The geography of Egypt can be quite confusing because it's very much related to the Nile. In fact,
ancient Egypt's other name is "The Nile Valley." Oh and what about the ancient Egyptian name for the
Nile Valley you say? It's called "Kemet", which means the black land.
Why is it called the black land? That’s related to... yes, the Nile. It's always about the Egyptian Nile.
There was a black silt that made up the fertile soil along the banks of the Nile, which is pretty much the
only place that was inhabitable by the ancient Egyptians. This black silt was a product of the yearly Nile
flooding that was so essential for agriculture, and therefore for life.
The geography of Egypt also makes it a coveted land. Egypt takes up the north-eastern corner of Africa,
with the Mediterranean Sea on its north coast and the Red Sea on its east coast.
The Nile River runs vertically through the middle and splits the land in two.
The Divisions of Ancient Egypt
The geography of ancient Egypt is divided into 4 main
parts, although there are many other subdivisions.
As you can see in this Ancient Egypt Map, the country
has two sea coasts. The North coast overlooking the
Mediterranean Sea, the East coast overlooking the Red
Sea.
The Nile river splits the country in half, with almost all
the inhabitants residing in cities or towns on the Nile's
shores. As we already know, the ancient Egyptians relied
fully on the Nile's yearly flooding to fertilize the soil...
Lower Egypt comprises of the northern part of the
country, while Upper Egypt comprises of the southern
part.
This used to confuse me a great deal back in primary
school because I associated the word "upper" with north
and the word "lower" with south, not the other way
around!
But the reason it's named this way is related to the Nile River. The Nile runs from the source (which is
in the south) up to the north and flows into the Mediterranean Sea. So the beginning part (upper part) of
the Nile is in the south, and vice versa...
...And as you now know, Egypt is all about the Nile.
The other division of the geography of Egypt is (I hate to say it) also related to the Nile. We've got the
east and west banks of the Nile River. The ancient Egyptians thought of the east bank as "the land of the
living" since that's where the sun rose every morning. They built their temples and homes on that side.
They thought of the west bank as "the land of the dead" since that's where the sun sets. Many of the
tombs and funerary temples lay there.
Other than these 4 main divisions, there were 42 nomes, or provinces. 22 of them were in Upper Egypt,
20 in Lower Egypt. The ancient Egyptians called these nomes "sepat". Each nome had a mayor, a local
temple, a capital, a deity and religious beliefs and rituals. There were no flags to represent all the
different nomes however, but there were staffs with the local
deity's statue for each.
As for Upper Egypt, it was represented by the white crown, the
sedge and the Goddess Nekhbet.
Lower Egypt was repre sented by the red crown, the bee and
the Goddess Wadjet.
Ancient Egypt as a Unified State
In 3100 BC King Narmer proceeded to unify the most important division, to
merge the "Two Lands" (Upper and Lower Egypt) into one. Ancient Egypt's
first battle was that of the unification, and it started the new era in kingship.
Any true king of Egypt must rule both Upper and Lower and wear the
combined white and red crown. He then was named "King of Upper and
Lower Egypt".
Before the Old Kingdom and the dynasties were established, during what's
called the pre-dynastic period (before 3100 BC),
there were no capital cities. There were some
areas though that could be considered centers of
settlements and tombs. These areas are Abydos,
Hierakonpolis, and Naqaba. Graves, temples and
artifacts were found in these areas by the
thousands.
Once the land was unified and the Old Kingdom began, Egypt began to have
a series of capital cities. The funny thing about Egyptian capitals is that
there were often two at the same time - One administrative (where the
political business was conducted) and one religious (where major temples
and cults conducted their rituals). This reflects the belief the Egyptians
had that it was the king's responsibility not only to rule the land, but also
to intermediate with the Gods for the sake of the people and the country.
Double Crown of Egypt
Until the establishment of Alexandria by Alexander the Great in
331 BC, the following were the two most important cities of Egypt
during the Pharaonic period:
Memphis: The first proper administrative capital of the Old
Kingdom, after the rulers stopped using the above 3 centers as
capitals in 3100 BC. It's near modern Cairo and its ruins now lie in
modern-day Saqqara, Dahshur, Abusir, and Giza. The Egyptian
name was actually "Ineb Hedj", Memphis is the Greek name for the
city.
Memphis was chosen for its strategic location between Upper and
Lower Egypt, and would ensure political control and control of the
trade between the two divisions.
Thebes: Situated where modern Luxor lies now, this was the
religious capital during much of the New Kingdom. It was called "Niwt" in Egyptian. The area now
boasts some of the world's most beautiful ancient temples, such as the Karnak and Luxor temples. It
was home to an extremely powerful religious cult, that of the God Amun. Thebes also contains "the
valley of the kings and queens", with hundreds of grave sites.
There were other capital cities but they were very short-lived.
Population of Ancient Egypt
Although the actual population was never recorded until the Romans took over, there are some scientific
estimates that are based on the geography of ancient Egypt and its capacity to support agriculture:
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Pre-dynastic: Up to 200,000.
Early-dynastic: Up to 2 million.
Old Kingdom: Up to 1.5 million.
New Kingdom: Up to 4.5 million.
Ptolemaic Period: Up to 7.5 million.
Please answer the following completely and thoroughly.
1. Ancient Egypt’s soil was either black soil or red soil. Based on the reading, what was the
black soil? Based on deductive reasoning, what was red soil?
2. Identify and explain in a few words each of the 4 parts of ancient Egypt.
3. Why is the concept of “upper” and “lower” Egypt confusing? Explain.
4. According to ancient Egyptians, what/who was the land on the eastern banks of the Nile
reserved for? On the western banks?
5. Explain the political divisions of ancient Egypt. How were they divided and governed?
6. What was King Narmer able to accomplish?
7. Why were there often two Egyptian capitals?
8. Why was Memphis chosen as the capital of the Old Kingdom?
9. Why was Thebes chosen as yet another Egyptian capital?