Ch. 2: The First Civilizations Sec. 1: Ancient Kingdoms of the Nile

The Land: Its Geography & Importance The Nile is the longest R. in the world; it flows from south to north branching into a fan-shaped delta emptying into the Med. Sea Natural route for transportation & supply of H2O The current let early people go north & the winds let people go south

In the summer the Nile would flood & farmers would plan around the floods They dug short canals to carry H20 to the fields—irrigation system promoted cooperation among the people Travel up & down river allowed trade linking all parts of the Nile valley & helped the Egyptians unite into one kingdom

Used deposits of granite, sandstone, & limestone as building materials The deserts & seas that surrounded the Nile valley acted as a natural protection against invaders

Early Steps Toward Civilization Neolithic culture developed in valley around 6000 B.C. 3800B.C. mined copper for tools & jewelry; discovered how to make bronze & glaze pottery

3000 B.C. developed hieroglyphics, a form of writing that used more than 600 signs, pictures, or symbols to represent words or sounds

At first they carved on stone, then they used a papyrus plant to make paper

1799 the Rosetta Stone was found; passages in Greek, hieroglyphics, & the Egyptian writing called demotic were found- this led to the translation of the hieroglyphics

The Egyptian Kingdoms Two cultures developed along the Nile: Lower Egypt in the north & Upper Egypt in the south 3200 B.C. Menes (king of Upper Egypt) united all of Egypt Menes founded a dynasty, or family of rulers Menes & his successors gained new territory, improved irrigation & trade = Egypt grew wealthy

They were religious & political leaders; regarded as kings; took the title of pharaoh – held absolute power; led gov’t, served as judges, high priests, & generals From Menes to 300B.C. is split into three kingdoms Old Kingdom – built Great Sphinx Society split into two classes: lower class (peasants & farmers) & upper class (pharaoh, royal family, priests, scribes, & gov’t officials

End of Old Kingdom – pharaohs grew weaker & the nobles grew stronger = civil wars; First Intermediate Period Middle Kingdom - new line of pharaohs reunited Egypt “golden age” People called the Hyksos (foreigners) came to Egypt from Asia Hyksos introduces the chariot & compound bow; believed to have brought on Second Intermediate Period

Leaders eventually drove the Hyksos out & the New Kingdom began New Kingdom pharaohs built an empire, a form of gov’t in which an individual or a single people rules over many other peoples & their territories Hatshepsut - one of 1st female rulers = strong ruler; kept Egypt’s borders secure; built trade w/ other lands

Her stepson, Thutmose III brought Egypt to the height of its power through conquest & trade Amenhotep IV tried to bring religious & social change by believing in only one god – monotheism Egyptians believed that many gods existed - polytheism

Amenhotep worshipped the Sun God, Aton, he changed his name to Akhenaton He couldn’t change his people’s religious beliefs & after Akhenaton died, Egyptians returned to polytheism The last strong pharaohs was Ramses II; kept empire together, ordered the construction of many temples & monuments

The pharaohs were not successful & by 300 B. C The pharaohs were not successful & by 300 B.C. rule in Egypt by Egyptians came to an end

Quiz Ch. 2 Sec. 1 1. How did the Nile River contribute to the development of Egyptian civilization? A. provided a route for travel north & south B. provided a route for trade C. aided or contributed to farming D. all of the above

2. What evidence indicates that Egyptians were creating a civilization? A. mining metals B. writing C. both A and B D. neither A or B

3. How were the Egyptian Kingdoms split up? A. First, Second, Third B. Old, Middle, New C. Earliest, Recent, Most Recent D. Past, Present, Future

4. What was the name of the people that introduced the chariot and the compound bow? A. Egyptians B. Chaldeans C. Hyksos D. Sumerians

5. Who was the first female ruler of Egypt? A. Hatshepsut B. Thutmose III C. Amenhotep IV D. Ramses II

6. Egyptians believed in many Gods, this is called _________________. A. Monotheism B. Catholicism C. Christian D. Polytheism

7. What kind of rule characterized the height of each Egyptian kingdom? A. strong rule by pharaohs B. strong rule by high priests C. strong rule by kings D. strong rule by presidents