l
Egypt is in the continent of Africa.
The River Nile runs through Egypt
The capital of Egypt is Cairo
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The Egyptian civilization began in the fertile Nile River Valley, where natural
barriers stopped invaders
Between 6000 B.C. and 5000 B.C., groups of hunter-gatherers
moved into the fertile Nile River Valley and settled to become the
earliest Egyptians . They called they land “The Gift of
the Nile”
Egypt was warm and sunny but received little rainfall.
Egyptians relied on the Nile.They called it their “precious gift”
Source of water for drinking,
bathing, farming, cooking, and cleaning
It provided food such as fish
and supported plantsAnd animal life
The Nile is the world’s longest river!
The Nile is about 4,000 Miles long and
flows north to the Mediterranean Sea
The Nile beginsas 2 rivers
Blue Nile East Africa mountains
White Nile Central Africa marshes
These two Rivers join to
form the Nile River just south of Egypt
Th
e N
ile R
iver
A great length of the river flows over narrow cliffs and
boulders to form wild rapids called cataracts
Before it reaches theMediterranean Sea, The Nile branches into tributaries that fan outOver an area of fertile soil called the delta.
On a map, the Nile resembles the stem of a
flower and the delta looks like a flower blossom.
To the east is the Eastern Desert
which stretches to the Red Sea
To the west is the
Sahara Desert,the largest
desertin the world.
Ancient Egyptians called the desert
“the Red Land”
Deserts formed a barrier which kept outside armies away from
Egypt.
Geographic
features
which protected Egypt
Deserts to the east and west
Dangerous cataracts in south which
blocked enemy boats from
reaching Egypt
Delta marshes in north which offered no harbors for invaders
approaching from the
sea.
Unlike Mesopotamians
Egyptians maintained friendly contacts with the various groups settled along the Nile River Valley.
Unlike Mesopotamiangeography, the protective
barriers kept them safe andallowed Egyptian civilization
to grow and prosper.
Despite their isolation, the Mediterranean Sea
and the Red Sea offered the Egyptians an outlet for trading with people
outside Egypt.
People used the Nile for trade and transportation
Winds from the north pushed their sailboats south.
The flow of the river pushed their sailboats north.
Flooding of the Nile River
DependabilityMore dependable AND gentle than the Tigris and Euphrates
(Egyptians were better farmers)
Source of Flooding
Heavy rains from central Africa
Melting snows from the highlands of east Africa
Flooding Season
July to October
When the waters of the Nile recede, a layer of dark, fertile mud is deposited on the land
Egyptians called land “Kemet” or “Black Land”
Egyptians took advantage of Nile’s flooding to be successful farmers.
Egyptian farmers planted grain: wheat, barley, and flax seeds.
Their wide use of irrigation made Egyptian farmers successful.
Egyptian irrigation
Digging basinsand bowl-shaped
holes to holdwater.
Digging canals tocarry water from
the basins tofields beyond
the river’s reach
Building levees toform walls around
basins
Shadoof
Geometry
Papyrus
Far
min
g A
dvan
cem
entsA bucket attached
to a long pole to lift water into
the basins
To survey or measurethe land to
establish boundaries
A reed plant that grewalong the Nile to make
baskets, sandals, river rafts, and paper.
What was Hieroglyphic?Written on:Made up of:Symbols stood for:1.2.3.Carved into:Who learned to read and write:What was their job?What gave historians the ability to
read hieroglyphic?
Steps to making paper from Papyrus:
1. Cut stalks of the plant into narrow strips.
2. Soak the strips and pound them flat.
3. Air dry the strips to stiffen them.
4. Join the strips together to form a roll.
Like Mesopotamians, Egyptians a developed writing systemEgyptian writing was called hieroglyphics Egyptians used papyrus rolls as writing
paperIt was made up of thousands of picture
symbols.Egyptians used papyrus rolls as writing
paper
24 “letters” + 700 phonetic
symbols
24 “letters” + 700 phonetic
symbolsSome symbols stood for objects or ideas and some symbols stood for sounds.
Scribes carved hieroglyphics into stone walls and monuments.
Few Egyptians learned to read and write.
Some Egyptian men went to special schools to become scribes.
Scribes kept records and worked for the rulers, priests, and traders.
Egyptian MathEgyptian Math
What number is this?
What number is this?
1 10 100 1000 10,000 100,000 1,000,000
A United Egypt:Around 3100 B.C., Egypt’s two major
kingdoms, Upper and Lower Egypt were
combined into one.
Som e b ecam e artisans (craftsm en)b ecause they w ere ab le to w orkat o ther th ings instead farm ing
Skillfu l farm ingled to surp luses
o f fo od
E gy ptians trad ed w ith each otherand M esop otam ia
w here they learned id eas aboutw riting and governm ent,
A rtisans w ove clothm ade potterycarved statues
shaped copper into w eapons and tools
Connect toMesopotam ia
What created the need for government?
Advances in farming, crafts, and trade created need for government
Government directedactivities
Storingand
rationinggrain
Building and
maintainingIrrigation
system
SettlingDisputes over
Landownership
By 4000 B.C., Egypt was made up of two large kingdoms:
Lower Egypt in
the Nile Delta
to the northUpper Egypt
At the Mouth of The Nile in
the south
About 3100 B.C., the 2 kingdoms became one
Narmer of Upper Egypt, known as King Menes, led his armies to take control of Lower Egypt and created a unified Egypt.
He ruled from Memphis and wore a double crown of red and white to symbolize unity of Upper and Lower Egypt.
Narmer’s family inherited power to rule and passed it down from father to son through a line of rulers to form a dynasty
Ancient Egypt was ruled by 31 different dynasties
Historians group Egypt’s dynasties into 3 main periods: Old, middle, and new kingdoms
Egyptian society was highly structured and divided into different social classes, each
with certain responsibilities and lifestyles.httwww.classzone.com/cz/books/ms_wh_survey/resources/html/animations/wh04_egyptsocial.htmlp://
Upper Class
WhoNobles, priests, government
officials
LocationCities and large estates along
the Nile
HousingElegant homes, beautiful
gardens, and pools filled with fish
Work
Little physical work – had servantsRuled and conducted religious ceremonies,
ClothingWhite linen clothes, eye
makeup, jewelry
An Egyptian Woman’s “Must-Haves”
An Egyptian Woman’s “Must-Haves”
PerfumePerfume
WhigsWhigs
MirrorMirror
Middle Class
WhoTraders, artisans, shopkeepers, scribes, and farmers (largest group)
Location Smaller villages along Nile
HousingHomes smaller than upper class
nobles
Work
Important group were artisans who produced linen cloth,
jewelry, pottery, and metal goods. Grew the food.
Clothing Dressed in simple clothes
Ancient Egyptian Housing
Ancient Egyptian HousingMiddle Class
HomesMiddle Class Homes
Peasant Homes
Peasant Homes
Lower Class
Who Unskilled workers
Location Crowded city neighborhoods
Housing Small mud-brick homes with dirt floors
Men
Women
Men did physical labor like loading cargo on boats, making and stacking mud bricks
Women dried fruit, made bread, and wove cloth
Worked and slept on their rooftops
Clothing Very simple clothes
Father headed the family
Egyptian women had more rights thanfemales in most other
early civilizations
Own and pass on property
Buy and sell goods
Make wills and get divorces
Upper-class women were in charge of temples and could perform religious ceremonies