Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Index of Egypt-related articles wikipedia , lookup
Middle Kingdom of Egypt wikipedia , lookup
Military of ancient Egypt wikipedia , lookup
Art of ancient Egypt wikipedia , lookup
Prehistoric Egypt wikipedia , lookup
Ancient Egyptian medicine wikipedia , lookup
The success of ancient Egyptian civilization came partly from its ability to adapt to the conditions of the Nile River Valley. LEARNING OBJECTIVE [ edit ] Support the reasons why the Nile River was so influencial in ancient Egyptian civilization. KEY POINTS [ edit ] The predictable flooding and controlled irrigation of the fertile valley produced surplus crops, and also fueled social development and culture by providing an abundance of rich natural resources. Egypt is rich in building and decorative stone, copper and lead ores, gold, and semiprecious stones, all of which could be found in the Nile River Valley. These natural resources allowed the ancient Egyptians to build monuments, sculpt statues, make tools, and fashion jewelry. Most of the population and cities of Egypt lie along those parts of the Nile valley north of Aswan, and nearly all the cultural and historical sites of Ancient Egypt are found along riverbanks. TERMS [ edit ] wadi A valley, gully, or stream bed in northern Africa and southwest Asia that remains dry except during the rainy season. Nile Usually considered to be the longest river in the world, flowing 6,677 km (4,150 miles) through Egypt into the Mediterranean Sea. Give us feedback on this content: FULL TEXT [edit ] The Nile is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world. It is 6,650 km (4,130 miles) long and runs through the ten countries of Sudan, South Sudan, Burundi, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Egypt. The northern section of the river flows almost entirely through desert, from Sudan into Egypt, a country whose civilization has depended on the "Great River" since ancient times . Most of the population and cities of Egypt lie along those parts of the Nile valley north of Aswan, and nearly all the cultural and historical sites of Ancient Egypt are found Register for FREE to stop seeing ads along riverbanks. The Nile ends in a large delta that empties into the Mediterranean Sea . Mediterranean Sea Gaza Damietta Rosetta Rafah Alexandria Buto NE Bubastis Nile Delta E SW Pelusium Avaris Merimda SE S Great Bitter Lake Heliopolis (km) 0 (mi) Giza 100 60 Cairo Saqqara Dahshur Faiyum Lake is Moer Meydum Lahun Sinai Memphis Helwan Lower Egypt Timna Herakleopolis Serabit al-Khadim lf Gu Nile river 0 of ez Su Bahariya Oasis Beni Hasan Hermopolis Amarna Asyut Badari Qau Eastern Desert Gulf of Aq aba W Busiris Wadi Natrun N NW Tanis Sais Naukratis Dead Se a Jerusalem Qau Western Desert Red Sea Akhmim Thinis Abydos ver Nile ri Kharga Oasis Dendera Quseir Koptos Naqada amat Hamm Wadi Thebes (Luxor and Karnak) Dakhla Oasis Tod Upper Egypt Hierakonpolis Edfu Kom Ombo Aswan Bernike First Cataract Dunqul Oasis Nabta Playa Wad i Al Abu Simbel laqi Buhen Second Cataract Kush W i ad b Ga a b ga Nubian Desert Third Cataract Kerma r le Ni r ive Kawa Fourth Cataract Napata Gebel Barkal Fifth Cataract Meroe Map of Egyptian Settlement in the Nile River Valley This map of ancient Egypt shows the path of the great Nile River, along with major cities and sites of the Dynastic period (c. 3150 BCE to 30 BCE). "Great River" Hieroglyphics In the ancient Egyptian language, the Nile is called Ḥ'pī or Iteru, meaning "great river," represented by these hieroglyphs. Ancient Egypt was a civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BCE with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh. The history of ancient Egypt occurred in a series of stable Kingdoms, separated by periods of relative instability known as Intermediate Periods. The success of ancient Egyptian civilization came partly from its ability to adapt to the conditions of the Nile River Valley. The predictable flooding and controlled irrigation of the fertile valley produced surplus crops and also fueled social development and culture by providing an abundance of rich natural resources. Egypt is rich in natural resources, such building and decorative stone, copper and lead ores, gold, and semiprecious stones, which are all found in the Nile River Valley. These natural resources allowed the ancient Egyptians to build monuments, sculpt statues, make tools, and fashion jewelry . High-quality building stones were abundant: the ancient Egyptians quarriedlimestone all along the Nile valley, granite from Aswan, and basalt and sandstone from the wadis (valleys) of the eastern desert. Deposits of decorative stones such as porphyry, greywacke, alabaster, and carnelian dotted the eastern desert and were collected even before the First Dynasty. These resources from the Nile subsequently allowed successive rulers to sponsor mineral exploitation of the valley and surrounding desert regions, the early development of an independent writing system, the organization of collective construction and agricultural projects, trade with surrounding regions, and a military powerful enough to assert Egyptian dominance. Motivating and organizing these activities was a bureaucracy of elite scribes, religious leaders, and administrators under the control of a Pharaoh, who ensured the cooperation and unity of the Egyptian people in the context of an elaborate system of religious beliefs. The many achievements of the ancient Egyptians included the quarrying, surveying, and construction techniques that facilitated the building ofmonumental pyramids, temples, and obelisks; a system of mathematics; a practical and effective system of medicine; irrigation systems and agricultural production techniques; the first known ships; glass technology; and new forms of literature.