Damietta Governorate (Arabic: محافظة دمياط) sits on the Mediterranean coast of the north-eastern Nile Delta, where the Damietta branch of the Nile meets the sea. Its capital is the city of Damietta, and CAPMAS put the population at 1,610,586 in January 2023 across 1,029 km². It is Egypt’s furniture-making centre and one of its main fishing and palm-growing areas.
| Capital | Damietta (Dumyat) |
|---|---|
| Population | 1,610,586 (CAPMAS estimate, January 2023) |
| 2017 census | 1,496,765 |
| Area | 1,029 km² |
| Density | about 1,570 people per km² |
| Municipal divisions | 5 markaz and 5 kism |
| Telephone code | 057 |
| Region | Nile Delta, Mediterranean coast |
Towns and Villages in Damietta Governorate
Damietta is the second-smallest governorate in the delta and has only five markaz: Damietta, Faraskur, Kafr Saad, Kafr El Battikh and El Zarqa. Five fully urban kism sit alongside them, at Damietta 1, Damietta 2, Al Sarw, New Damietta and Ras El Bar, plus a police-administered area covering the port. About 265 populated places in the governorate are mapped in the GeoNames gazetteer; the larger ones are listed below under the markaz whose seat town they lie closest to.
Damietta
Damietta markaz surrounds the capital and reaches the sea at Ras El Bar and the fishing quarter of Izbat al-Burj. Several of its settlements are shatt hamlets strung along the river bank. Population 354,716 (January 2023).
- Damietta
- Ras el-Barr
- Al Awadiliyah
- Al Busaylah
- Al Hasainah
- Al Malaqah
- Al Minyah
- As Sayyalah
- As Sinaniyah
- Ash Shaykh Dirgham
- Ash Shuara’
- Ibrahim Hakim
- Kafr Humaydah
- Kharij ar Raswah
- Shata
- Shatt Ezbet el-Lahm
- Shatt Ghayt an Nasara
- Shatt Gireiba
- Shatt Muhibb el-Saiyala
- Shatt ash Shaykh Dirgham
- Shatt el-Khaiyata
- Izbat al Burj
- Ezbet Sholah
Kafr Saad
Kafr Saad covers the west of the governorate, towards the Dakahlia boundary, and is the largest farming markaz by area. Population 281,533 (January 2023).
- Kafr Sa’d
- Ad Dinjuh
- Al Abbasiyah
- Al Fu’adiyah
- Al Husayniyah
- Al Muhammadiyah
- Al Muhandisin
- An Nasiriyah
- Ar Rikabiyah
- Ar Rikabiyah al Jadidah
- As Saidiyah al Bahriyah
- As Saidiyah al Qibliyah
- Kafr Abu Ayyad
- Kafr Sad al Balad
- Kafr Shihatah
- Kafr Yusif
- Kafr ad Dahaymah
- Kafr al Murabiin
- Kafr al Wastani
- Kafr al Wikalah
- Kufur al Ghab
- Mit ash Shuyukh
- Ezbet Costi Straphatis
- Hayy al Urubah
- Izab al Murabba
- Izbah Raqm Thamaniyah
Faraskur
Faraskur lies south of Damietta city on the west bank of the Damietta branch, in the guava and citrus belt. Population 273,979 (January 2023).
- Faraskur
- Ar-Rawdah
- Mit Abu Ghalib
- Abu Jaridah
- Ad Dahrah
- Al Atawi
- Al Ghawwabin
- Al Ghunaymiyah
- Al Ubaydiyah
- An Najjarin
- Ar Rahaminah
- As Salimiyah
- At Tarhah
- Awlad Khalaf
- Kafr Abu Admah
- Kafr Mit Abu Ghalib
- Kafr Sulayman al Bahri
- Kafr al Arab
- Kafr al Atawi
- Kafr al Ghawwabin
- Kafr al Munazalah
El Zarqa
El Zarqa lies in the south-east, on the edge of Lake Manzala. The Al Sarw kism sits inside the same block of villages. Population 151,020 (January 2023).
- As Sarw
- Az Zarqa
- Ad Dahriyah
- Al Birashiyah
- As Sabriyah
- As Sawalim
- Az Zaatirah
- Daqahlah
- Kafr Ismail
- Kafr Tiqa
- Kafr al Mayasirah
- Kafr ash Shaykh Atiyah
- Kafr at Turah al Jadid
- Kafr at Turah al Qadim
- Mit al Khawli Abd Allah
- Ras al Khalij
- Sayf ad Din
- Shirimsah
- Izbat Abd al Baqi
- Izbat Abdin
- Izbat Abu al Izz
- Izbat Ahmad at Tawil
- Izbat Ata Allah
Kafr El Battikh
Kafr El Battikh lies between Damietta city and New Damietta, and takes in the numbered housing districts of the new town. Population 142,627 (January 2023).
- Dumyat al Jadidah
- Kafr al Battikh
- Al Adiliyah
- Al Bustan
- Al Hayy al Awwal
- Al Hayy al Khamis
- Al Hayy ar Rabi
- Al Hayy ath Thani
- Al Hurani
- Al Khulayfiyah
- Al Mashayikh
Geography
The governorate is a coastal strip about 70 km long and rarely more than 20 km deep. The Damietta branch runs north through the middle of it and empties into the Mediterranean past Ras El Bar. Lake Manzala forms the eastern and southern edge, and much of the land east of the river is drained lake bed under one metre above sea level. Palm belts line both banks from Faraskur to the river mouth.
It borders Dakahlia to the west and south, and Port Said to the east across Lake Manzala. The Mediterranean lies to the north.
Demographics
The population grew from 913,555 in 1996 to 1,097,339 in 2006 and 1,496,765 at the 2017 census. CAPMAS estimated 1,610,586 in January 2023 and 1,618,239 by mid-2023, so the governorate has added around 700,000 people in under three decades.
Damietta is more urban than most delta governorates but still rural on balance: of the mid-2023 estimate, 963,311 people were counted as rural and 654,928 as urban. Damietta city, New Damietta and Ras El Bar hold most of the town population. Density is about 1,570 people per km².
Economy and Local Life
Furniture is the defining trade. Thousands of small workshops in Damietta city and the surrounding villages cut, carve and assemble wooden furniture, and Damietta Furniture City opened on the New Damietta road to bring the trade into planned factories. The craft is hereditary and workshops often occupy the ground floor of a family house.
Farming runs to guava, citrus, wheat, maize, rice, potatoes, grapes and tomatoes, and the governorate ships date palm offshoots abroad, including to Greece and China. Food processing covers Domiati cheese, sardine canning and sweets. Fishing is worked from Izbat al-Burj at the river mouth and from Lake Manzala. Damietta Port, opened in 1986 west of the river mouth, handles containers and grain, and a gas liquefaction plant operates at New Damietta. Ras El Bar, laid out where the river meets the sea, is one of Egypt’s oldest summer resorts.
History
Damietta is an old port, known in Coptic as Tamiat, and it guarded the eastern approach to the delta for centuries. Crusader armies took the city twice: in 1219 during the Fifth Crusade, when it was held for two years, and in 1249 under Louis IX of France, who surrendered it in 1250 to buy his release after his defeat at Mansurah.
Because the port kept drawing invaders, the Mamluk sultan Baibars had the old city pulled down in 1260 and rebuilt about 4 km upstream, and the river mouth was blocked with stone. The modern city stands on that later site. Damietta was administered with Dakahlia for long stretches of the 19th and 20th centuries and became a separate governorate again in 1960.
Getting There
Damietta city is about 200 km north of Cairo, a drive of roughly three hours. The usual route is the Cairo agricultural road to Mansoura, then the Mansoura-Damietta road. The International Coastal Road runs along the north of the governorate and connects Damietta with Gamasa to the west and Port Said, about 70 km east, over the Damietta-Port Said bridge.
Trains reach Damietta on the branch from Mansoura, which connects to the Cairo main line at Benha and Zagazig. Microbuses run from Damietta terminal to Ras El Bar, New Damietta, Faraskur and Kafr Saad. The nearest airport is Port Said, about 75 km away.
FAQ
What is the capital of Damietta Governorate?
The city of Damietta. Its markaz held 354,716 people in January 2023, and the two urban kism of Damietta 1 and Damietta 2 added a further 311,109.
How many towns and villages are in Damietta?
About 265 populated places are mapped in the governorate, from market towns to single river-bank hamlets. They are administered through 5 markaz and 5 kism.
What is the population of Damietta?
CAPMAS estimated 1,610,586 people in January 2023, up from 1,496,765 at the 2017 census.
What is Damietta known for?
Furniture making, Domiati cheese, guava and date palms, sardine canning, and the Ras El Bar summer resort at the mouth of the Nile.
Which governorates border Damietta?
Dakahlia to the west and south, and Port Said to the east across Lake Manzala.
How far is Damietta from Cairo?
About 200 km by road, or roughly three hours through Mansoura.