Luxor , Arabic Al-Uqṣur, City (pop., 2006: 202,232), Upper Egypt. Its name has been given to the southern part of the ruins of Thebes (the northern part is called Karnak). It is centred on the Great Temple of Amon, which was built on the eastern bank of the Nile River by King Amenhotep III in the 14th century bc. Tutankhamen and Horemheb completed the temple, and Ramses II added to it. Ruins include pillars and courts of the original temple as well as the remains of Coptic churches and a mosque. The modern city serves as a tourist centre and as a market for the surrounding agricultural district. Luxor is part of a UNESCO World Heritage site (designated in 1979) centred on Thebes.
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