# Sharqia Governorate

Sharqia Governorate (Arabic: محافظة الشرقية, romanized: Muḥāfaẓat ash-Sharqiyya, Egyptian Arabic pronunciation:, rural:; lit. 'Governorate of the Eastern') is the third most populous of the 27 governorates of Egypt. Located in the northern part of the country, its capital is the city of Zagazig.

## Overview

Bilbeis is the former capital of Sharqia. A section of the governorate once was part of the Qalyubia Governorate. There is a strong agriculture industry, poultry and fish farming in Sharqia.
The rate of poverty is more than 60% in this governorate but recently some social safety networks have been provided in the form of financial assistance and job opportunities. The funding has been coordinated by the country's Ministry of Finance and with assistance from international organizations.

## Municipal divisions

The governorate is divided into the following municipal divisions for administrative purposes, with a total estimated population as of January 2023 of 7,021,046. In some instances there is a markaz and a kism with the same name.
Municipal divisions :
| Anglicized name | Native name | Arabic transliteration | Population (January 2023 est.) | Type |
| Abu Hammad | مركز أبو حماد | Abū Ḥammād | 465,376 | Markaz |
| Abu Kebir | مركز أبو كبير | Abū Kabīr | 491,984 | Markaz |
| El Husseiniya | مركز الحسينية | El-Ḥusayniya | 373,774 | Markaz |
| El Ibrahimiya | مركز الأبراهيمية | El-Ibrāhīmiya | 200,590 | Markaz |
| El Qanayat | قسم القنايات | El-Qanāyāt | 74,611 | Kism (fully urban) |
| El Qurein | قسم القرين | El-Qurayn | 99,884 | Kism (fully urban) |
| New Salhia | قسم الصالحية الجديدة | Eṣ-Ṣaliḥiyah el-Jedīda | 62,610 | Kism (fully urban) |
| Awlad Saqr | مركز أولاد صقر | Awlād Ṣaqr | 244,870 | Markaz |
| Zagazig 1 | قسم اول الزقازيق | Ez-Zaqāzīq 1 | 208,682 | Kism (fully urban) |
| Zagazig 2 | قسم ثان الزقازيق | Ez-Zaqāzīq 2 | 245,662 | Kism (fully urban) |
| Zagazig | مركز الزقازيق | Ez-Zaqāzīq | 933,504 | Markaz |
| Bilbeis | مركز بلبيس | Bilbays | 889,709 | Markaz |
| Diyarb Negm | مركز ديرب نجم | Diyarb Najm | 532,950 | Markaz |
| Faqous | قسم فاقوس | Fāqūs | 104,244 | Kism (fully urban) |
| Faqous | مركز فاقوس | Fāqūs | 654,084 | Markaz |
| Hihya | مركز ههيا | Hihyā | 326,627 | Markaz |
| Kafr Saqr | مركز كفر صقر | Kafr Ṣaqr | 302,084 | Markaz |
| 10th of Ramadan City 1 | قسم أول مدينة عشرة رمضان | Madīnat 'Ashirh min-Ramaḍān 1 | 87,808 | Kism (fully urban) |
| 10th of Ramadan City 2 | قسم ثان مدينة عشرة رمضان | Madīnat 'Ashirh min-Ramaḍān 2 | 171,997 | Kism (fully urban) |
| Mashtool El Souk | مركز مشتول السوق | Mashtūl es-Sūq | 241,857 | Markaz |
| Minya El Qamh | مركز منيا القمح | Minyā el-Qamḥ | 831,505 | Markaz |
| Minshat Abu Omar | مركز منشاه ابوعمر | Munshāh Abū 'Umar | 86,670 | Markaz |
| Tanis | مركز صان الحجر | Ṣān el-Ḥajar | 158,443 | Markaz |

## Population

According to population estimates, in 2015 the majority of residents in the governorate lived in rural areas, with an urbanization rate of only 23.1%. Out of an estimated 6,485,412 people residing in the governorate in 2015, 4,987,707 people lived in rural areas and 1,497,705 lived in urban areas.

## Industrial zones

According to the Governing Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI), the following industrial zones are located in Sharqia:
* Zone name
* 10th of Ramadan Industrial Zone
* New El Salhia Industrial Zone

## Cities and towns

The following cities and towns are located in Sharqia Governorate.
| Name | Population (2006 census) | Location |
| 10th of Ramadan | 29,601 | 30°18′23″N 31°44′29″E﻿ / ﻿30.306503°N 31.741455°E﻿ / 30.306503; 31.741455﻿ (10th of Ramadan) |
| Abu Hammad | 36,592 | 30°32′40″N 31°40′47″E﻿ / ﻿30.544376°N 31.679831°E﻿ / 30.544376; 31.679831﻿ (Abu Hammad) |
| Abu Kebir | 104,100 | 30°43′00″N 31°40′00″E﻿ / ﻿30.716667°N 31.666667°E﻿ / 30.716667; 31.666667﻿ (Abu Kebir) |
| Awlad Saqr | 19,515 | 30°55′49″N 31°41′51″E﻿ / ﻿30.9303418°N 31.6974966°E﻿ / 30.9303418; 31.6974966﻿ (Awlad Saqr) |
| Bilbeis | 141,285 | 30°25′00″N 31°34′00″E﻿ / ﻿30.416667°N 31.566667°E﻿ / 30.416667; 31.566667﻿ (Bilbeis) |
| Diyarb Negm | 52,611 | 30°45′05″N 31°27′28″E﻿ / ﻿30.751389°N 31.457778°E﻿ / 30.751389; 31.457778﻿ (Diyarb Negm) |
| El Husseiniya | 29,565 | 30°51′40″N 31°55′11″E﻿ / ﻿30.8610931°N 31.919806°E﻿ / 30.8610931; 31.919806﻿ (El Husseiniya) |
| El Ibrahimiya | 35,022 | 30°43′06″N 31°33′47″E﻿ / ﻿30.7183986°N 31.5630861°E﻿ / 30.7183986; 31.5630861﻿ (El Ibrahimiya) |
| El Qurein | 64,559 | 30°36′06″N 31°44′39″E﻿ / ﻿30.601771°N 31.744135°E﻿ / 30.601771; 31.744135﻿ (El Qurein) |
| Faqous | 73,081 | 30°44′00″N 31°48′00″E﻿ / ﻿30.733333°N 31.8°E﻿ / 30.733333; 31.8﻿ (Faqous) |
| Hihya | 43,672 | 30°40′07″N 31°35′25″E﻿ / ﻿30.668702°N 31.5904°E﻿ / 30.668702; 31.5904﻿ (Hihya) |
| Kafr Saqr | 30,004 | 30°47′47″N 31°37′34″E﻿ / ﻿30.796389°N 31.626111°E﻿ / 30.796389; 31.626111﻿ (Kafr Saqr) |
| Mashtool El Souk | 47,153 | 30°21′38″N 31°22′39″E﻿ / ﻿30.360556°N 31.3775°E﻿ / 30.360556; 31.3775﻿ (Mashtool El Souk) |
| Minya El Qamh | 67,450 | 30°30′55″N 31°20′46″E﻿ / ﻿30.515278°N 31.346111°E﻿ / 30.515278; 31.346111﻿ (Minya El Qamh) |
| El Salheya El Gedida | 9,350 | 30°37′47″N 31°56′28″E﻿ / ﻿30.629774°N 31.941019°E﻿ / 30.629774; 31.941019﻿ (New Salhia) |
| Qanayat | 75,000 | 30°36′55″N 31°27′35″E﻿ / ﻿30.615239°N 31.459733°E﻿ / 30.615239; 31.459733﻿ (Qanayat) |
| Zagazig* | 318,393 | 30°34′00″N 31°30′00″E﻿ / ﻿30.566667°N 31.5°E﻿ / 30.566667; 31.5﻿ (Zagazig) |

## Notable people

* El-Said Badawi, sociolinguist
* Mohamed Morsi, former President of Egypt
* Ahmed Shafik, former Prime Minister of Egypt and Presidential Candidate for Egyptian presidential election, 2012
* The Abaza Family, Egypt's largest aristocratic family of Circassian Abazin origin.
* Mohammed Ahmed Sadek, Egyptian army general
* Ahmed Subhy Mansour, founder of the Quranist movement
* Sayed Marei, engineer and politician
* Abdel Halim Hafez, popular singer and actor
* Miral al-Tahawy, award-winning Bedouin novelist
* Yusuf Abu Rayya, award-winning novelist
* Husayn Fawzi Al Najjar, political historian and Islamic scholar
* Magdi Yacoub, professor of cardiothoracic surgery at the National Heart and Lung Institute
* Sama El Masry, actress, belly dancer, and activist
* Ahmed Fouad Negm, Egyptian vernacular poet
* Rushdy Abaza, actor
* Fekry Pasha Abaza, journalist and political activist
* Ahmed 'Urabi, the leader of the 1881 nationalist uprising against the British
* Hamada Helal, Egyptian singer
* Emad Moteab, Egyptian footballer
* Ahmed el-Mansy, an Egyptian officer who was killed in clashes with terrorists in North Sinai
* Aly Saad, professor of cardiology