Egyptian nationalism
Egyptian nationalism is based on Egyptians and Egyptian culture.[1] Egyptian nationalism has typically been a civic nationalism that has emphasized the unity of Egyptians regardless of their ethnicity or religion. Egyptian nationalism first manifested itself as Anti-English sentiment during the Egyptian revolution of 1919.
History[edit]
Origins[edit]
The early Egyptian protonationalism was shaped by foreign invasions and conquests. The Assyrian conquest and the Battle of Carchemish led to a figure of Nebuchadnezzar becoming the archetype of the Eastern conqueror, a figure representing foreign domination, an outsider and a prototypical enemy of Egypt.
The Egyptian attitude towards the subsequent Persian conquest led by Cambyses II and the Macedonian conquest led by Alexander the Great is somewhat conflicting. Herodotus, drawing from native Egyptian tradition, portrays Cambyses, on one hand, as a brutal conqueror, who desecrated sacred Apis bull cult, the view that is also supported by latter Cambyses Romance and the Chonicle of John of Nikiou, where he is also identified with Nebuchadnezzar. On the other hand, Cambyses is depicted as half Egyptian, a grandson of Apries.[2]
Alexander is portrayed in the same duality – while he is also depicted as half-Egyptian through his alleged father Nectanebo in Alexander Romance, his new capital Alexandria is seen as an evil (or "Typhonic") foundation destined to be destroyed, with Memphis being restored as the rightful seat of the gods. This could be explained by the existence of two traditions – a folk one, trying to Egyptianize foreign conquerors and represent them as a continuation of a native royal tradition, and a priesty elite one – portraying hardships of Egypt as a cosmic battle between order and chaos, symbolised by god Set (identified with Typhon). Thus, enemies of Egypt are often labeled "Typhonic" or minions of Seth. This idea is also reflected in Herodotus' description of Egyptian borders – their eastern limit is Lake Serbonis, where Typhon is said to be concealed and where Cambyses beat Egyptian army at the Battle of Pelusium. Avaris, the capital of Hyksos, who conquered Egypt in the 17th century BC, is also described as "Typhonic" by Manetho.[3]
Other texts that could be considered a part of Egyptian "Königsnovelle" and shaped early Egyptian protonationalism are Oracle of the Lamb, Oracle of the Potter and the Dream of Nectanebo.[2]
Late 19th century[edit]
Both the Arabic language and the ancient Egyptian language are Afroasiatic languages sharing a common origin.[4] The rule of Muhammad Ali of Egypt led Egypt to a more advanced level of industrialization in comparison with Egypt's neighbors, along with more discoveries of relics of ancient Egyptian civilization.[1] The Urabi movement in the 1870s and 1880s was the first major Egyptian nationalist movement that demanded an end to the alleged despotism of the Muhammad Ali family and demanded curbing the growth of European influence in Egypt, it campaigned under the nationalist slogan of "Egypt for Egyptians".[1]