II. Importance of the Nile River

Handout 3-3

A.Vocabulary 1. Nation-state-_______________________

_________________________________ 2. Nome-____________________________

region with a single gov’tand a united group of people

a city-state in ancient Egypt

B. Giver and Taker of Life 1. Nile served as a

______________ for early Egyptians

a. People traveling north used ______________________

b. People traveling south used ______________________

______________________ c. River made __________ and ______________ easier

river highway

the strong currents

the wind blowing off the Mediterranean Sea

travel communication

2. Inundation a. Some years there was not enough rain upriver

1. Caused _________ resulting in ______________________________

2. This was called a year of ____________ b. In years when there was abundant rain upriver, flooding was ________________ _________________________________

1. This was called a year of ____________2. Too much flood water was not good

for obvious reasons

droughtdeath of crops and livestock

“Low Nile”

sufficient to grow crops and raise livestock

“High Nile”

The Nilometer

The Gift of the Nile

c. Advantage for the Egyptians was that they knew _______________________________ 1. Happened when they saw the star______ appear in the morning sky 2. Egyptians developed a ______________ to keep track of this important event

a. ________________, each one with ______________ b. Five days left over for the celebration of the birthdays of some of the gods

1. Celebrated the birthdays of ________, ________,_________, __________, and __________

when the flood was comingSirius

c. Advantage for the Egyptians was that they knew _______________________________ 1. Happened when they saw the star______ appear in the morning sky 2. Egyptians developed a ______________ to keep track of this important event

a. ________________, each one with ______________ b. Five days left over for the celebration of the birthdays of some of the gods

1. Celebrated the birthdays of ________, ________,_________, __________, and __________

when the flood was comingSirius

calendar

Twelve monthsthirty days

OsirisHorus Seth Isis Nephthys

C. Three Seasons 1. Inundation (Akhet)-__________________

a. ______________________________ b. Land was renewed each year by

_______________________

June 21-Oct. 21Start of the New Year

silt from floodwaters

2. Emergence (Proyet)-____________________ a. Land ______________________________ b. As this season began, ________________

_____________1. Fields were ________, seeds planted in _______________2. Cows were led across the fields _______________________________

c. Enough time to grow: 1. One crop of ________, ___________

or other _________ 2. Three or four crops of _______________

Oct. 22-Feb. 21emerged from beneath floodwaters

farmers plantedtheir crops

plowedfurrows

to push the seeds into the ground

wheat barleygrains

vegetables

3. Harvest (Shomu)-______________________ a. Time when the ______________________ b. Most years there were ________________

Feb. 22-June 20crops were ready

large harvests

D. Unified Egypt 1. Around 5000 BC, ___________________

grew along the Nile River between the ________ and the _________________a. Villages grew into __________, some

of which became capitals of _________b. Leaders of different nomes competed for ________________________________c. Nomes joined together until around 3500 BC there were ________________

small farming villages

delta First cataract

D. Unified Egypt 1. Around 5000 BC, ___________________

grew along the Nile River between the ________ and the _________________a. Villages grew into __________, some

of which became capitals of _________b. Leaders of different nomes competed for ________________________________c. Nomes joined together until around 3500 BC there were ________________

small farming villages

delta First cataracttowns

nomes

control of power and wealth

2 large kingdoms

2. Around 3000 BC, __________________ gained control of __________________ a. Legend says that the king responsible was ______________ b. Many historians believe it was really a king named ________

Upper EgyptLower Egypt

Menes

Narmer

E. Three things That Made Egypt a Great Civilization 1. Isolation

a. Allowed Egypt to develop its civilization without _____________________ or

_______________________ b. No _________ in the early days; none

needed

outside interferencefear of invasion

army

2. Unification a. When Upper and Lower Egypt were brought together,__________________ _______________________________ b. ___________________ and new capital city of ___________ symbolize unity rather than conquest

there was nobody left with which to fight

Double crown Memphis

Upper Lower Unified

3. Inundation a. Without yearly floods, _______________

_________________________________ Egyptians wouldnever have been able to farm