NILE CIVILIZATIONS

1. GeographyA. The Nile River

I. It flows south to northII. Floods annually (yearly)

1. Provides deposits that make the soil fertile2. Richest, most fertile soil is found in the Delta

B. The DeltaI. Definition- an area at the mouth of a river,

often triangular in shape, made up of silt deposits

2. Early EgyptA. Two Kingdoms

I. People spoke different dialects and had different customs

II. Lower Egypt (Northern Kingdom)1. Occupied the delta region2. Symbol was the snake because they worshiped

the cobra goddessIII. Upper Egypt (Southern Kingdom)

1. Occupied the area south of the Delta to the 1st Cataract

2. Symbol was the vulture because they worshiped a vulture goddess

B. MenesI. Legend states he united the 2 kingdoms

around 3100 B.C.II. He adopted the symbols of both kingdoms

1. Wore a crown that combined both symbolsIII. Founded the 1st dynasty in Egypt

3. 3 Kingdoms (Time Periods)A. Old Kingdom ( 2650- 2150 B.C.)

I. Started with the 3rd DynastyII. Began a stable period in EgyptIII. Built the pyramidsIV. Head of government was the pharaoh

1. Had absolute power2. Owned all the land3. Acted as judges4. Leader of army5. Believed to be a god

v. Religion and government closely intertwined1. Egypt’s government was a theocracy

a. A state ruled by religious figures

vi. Had a well established bureaucracy1. A highly structured organization managed by

officials2. Had no power of their own, but acted on the

wishes of the pharaoh3. Most powerful official was the vizier

a. Responsible for advising the pharaoh, carrying out his orders and trying court cases

4. Other officials served as governors, supervisors, inspectors of irrigation and crops, census takers and tax collectors

B. Middle KingdomI. 2055 B.C a new dynasty arose and

started the period of the Middle KingdomII. Re-established stability in EgyptIII. Capital was ThebesIV. Enjoyed economic prosperityV. Secured trade routesVI. Built fortresses along the NileVII. Fell to Hyksos invaders around 1650 BC

C. New KingdomI. Defeated the Hyksos around 1550 B.C.II. Built powerful military to protect against

invasionI. First permanent army

III. Extended empire beyond the Nile into the region of Nubia and other lands

iv. Famous Leaders1. Hatshepsut

a. One of a few women to rule Egyptb. Proclaimed herself pharaohc. Referred to herself as the son of the sun god.d. Encouraged tradee. Had statues made that portrayed her as a

manf. Nephew had almost all that she had built

destroyed

2. Amenhotep IVa. Changed his name to Akhenaten

i. Means beloved of Atenb. Introduced monotheism to Egypt

i. Banned the worship of many gods/goddesses….could only worship Aten

c. Built a new capital called Akhetaten

3. Tutankhamona. Also known as King Tutb. Son of Akhetatenc. Restored the worship of Egypt’s traditional

godsd. Moved capital back to Thebese. Also only tomb in the Valley of the Kings

not to be raided

4. Ramses IIa. Also known as Ramses the Greatb. Ruled for 60 yearsc. Built more temples and monuments than

any other pharaohi. Temples at Abu Simbel and Karnak are two of

the more famousd. Reign marked the last period of Egyptian

greatness

4. Egyptian CultureA. Religion

i. Polytheistic1. Worshiped many gods and goddesses

ii. Believed gods controlled all natural events

iii. Main gods and goddesses1. Re or Amen-Re

a. The sun godb. Almost always a key figure in Egyptian religionc. Believed to be king of the gods and father of the

pharaohs

2. Anubisa. Protector of the

deadb. Believed he

weighed the souls of the dead and decided their fate

3. Osiris, Isis and Horusa. Osiris is believed to have introduced

civilization into Egyptb. Story goes that he was killed by his brother

Seth, who cut his body into pieces and scattered them across Egypt.

c. Isis, Osiris’ wife, found all the pieces and reassembled them and this brought Osiris back to life.

d. They had a child named, Horus who would seek revenge on his uncle

a. Osiris Became the new

judge of the dead

b. Isis Became known as

the goddess of nature and renewal

c. Horus Became the first

king of Egypt

iv. Built temples to honor the gods1. Featured

Obelisksa. Tall, thin pillars

with pyramid-shaped tops

b. Made from a single piece of stone and had intricate designs

v. Priest performed rituals to the gods1. Seen as their responsibility to care for the

godsvi. People worshiped the gods during

annual festivals 2. Not allowed to enter temples; only the

priests and pharaohs could.

b. Mummificationi. Believed that a force called the Ka left the

body when it died1. Ka journeyed into the afterlife

ii. Developed a process to preserve the body called mummification

iii. Early mummification was only for the pharaoh and members of the royal family

iv. Mummification Process1. First step was removal of internal organs.

a. Organs were placed in jars and buried with the body.

b. The heart was left in the body. 2. Second step was to pack the body with

various materials to keep its shapea. Special salt was used to dry out the bodyb. Then it would be wrapped in linens

3. Bodies would then be buried with all possessions thought necessary in the afterlife.

vi. Tombs were painted with colorful scenes from the person’s life or stories about the gods

5. Daily LifeA. Social Structure

i. At the very top the pharaoh and the royal family

1. Followed by priest, government officials, scribes, military leaders, landowners and doctors

ii. Next were artisans, craftspeople and merchants

iii. Third, was made up of 90% of the population which are farmers

iv. At the very bottom were slaves1. Never made up most of the population2. Most were convicted criminals and prisoners

of war

b. Marriage/ Familyi. Pharaohs would often marry sisters and

had more than one wifeii. Most men had only one wifeiii. Patriarch society

1. Father was the head of the house

iv. Women1. Primary responsibility was to take care of

the home and children2. Had more rights than most women in

ancient societya. Could divorceb. Own and inherit propertyc. Serve as priestessesd. Create willse. Work as hairdressers, wigmakers and singers

v. Children did not receive an education in most cases

c. Art, Writing and Sciencei. Art

1. Paintingsa. Both detailed and colorfulb. Told stories of daily life, stories of the gods or

major events2. Human figures

a. Portrayed differentlyb. Gods and pharaohs are depicted larger than

other peoplec. These characteristics give Egyptian art a

unique style

3. Statuesa. Large and

imposingb. Most famous

statue is the Great Sphinx

4. Hieroglyphicsa. Main writing systemb. Picture system used to represent objects, sounds

and ideasii. Other writing systems

1. Hieratica. Used mostly for religious text

2. Demotica. Used mainly for legal and literary writingb. Rarely carved in stone but was used on papyrus

and other mediums

iii. The Rosetta Stone1. Found by a French soldier2. Stone had three types of writing on it

a. Greek, Demotic and Hieroglyphic3. Greek allowed for the hieroglyphs to be

translated as well as the demotic4. Unlocked the mystery of Egyptian writing

iv. Mathematics1. Understood basic arithmetic and basic

principles of geometry2. Had a grasp on engineering

v. Medicine1. Greatest advances was in medicine2. Masters of the human anatomy

a. Set bonesb. Treated woundsc. Performed simple surgical procedures

3. Used medicine from plants and animals to cure simple illness

4. Prescribed regimens of basic hygiene to keep people from getting sick