Download Kingdoms in North Eastern Africa

Kingdoms in North Eastern Africa:
The Nile River Valley
Instructions:
Read the power-point on Kingdoms in North Eastern
Africa and answer the following questions on a separate
piece of paper.
1. Name the three African kingdoms that were located
in the Nile River Valley. Ancient Egypt, Axum &
Kush
2. The people of Ancient Egypt called their land Kemet
and themselves Kennui, which means Black in their
ancient language.
3. Why did kingdoms arose in the Nile River Valley.
State 3 reasons.
agricultural growth, urbanization and the creation
of large-scale political units
4. Permanent settlements grew into regional states and
some of these states united into two states and
became known as Lower & Upper Egypt.
5. Explain the difference between Black Land and Red
Land.
The 'black land' was the fertile land on the
banks of the Nile. The ancient Egyptians used
this land for growing their crops. This was the
only land in ancient Egypt that could be farmed
because a layer of rich, black silt was deposited
there every year after the Nile flooded.
The 'red land' was the barren desert that
protected Egypt on two sides. These deserts
separated ancient Egypt from neighbouring
countries and invading armies. They also provided
the Ancient Egyptians with a source for precious
metals and semi-precious stones.
6. Most ancient Egyptians worked as field hands,
farmers, craftsmen and scribes.
7. The people of ancient Egypt built mudbrick homes in
villages and in the country.
8. The most powerful person in ancient Egypt was the
pharaoh = The Great House.
9. 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'.
10.
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.
11.
The most famous of all ancient Egyptian
scripts is hieroglyphic. Using these scripts, scribes
were able to do what?
Scribes were able to preserve the beliefs, history
and ideas of ancient Egypt in temple and tomb
walls and on papyrus scrolls
12.
Define pictograms and ideograms.
Pictograms were pictures or objects, such as
animals or tools .Ideograms were pictures that
symbolized ideas and actions.
13.
The Rosetta Stone is a stone with writing on it
in two languages: Egyptian and Greek.
14.
Name the three scripts on the Stone and state
what each was used for.
The first was hieroglyphic which was the script
used for important or religious documents.
The second was demotic which was the common
script of Egypt.
The third was Greek which was the language of
the rulers of Egypt at that time.
The Rosetta Stone was written in all three
scripts so that the priests, government officials
and rulers of Egypt could read what it said
15.
There are about 80pyramids known today from
ancient Egypt. The three largest and best-preserved
of these were built at Giza at the beginning of the
Old Kingdom.
16.
The most well-known of these pyramids was
built for the pharaoh Khufu. It is known as the
'Great Pyramid.'
17.
The Great sphinx is a portrait of the pharaoh
khafre.
18.
Wealthy Egyptians built elaborate tombs called
Houses of Eternity
19.
The ancient Egyptians believed that temples
were the homes of the gods and goddesses.
20.
Define Mythologies: Mythology = A collection
of stories and traditions about people and
institutions.
21.
When early Egyptians buried their dead in small
pits, what did the sand do?
The heat and dryness of the sand dehydrated the
bodies quickly, creating lifelike and natural
'mummies'.
22.
What is mummification?
The process included embalming the bodies and
wrapping them in strips of linen
23.
Complete the following:
I.Old Kingdom (Age of the Pyramids)
- 2780-2108 B.C.
- Pharaohs had all political & religious power
- The Pharaoh was a landlord and rented out land to
the nobles.
- Pyramids were built to protect the dead.
- Hieroglyphics told the Pharaoh’s story
- Sphinx: Monument that has a body of a lion and
head of a man (pharaoh). It represents the
pharaoh as Ra, the sun god.
Declined:
- Collected taxes, but pyramids were still too costly
- Pharaoh began to lose authority to nobles, who
gained more authority over nomes (provinces)
- Crops failed and people suffered.
II.Middle Kingdom (Age of the Nobles)
• 2100-1788 B.C.
• A noble named Amenemhet I became pharaoh
• He gave power back to the pharaoh
Moved capital to Thebes
Arts and literature flourished
Successful war against Nubia
Trade was successful
Declined:
Weak dynasties (dynasty = a line of hereditary
rulers)
• Hyksos warriors destroyed temples, and burned
cities.
III. New Kingdom (Age of the Empire)
• 1580-1090 B.C.
• Egyptian pharaohs drove out Hyksos warriors
• The Egyptians created a standing army of
charioteers, bowman and foot soldiers
• Hatshepsut: Was a powerful female pharaoh, who
expanded trade; time of peace; built a pyramid in
Valley of the Kings. She is known as the world’s
first known female rulerIt is believed that her
step-son (Thytmose) murdered her, and he led
military campaigns that ended the peace.
• Declined:
• Small invasions
• A peace treaty between the Hittites and Ramses
II caused Egypt to lose some dominance
• Fell under Persia
• Alexander the Great occupied Egypt and
Cleopatra became the last pharaoh
• Defeated in a naval battle against Rome and
became part of the Roman Empire
•
•
•
•
•
•
24.
People of Axum lived in the Ethiopian
highlands near the Red Sea
25.
The Aksumites controlled one of the most
important trade routes in the world and occupied
one of the most fertile regions in the world
26.
Adulis was a trade center & they traded in
ivory and possibly Slaves.
27.
What did Ezana do for the kingdom of Axum
and why was this important?
Declared Axum to be a Christian state , thus
making it the first Christian state in the history
of the world, and began actively converting the
population to Christianity
• Define Syncretism A process in which 2 religions
or belief systems are mixed to create a new
blend of ideas.
28.
Why did Axum decline?
Axum declined due to the rise of the new and
expanding religion Islam. Over exploited the
environment
29.
Kush is centered in the region Nubia and is in
the Northern Sudan Region
30.
Who is the founder of Kush and what did he
do that was significant?
Alara is said to be the founder. He unified the
Napta based kingdom.
31.
What was the most important resource in Kush?
Why?
Iron for weapons
32.
When did Kush reach its climax in power? Why
did this not last?
When King Piye conquered all of Egypt. They lost
their power in Egypt to the Assyrians, who had
iron weapons.
33.
Men and women held power jointly in Kush.
34.
Who were the Black Pharaohs?
Piye, Shabaka and Taharqa who ruled Egypt
35.
Meroe became a powerful trade & military
center.
36.
How did the Kushites use elephants?
Warfare, trade & transportation
37.
What was a popular sport in Kush?
Wrestling
38.
Explain the decline of Kush.
Kush declined in 300 CE due to the growth of the
population and industry, which had a devastating
impact on the environment. They were defeated
by an Axum army.
Egypt: Land of the Pharaohs
Responses to RE VIEW AND RE FLECT (page 37)
1. What led to the creation of kingdoms in the Nile Valley?
 Kingdoms were created in the Nile Valley because the
region was able to support permanent settlements.
 The people used water from the Nile and the fertile soils
to cultivate the land.
 Since they no longer lived a nomadic lifestyle, they built
permanent communities and economies.
 This led to the establishment of political states that
became great civilizations.
2. Ancient settlers in the Nile Valley kept records of when the Nile
flooded its banks. Why do you think it was important to know this?
 It was important to know when the Nile flooded its
banks because this told farmers when to plant
crops so they could reasonably predict harvest
time.
3. How did Egyptian writing become more complex over time?
How did writing contribute to the development of Egyptian
civilization?
 Egyptian writing became more complex as they
advanced from pictograms to ideograms.
 Pictograms depicted objects but ideograms were
more sophisticated because they symbolized
ideas and actions.
 Egyptians later added pictures in sequence that
symbolized the sounds of words.
 As writing became more complex, it contributed to
the development of Egyptian civilization because it
created greater opportunities to communicate,
record information, and exchange ideas.
Kush: Lost Kingdom on the Nile
Responses to RE VIEW AND RE FLECT (page 40)
1. What can scientists and archaeologists learn from studying the
remains of ancient Kush?
 Scientists and archaeologists can learn about the
culture and civilization of the Kush Empire and what
factors made it a great civilization.
 They can uncover information about religion, politics,
trade, archaeology, and technology that will help them
understand why this ancient civilization flourished.
2. What was the economic importance of Kush?
 The economic importance of Kush was its trade
resources.
 Iron ore was one of Kush’s most important resources.
The abundant supply of iron ore made Kush the iron
centre of ancient Africa.
 Its strategic location near the Red and Mediterranean
seas allowed trade to flourish and generated great
wealth for the rulers of Kush.
3. How did the exploitation of the environment contribute to the
fall of the Kingdom of
Kush?
 To meet the demand for iron, the Kushites cut down
trees to burn as fuel in iron production. But they cut
down the trees at such a rapid rate that the forests
were unable to replenish themselves.
 This led to deforestation, which ultimately led to
soil erosion.
 The Kushites could no longer earn a living from
farming. As a result, Kush gradually disappeared.
Axum: Kingdom at the Crossroads
Responses to RE VIEW AND RE FLECT (page 44)
1. What resources contributed to the wealth of Axum?
 Ivory, rhinoceros horns, hippopotamus hides, gold
dust, frankincense, spices, elephants, and enslaved
peoples contributed to the wealth of Axum.
2. Do you think it is important to designate places like Axum as
World Heritage Sites? What World Heritage Sites are you aware of
in Canada?
 It is important to designate places as World
Heritage Sites because much can be learned from
studying the past.
 It is important to preserve and respect the histories
of all people.
 Preserving ancient sites in Africa helps people
learn about important civilizations and the
contributions they made to world history.
 It also builds pride in the African Diaspora.