Egypt

Origins Around 3,000 BC, villages began to show up along the Nile river. The process was very similar to what happened in Mesopotamia.

Every year, the Nile would flood, depositing silt on the shores. Farmers would take advantage of this predictable routine.

Plant here Harvest here

Egypt Unites In the beginning, Egypt was separated into two kingdoms: –1. Lower Egypt –2. Upper Egypt

Lower Egypt Upper Egypt

Very little is known about early Egyptian history It’s hard to tell what is truth and what is fiction.

King Menes Established a capital at Memphis, in central Egypt Established first Egyptian dynasty

A dynasty is a line of rulers who are related to each other. –Ex. A father passes their power on to their son or brother. There are 31 dynasties in Egyptian history, each lasting around 50 to several hundred years.

United Egypt Around 3,100 BC, Menes united lower and upper Egypt and wore a crown that symbolized the united kingdom

After Menes, a period of stability and growth known as the Old Kingdom began, which lasted from around 2660 BC to 2180 BC.

Area that the Old Kingdom controlled

Many of Egypt’s most famous monuments, like the Great Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx, were built during the Old Kingdom.

A combination of bad harvests, weak rulers and civil war led to the end of the Old Kingdom around 2180 BC.

Middle Kingdom A period of stability that lasted from 2180 BC to around 1640 BC.

Focused on improving trade and transportation. Dammed the Nile in places and made canals to increase crop land.

Egypt also expanded it’s territory to the south (Kush) and along the Mediterranean coast.

The Middle Kingdom fell around 1640 BC when nomadic invaders called the Hyksos invaded from the Middle East.

The New Kingdom Period lasted from 1570 BC to 1075 BC. Began when the Hyksos were defeated.

Queen Hatshepsut was a famous ruler of this era.

Akhanaten forced Egypt to abandon traditional religion and convert to a monotheistic religion based around the worship of the sun god Aten.

His son, Tutankhamun, was forced to clean up the mess afterwards and restore the old ways.

Egypt had to fight many enemies, like the Hittites, Nubians, etc. during this period to stay independent.

The New Kingdom collapsed around 1075 BC when they were taken over by Lybians (from the west), Kushites (from the south) and a group called the Sea People (origins unknown).

For the remainder of Ancient Egyptian history, they were controlled by outsiders, like Persians, Greeks and Romans.

Basics of Egyptian Society

Government Egyptian kings were called pharaohs The Egyptians viewed their pharaohs the same as the gods

The pharaoh was the commander of the army, leader of Egypt’s religion and head of government Theocracy = type of government where the king is thought to be related to the gods

The pharaoh ruled with the help of a bureaucracy (an organized government structure) and the help of priests and scribes.

Religion

Egyptian religion was polytheistic There were as many as 2,000 gods and goddesses

Ra – the sun god Amun – king of the gods

Horus – god of light and war Isis – goddess of motherhood

Osiris – god of the dead Anubis – another god of the dead

Egyptian pharaohs built huge temples to honor gods (and themselves).

Unlike Mesopotamian cultures, Egyptians had a positive view of the afterlife.

Upon death, a person’s body was preserved, or mummified, provided they had enough money.

Personal items were buried with them for use in the afterlife.

An Egyptian burial ceremony

A person’s soul being weighed in the afterlife.

Trade By 3200 BC, Egyptians were trading with the Mesopotamians over both land and sea routes.

Egypt had to import many raw materials. –Gold, Ivory, Granite blocks were imported from the south, using the Nile. –Lumber and precious metals were imported from the Middle East.

Exports included grain and finished goods, like papyrus, wine, jewelry, etc.

During the Middle Kingdom, Ancient Egyptians even built a canal connecting the Nile to the Red Sea, to improve trade.

Social Very different from the city- states of Mesopotamia Egypt’s united kingdom allowed –High degree of unity –Stability –Cultural continuity (staying the same)

Life in Egyptian Society Pharaoh Royal Advisor Priests Traders/Merchants Slaves Ordinary Citizens

Intellectual Developed writing = hieroglyphics –Pictographic writing system Developed written numbers for recording taxes –Addition, subtraction

Achievements

Egyptian medicine was the most advanced of that period. –Repairing broken bones –Checking your pulse –Basic surgery –Embalming techniques

Egyptian Architects were very advanced. –Used geometry and astronomy to orient buildings –First culture to use columns

12 month, 365 day calendar from studying the stars So accurate it was only 6 hours off from today’s calendar year