Journal Article

Outdating: The Time of \Culture\ in Colonial Egypt

BARAK, ON

2013

Overview

Discusses changes to the calendar in Egypt. The author notes that the 'Hijri' calendar based on Islamic history began to be supplanted by the Gregorian calendar in the late 19th century, refers to the cultural implications of the change with reference to the increasing influence of Europe and European media at the time, and considers issues relating to the simultaneous existence of worldviews and practices with reference to Arabic media and telegraphy. He traces the increasing use of Gregorian dating systems in Egypt noting that their use was often combined with that of Islamic and Coptic calendars, highlights the influence of commerce on the growing use of the Gregorian calendar, and explains that the gradual supplanting of the Hijri calenadar and its relegation to religious uses were mediated by a number of Islamic reformers. He focuses on the influence of the international and national telegraph systems, international news and the Egyptian railway system on Egyptian culture, and assesses the overall impact of the new approach to time-keeping on Egyptian life.

• Publisher: MIT Press