Atfih

---

title: "Atfih" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["populated-places-in-giza-governorate", "cities-in-ancient-egypt"] description: "Town in Middle Egypt" topic_path: "geography" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atfih" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Town in Middle Egypt ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

Field	Value
	name
أطفيح
native_name
settlement_type	Town
motto
pushpin_map	Egypt
pushpin_label_position	bottom
pushpin_mapsize	300
pushpin_map_caption	Location in Egypt
	subdivision_type
subdivision_name	Egypt
subdivision_type1	Governorate
subdivision_name1	Giza
subdivision_name3
leader_title1
established_title
established_date
unit_pref	Imperial
area_total_km2
area_land_km2
	population_as_of
population_total	106300
population_blank1_title	Ethnicities
population_density_blank1_sq_mi
timezone	EET
utc_offset	+2
timezone_DST	EEST
utc_offset_DST	+3
coordinates
elevation_footnotes
elevation_ft
postal_code_type
::

| name = Atfih أطفيح | other_name = | native_name = | nickname = | settlement_type = Town | motto = | image_skyline = | imagesize = | image_caption = | image_flag = | flag_size = | image_seal = | seal_size = | image_shield = | shield_size = | image_map = | mapsize = | map_caption = | pushpin_map = Egypt | pushpin_label_position = bottom | pushpin_mapsize = 300 | pushpin_map_caption = Location in Egypt | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = Egypt | subdivision_type1 = Governorate | subdivision_name1 = Giza | subdivision_type2 = | subdivision_name2 = | subdivision_type3 = | subdivision_name3 = | | government_footnotes = | government_type = | leader_title = | leader_name = | leader_title1 = | leader_name1 = | established_title = | established_date = | area_magnitude = | unit_pref = Imperial | area_footnotes = | area_total_km2 = | area_land_km2 = | population_as_of = 2001 | population_footnotes = | population_note = | population_total = 106300 | population_density_km2 = | population_density_sq_mi = | population_metro = | population_density_metro_km2 = | population_density_metro_sq_mi = | population_blank1_title = Ethnicities | population_blank1 = | population_density_blank1_km2 = | population_density_blank1_sq_mi = | timezone = EET | utc_offset = +2 | timezone_DST = EEST | utc_offset_DST = +3 | coordinates = | elevation_footnotes = | elevation_m = | elevation_ft = | postal_code_type = | postal_code = | area_code = | blank_name = | blank_info = | blank1_name = | blank1_info = | website = | footnotes = | official_name =

Atfih ( ar , Tpeh or Tpēh) is a town in Middle Egypt. It was part of the now defunct Helwan Governorate from April 2008 to April 2011, after which it was reincorporated into the Giza Governorate. As of 2001, it has a population of 106,300 inhabitants.

It speaks Saʽidi Arabic

Etymology

The name is derived from Ancient Egyptian Tp-jhw, meaning the first of the cows, referring to Hathor. The name became Petpeh in Coptic, from which the Arabic version Atfih (أطفيح) is derived. The city was also known in Greco-Roman Egypt as Aphroditopolis.

Location

Atfih is located in the area of ancient Maten, Upper Egypt's northernmost nome.

History

Ancient history

Atfih was known as Per-nebet tep-ihu in antiquity and Busiris (Aphroditopolis) to the Romans. Some of the Ancient Egyptian monuments discovered in the town include an animal necropolis, Greco-Roman tombs, and sepulchers of cows in huge limestone tombs. About 17 km North was found the Tomb of 'Ip, who lived around 2000 BC. in Atfih.

Hesateum

"Hesateum" (in analogy of the "Serapeaum" at Saqqara") was a necropolis of sacred cows of the goddess Hesat. Sixteen animal tombs of the Ptolemaic Period have survived.

Modern history

On 1 March 2011, the town's core in Atfih saw skirmishes between some Muslim and Christian people because of an alleged affair between a young Coptic Christian and a Muslim girl. When some people tried to blame the girl's father, a brawl started and ended by killing the girl's father and one of his relatives. An outrage arose on March 4 and Muslims of the town went to the church of the two martyrs and set it on fire. Hence on March 8, the Christians demonstrated in front of Maspiro television building demanding that the church should be built in the same place and Christians should be returned to their homes in the town safely. Prime Minister Essam Sharaf visited them to calm the situation and the priest Mtawos Wahba has been released. The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces pledged to rebuild the church. Some of religious, political and public figures have intervened to calm the situation, including the Islamic scholar Sheikh Mohamed Hassan, and the Islamic preacher Amr Khaled.

References

References

2. "أسماء بعض البلاد المصرية بالقبطية - كتاب لغتنا القبطية المصرية". St-Takla.org.
3. "مشروع تطوير قرية اطفيح الجديدة وتحويلها إلى قرية تعاونية منتجة".
4. "مركز اطفيح - اليوم السابع".
5. "مركز أطفيح - اليوم السابع".
6. "أطفيح".
7. Map, Egypt's Projects. "مركز شباب أطفيح".
8. (1929). "Dictionnaire des Noms Géographiques Contenus dans les Textes Hiéroglyphiques Vol. 6".
9. "Atfih, la zone centrale de l'Hésateum (zone A) Travaux dans la nécropole des vaches sacrées (1) (Octobre 2008, novembre 2009)". Mission égypto-française d'Atfih.
10. "Refworld | Egypt: Investigate Violence Against Coptic Christians".

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