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OUTCOMES
• Examine the role of geography in the development of
Egyptian society.
THE NILE
Nor th
The Nile flows into the
Mediterranean Sea.
South
EGYPT “THE NILE”
 The Nile River, longest river in the world (6741
kilometers)
 Shaped like a lotus flower, Egyptian symbol for the
regeneration of life.
 Upper Nile divides into three tributaries (White, Blue,
Atbara)
EGYPT “THE NILE”
 Unlike the Euphrates and Tigris River flooding was
relatively predictable
 From July to September
 Created a rich and fertile layer of alluvial soil
VOCABULARY
 Inundation- to flood; cover or overspread with water;
deluge.
 Alluvial deposit- clay or silt or gravel carried by rushing
streams and deposited where the stream slows down.
 Tributaries- a stream that flows to a larger stream or
other body of water.
 Papyrus- a material on which to write, prepared from
thin strips of the pith of this plant laid together, soaked,
pressed, and dried, used by the ancient Egyptians,
Greeks, and Romans.
ORIGIN OF
THE NILE
FLOODING
 The Flooding of the Nile created extremely fertile
land.
 Facilitated intensive agriculture (critical element of
civilized life)
 Flooding was the only sustainable water source for
crops.
 Irrigation canals (control) / rainfall non -existent
EGYPTIAN MARSHES AND THE
DOMESTICATION OF ANIMALS
 Marshes and wetlands also provided fish, birds,
animals, and insects
 Variety of animals ( cattle, oxen, sheep, goats, pigs,
ducks and geese).
EGYPTIAN MARSHES AND THE
DOMESTICATION OF ANIMALS
 Hunted hippopotamus, but left crocodiles alone
(feared the gods)
 Provided a rich variety of plants (papyrus, reeds and
water lilies( perfume)
 Papyrus, and reeds used to make rope, mats,
baskets, huts and light skiffs (boats)
EGYPTIAN CALENDAR
Ancient Egyptians followed a calendar
system of 360 days:
 three seasons
 each season made up of 4 months
 thirty days in each month.
EGYPT WAS THE GIFT OF THE NILE
 The Nile enriched the land for Egyptian
farmers.
 Civilization thrived because of the
Nile’s consistency.
 The inundation of the Nile was deified
as the god Hapi (Hapy)
Egypt was the “gift of the Nile”
Problems
Benefits
Unifying
Transportation
artery
Shipbuilding
Trade
Soil fertility
Aridity
Abundance of
food
Need for
storage
Irrigation
Occupational
Specialization
floods
Need to
predict
flood cycle
Boundaries
marked
(annually)
surveying
measurement
records
Need for
records
calendar
Astronomy
Writing and
geometry
Need to ensure material well- being by calling upon the supernatural
Priest Class
Ritual
Magic
spells
Book of
the Dead
Need for rainmaker/God/King= Pharaoh
Need to ensure reincarnation of the Pharaoh and to
provide for the afterlife
Embalming
Tombs
Painting
Anatomy
Temples
Sculpture
Medicine
Architects
Artists
Masons
Craftsmen
Hieroglyphics
Scribes