Egyptian Civilization By: Group 3: Tyler Ballou

Nile River The Nile River begins in the heart of africa and flows northward for more than 4,000 miles it is the longest river in the world and it empties into the Mediterranean sea.

Lower Egypt The Nile river splits into two major branches. This split forms a triangular territory called a delta. The Nile delta its called Lower Egypt.

Upper Egypt The land upstream to the south, is called Upper Egypt. Egypt's important cities developed at the tip of the delta, the pint at which the Nile divides.

Menes Egypt's history began around 3100 B.C. King Menes united Upper and Lower Egypt into one single kingdom and created the first royal dynasty.

Dynasty A dynasty is a family of rulers whose right to rule is passed on within the family.

Pharaoh Among the various titles of Egyptian monarchs that of pharaoh meaning “great house” or “palace” eventually became the most common ruler in Egypt.

Bureaucracy Bureaucracy is a form of government with administrative organization with officials and regular procedures.

Vizier Vizier is an important office in bureaucracy, the steward of the whole land. Directly responsible to the pharaoh, the vizier was in charge of the government bureaucracy.

Mummification Mummification is preserving the body after death. This is a process of slowly drying a dead body to prevent it from rotting. This process took place in workshops run by priests, primarily for the wealthy families who could afford it.

Giza Giza was the famous Great Pyramid of King Khufu covers 13 acres, measures 756 feet at each side of its base, and stands 481 feet high.

Hyksos The Hyksos used horse-drawn war chariots to overwhelm Egyptian Soldiers, who fought from donkey carts. For almost 100 years the Hyksos controlled Egypt. The Egyptians learned many things from the Hyksos.

Hatshepsut One of the first women to become pharaoh. She bui;t a great temple at Deir el-Bahri near Thebes.

Akhenaten Was first named Amenhotep but changed his name. He introduced the worship of the sun god Aten. And he closed the temples of the other gods, many Egyptians thought this was destroying Egypt's culture.

Tutankhamen Restored the old gods after Akhenaten death.

Ramses II Reigned from 1279 B.C. to 1213 B.C., with him the Egyptians went back on the offensive and took control of Palestine but were unable to reestablish the borders of their earlier empire.

Cleopatra VII Pharaoh tried to reestablish Egypt’s independence. Her involvement with Rome led to her defeat and suicide, and Egypt became a province in Rome’s empire.

Hieroglyphics This style of writing emerged in Egypt around 3000 B.C. The Greeks named them hieroglyphics meaning “priest carvings” or “scared writings.”

Hieratic Script Is a highly simplified version of hieroglyphics. Used the same principles as hieroglyphic writing, but the drawings were simplified by dashes, strokes, and curves.