page_title: Asmahan
section_title: Immigration to Egypt
hierarchical_section_title: Asmahan / Early life / Immigration to Egypt
caption_attribution_description: 'Alia Menzer and her Children
context_page_description: Amal al-Atrash, better known by her stage name Asmahan, was a Syrian singer who lived and rose to fame in Egypt. Having immigrated to Egypt at the age of three years old, her family knew the composer Dawood Hosni, and she sang the compositions of Mohamed El Qasabgi and Zakariyya Ahmad. She also sang the compositions of Mohammed Abdel Wahab and her brother Farid al-Atrash, a then rising star musician in his own right. Her voice was one of the few female voices in Arab music world to pose serious competition to that of Umm Kulthum, who is considered to be one of the Arab world's most distinguished singers of the 20th century. Her mysterious death in an automobile accident shocked the public. Journalists spread gossip about her turbulent personal life and an alleged espionage role in World War II.
context_section_description: 'Alia chose to immigrate to Cairo, because 'Alia knew that Egypt's then nationalist prime minister Saad Zaghloul and her husband's relative, Sultan al-Atrash were on corresponding terms. According to family accounts, 'Alia was permitted to enter Egypt under the sponsorship of Saad Zaghloul.  Many other Syrians and Lebanese were present in Egypt in this period.
  Asmahan and her family first lived in an apartment in a humble section of Cairo. Her mother did laundry and sewing to support the family.  She had an excellent voice, could play the `ud, sang at parties and made some recordings.  Asmahan and her brothers attended a French Catholic school.  In order to receive waivers for the high cost of tuition, 'Alia registered them under the alias Kusah (meaning "courgette") rather than trying to convince school officials that members of the wealthy al-Atrash family were destitute.  'Alia received a monthly stipend from a secret benefactor rumored to be "Baron" Crane (of the King–Crane Commission) according to one Egyptian journalist.  This allowed her to cover the costs of her children's school's tuition, and a nicer apartment on Habib Shalabi Street.
caption: 'Alia and her children after arrival in Egypt
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