Arab Republic of EGYPT
Revised in 2007 by: Kristie Benton
Geography –
Where in the world is Egypt?
Egypt is
1 ½ times
the size of
Texas.
Geography
• Continent: Africa (Middle East)
• Landforms: Sahara Desert, Nile River Delta, Sinai Peninsula
• Waterways: Nile River, Suez Canal, Red Sea, Mediterranean
Sea
• Famous Landmarks: Pyramids of Giza, Sphinx, Library of
Alexandria, Egyptian Museum in Cairo
• Climate: Desert with fertile valley by Nile River
Landmarks
• Egyptian history dates back to about 4000 BC, when
the kingdoms of upper and lower Egypt were united.
• The early Egyptians built great stone pyramids and
other monuments. A pyramid is a large triangular
tomb to bury pharaohs and all their possessions.
The Pyramids of Giza are some of the only remaining ancient wonders
of the world. It’s hard to comprehend their huge size or extreme age.
The Sphinx and Great Pyramid of Khufu at Giza are
popular ancient monuments to visit.
Library at Alexandria
Egyptian Museum - Cairo
Egypt in Vegas – Luxor Hotel
What was the purpose of the Egyptian pyramids?
The embalmed body of the pharaoh-Egyptian king,
and all his possessions (including servants and pets)
were entombed within the pyramid.
What happened to his possessions?
Did they go with him to the afterlife?
Gold funeral mask of King Tutankhamen, found in
his tomb in the Valley of the Kings. Now in the
Egyptian Museum, Cairo.
The four huge statues of Ramses II that guard the
entrance of his Great Temple at Abu Simbel are over 20
meters high. That’s over 60 ft tall!
Ancient History
• Ruled by pharaohs including King Tut, Ramses II,
& Cleopatra
• The Egyptians also traded with people from other
places. To identify themselves and their goods, the
Egyptians used hieroglyphics. Hieroglyphics are
Egyptian writing that uses pictures and symbols
that stand for ideas or words.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiUe4J2ARuA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4GqYz4F2h4&feature=related
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“Phamous
Pharaohs”
Khufu (reigned 2589 - 2566 B.C)
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Built the Great Pyramid at Giza & the Step Pyramid
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Khafra (reigned 2558 - 2532 B.C.)
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Built the Second Pyramid at Giza & the Sphinx
Cleopatra (reigned 51 - 30 B.C.)
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Hatshepsut (reigned 1498 - 1483 B.C.)
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Tutankhamen (reigned 1334 - 1325 B.C.)
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She reigned longer than any other women of
the Egyptian dynasty.
Known as King Tut
youngest pharaoh in the Egyptian history
Ruled from age 9 or 10 & died at age 18
famous tomb in the Valley of the Kings with treasures
Ramses II (reigned 1279 - 1212 B.C.)
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powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian empire
reigned the longest (67 yrs) & was the oldest (died at 92)
The average person only lived to be about 40 years old
Built many temples and statues of himself including the
temple at Abu Simbel.
Educated (spoke 6 languages)
Devised a plot to rule, including killing
her siblings & marrying the leader of
the Roman Empire
She was a compassionate ruler &
helped to boost Egypt’s economy.
Cleopatra was the last pharaoh to rule
Egypt (she died by poisonous snake
bite at age 39).
On what did Ancient Egyptians
write their hieroglyphs?
Papyrus - ancient paper made from reeds that grew
near the Nile River.
Hieroglyphics were
also carved on walls of
temples to tell stories
and record history.
However, the
winner got to
write the history.
Rosetta Stone
• After the Ancient Egyptians were
conquered, their written language
– hieroglyphics - was no longer
used. In time, no one could read
it.
• In 1799, a French army officer
stumbled on a large black stone
near the city of Rosetta, Egypt.
• This amazing discovery turned out
to have 3 different kinds of
writings (2 Egyptian and Ancient
Greek)
• In 1822, another Frenchman
decoded the hieroglyphics for the
first time since the Ancient
Egyptians wrote them.
• Rosetta Stone – stone with 3
types of writing that enabled us
to decipher ancient hieroglyphics
language
Modern History
• After being conquered many times by other countries, Britain gained
control of Egypt after the completion of the Suez Canal.
• Egypt gained independence on Feb. 28, 1922 and remained neutral
during World War II.
• After 30 years of rule, the monarchy was abolished & a republic
proclaimed on June 18, 1953, when a president & prime minister took
power.
• Tensions between Egypt and its neighbor Israel have continued for
1,000s of years.
• In 1967, border tensions between Egypt and Israel led to the Six-Day
War. On June 5, Israel launched an air assault, and within days had
annexed the Sinai Peninsula, the East Bank of the Jordan River, and the
Golan Heights (still disputed territories today). In 1973, another war
ended with Egypt obtaining control of the Sinai Peninsula and the Suez
Canal.
Modern History
• Recently, Egypt has had many riots and violence in the attempt to
overthrow the government. Protesters flooded the streets demanding
government reform and resignation of the president (who has been in
power for 30 years). The riots were organized by social media like cell
phones, Facebook, & YouTube.
• On Feb. 11, President Mubarak announced his resignation and handed
power over to the military. Cairo erupted in joyous celebration, with
crowds chanting, "Egypt is free!“ However, protests against the
government and the military have continued while the transition takes
place, including a violent outbreak at a soccer game, killing 75
spectators.
• In June 2012, Mubarak was sentenced to
life in
prison for killing protestors in 2011.
• Terrorist attacks targeting Christians
have
continued.
• It is very dangerous to travel to Egypt today.
Riots
Past Governments
• Monarchy (pharaohs), conquered by many other countries
• Since becoming a country, Egypt has been conquered and
ruled by:
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Persia
Alexander the Great
The Ptolemy dynasty (including Cleopatra)
Romans
Arabs
Turks
Napoleon's armies
and Britain
Government Today
• Republic with elected president, but recent
protests led to government takeover
• still lots of corruption and unrest
Morsi – recently elected
president in 2011 during
Egyptian Revolution
Mubarak: 1981-2011
president for 30 years
Economy
• Monetary Unit: Egyptian Pound
• 1 E£ = $0.15 USD
• Capital City: Cairo
• Industries: Agriculture along Nile
River Valley, Fishing, Textiles (cotton),
Tourism, Oil
CAIRO
• Cairo, Egypt’s capital & largest city, was founded
more than a 1,000 years ago along the Nile River.
• Today, Cairo has more than 11 million people, & is a
mixture between modern buildings and mud-brick
houses.
Economy - The Nile River
• The Nile, the world’s
longest river, flows
northward through the
eastern Sahara Desert.
• Water from the Nile is
used for irrigation of
surrounding farmland.
• Irrigation - transporting
water for crops
The Nile River
The Nile River
• Before modern irrigation methods, the Nile River flooded
the Nile Valley once a year.
• The river overflowed its banks during the rainy season.
After the water drained away, it deposited rich silt, or tiny
particles of soil & sand, which made these farmlands fertile.
• The annual flooding was measured by a nilometer and used
to determine the amount of taxes the people
would pay to the Pharaoh each year.
Economy - Industries
• A, warm sunny climate and water
for irrigation make the Nile delta
ideal for growing cotton,
vegetables, grain, and fruit.
• 40% of Egyptian workers
are farmers.
• Egypt’s main export is crude oil
• They also export cotton & other
textiles.
• The tourism industry has suffered
greatly from violence and rioting.
Economy - The Nile River
Farming: There are
hundreds of farms along
the Nile, and usually
farmers use boats to
transport items (such as
rice, wheat, cattle, and
hay) between locations on
the Nile.
Fishing: Almost everyone
who lives on the Nile
fishes, and for some,
fishing is a main source of
income and wealth. Each
year thousands of tons of
fish are caught.
Animal powered water wheel used for irrigating crops
Nile River Predators
What can you infer about the population density from
this night time picture of Egypt taken from space?
About 99% of Egypt’s population lives in the Nile River Valley & Nile Delta.
Tourism in Egypt
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=sVxUUotm1P4
Economy - Suez Canal
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Completed in 1869
Connects the Red Sea to the
Mediterranean Sea
Ships use the canal to avoid long
trips around southern Africa
Ships pay tolls to pass through it
One of the world’s busiest
waterways to transport oil from
the Middle East
Culture
• Ancient Egyptians believed in many gods.
They had a god for almost every part of
nature in the world around them.
• They made statues and carved hieroglyphs in
the temples to represent their many gods.
• Pharaohs even believed that they were gods.
• Polytheistic means believing in many gods.
Culture
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god of
Appearance
Sun
head of falcon and sun disk
Music
horns of cow and sun disk
Destruction head of lion
Sky
blue with golden stars
Earth
color of plants and Nile mud
Dead
dressed in white with crook and flail
Desert
animal head with long curved snout
Pharaoh
head of hawk and crown of Egypt
Magic
throne on head or holding baby
Wisdom
head of ibis
Embalming head of jackal
Justice
feathers
Creation
crowned with feathers
Cats
head of cat
Culture
• Population: 80,000,000
• Languages: Ancient–Hieroglyphics,
Today-Arabic (official), English and
French widely understood by
educated classes
• Religion: Ancient-Polytheistic
(many Egyptian gods),
Today-Islam (Muslim)
Islamic Mosque
Culture - Holidays
• Revolution Day (Jan. 25) - day of the
beginning of the Egyptian revolution
• Christmas (Jan. 7th)
• Muslim holidays – Ramadan, Islamic New Year
• Flooding of the Nile (Aug. 15) – beginning of
the Nile floods
• :Sportmens’ Day (March 3) celebrates Egypt’s
sports
Cinema in
Cairo
School children in Egypt
Young children playing in Egypt
Culture - Food
Pita bread
Egyptian pie
Fried falafel (chic peas)
• Vegetarian diet, lamb (meat very expensive)
• Bread (edible utensil)
• Seafood on coast
Lamb kebab
Central
Cairo
Market
Vegetable
Shop
Butcher
Shop
Culture - Sports
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Wrestling, Gymnastics,
Archery, Equestrian,
Chariot Racing,
Fishing,
Today - Soccer
Challenges
• The flooding of the Nile brought rich soil, but it also caused
problems. Floodwaters destroyed homes and farms.
Egyptians built dams to control floods.
• Egypt's farmland is limited
so a lot of fertilizer is used
to keep the land productive.
That washes into the river.
• Many people still live in
poverty. Half of the people
today cannot read or write.
Electric power generators of the Aswan Dam
• Violence and unrest are still going on in Egypt today.
Tensions between Egypt and its neighbor Israel also
continue to cause fear from threat of war.
The End