Egypt Study Guide
DIRECTIONS: This is the study guide for our “Egypt” Unit. This is NOT a homework assignment. It is meant to
provide you with important vocabulary and the key questions that will be addressed by our test.
Part 1 - Unit Vocabulary:
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Cataract –strong rapids
Delta- triangle-shaped area of land made of soil deposited by a river
Upper Egypt- the part of Egypt farther away from the Mediterranean Sea
Lower Egypt- the part of Egypt closest to the Mediterranean Sea
Menes- Egyptian ruler who united Upper and Lower Egypt into one kingdom
Pharaoh – the title used by the kings and queens of Egypt
Monarch-a ruler of a kingdom
Dynasty- a series of rulers from the same family
Old Kingdom- a period of time in Egyptian history from about 2700 BCE to 2200 BCE
Khufu- the most famous pharaoh of the Old Kings who ruled in the 2500s BCE
Social Hierarchy-the division of society by rank or class
Nobles- people from rich and powerful families; just below the pharaoh
Afterlife – life after death
Ka – a person’s life force
Mummies- specially treated bodies wrapped in a cloth
Sarcophagus-a case mummies were placed into
Pyramids- huge stone tombs with four triangle-shaped walls that met in a point at top
Middle Kingdom- a period of order and stability that lasted until about 1750 BCE
New Kingdom- the period which Egypt reached its height of power and glory – 1550 to 1050 BCE
Import- goods coming into a country
Export- goods leaving a country
Queen Hatshepsut- a powerful female pharaoh who increased trade to Egypt bring wealth and power –
1472-1458 BCE
Ramses II “the Great”-one of the longest Egyptian rulers; prevented foreign invaders from conquering
Egypt
Hieroglyphs- Egyptian writing system using more than 600 symbols of mainly pictures
Papyrus- a long-lasting paper-like material made out of a grassy reed
Rosetta Stone- a stone slab inscribed with Hieroglyphic, Greek, and a later form of Egyptian writing
which allowed historians to interpret the Hieroglyphs
Sphinx- imaginary creatures with the bodies of lions and the heads of other animals or humans
Obelisk- a tall four-sided pillar that is pointed on top
King Tutankhamen- or King Tut; ruled 1332 BC – 1323 BC in the New Kingdom
Part II - Unit Essential Questions:
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How did Egypt’s location, geographic features, and the Nile River influence it’s development?
How did agriculture influence the growth of civilization in Ancient Egypt?
What effects did power and social class have upon the lives of Egyptians?
How did Ancient Egyptians choose rulers?
How did Egypt’s most powerful rulers leave their marks on history?
How did the Egyptian Empire continue to grow and thrive?
How did the use of innovation influence the lives of Egyptians and it’s neighbors?
Why did the people of Egypt trade with other cultures?
What was the impact of trade upon Egyptian civilization?
What role did religion and the afterlife play in the lives of Egyptians?
Part III – Unit Map Questions:You must be able to identify the below geographic features on a map
Mediterranean Sea
Memphis
Giza
Red Sea
Nile River
Lower Egypt
Upper Egypt
Nile River Delta
Thebes
Ancient Egypt: Geography
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The Gift of the Nile
The Nile River brought life to Egypt. The river was so important to people in this region that the
famous Greek historian Herodotus (hi-RAHD-du-tus) called Egypt the “gift of the Nile.”
A. Location and Physical Features
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The Nile is the longest river in the world.
A. It begins in central Africa and runs 4,000 miles north to the Mediterranean Sea.
B. Egyptian civilization developed along a 750-mile stretch of the Nile in northern
Africa.
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Ancient Egypt included two regions, a southern region and a northern region.
A. Upper Egypt, the southern region, was located upriver from the Nile’s flow.
B. Lower Egypt, the northern region, was located downriver.
C. The Nile rushed through rocky, hilly lands south of Egypt. At several points, this
terrain caused cataracts, or strong rapids, to form. These rapids made sailing
through the Upper Egypt portion of the Nile very difficult.
D. In Lower Egypt, the Nile divided into several branches that fanned out and flowed
into the Mediterranean Sea. These branches formed a delta, a triangle-shaped area
of land made of soil deposited by a river. Some two thirds of Egypt’s fertile farmland
was located in the Nile Delta.
B. The Floods of the Nile
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Because it received so little rain, most of Egypt was desert.
a. Rainfall south of Egypt caused the Nile to flood. The floods were easier to predict
than those of the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers in Mesopotamia.
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The Nile flooded Upper Egypt in midsummer and Lower Egypt in the fall, coating the land
around the river with rich silt, or fertile soil and tiny rocks.
a. Egyptians eagerly awaited the flooding of the Nile. It was a life-giving miracle.
Without flooding, people never could have settled in Egypt.
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Instead of four seasons, the Egyptian year had only three:
a. Akhet, when the Nile flooded the valley
b. Peret, when the water receded
c. Shomu, when water was scarce
II. Civilization Develops Along the Nile
A. By 10,000 BCE, Hunter-Gatherers settled along the Nile in small villages.
a. Now an agricultural society, farmers developed an irrigation system to collect water
during the yearly floods and store the water during the droughts.
b. Canals directed water from the basins to the fields where it was needed.
B. The Nile provided a surplus of food.
a. Wheat, barley, fruits, vegetables, cattle, sheep, fish, wild geese and ducks.
C. The Nile provided natural barriers that made Egypt hard to invade.
a. West – desert was too big and harsh to cross
b. North – Mediterranean Sea; sea invasion is difficult
c. South – Nile cataracts made sailing difficult
d. East – Red Sea; sea invasion is difficult
D. Protected from invades, the villages along the Nile grew.
a. By 3200 BCE, the villages banded together and developed into two kingdoms: Lower
Egypt and Upper Egypt.
III. Kings Unify Egypt
A. Lower Egypt – capital was Pe and the king wore a red crown.
B. Upper Egypt – capital was Nekhen and the king wore a cone-shaped white crown.
C. Around 3100 BCE, a leader named Narmer, or Menes rose to power in Upper Egypt.
1. Historians consider Menes to be Egypt’s first pharaoh, the title used by the rulers of Egypt.
A. Pharaoh means “great house”
B. Menes also founded Egypt’s first dynasty, a series of rulers from the same family.
C. Memphis, in Lower Egypt, became the new capital city.
D. Menes combined the red crown and white crown into a double crown symbolizing
his leadership over the two kingdoms.
D. The First Dynasty lasted for about 200 years, until rivals challenged the First Dynasty for
power. These challenges took over Egypt and established the Second Dynasty.