Note 49 — Chapter V

Note 49. "The metropolis of the world," or literally, "the mother of the world" ("umm ed-dunyà"), is a title given to several cities, as well as to Cairo, by their respective inhabitants. This passage, therefore, and others of a similar kind, in which even foreigners are made to rank Egypt and Cairo as superior to every other country and city, strongly favour the opinion that some of its tales were written, or altered, by an Egyptian.