ANCIENT EGYPT

Chapter 5
Lesson 1: The Nile River
 THE NILE RIVER VALLEY
(pgs. 100-103)

• The Nile River is the world’s longest river.

• When Mesopotamia fell, the civilizations of Egypt and Kush
began to develop along the Nile River.
• The early Egyptians in the northern region of the Nile River
Valley called their land Kemet which means “black land”
because of the dark, rich soil.
• So many of ancient Egypt’s structures survived over time
because of the hot, dry climate.
• The Nile River flows about 4,000 miles.
• The Nile River has been called the lifeblood of Egypt.
 THE NILE RIVER VALLEY
(pgs. 100-103)

• The Nile River was useful for the following:

• Drinking water
• Bathing
• Farming/Irrigation
• Travel/Trade
• Growing papyrus
 THE NILE RIVER VALLEY
(pgs. 100-103)
• Cataract: dangerous, fast-moving waters in a river

• Delta: a fan-shaped area of silt (fertile marshland) near where a

river flows into the sea
 THE NILE RIVER VALLEY
(pgs. 100-103)

• Egypt was protected by its physical

environment:
• Deserts: isolated from outside invaders
• Cataracts in the south: keep out enemy ships
• Marshes in the north: prevent invaders who
sailed from Mediterranean Sea
 PEOPLE OF THE RIVER
(pgs. 103-105)

• The Nile flooding was more predictable and less destructive

than that of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
• Egyptian farmers used geometry to measure their fields
• Silt was left behind after the flooding just like in
Mesopotamia
 PEOPLE OF THE RIVER
(pgs. 103-105)

• Basin: bowl-shaped holes

• Shadoof: a bucket attached to a long pole that lifts water
from the Nile and empties it into basins
• Papyrus: a reed plant that grew wild along the Nile / used to
make paper
• Hieroglyphics: a writing system made up of a combination
of pictures and sound symbols
 UNITING EGYPT
(pgs. 106-107)

• The Egyptian traders learned about the ways of life and

governments of other societies.
• As farming and trade increased, the need for organized
government became increasingly important.
• Over time, groups of villages merged to form small
kingdoms, and each was ruled by a king.
• By 4000 B.C., Egypt was made up of two large kingdoms:
Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt.
• Memphis became the capital city when all of Egypt was
united.
 UNITING EGYPT
(pgs. 106-107)

• Dynasty: a line of rulers from one family

• Narmer: first king to rule over all of Egypt

• There were 30 dynasties that ruled Egypt between 3100 B.C.

and 332 B.C.

• Egyptian dynasties were organized into three time periods:

Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom, and New Kingdom
 UNITING EGYPT
(pgs. 106-107)

• Facts about Narmer:

• King of Upper Egypt
• Conquered Lower Egypt
• Married one of Lower Egypt’s princesses
• Established the new capital city at Memphis, a city on
the border of Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt
• His kingdom lasted long after his death, establishing the
first dynasty
Lesson 2: Life in Ancient Egypt
 Egypt’s Early Rulers
(pgs. 108-110)

• The Old Kingdom lasted from around 2600 B.C. to 2200

B.C.
• Characteristics of the Old Kingdom:
• Built magnificent cities
• Increased trade
• Unified government (they valued unity!)
• Theocracy: a government in which the same person is both
the political leader and religious leader
• Pharaoh: ruler (king) of ancient Egypt
 Egypt’s Early Rulers
(pgs. 108-110)
• Pharaoh as a political leader:
• Held total power
• People were very loyal
• Was considered wise and far-reaching
• Would protect kingdom from war and famine
• Appointed government officials to carry out his orders
• Owned all of the land in Egypt and could use it as he pleased
• Distributed land to officials, priests, and wealthy Egyptians whom
he favored
• Bureaucrats: government officials appointed by the king
• They supervised construction and repair of dams, irrigation canals,
and brick granaries (places to store grain), and they collected tax
payments of grain from farmers
 Egypt’s Early Rulers
(pgs. 108-110)

• Pharaoh as a religious leader:

• Thought to be the son of Re, the Egyptian sun god
• Believed to be a god on earth who protected Egypt
• People would play music and bow their heads when he appeared in
public
• Participated in ceremonies to help the kingdom thrive
• Riding a bull around Memphis to keep the soil fertile
• First person to cut the ripened grain at harvest time to bring abundant
crops
 Religion in Egypt
(pgs. 110-112)

• Religion influenced every aspect of Egyptian life

• Egyptians were polytheistic
• Farming was very important to the Egyptians, so their two
most important gods were:
• Re- the sun god
• Hapi- the river god
• Other important gods:
• Osiris and Isis- ruled over the world of the dead
• Thoth- god of learning
 Religion in Egypt
(pgs. 110-112)

• The Afterlife:
• Much of Egyptian life revolved around preparing for the afterlife
• The Book of the Dead- one of the important writings of ancient Egypt /
full of prayers and magic spells to prepare for the afterlife
• They originally thought the afterlife was only for pharaohs
• The body had to be protected so it could give the soul a place to live
• Embalming: the process of treating a body to keep it from decaying
• Process of Embalming:
• Organs removed and stored in jars to bury with the body
• Body covered in a salt called natron to dry up the body
• Dried body was filled with burial spices and wrapped in long strips of
linen
• Mummy: the wrapped body after it went through the embalming process
 Religion in Egypt
(pgs. 110-112)

• Wealthy people had their mummies placed in coffins and buried in

decorated tombs
• Poor people had their mummies buried in caves or in the sand
• Animals were embalmed too because Egyptians viewed them not
only as pets, but as sacred creatures—many would be buried at
temples to honor the gods and goddesses
• The Egyptians developed a lot of medical skills as they studied the
human body in the embalming process
• First to give stitches, set broken bones, and use splints, bandages,
and compresses
• They wrote down medical information on papyrus scrolls—these
records were the world’s first medical books!
 Pyramid Tombs
(pgs. 113-115)

• Pyramid: great stone tomb built for an Egyptian pharaoh

• Covered the area of several city blocks
• Protected the bodies of dead pharaohs from floods, wild animals,
and robbers
• Personal belongings were buried with the pharaoh because it was
believed this would please them in the afterlife—this included
things like clothing, weapons, furniture, and jewelry
• Most objects were preserved for centuries, which has allowed
archaeologists to study the ancient Egyptians
• Farmers did a lot of the building of the pyramids during the summer
months when the Nile River flooded and they couldn’t farm
• Surveyors, engineers, carpenters, and stonecutters also helped
build the pyramids
 Pyramid Tombs
(pgs. 113-115)

• Imhotep: the first great engineer who built pyramids / he served

as an official for the pharaoh
• (Read pg. 114 for specifics on how they transported stone to the
pyramids for building)
• Entrance to the pyramid always faced north—in order to learn
which way was north, they had to study the skies and develop an
understanding of astronomy.
• This led to the invention of the 365 day calendar with 12 months
divided into three seasons—the basis for our modern calendar.
• Pyramid building also led to advancements in mathematics—
number system based on 10 and the creation of fractions
 Pyramid Tombs
(pgs. 113-115)

• Great Pyramid:
• Biggest and grandest pyramid built
• Built for King Khufu—one of three still standing at Giza on the Nile
River bank
• About 10 miles from the modern city of Cairo
• About the height of a 48 story building, towering nearly 500 feet tall
• Extends over an area equal in size to 9 football fields
• More than 2 million stone blocks were used—each block weighing
an average of 2.5 tons (about 5,000 pounds per block!!!)
• For more than 4,000 years, the Great Pyramid stood as the tallest
structure in the world
 Daily Life
(pgs. 116-119)

• At its peak, Egypt was home to about 5 million people,

which is about equal to the number of people today living
in the state of Colorado.
• The Nile River valley and delta is where most people lived.
Today that area makes up only 3% of Egypt’s land.
• Egypt’s social groups- pg. 116
 Daily Life
(pgs. 116-119)

• Largest groups of people was farmers and unskilled workers

• Read together: “How People Lived” (pg. 117-118)
• The family was the most important group in ancient
Egyptian society:
• Father was head of household
• Women had more rights than in most other early civilizations—they
could own property, buy and sell goods, and obtain divorces
• Wealthy women could even serve as priests
• Children played and learned from their parents
• Married as teenagers
• Many farm families lived with their extended families