Although the capital of the governorate is Mansoura, it got its name from the ancient town of Daqahlah (Arabic: دقهلة, from Coptic: ⲧⲕⲉϩⲗⲓ, lit.

[5] According to Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, in February, 2020, Egyptian archaeologists have uncovered 83 tombs dating back to 4,000 B.C, known as the Naqada III period.

[6][7] In April 2021, Egyptian archeologists announced the discovery of 110 burial tombs at the Koum el-Khulgan archeological site.

The tombs also contained the remains of adults and a baby (buried in a jar), a group of ovens, stoves, remnants of mud-brick foundations, funerary equipment, cylindrical, pear-shaped vessels and a bowl with geometric designs.

[2] According to population estimates, in 2015 the majority of residents in the governorate lived in rural areas, with an urbanization rate of 28.2%.