The historic city of Cairo (القاهرة‎) is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world. Cairo is associated with ancient Egypt, as the Giza pyramid complex and the ancient city of Memphis are located in its geographical area. Located near the Nile Delta, Cairo was founded in 969 CE during the Fatimid dynasty. Cairo is also home to the world's second-oldest institution of higher learning, al-Azhar University.

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Cairo’s history can be traced back to the ancient period through its proximity to the earlier city of Memphis, founded circa 3100 BCE during Egypt’s Early Dynastic period. Memphis was the administrative and ceremonial capital of Pharaonic Egypt for centuries and shaped the surrounding Nile Valley into one of the most significant cultural centers of the ancient world. Its enduring temples, necropoleis at Saqqara and Giza, and agricultural prosperity created an enduring legacy that informed the region’s development even after direct political authority moved elsewhere.

During the Roman and Byzantine period (30 BCE–641 CE), the area around modern Cairo was largely defined by the Roman fortress of Babylon, established to secure the empire’s control over its Egyptian province. Babylon served as a strategic military and commercial settlement on the Nile’s east bank and became a nucleus for the region’s Christian community. Its population included early Copts, and its churches, especially the Hanging Church of Saint Virgin Mary, played a central role in the ecclesiastical history of Egyptian Christianity.

Following the Muslim conquest of Egypt in 641 CE, the city of Fustat was founded as the administrative capital. However, the Fatimid period (969–1171 CE) witnessed the establishment of al-Qāhira (Cairo) as a purpose-built royal city, intended as a seat of power for the Shiʿi Fatimid caliphate. The Fatimids constructed monumental mosques like al-Azhar (970 CE) and introduced elaborate ceremonial urban planning, transforming the city into a prominent political, religious, and intellectual center of the Islamic world.

The Ayyubid period (circa 1171–1250 CE), inaugurated by Salah al-Din after the Fatimids, fortified Cairo into a strategic military and administrative hub. The construction of the Citadel (circa 1183–1207 CE) became the city’s focal point and symbol of political authority. Ayyubid policies emphasized Sunni orthodoxy and revitalized Cairo’s commercial prominence along trans-Saharan and Indian Ocean routes, paving the way for further monumental architecture and urban expansion.

The Mamluk period (circa 1250–1517 CE) was a golden age for Cairo’s architecture, scholarship, and economy. The city became the wealthiest and most populous center in the Muslim world after the Mongol destruction of Baghdad. Mamluk sultans and emirs funded elaborate mosques, madrasas, khanqahs, and mausolea in the city’s core, resulting in a dense urban fabric of public and religious buildings that shaped Cairo’s enduring Islamic architectural character and its status as a regional commercial metropolis.

When the Ottomans incorporated Cairo into their empire in 1517 CE, the city retained its importance as a provincial capital but experienced administrative and economic decentralization. Ottoman governors and elite households introduced distinctive architectural styles, including tiled decoration and domed religious structures, often adapting existing Mamluk complexes. Despite diminished political autonomy, Cairo remained a significant center of craft production, scholarship, and trade throughout this period.

The modern period, beginning under Muhammad Ali Pasha’s semi-independent dynasty (circa 1805–1952 CE), witnessed modernization, European-inspired urban planning, and demographic growth that transformed Cairo into a cosmopolitan metropolis. Extensive infrastructural projects, including new bridges, railways, and the construction of the downtown district, altered the cityscape to reflect European and Ottoman influences. Since the mid-20th century, following the 1952 revolution and into the present day, Cairo has grown into a dynamic political and cultural capital of the Arab world, grappling with the challenges of rapid urbanization while preserving its multilayered historic fabric.

History of Cairo