Pyramids on the Nile

Chapter 2 Section 2

I The Geography of Egypt• The Nile is the

longest river in the world– Brings water to many

nations

A. The Gift of the Nile• Nile river overflowed every yr. in July & left

behind fertile black mud– Peasants would ploy flields before it dried out

• Used irrigation ditches – Floodplantharvest; floodplantharvest

• Egyptians worshipped the river as a god who gave life

• Herodotus the father of history calls Egypt the “gift of the Nile”

B. Upper & Lower Egypt• Lower Egyptians only knew

the lower part of the Nile– Territory ended near cataract

where their boats could not pass

– Cataract= waterfall or long stretch of rapids

• Nile provided reliable trans.– River current flows N– Going S they used a sail

because the wind always blew N to S

• Nile helped unify Egypt's villages & promote trade

C. Environmental Challenges• Nile flooding occurred at the same time unlike

the unpredictable Tigris & Euphrates• Dangers of Egypt’s society:– Flood water too low ppl would starve – Flood water to high water would flood village

• Deserts o both sides of Nile acted as natural barriers for Egypt– Egyptians forced to stay next to their life line, the

Nile, which limited interaction with others but shut out invaders

II Egypt Unites into a Kingdom• Each villiage had its own

rituals, gods, and chieftains• King Menes united all of

EgyptCreates this crown to show

unity• Menes creates 1st Egyptian

dynasty• 3rd Dynasty begins the Old

Kingdom

A. Pharaohs Rule as Gods• Role of King in Egypt diff. from that in

Mesopotamia– Mesopotamia= kings represented gods– Egypt= kings were gods

• Egyptian kings became known as Pharaoh's– Pharaoh center of rel., gov’t, & army

• Egypt was theocracy= gov’t in which the ruler is a divine figure– Pharaoh causes sun to rise, Bile to flood, promote

truth & justice

B. Builders of the Pyramids• Pharoah had eternal spirit called

Ka who continued to govern after his death– Ks had needs & pleasures like the

living Pharaoh did• Pyramid= the Pharoahs resting

place after death• Old Kingdom was great age of

pyramid building– Before use of wheel

• Pyramids evidence of the strength of Egyptian gov’t, economy, and leadership needed to build them

III Egyptian CultureA. Religion & Life• Egyptians were polytheistic– Ra=sun god; Horus=god of light

(over 2000)• Egyptians, unlike

Mesopotamians, believed in an after life– Osiris weighs heart against a

scale…heavy with sin person eaten, lighter than feather went to afterlife

• Egyptians preserved dead person’s body by mummification– Mummification=embalming

and drying the corpse to prevent it from decaying

• Placed in tomb filled with items the person could use in afterlife

B. Life in Egyptian SocietyKing, Queen & Roya

l fam.Upper Class= gov’t

officials, priests, wealthy land owners

Middle Class= Merchants & artisans

Lower Class (largest class)= peasant farmers & unskilled laborers

• Eventually Egyptians begin to use slavery– Slaves captured from foreign wars

• Lower & middle classes could attain higher status by marriage or job success– Highest position requires ability to read and write

• Women had many rights that men had– Wealthy/middle class women could own & trade

property– Propose marriage & seek divorce

C. Egyptian Writing• Pictographs earliest versions

but eventually developed hieroglyphics– Hieroglyphics comes from Greek

word meaning “sacred carving”• Earliest form used picture to

represent idea• First written on clay tablets like

Mesopotamia but developed papyrus– Papyrus= paper like sheet made

by pressing papyrus reeds

D. Egyptian Science & Technology• Practical needs led to

incentions– System of written numbers for

countring adding and subtracting to collect taxes

– Early geometry to survey property boundaries

• 1st to use columns

• Egyptians developed calandar to keep track of floods & farming– Bright star Sirius appeared just

before the flood– 365 says before rising of Sirius &

flood– Calandar so close it was only 6

hrs off from true solar year• Knew how to check heart rate

by feeling for pulse• Splints for broken arms

IV Chariot Riders Invade• Power of Pharaohs decline making end of the

Old Kingdom– Eventually regain control during the Middle

Kingdom• Middle Kingdom end with invasion of Asian

nomadic chariot rider known as Hyskos• Egypt fell to Hyskos same time Mesopotamia

falling but unlike Mesopotamia ,Egypt rises again during the New Kingdom