Ismailia Governorate

Ismailia Governorate (Arabic: محافظة الإسماعيلية, Muhafazat al-Isma’iliyya) is the middle of Egypt’s three Canal Zone governorates. The capital, Ismailia, stands on the west bank of the Suez Canal at Lake Timsah, about 128 km north-east of Cairo. CAPMAS estimated 1,452,743 people in mid-2023 across 5,067 km2, most of them in a narrow strip of irrigated land beside the canal.

Towns and Villages in Ismailia Governorate

Ismailia is not a Delta governorate and does not have the dense village fabric of Gharbia or Monufia. Away from the canal towns, most settlement is in izab, the small farm hamlets that carry a family name. They sit on land reclaimed along the Sweetwater Canal in the 20th century. The lists below carry the 98 settlements recorded in the national gazetteer, grouped by the district whose centre they sit closest to.

Abu Suwir Markaz

Population 223,134 (CAPMAS estimate, mid-2023). Abu Suwir lies west of Ismailia city along the Ismailia canal and the Cairo road. It carries more named hamlets than any other district in the governorate. Recorded settlements: 44.

• Al Mahsamah al Jadidah
• Al Mahsamah al Qadimah
• As Sab Abar al Gharbiyah
• Izbat Abazah
• Izbat Abd al Maqsud Abu Sayf
• Izbat Abu Asakir
• Izbat Abu Ayyad
• Izbat Abu Radi
• Izbat Abu Shamiyah
• Izbat Abu Shushah
• Izbat Abu Subayh
• Izbat Abu Sultan
• Izbat Abu ash Sharasit
• Izbat Ali Badr
• Izbat Awlad Mustafa
• Izbat Dawud Suliman
• Izbat Fasi Shalil
• Izbat Ghunaym Ahmad
• Izbat Hammad
• Izbat Ibrahim Juraysh
• Izbat Kassab
• Izbat Khalil Hasan
• Izbat Mahattat Abu Suwayr
• Izbat Muhammad Ahmad al Bali
• Izbat Muhammad Ibrahim Matrud
• Izbat Muhammad Mahmud Matrud
• Izbat Muhammad al Fuli
• Izbat Muhammad al Khuli
• Izbat Rawd Iskandar
• Izbat Rawd as Suli
• Izbat Rizq Allah
• Izbat Sulayman al Mabrawi
• Izbat al Hajj Ali Mansur
• Izbat al Hataymah
• Izbat al Khamsin
• Izbat al Kilaniyah
• Izbat al Kishk
• Izbat al Magharibah
• Izbat al Mantabli al Jadidah
• Izbat al Masayimah
• Izbat al Maskhut
• Izbat as Saayidah
• Izbat as Salamuni
• Izbat as Sayyid Khalil Mutawi

Ismailia Markaz

Population 170,774 (CAPMAS estimate, mid-2023). The markaz surrounds the city and takes in the villages along Lake Timsah and the Sweetwater Canal. The three urban kism of Ismailia city held a further 450,388 people in 2023. Recorded settlements: 25.

• Al Araishiyah al Jadidah
• Al Firdan
• As Sab Abar ash Sharqiyah
• Ezbet Abd el-Hadi Afifi
• Ismailia
• Izab Ghanim Wahab
• Izbat Abd Allah
• Izbat Abu Atwah
• Izbat Abu Dema
• Izbat Abu Husayn
• Izbat Abu Musa
• Izbat Abu Sitayt
• Izbat Arab al Khashayinah
• Izbat Muhammad Ibrahim Awad
• Izbat Nafishah al Bahriyah
• Izbat Oda
• Izbat Shihatah Mustafa
• Izbat Talha
• Izbat Yousif Hasan al Qarqawi Sarabiyum
• Izbat al Abraq
• Izbat al Hajj Ismail Dahshan
• Izbat al Husari
• Izbat as Suli al Buhayriyah
• Izbat as Suli al Qibliyah
• Nafishah

El Qantara Markaz (Qantara West)

Population 163,093 (CAPMAS estimate, mid-2023). El Qantara West stands on the African bank of the Suez Canal, 45 km north of Ismailia city. Recorded settlements: 9.

• Abu Khalifah
• Al Qantarah
• Al Qantarah al Gharbiyah
• Ezbet Muhammad el- Siudi
• Izbat Akharsat Abu Makhluf
• Izbat Salamah Abu Salim
• Izbat Suliman Marzuq
• Izbat al Jazirah
• Izbat al Mallahah

Fayid Markaz

Population 148,411 (CAPMAS estimate, mid-2023). Fayid faces the Great Bitter Lake and was a British garrison town until 1956. It is now a beach and fruit-growing district. Recorded settlements: 10.

• Abu Sultan
• Fanarah
• Fayid
• Izab Al-Aqidah
• Izbat Abu Iraqi
• Izbat Abu Zayd Hasan
• Izbat Zayn al Abidin Isa
• Izbat al Ibrashi
• Izbat al Makhadah
• Sarabiyum

New Kasaseen (Al-Qasasin El-Gedida)

Population 121,455 (CAPMAS estimate, mid-2023). New Kasaseen is a new city on the western edge of the governorate, created around the Kasaseen agricultural and industrial zone. Recorded settlements: 8.

• Ezbet Abu el-Suba
• Izbat Abu Mihlays
• Izbat Mahattat al Mahsamah
• Izbat Muhammad Rizq
• Izbat Rabiah
• Izbat Umm Shakir
• Izbat al Hajj Muhammad Safi
• Izbat al Mahsamah

Tell El Kebir Markaz

Population 112,415 (CAPMAS estimate, mid-2023). Tell El Kebir sits on the Ismailia canal near the Sharqia boundary and is best known for the 1882 battle fought there. Recorded settlements: 1.

• Qaryah Raqm Sittah

El Qantara Sharq (Qantara East)

Population 63,073 (CAPMAS estimate, mid-2023). El Qantara East is the governorate’s only district on the Sinai bank of the canal, reached by the Mubarak Peace Bridge and the ferries. Recorded settlements: 1.

• At Tall al Ahmar

Geography

The governorate runs along the Suez Canal from El Qantara in the north to the Great Bitter Lake in the south. West of the canal strip it stretches into desert towards Sharqia. Lake Timsah at Ismailia city, and the Great and Little Bitter Lakes to the south, are all part of the canal waterway. The Ismailia Canal, dug in 1863 to bring Nile water to the construction camps, still supplies the whole zone and defines the belt of farmland.

Ismailia borders Port Said to the north, North Sinai to the north-east, Suez to the south, and Sharqia to the west.

Demographics

The population grew from 1,303,993 at the 2017 census to 1,452,743 by mid-2023. That is about 11 per cent in six years, one of the faster rates in Egypt. Density averages 287 people per km2, far below the Delta. The average misleads: the desert holds almost nobody and the canal strip is crowded.

The three urban kism of Ismailia city held roughly 450,000 people in 2023, close to a third of the governorate. The rest live in the markaz towns of Abu Suwir, Fayid, Tell El Kebir and El Qantara, in New Kasaseen, and in the hamlets between.

Economy and Local Life

Ismailia is the mango capital of Egypt. Orchards along the Sweetwater Canal supply a large share of the national crop. The season from July to September sets the rhythm of the year. Citrus, olives and strawberries follow. The Suez Canal Authority has its operational headquarters in Ismailia city, and canal pilotage, dredging and repair work employ thousands directly.

Fishing on Lake Timsah and the Bitter Lakes supports the lakeside villages. Suez Canal University, founded in 1976, and a cluster of military installations round out the city economy. The Suez Canal Economic Zone has brought logistics and light industry to the Qantara and Kasaseen corridors.

History

Ismailia was founded in 1863 as a base camp for the canal works and named after Khedive Ismail. Ferdinand de Lesseps lived there during construction, and his house still stands near the canal. The British army held the Canal Zone until 1956, and Fayid, Abu Suwir and Tell El Kebir were all garrison or airfield towns.

On 25 January 1952 British troops attacked the Egyptian police barracks in Ismailia. About fifty policemen were killed and riots broke out in Cairo the next day. Egypt marks Police Day on that date. In the 1973 war the crossing of the canal took place along this stretch, and Qantara and Fayid were rebuilt after the fighting ended.

Getting There

The Cairo-Ismailia Desert Road covers the 128 km from Cairo in about two hours. Trains run from Cairo’s Ramses station to Ismailia, and a canal-side line links Ismailia to Port Said and Suez. Buses and microbuses from Cairo’s Al-Mazah and Abbasiya terminals serve the city all day.

To reach Sinai, the Mubarak Peace Bridge at El Qantara carries road traffic over the canal, and vehicle ferries cross at Qantara and Ismailia. The Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel, further south in Suez Governorate, is the other road crossing.

FAQ

What is the capital of Ismailia Governorate?

Ismailia city, on Lake Timsah beside the Suez Canal. It is also the operational headquarters of the Suez Canal Authority.

How many towns and villages are in Ismailia?

The national gazetteer records 98 settlements in the governorate. Most are izab, small farm hamlets along the Sweetwater Canal, rather than large villages.

What is the population of Ismailia Governorate?

CAPMAS estimated 1,452,743 people in mid-2023. The 2017 census counted 1,303,993.

What is Ismailia known for?

Mangoes and the Suez Canal. Ismailia orchards supply much of Egypt’s mango crop, and the city has run canal operations since 1863.

What is the postal code for Ismailia?

Ismailia’s main postal code is 41111. Egypt uses five-digit codes assigned by district.

How do you cross the canal from Ismailia?

By the Mubarak Peace Bridge at El Qantara, by vehicle ferry at Qantara or Ismailia, or by the Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel south of the Bitter Lakes.