Youssef Effendi
By Amr Talaat
I am always quite puzzled when I visit my aunt Inaam Hanem. She always pushes me to keep eating more and more. I often wonder whether it’s her great generosity, or simply a plan to avoid the embarrassment of wolfing down all the food by herself. Anyway, on my last visit, as she was pushing me to eat yet another tangerine, I tried to make the conversation a little more interesting:
“Do you know why we call them Youssef Effendi (or the slang Youstafandi) here in Egypt?” “No”, she said disinterestedly, “Why?”
“In 1826, Mohamed Ali Pacha sent a delegation of 40 students to receive their education in France. They studied various disciplines. One of them was a young twenty three year old of Armenian origin who stayed at Revel, France and studied Agriculture. The young man later returned to Egypt and took part in some of the state’s agricultural projects, eventually becoming the principal of the Agricultural School of Nabarouh, then later, the chief supervisor over Mohamed Ali’s gardens.
This young man was Youssef Effendi. Among the many trees and plants he brought back home with him were the sweet tangerines that gained instant popularity among the Egyptians, and were later named after him.”
My aunt raised her eyebrow in an attempt to show interest and said “What a cute story!”. She then reached out for her fifth Youssef Effendi and started peeling it…
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