NAJ' HAMMADI

also spelled Nag Hammadi, town in Qina muhafazah (governorate), on the west bank of the Nile, in Upper Egypt, on or near the site of the ancient town of Chenoboskion. It is a market town for the surrounding agricultural region, and it has a sugar refinery; an aluminum plant complex opened in 1975. Ancient sites in the vicinity include the town of Hiw (Diospolis Parva) to the south and al-Qasr wa's Sayyad on the eastern bank, site of Old Kingdom tombs and an important Coptic settlement. There in 1945 were found the Naj' Hammadi (Nag Hammadi) papyri, a collection of 13 codices of Gnostic scriptures and commentaries written in the 2nd or 3rd century (though the codices themselves are 4th-century copies). The CairoAswan railway serves the town and crosses the Nile to the eastern bank over a swing bridge. Pop. (1986 prelim.) 28,493.