Culture Shock! Egypt - A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette

Glossary 293

Mahr
(MAHR)

a marriage payment from the

groom’s father to the bride’s

Mamluks
(MAM-eh-LUKES)

originally slaves of the

Ottoman Turks who were

converted to Islam, became

military officers, and

eventually ruled Egypt

Mecca
(MECK-kah)

a city in Saudi Arabia that is

considered to be the holiest

city to Muslims

Medina
(meh-DEEN-ah)

holy city to Muslims, located

north of Mecca

Messaharatis
(MES-sah-ha-RAH-tees)

men who go through the

streets before dawn to remind

people to eat their Sohour

Mosque
(MAWSK)

the place Muslims go

to worship

Muslim
(MUZ-lem)

a person who practises

the faith of Islam

Naguib Mahfouz
(nah-GEEB MAH-foos)

famous Egyptian author

who won the Nobel Prize for

Literature in 1988

Nawashef
(NAH-wah-shef) dry foods

Nilometer

a measuring device used

by the ancient Egyptians to

measure the rising and falling

of the Nile River

Nubian
(NOO-be-an)

Nubians are a group of dark-

skinned Egyptians. Historically,

Nubians lived in the area

stretching from Aswan to the

Sudan border. After the Aswan

High Dam was built in the

1970s, most Egyptian Nubians

were moved to villages north

of Aswan, around the town of

Kom Ombo.