Geographic Significance
St. Mena's church is on the north end of Coptic Cairo, located in a region known as Fum al-Khalig (fomm el-ḵalīg), north of the Roman aqueduct and the famed Babylon Fortress, at a Christian cemetery in the north end of Old Cairo.
Fum al Khalig is technically north of Old Cairo, however, it is still under the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Old Cairo, Manial and Fum Al-Khalig.
Fum al Khalig is also known as Al-Hamra (el-ḥamra; literally: "the red one" in Egyptian Arabic). The Coptic Orthodox Diocese encompasses El-Hamra as well as Coptic Cairo. St. Menas Church is still very near to the ancient Churches of Old Cairo, and is likely the first Coptic Orthodox Church in Cairo aside from several Churches that were all in the Old Cairo area at the time. Not only is it evidence of the past existence of Coptic Orthodox Christianity in Cairo outside of the Old City (being close to the northern tip of the district), but it is also one of few surviving pieces and large remnants of Coptic architecture that remains to this day.
Read more about this topic: Church Of Saint Menas (Cairo)
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