[gridlock]

I was puttering around on Google Earth the other day, and noticed that the Egyptians are calling Alexandria by the phonically equivalent Al Iskandariyah, which is a meaningless word, as far as I can tell.

This strikes me as a little bit silly.

[Sherman Logan]

the Egyptians are calling Alexandria by the phonically equivalent Al Iskandariyah

Iskandar (and variants) is the general Eastern way of spelling Alexander. Al = The in Arabic. Al Iskandariyah probably means the city of Alexander.