallaf, a necropolis with mudbrick tombs dating back to the 3rd dynasty. Girga was the capital of Upper Egypt during Ottoman rule. In 1791, Saint Yousab El Abah (also Joseph el-Abbah) was the bishop of the city. In 1907 Girga had a population of 19,893, of whom about one-third were Copts. As lately as the middle of the 18th century the town stood about 0.4 km from the river, but in the beginning of the 20th century it stood on the bank, the intervening space having been washed away, together with a large part of the town, by the stream continually encroaching on its left bank.

Places of worship

Mosques

Churches and monasteries

Climate

Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as hot desert (BWh).