According to Greek mythology, Aegyptus (; , Aígyptos) is a descendant of the maiden, Io, and the river-god Nilus, and was a king in Egypt.

The Roman province of Egypt (, ; Aigyptos ) was established in 30 BC after Octavian (the future emperor Augustus) defeated his rival Mark Antony, deposed his lover Queen Cleopatra VII and annexed the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt to the Roman Empire. The province encompassed most of modern-day Egypt except for the Sinai Peninsula (which would later be conquered by Trajan). Aegyptus was bordered by the provinces of Creta et Cyrenaica to the West and Iudaea (later Arabia Petraea) to the East.