Alexandria (population of 3.5 to 5 million), is the second-largest city in Egypt, and its largest sea port. Alexandria extends about 20 miles (32 km) along the coast of the Mediterranean sea in north-central Egypt. The city of Alexandria was named after its founder, Alexander the Great, and as the seat of the Ptolemaic rulers of Egypt, quickly became one of the greatest cities of the Hellenistic world - second only to Rome in size and wealth.