The Abaza family () is an Egyptian family of maternal Circassian origin. Abaza is the Arabic name for people from Abkhazia. They have had an influence in the late 18th century to modern times. They are believed to have a net worth of over US$800 million. It is known for having produced a large number of politicians under the Muhammad Ali dynasty from the 19th to the mid-20th century. While no individual Abaza has been the ruler or president of Egypt, some Egyptian media have referred to them as one of the "families that rule the country", and as "Egypt's oldest parliamentary dynasty". The Abaza family has also contributed to modern Arabic literature and art through the works of journalist and political activist Fekry Pasha Abaza, author Desouky Bek Abaza, poet Aziz Pasha Abaza, novelist Tharwat Abaza, actor Rushdy Abaza, among others. They are thought to number around 50,000 members. History Sources indicate that the Abaza family were already well established in the Nile Delta by the late 18th century, they took – or were given – the last name "Abaza". A belief among the Abaza family is that they were named after "a beloved grandmother ... or her place of birth". This maternal ancestor is thought to have married the head of the powerful El Ayed family prior to the reign of Muhammad Ali of Egypt. Many elders of the family sat on the Majlis created by Ibrahim Pasha. The monarchy had also endowed the family with villages and lands allowing the Abazas to flourish. Hassan Pasha Abaza is widely considered to be the modern founding father of the family, also titled Sheikh of the Arabs, a title given to the heads of sufficiently influential families at the time. Other Abazas received variations on the title, such as Shiekh Boghdady Pasha Abaza who, along with Hassan Pasha, served in Ibrahim Pasha's Majlis making the Abazas the only family to hold two seats at the same time. On one occasion, during the accession of the young King Farouk, the Abaza family solicited palace authorities to permit the royal train to stop briefly, at their village, so that the king could partake in refreshments which were offered in a large, ornate tent they had erected at the train station. In 2014, the family sued Sada Elbalad TV for the creation of a children's cartoon named Abaza and the program was forced