A History of the World: Chapter 5: Ancient Egypt and Kush

Although Egypt and Kush were unique civilizations, they influenced one another throughout their long histories.

There, steep cliffs and large boulders form dangerous, fast-moving waters called cataracts.

These waterways form a fan-shaped area of fertile marshland called a delta.

These large desert areas were not favorable to humans or animals. They kept Egypt isolated, however, from outside invaders.

Egyptians gathered papyrus, a reed plant that grew wild along the Nile. They used the long, thin reeds to weave rope, sandals, baskets, and river rafts. Later, they used papyrus to make paper.

The combination of pictures and sound symbols created a complex writing system called hieroglyphics.

Narmer conquered Lower Egypt and married one of Lower Egypt's princesses, which unified the kingdoms.

The right to rule was passed from father to son to grandson. Such a line of rulers from one family is called a dynasty.

A government in which the same person is both the political leader and the religious leader is called a theocracy.

At first, the Egyptian ruler was called a king. Later, he was known as pharaoh. The word pharaoh originally meant "great house." It referred to the grand palace in which the king and his family lived.

The pharaoh appointed bureaucrats, or government officials, to carry out his orders.

The pharaoh also distributed land to officials, priests, and wealthy Egyptians whom he favored.

The Egyptians depended on the sun to grow their crops and on the Nile River to make the soil fertile. Thus, two of the most crucial gods were the sun god Re and the river god Hapi.

They thought that the pharaoh's soul resided in his body, and that the body had to be protected in order for the soul to complete the journey to the afterlife.

As a result, the process of embalming emerged so that Egyptians could protect bodies for the afterlife.

They built great tombs called pyramids for the pharaohs. These enormous structures were made of stone and covered the area of several city blocks.

Thousands of workers spent years of hard labor to build the pyramids.

They had to measure angles in order to construct a pyramid's walls.

The roles of the people in ancient Egypt reflected their social status, or position in society.

Unskilled workers performed manual labor, such as unloading cargo from boats and transporting it to markets.

Egyptian women held a legal status similar to that of men. They could own property, buy and sell goods, and obtain divorces.

There, Egyptian traders exchanged beads, metal tools, and weapons for gold, ivory, ebony wood, and incense, a material burned for its pleasant smell.

To maintain close ties, pharaohs and the other rulers also exchanged envoys, or representatives.

Egypt acquired gold, copper, ivory and other valuable goods from conquered peoples.

Amenhotep believed that Egypt's priests had grown too powerful and wealthy. He felt threatened by their power. To lessen the priests' authority, Amenhotep started a new religion.

After Ramses II died, Egypt declined. Pharaohs fought costly wars. Armies from the eastern Mediterranean attacked Egypt. By 1150 B.C., the Egyptian empire controlled only the Nile delta.

They herded long-horned cattle on the savannas, or grassy plains, that stretch across Africa south of the Sahara.

Unlike the Egyptians, the Nubians did not rely on the Nile floods to create fertile soil.

In time, Kush became powerful enough to challenge Egypt.

In return, they brought back cotton, textiles, or woven cloth, and other goods.