The Nile Valley

1. What did the ancient Greeks call Egypt ‘the gift of the Nile’?
- Because the Nile river was a lifeline for the ancient Egyptians.
- the water was used for irrigatiion in agriculture to grow figs, dates, vegetables, etc.
- was used for transportation to interact with other civilizatiions along the Nile
- The mud from the Nile was used to make bricks to build homes, temples, etc.
- Provided fish which was a major food source for the Egyptians.
- The overflow of the Nile made the soil of the surrounding land very rich and fertile which was a major boost for agriculture and farming


2. The political life in Ancient Egypt
Egypt was ruled by a king called Pharaoh. It was believed that the king was the son of the Sun God, (the Sun God’s name was Re.) That made him very powerful because people considered him to be not only king but also God.

3. The power of the pharaoh
- own the land
- make laws
- control army
- perform religious ceremonies

4. The economic life in Ancient Egypt
- farming
- trading

5. Farming in Ancient Egypt
- use plough
- keep cattle and sheep
- grow wheat, barley and fruit
- invent shadoof to transport water
- dig canals to transport water for irrigation
- making tools with metal

6. Trading
- build ships for trade and war
- trade with people along the Nile and Red Sea, as well as people in the Mediterranean
- Barter system ( trade by the exchange of goods before money was invented)
- trading makes the country powerful
- trading allows cultural exchange


7. Religion in Ancient Egypt
- go to temples to worship
- hold religious festivals
- worship many gods
- worship the pharaoh as god
- people are very religious
- believe in life after death

8. Life after death
- bury dead people in the sand
- heat and sand preserve the dead bodies
- dead person live forever in the next world
- preserve bodies by making mummies
- put the dead bodies the rich people in tombs
- weigh heart against a feather before entering into the next world

9. Mummification
- preserve dead bodies
- very expensive
- only for pharaohs and rich people
- buried with food, clothes, furniture, jewelry and other things
- buried with slaves to serve in the next world

10. Pyramids
- for dead pharaohs
- biggest stone buildings
- located on the West side of the Nile (West is associated to the underworld)

11. How were the Pyramids built?
- They used simple building tools such as sledges, ropes, levers and copper chisels.
- The Egyptians used bronze tools to chisel out the great blocks of stone, then shipped them down the Nile on boats/rafts. Overland transport was by human muscle power, probably aided by rolling logs.

12. Ancient Egyptians Inventions
- plough for farming
- shadoof and basin for irrigation
- ship for transportation
- hieroglyphics
- papyrus
- calendar of 365 days
- clocks using water and the shadow of the sun to tell the time

13. Please study the pyramid worksheet!!!!!!