Samannud سمنود Sebennytos | |
|---|---|
 Nile bank in Samannud | |
  Samannud Location in Egypt Show map of Nile Delta Samannud Samannud (Egypt) Show map of Egypt | |
| Coordinates:30°58′00.0″N31°15′00.0″E / 30.966667°N 31.250000°E /30.966667; 31.250000 | |
| Country |  Egypt |
| Governorate | Gharbia |
| Area | |
• Total | 57 sq mi (147 km2) |
| Population (2019 (estimated))[1] | |
• Total | 410,388 |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EST) |
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| ṯb-nṯr[2][3] inhieroglyphs | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Era:Late Period (664–332 BC) | |||||||||
Samannud (Arabic:سمنودSamannūd) is a city (markaz) located inGharbia Governorate, Egypt. Known inclassical antiquity asSebennytos (Ancient Greek:Σεβέννυτος), Samannud is a historic city that has been inhabited since theAncient Egyptian period. As of 2019, the population of themarkaz of Samannud was estimated to be 410,388, with 83,417 people living in urban areas and 326,971 in rural areas.[1]
The place known inEgyptian Arabic:سمنود[sæmænˈnuːd], was historically calledSebennytos orSebennytus.
The name Samannud ultimately derives from theAncient Egyptian nameṯb-(n)-nṯr, meaning "city of the sacred calf".[7] The name was probably pronounced */ˌcabˈnaːcar/ in Old Egyptian and */ˌcəbˈnuːtə/ or */ˌcəbənˈnuːtə/ in Late Egyptian.[8]
Samannud (Sebennytos) was an ancient city ofLower Egypt, located on the now-silted up Sebennyticbranch of the Nile in the Delta. Sebennytos was thecapital of Lower Egypt's twelfthnome—theSebennyte nome (district). Sebennytos was also the seat of theThirtieth Dynasty of Egypt (380–343 BCE).[9][10][11][12]
Sebennytos is perhaps best known as the hometown ofManetho, ahistorian andchronicler from thePtolemaic era, c. 3rd century BC. Sebennytos was also the hometown ofNectanebo II; he was its last ruler.[13]
Atemple dedicated to the local godAnhur, or Anhur-Shu, and his lioness goddess mateMehit, once existed at this location but is now reduced to ruins. A fragment from the location where kings would have made offerings to Anhur and his wife, is on display at theWalters Art Museum.[14]
Samannud violently resisted theMuslim conquest of Egypt in 639, and remained rebellious for some time thereafter; the city revolted four times in the first half of the eighth century. ThreeCoptic Patriarchs came from Samannud:John III,Cosmas II, andJohn V. The 12th-centuryCopticphilologistYuhanna al-Samannudi also came from Samannud, and served as its bishop.[15]
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 249,672 | — |
| 2006 | 298,166 | +19.4% |
| 2019 | 410,388 | +37.6% |
| Source: Citypopulation.de[1] | ||
Samannud's bishopric remained active through the late thirteenth century, indicating the presence of a large Christian population at the time.[16]
In 1843,John Gardner Wilkinson described it as a place of some size, with the usualbazaars of the large towns of Egypt, and famous for its pottery, which was sent to Cairo.[17]
The1885 Census of Egypt recorded Samannud as a city in its own district inGharbia Governorate; at that time, the population of the city was 11,550 (5,686 men and 5,864 women).[18]
In aCoptic tradition, Sebennytos was part of the route of theHoly Family during theflight into Egypt narrated in theGospel of Matthew (2:13–23).[19]
| Preceded by | Historical capital of Egypt 380 – 332 BC | Succeeded by |
