Avaris (;
Egyptian: ,
Budge notation:
Hut-waret, ) was the capital of Egypt under the
Hyksos. It was located at modern Tell el-Dab'a in the northeastern region of the
Nile Delta, at the juncture of the 8th, 14th, 19th and 20th
Nomes. As the main course of the Nile migrated eastward, its position at the hub of Egypt's delta emporia made it a major administrative capital of the
Hyksos and other traders. It was occupied from about 1783 to 1550 BC, or from the
Thirteenth Dynasty of Egypt through the second intermediate until its destruction by
Ahmose I, the first Pharaoh of the
Eighteenth dynasty. The name in the
Egyptian language of the 2nd millennium BCE was probably pronounced
*Ḥaʔat-Wūrat 'Great House' and denotes the capital of an administrative division of the land. Today, the name
Hawara survives, referring to the site at the entrance to
Faiyum. Alternatively, Clement of Alexandria referred to the name of this city as "Athyria".