Download Blue Nile and White Nile 2) How

6th Grade SS Review Questions for chapter 3:
1) What are the names of the Nile’s two sources? Blue Nile and White Nile
2) How long does the Nile flow? Over 4,000 miles
3) Ancient Egyptians called their land “Kemet,” or what other name because of the dark, rich soil that was left
by the Nile’s floods? The Black Land
4) What was a nickname of the uninhabitable desert land outside of the Nile’s fertile banks? The Red Land
5) Why were the lands of Egypt and Nubia better protected from invaders than the lands of Mesopotamia
had been? Egypt and Nubia were shielded from attacks by the hot sands and the land of “The Red Land”
which surrounded them.
6) What are cataracts? Rock-filled rapids
7) What is silt? Fine soil found on river bottoms
8) How was the way the Nubians set up their civilizations different than the way the Mesopotamians had set
up their settlements? The Nubians formed settlements before they began to farm, while the
Mesopotamians developed their agriculture and then established settlements
9) Since Nubia had a shortage of farmland, how did the Nubians get the food that they needed? They added
fish, ducks, and other birds to their diets.
10) Why was trade so popular and rich in Egypt? Trade flourished due to the Egypt’s location on the Nile and
because it was a crossroads for merchants traveling in caravans through the desert.
11) How many dynasties were there in ancient Egypt? 31
12) What are the three time periods, or kingdoms, into which these dynasties are divided? The Old Kingdom,
the Middle Kingdom, and the New Kingdom.
13) If you looked at a timeline of the dynasties in Ancient Egypt and saw gaps or breaks between the
kingdoms, what would this tell you? Gaps meant there had been times of war, poverty, famine, bad rulers,
invasions, etc.
14)What did King Menes do to strengthen Egypt? He unified Upper and Lower Egypt and built a city called
Memphis near present-day Cairo
15) What was a pharaoh? A king or ruler of ancient Egypt who had absolute power over the people
16) During which kingdom was Queen Hatshepsut’s rule, and the reign of Thutmose III? The New Kingdom
17) During which kingdom did the Great Sphinx get completed, and work start on the Great Pyramid of Giza?
The Old Kingdom
18) What are hieroglyphics? A kind of picture writing where pictures stood for sounds, letters, or ideas.
19) What is papyrus? An early form of paper made from a reedlike plant found along the Nile delta.
20) Why did Hatshepsut have herself proclaimed pharaoh in 1504 B.C.? She had been appointed regent over
her stepson, but since she thought he was too young and she wanted control, she had herself proclaimed
pharaoh.
21) Was Hatshepsut considered a good leader? Yes, because she was known for creating a time of peace
and economic success.
22) After Hatshepsut’s death, who became pharaoh? Thutmose III
23) What is a dynasty? A series of rulers from the same family or ethnic group.
24) What happened to Egypt at the end of the New Kingdom? Egypt declined at the end of the New
Kingdom, because it was left poorly defended and weak after civil war. It eventually fell to invaders.
25) Who was Alexander the Great? He was a Macedonian who conquered Egypt in 332 B.C.
26) How is Cleopatra important to Egypt’s history? She was the last Macedonian to rule Egypt; she is
considered the last pharaoh of Egypt, since she ruled until Egypt was conquered by the Romans and
became part of the Roman Empire