1. The Nile River Ch. 5.1

2. Where is Egypt? The capital of Egypt is Cairo
Egypt is on the continent of Africa and is boarded by the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Red Sea to the east.
The Nile River runs South to North through Egypt.
The capital of Egypt is Cairo

3. Where is Egypt?

4. Geography…
The Egyptians, like the Mesopotamians, settled near a river because of the benefits and contributions it gave.
Do you remember some of the reasons?
-Travel
Trade
Irrigation for crops
Water for drinking and cooking
Yearly flooding, which left behind rich, fertile soil

5. The Nile River Valley
The Nile is the longest river in the world – almost 4,000 miles long!!
It is shaped like the lotus flower so often seen in ancient Egyptian art.
The Nile flows from south to north because of the geography of the land.
Mountains are to the south and low lying plains are in the north.
As the water comes down the mountains it flows through the river delta and empties into the Mediterranean Sea.

6. The Nile River Valley
Civilization started along the Nile about 5,000 years ago. Without the Nile, Egypt would be a desert because it rarely rains.
Each spring, water would run off the mountains and the Nile would flood.
As the flood waters receded, black rich fertile soil was left behind. When the land was covered in silt ,it looked black. They called this the black land or Kemet
The ancient Egyptians called this rich soil ‘The Gift of the Nile.’
Egyptians celebrated the 3 stages:
Inundation (flooding which usually lasted 4 months)
Emergence (planting & growing)
Harvest (collecting the food)
The area after flooding is called “black land” because of the nutrient-rich soil created by silt. They called this land “Kemet”
The surrounding desert area is known as the “red land”.

7. Gifts of the Nile Fertile soil for crops was not the Nile's only gift.
The Nile gave the ancient Egyptians many gifts.
Thanks to the Nile, these ancient people had fresh water for drinking and bathing.
The Nile’s fresh water also provided fish.
The Nile supported transportation and trade.
It provided materials for building, for making cloth for clothes, and even for making paper - made from the wild papyrus weed, that grew along the shores of the Nile.

8. “Gifts of the Nile” Many people accidentally drowned.
The Nile was unfortunately also a taker of life.
Many people accidentally drowned.
Extreme rainfall washed away crops.
Light flooding resulted in poor soil and crops would not grow.

9. Natural barriers of protection
The ancient Egyptians enjoyed many natural barriers.
There were deserts to the east and west of the Nile River, and mountains to the south.
In addition, along the southern region, there were several cataracts that prevented enemy ships from attacking Egypt.
Other natural barriers included the Mediterranean Sea and delta marshes to the north and the Red Sea to the east.
These natural barriers isolated the ancient Egyptians and allowed them to develop a truly distinctive culture.

10. That was not the case in Egypt
Predictable Flooding
Think back to Mesopotamia and the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers…The Mesopotamians used dykes and canals to help control the flooding, BUT the flooding in Mesopotamia was unpredictable.
That was not the case in Egypt
The Nile River was more predictable and less destructive than the Tigris and Euphrates. The Nile usually overflowed its banks in the summer. After the floods of mid-summer receded, the land was covered with rich deposits of soil that were perfect for farming. The “Emergence” of the land from the water covering was from October to February. During this time, Egyptians planted and captured as much water as possible in irrigation ditches.

11. Farming in Egypt
Egyptian farmers used an irrigation system to water their farms and animals.
They create a shaduf to help move
water more easily.
Farmers also used geometry to help recalculate where fields were supposed to be after a flood washed away boundary markers.
Farmers planted wheat, barley, and flax and used the papyrus plants that grew along the banks of the Nile.

12. Egyptian Writing
Like the Mesopotamians, Egyptians created their own form of writing.
They created a combination of pictures and sounds, which we call hieroglyphics. Some men were able to attend special schools to learn to write and actually read hieroglyphics. These men were called scribes.
Egyptians also created a type of “cursive” writing that was used more often than hieroglyphics called hieratic writing.

13. Egyptian Writing
Mesopotamians wrote on clay tablets; Egyptians did not. They wrote on “paper” made from papyrus strips that had been stacked on top of each other and pounded together and dried.
Scribes would also carve hieroglyphics onto stone walls and monuments.

14. Uniting Egypt
Egyptian farmers were able to grow a surplus of food, which created a division of labor just like in Mesopotamia. Citizens were now able to work in other occupations and become artisans, merchants, and traders.
The need for organized government became increasingly important as trade and farming increased.
Governments were needed for:
Overseeing construction and repairs
Developing a process for storing and distributing the food surplus
Settling land conflicts
Groups villages eventually grew into small kingdoms where they were ruled by individual kings.

15. Uniting Egypt
Narmer (Menes) was a king of Upper Egypt. In c BC, he conquered Lower Egypt and married one of Lower Egypt’s princesses, thus uniting both kingdoms of Egypt for the first time.
Southern Egypt is called Upper Egypt (located high in the mountains)
The pharaoh of Upper Egypt wore a white crown.
Northern Egypt is called Lower Egypt (located in the plain next to the Mediterranean Sea.
The pharaoh of Lower Egypt wore a red crown
King Narmer (aka: Menes) united Upper and Lower Egypt and also the crown.

16. A mural of Narmer, or Menes, conquering Lower Egypt (c.a. 3100 B.C.)

17. Guided Reading Questions
Using the notes we just completed, answer the Guided Reading Questions for Part A.
*Remember, SS answers should be written in complete sentences. Also, make sure you have provided enough information to actually show you understand what the question is asking.

18. Pharaohs & gods
The Egyptians believed their pharaoh was both a god and a king.
They also believed that animals, especially the cat, were sacred and deserved to be worshipped.

19. Pharaohs The most powerful person in ancient Egypt was the pharaoh.
The pharaoh was the political and religious leader of the Egyptian people, holding the titles: 'Lord of the Two Lands' and 'High Priest of Every Temple'.
As 'Lord of the Two Lands' the pharaoh was the ruler of Upper and Lower Egypt. He owned all of the land, made laws, collected taxes, and defended Egypt against foreigners.
As 'High Priest of Every Temple', the pharaoh represented the gods on Earth. He performed rituals and built temples to honor the gods.

20. gods The Egyptians worshipped more than 2,000 gods and goddesses.
The chief god was Amon, the god of Thebes. He was later merged with the god of the sun, Ra, to become Amon-Ra.
During the “reign” and worship of Amon-Ra, the Egyptian people were very polytheistic.

21. Mummification and the gods
Osiris, the god of the dead, and Isis, his sister/wife and goddess of nature, were also important.
Egyptians considered the afterlife more important than the time spent on earth. Because of this, they gave great thought to burial of the dead.
The body was preserved in salts and spices and then wrapped in linen.
This mummy was then placed into a wooden coffin, called a sarcophagus, sometimes made of pure gold.
Amulets or jewels were then placed on the body.
Adults were buried with furniture, artwork, and pottery.
Children were buried with toys. This gave the dead items to keep them happy in the afterlife.
The sarcophagus was then placed into the pyramid tombs to enjoy their time in the afterlife.

22. Draw the Egyptian social pyramid.

23. Test stop Questions? Copy and answer the following questions.
How did the pharaoh combine religion and government?
What are the 2 areas of Egypt known as?
Describe the crowns of Egypt.
Who united Upper and Lower Egypt?
Be able to draw and fill in the social pyramid.

24. The 3 Kingdoms of Egypt
The ancient Egyptian timeline is divided into three big blocks of time – the Old Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom, and the New Kingdom.

25. The Old Kingdom The Pyramid Age (500 years)
Pharaohs had absolute power and were considered to be gods on earth.
King Narmer (Menes) unified Upper and Lower Egypt.
Pyramids, including the Great Pyramid of Giza, are built to serve as tombs for the pharaohs.
Mummification was used to preserve dead bodies.

26. The Middle Kingdom The Golden Age (300 years)
Pharaohs should be “good kings”; wise and gifted rulers.
Built strong armies and fortresses.
Egypt conquered Nubia and invaded Syria and Palestine.
Literature and the arts expanded and greatly improved through contact with trading countries.
Pharaohs were buried in secret places.

27. The New Kingdom The Empire (500 years)
Pharaohs should be all powerful; great kings and queens.
Created an empire through force and military conflict.
The first female pharaoh, Hatshepsut, ruled.
The Valley of the Kings is created; all pharaohs are buried here.
Egyptians become monotheistic.

28. The Pyramid of Meydum
The Bent Pyramid
The Great Pyramids of Giza

31. Test stop… Make sure you know: what the 3 kingdoms are
The role of the pharaoh in each kingdom
Major contributions to Egyptian life from each kingdom

32. Egyptian Writing
Over 5000 years ago, the ancient Egyptians wrote things down using a picture writing called hieroglyphics.
The people who did the actual writing were called scribes. 
The ancient Egyptians believed that it was important to record and communicate information about religion and government.

33. Cartouche A cartouche is an oblong enclosure
with a horizontal line at one end,
indicating that the text enclosed
is a royal name.

34. Rosetta Stone
Over time the Egyptian method of writing changed from one form to another. As it changed, more and more people forgot how to read the hieroglyphics.
Finally around 1800 CE, a stone was found called the Rosetta Stone.
On the stone there were three kinds of writing telling the same story.
At the bottom was Greek (which the archaeologists could read)
In the middle was Demotic-a later Egyptian writing (which could be read too)
At the top was hieroglyphics. Archaeologists could translate it based on the meanings, words, and symbols from the other two languages!

36. Test stop Questions? Copy and answer the following questions.
What was the main written language of the Egyptians?
What gift from the Nile was used by scribes to record details of Egyptian life?
Explain what the Rosetta Stone is and its importance.

37. Activity: Write like an Egyptian Create a cartouche of your name using ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics.