Red See-Know-How

Info about Hurghada

Red See-Know-How

location  

The Red Sea Governorate is one of the longest governorates in Egypt. Its coastline extends on the Red Sea with a length of 1080 km, from the Gulf of Suez, to the borders of Sudan. It consists of 7 cities, 12 large villages and 27 small villages. The population is about 360000 people.

 Hurghada is considered one of its most important cities. It is located on the western shore of the Red Sea, and it is the capital of the governorate. It extends 40 km along the coastal strip of the Red Sea, with a total area of 460.5 km. It is one of the oldest ports, and it is known as one of the best diving centers in the world. 

It is bordered by the city of Ras Ghareb in the north, 143 km, in the south of Safaga, 61 km, in the east by the Red Sea, and in the west by the Red Sea Mountains, between 8 to 35 km.

The distance between Hurghada and Luxor in the south is 280 km, and Cairo in the north is 455 km.

Climate

 It is characterized by its bright sun, the moderate temperature throughout the year, a dry desert climate, and an average temperature ranging between 27 degrees Celsius and 18 degrees Celsius throughout the year.

Population

The population of Hurghada is about 90,000 people, and more than that is about 50 thousand workers coming from other cities to work in the field of tourism.

The Meaning of Hurghada

The city's original name is "Hurghada" in reference to a desert area known as "Desht Hur-Ghada" Al-Ma'ani Dictionary

 DYCHT is the name of a tribe -Hor, meaning the dry plant-Ghada is the soft branch.

Another opinion says:

That the name belongs to a plant called Nitraria Retusa, a naturally growing shrub since ancient times that grows on sand dunes, and in areas of high salinity such as salt marshes.

It is salt tolerant and drought tolerant. It can grow to a height of 2.5 meters and produces small white/green flowers and small edible red fruits. 

The fishermen were fishing in the area between the Arabian Peninsula and the Red Sea coast, and they met at a large tree of the "Hurghada" plant, and its current location is the port of Hurghada.

The new city

The new city of Hurghada was founded in 1905, and the name changed to Hurghada. There was nothing in the city, but a group of primitive houses inhabited by Bedouins in the Saqala area, and they worked in the fishing and pearling. During the reign of King Farouk, a royal restroom was built, but after nationalization during the rule of President Gamal Abdel Nasser, it was called the Club Armed Forces of Water Sports.

National Day

On 22 January of each year, the Red Sea Governorate celebrates its National Day, the anniversary of the victory of the Egyptian armed forces over the Israeli forces in the Battle of Shadwan, when the Israeli forces attempted to occupy the Shadwan Island in 1972.

 Sources of income:

Tourism

It is considered the most important main source of income for the residents, with more than 1000 hotels, hotel apartments, commercial streets, shopping malls with international brands, and many local or brand restaurants. It has many islands, a diversity of coral reefs, and natural reserves inhabited by large numbers of marine animals and rare birds, some of which are considered endangered, such as the eagle, the white-eyed gull, and the hawksbill turtle. Hurghada is the most beautiful place in the world for diving and water sports enthusiasts who are looking for relaxation from work, making it a domestic and international tourist destination visited by thousands of tourists annually.

 Natural resources

The city of Hurghada is characterized by the richness of its land with natural resources such as granite, basalt, schist, quartzite, gold, and petroleum quarries. Petroleum was discovered in 1913, and the actual production and export it began in 1921. Now Petroleum is extracted by several Egyptian companies with foreign partnerships in the city of Ras Ghareb, which is one of the most important areas of oil refining, as well as the fields of the Ish all-Malaha Petroleum Company in north Hurghada on an area of 15.3 km, and the Jabal al-Zayt Petroleum Company in the regions of Jabal al-Zayt and Ras al-Esh.

Fishing

More than 10,000 residents of the city work as a fishers. The most famous types of fish are kosher, tween, and bourbon. Fishing is prohibited for 3 months of each year in order to preserve the fish stocks in the area. It is strictly forbidden to fish in nature reserves and to hunt rare marine creatures such as sharks, sea cucumbers, turtles, and others.  Every year, the Egyptian Fishing Federation, in cooperation with the Marine Sports Club in Hurghada, organizes fishing competitions.

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