Benha is the capital city of Al-Qaliubiya governorate and is located in the northern region of the governorate. It was one of the oldest villages in ancient Egypt and its Pharaonic name was Perneha, while its Coptic Christian name is Bamaho, from which the name of Benha is derived. Qalyub used to be the capital of this governorate, but when Abbas I had a castle built in Benha in 1850, he ordered a change of the capital to Benha which was then under the jurisdiction of Tokh central administrative district. Benha includes a part of Atrib. When Benha was declared a central district, it became the capital of Al-Qaliubiya administration in 1913.  It has important Pharaonic monuments in Atrib.