The First Civilizations

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The First Civilizations

• Ancient Kingdoms of the Nile

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Terms

• Oasis
• Silt
• Hieroglyphics
• Papyrus
• Kingdom
• Monarchy
• Pharoah
• Dynasty
• Empire
• Polytheism
• Monotheism

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Origins of the Nile Valley Civilization

• A number of ancient cultures influenced its
  development
• Early hunter-gatherers circa 12,000 b.c.
• Formed settlements and turned to farming
• Plants cultivated in Nile Valley grew elsewhere
• Civilizations to the North may have influenced
  its development

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Physical Setting of Egypt

• 12,000 years ago covered by swampland Hippos
  and Crocodiles
• The Nile River
• Longest river in the world 4,160 miles
• Main sources
• White Nile begins near lake Victoria in Eastern
  Africa
• Blue Nile begins at Lake Tana in Ethiopian
  Highlands
• 6 cataracts (areas of rapids)
• Nile Valley people built civilizations in the 750
  mile stretch between the Mediterranean Sea and
  the first cataract

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The Gift of the Nile

• Herodotus ancient greek historian, wrote of his
  travels in Northern Egypt.
• Annual flood flatland of Nile Valley
• June to October
• Rain fell on Ethiopian Plateau near source of
  Nile
• Left layer of silt (fertile soil)
• Farmers planned work around the flood
• Little rain falls directly o Egypt
• Early on Farmers learned to use Nile River waters
  for Irrigation
• Dug short canals to carry water to fields
• Possible to grow 2-3 crops per year

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Other Natural Resources of the Nile Valley

• Sunny, frost-free climate
• Prevailing winds
• Travel and trade
• Unite the region
• Deposits of granite, limestone and sandstone -
  used minerals for building
• Location
• Deserts and seas provided natural barrier against
  invaders
• Isthmus of Suez
• Land bridge between Africa and Asia
• Trade route
• Exchange of ideas

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Early Steps Toward Civilization

• Neolithic culture developed around 6000 b.c.
• 3800 b.c.
• mined copper
• discovered how to make bronze
• glazed pottery
• Began to use Hieroglyphics

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Hieroglyphics

• Hieros sacred
• Gluphein to carve
• More than 600 hieroglyphic signs, pictures, or
  symbols to indicate words or sounds
• Carved in stone and other hard materials
• Discovered paper
• Papyrus plant
• Cut stems of plant into long, thin slices
• Moistened strips, arranged them in layers,
  ressed them into a mat
• Wrote on papyrus with ink from soot, water and
  vegetable gum
• Sharp reed used as a pen
• 1798 a.d. discovery of the Rosetta Stone during
  Napoleans invasion of Egypt
• Jean Francois Champollion deciphered the
  hieroglyphic symbols 23 years after the discovery
  of the Rosetta Stone

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Hieroglyphics

• The written Egyptian language, hieroglyphics, is
  made up of three types of symbols.
• Alphabetic signs correspond to a letter or sound
  produced by that sign.
• Syllabic symbols stand for sounds produced by a
  group of letters, a syllable.
• Determinative signs relate to a specific object
  or idea, such as man, woman, and water.
• Hieroglyphics can be read from left to right,
  right to left, or top to bottom. The direction
  depends on the direction the symbols are facing.

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