Abaza family

The Abaza family (Abaza: Абаза; Arabic: عائلة أباظة, romanized: ʻĀʼilat Abāẓah, or آل أباظة, Āl Abāẓah; Egyptian Arabic: عيلة أباظة, romanized: ʻĪleht Abāẓah) is an Egyptian aristocratic family of maternal Abazin, Circassian, and paternal Egyptian origins whose historical stronghold is in the Nile Delta.

It has been described as "deeply rooted in Egyptian society... [and] in the history of the country" and has had an influence from the late 18th century to modern times.

The family has had an impact on Egyptian and Arabic culture. Their contributions were through the works of authors, journalists, and activists Ismail Pasha Abaza and Fekry Pasha Abaza, author Ibrahim Desouky Bek Abaza, poet Aziz Pasha Abaza, novelist Tharwat Abaza, sociologist Mona Abaza, actor Rushdy Abaza, multiple other actors and directors, among others in various fields.

It has been criticized for "monopolizing" several parliamentary districts since the 19th century "reign of Muhammad Ali".

The clan has sometimes been referred to as "the family of the pashas" for having produced Egypt's largest number of nobles.

They are thought to number in the thousands, with sources varying in their estimates. However, these numbers are thought to be highly unreliable as no local censuses of Circassian communities exist due to a general "lack of demographic data on minorities in Egypt".