Yacoubian building is an edifice in Cairo

Cairo

Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...

, Egypt

Egypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

, built in 1937. It was the home of the crème de la crème of Egyptian society who lived in the building during the city's heydays of the 1930s and 1940s. Located on No. 34 on Talaat Harb, Cairo, the Art Deco

Art Deco

Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...

 style edifice was named after its wealthy Armenian

Armenians

Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....

 owner and businessman Hagop Yacoubian.

The once-chic, now rundown, building serves as a metaphor for Cairo's own deterioration particularly in the 2003 Arabic language

Arabic language

Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...

  novel The Yacoubian Building

The Yacoubian Building

The Yacoubian Building is a novel by Egyptian author Alaa-Al-Aswany. The book was made into a film of the same name in 2006 and into a TV series in 2007....

by Alaa Al Aswany

Alaa Al Aswany

Alaa al-Aswany is an Egyptian writer, and a founding member of the political movement Kefaya.-Biography:Alaa Al Aswany studied to be a dentist, first in Egypt, and then later Chicago....

.

Based on the book, an award-winning film was made in 2006 also entitled The Yacoubian Building

The Yacoubian Building (film)

The Yacoubian Building is an Egyptian film based on the novel of the same title by author Alaa Al Aswany. It has been reported to be the highest-budgeted film in the history of Egyptian cinema.-Background:...

directed by Marwan Hamed. The film was reportly the highest-budgeted film in the history of Egyptian cinema

This is not to be confused with an equally important dominant edifice in Beirut

Beirut

Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...

, Lebanon

Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...

, called Yacoubian Building

Yacoubian Building (Beirut)

Yacoubian building, is a prominent commercial and residential edifice in Beirut, Lebanon, hosting in its hey day, and counting some of the best-known commerces and some of the most renowned celebrities and artists amongst its tenants. The building is located in Caracas neighborhood of Ras Beirut,...

belonging to the same family.