Four titles trace Egypt’s journey from the Middle Ages to the 20th century.
A story of transition
Empires in Friction: Egypt in the Sixteenth Century
(Mabayan Embratouriatine: Masr fi Alqarn Alsades-aashr)
Nelly Hanna, Syracuse University Press, 2025
Translated into Arabic by Magudi Gurguis (over 300 pages)
Published by Al-Dar Al-Masryah Al-Lebenaniyah, 2025
This detailed volume explores a critical but often overlooked period in Egyptian history: the transition from Mamluk rule, which lasted three centuries, to Ottoman rule beginning in 1517, continuing until 1914, when Egypt became a British protectorate during World War I.
Hanna’s book, however, is strictly focused on the actual years of transition following the massive military victory that allowed the Ottomans to annex Egypt to what was then an expanding empire.
Hanna examines this period of transition, essentially from the perspective of Egypt, which had turned from being the heart of an affluent empire to a province of the powerful empire.
Drawing on the limited historical records and documents available, Hanna carefully examines the complex dynamics of power, showing that Egypt’s takeover involved significant challenges and resistance at multiple levels.
The book argues that the vast space of their empire and the lack of fast modes of communication and correspondence brought the Ottomans to the realistic choice of “Decentering Power,” inevitably entitling the province and its Ottoman envoys (the Pachas of Egypt) to have considerable liberties.
Still, “Empires in Friction: Egypt in the Sixteenth Century” shows that there were also acts of pushback from the province toward the centre of the empire, mainly in financial matters.
These include the auditors’ resistance to the new language and methods of the rulers, the manoeuvres of national interest groups, the lingering influence of the Mamluks, the strength of Islamic institutions that challenged the Ottoman-imposed framework, and the unrest of peasants who farmed the vast lands supplying Istanbul with essential crops.
Moreover, the book expands the scope to show a prosperous Egypt that is a crucial centre of trade and a geographic spot of several harbours. It shows a country that turned from being the capital of an empire to being a province without fully losing its affluence.
It also shows an administrative system that required the accommodation of the new rulers, even as they introduced their new governmental norms.
It demonstrates an Egypt that helped the Ottoman Empire expand its influence through subsequent conquests.
The Arabic translation maintains a smooth and flowing style across over 300 pages.
Shades of quasi-independence
The History of Egypt: From the Ottoman Conquest to the Present Time
(Tarikh Masr min Al-Fateh Al-Othomany ila Al-Waqt Al-Hader)
Omar Al-Iskanadri and Selim Hassan, Maktabet Madbouli
The over-300-page volume is another text that examines the state of affairs of the Ottoman Empire from an Egyptian perspective.
In a straightforward narration of history, Al-Iskandari and Hassan provide the reader with a detailed look at the foreign invasions of Egypt while it was still a province of the Ottoman Empire.
The book draws a parallel between the financial power struggles that dominated the top ruling echelon and the French and British efforts to take control of Egypt as part of their imperial expansion in the East.
It also shows a growing national resistance to these foreign occupations, despite their symbolic attempts to act in line with Islamic regulations and to create associations with top figures of the Muslim institutions.
Inevitably, it illustrates Egypt’s gradual emergence of quasi-independence from the Ottoman Empire, even as it remained a province obligated to pay dues to the coffers in Istanbul.
Al-Iskandari and Hassan reflect thoroughly on the rule of the family of Mohammed Ali, who originally arrived in Egypt as part of an Ottoman army to push away the army of Napoleon Bonaparte.
However, they also highlight the alliances that the rulers of the Mohammed Ali family, particularly Tawfik, had to form to consolidate their quasi-independence amid an increasingly weakened Ottoman Empire, whose political alliances often failed to reinforce its authority.
Above all, the book highlights the many shades of quasi-independence, including the change in the title of the Egyptian ruler during the Ismail era from Pacha to Khedive, and the Ottoman tacit acceptance of European political and social norms within the ruling palace in Cairo.
At the same time, Al-Iskandari and Hassan maintain a parallel narrative thread: the growing national discontent with the injustices of the rulers.
Moving into the early years of the 20th century, the book examines the evolution of Egypt’s agricultural and financial systems before and after the 1882 British occupation, which eventually transformed the country into a protectorate in 1914, elevating Hussein Kamel to Sultan and later Fouad to the first King of Egypt and father of the nation’s last monarch, King Farouk.
This work is the sixth volume of a 26-title series published by Maktabet Madbouli under the heading Safahat min Tarikh Masr (Pages from the History of Egypt), covering eras from the Arab Conquest up to the 1919 Revolution.
Connected in translation
The History of Translation in Egypt during the French Campaign and the Era of Mohammed Ali
Jamal al-Din al-Shayyal, revised and introduced by Mohamed Sabri El-Daly, Al-Dar Al-Masriyah Al-Lebenaniyah, 2025
This well-over-500-page volume, published under Al-Dar Al-Masriyah Al-Lebenaniyah’s Classics selection, was originally the master’s thesis of historian Jamal Al-Din Al-Shayyal, completed and defended in 1945, before being published in two volumes in 1950 and 1951.
In an introduction, Ayman Fouad Sayyad, editor of the Classics selection, notes that publishing the thesis in a single volume for the first time pays tribute to a key aspect of Egypt’s advancement toward modernity and independence, namely, the role of translation.
In his book, Al-Shayyal examines translation on two levels: first, as a necessary tool imposed by occupation to enable communication, and second, as a pursuit of knowledge, particularly following the French Expedition in Egypt.
Al-Shayyal argues that it was neither the French nor the British occupations that advanced translation significantly in Egypt, but rather the rule of Mohammed Ali. His pursuit of quasi-independence from the Ottoman Empire required building a strong, modern state, which in turn created a need for translation.
Focusing on the first half of the 19th century, Al-Shayyal largely avoids political dynamics, concentrating instead on translation itself as a window into the cultural, economic, and social policies of the Mohammed Ali rulers.
He illustrates multiple spheres of translation: official translation for correspondence and administrative purposes, and scientific translation for advancing knowledge and modernity.
Al-Shayyal emphasizes that the rulers of Egypt, including Mohammed Ali, who spoke no Arabic upon his accession in 1805, needed translation to communicate with the public. He also notes that creating a modern state prompted translations in science and medicine, as well as specialized translations for the education of Mohammed Ali’s children.
Al-Shayyal credits Napoleon Bonaparte’s campaign in Egypt for bringing translators whose work initiated the creation of a French-Arabic dictionary with transliteration to ensure correct pronunciation.
He also highlights the contributions of the Egyptian Coptic population, who collaborated with the French translators, and Al-Shawam (immigrants from the Levant), who played pioneering roles in translation.
The book examines social and institutional reactions to the growing field of translation, particularly from Al-Azhar and the Coptic clergy.
It presents translation as both a symbol of occupation and a growing tool for acquiring knowledge and social status.
In addition to tracing the path of translation in the first half of the 19th century, Al-Shayyal provides detailed accounts of leading translators, their areas of specialization, and the evolution of translation methods and techniques.
Major shifts
The Long 1890s in Egypt: Colonial Quiescence, Subterranean Resistance
(Mar fil-akd Al-Akhir Al-Madid minl-qarn Al-Tassa’ashr: Hemoud Estaamari waMouqwama Batena)
Marlyin Booth and Anthony Gorman, Edinburgh University Press, 2014
Translated by Sarah Enani, The National Centre for Translation, 2023
This is a thorough study of Egypt’s long march toward modernization and the pursuit of full independence. Essentially, it traces the near-completion of modern state institutions, as examined by Booth and Gorman.
An edited volume based on papers presented at a 2011 conference at Edinburgh University, the book offers detailed insights into several aspects of life in Egypt on the eve of the 20th century.
While it examines areas such as education, transportation, jurisdiction, state records, and publications, the book primarily explores two key themes: the rise of secularism alongside the largely uncontested dominance of religious institutions, including the Coptic Church and Al-Azhar, and the growth of nationalism in response to British colonialism.
The book also traces the development of political and social movements and administrative institutions from the 1879 Orabi Uprising to the eve of the 1919 Revolution led by Saad Zaghloul.
The first uprising ended with the British occupation of Egypt in 1882, while the second followed Egypt’s official declaration as a British protectorate at the start of World War I in 1914.
Subsequent chapters reflect on a nation already taking steps toward modernization, highlighting advances under Khedive Ismail, including the establishment of the Public Works Administration and Dar Al-Oloum (House of Sciences), dedicated to training teachers.
The authors also recognize the largely unintended impact of British colonial rule in the final decade of the 19th century, which, while imposed, contributed to the development of modern institutions and created space for a growing nationalist movement.
The book highlights several major shifts, including the launch of daily newspapers, the education of women and the establishment of girls’ schools, improvements in transportation with the introduction of railways, and the emergence of trade and labour associations.
Overall, the book portrays a nation gaining momentum as it entered the 20th century, steadily moving toward modernization and asserting its aspirations for independence.
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