Transcript nubian desert

Map of Egypt’s Physiographic Features
Physiographic Features of Egypt
NUBIAN DESERT
The Nubian Desert is located in northeast Africa,
between the Nile River and the Red Sea. It is an
approximately 97,000 square mile region of the
Sahara Desert. Primarily a sandstone plateau,
this arid (dry) region has numerous wadis, or dry
watercourses, which fill with water that flows to
the Nile during periods of heavy rainfall. The
ancient Kushites mined copper and gold from
this desert, and traded these metals to Egypt for
linen and grain.
NUBIAN DESERT
NILE DELTA
The delta of the Nile River is a triangle shaped
region located north of Cairo, in northeastern
Egypt. Originally, as many as seven branches of
the Nile wound through the delta. The delta
contains sixty percent of Egypt’s cultivated land
(farmland), large areas of marshy wetlands, and
shallow lakes. During ancient times, the
Egyptians took advantage of the region’s rich
soil, gentle winds, and level landscape to develop
an extremely productive agricultural system.
NILE DELTA
ARABIAN DESERT
The Arabian Desert is the eastern desert of
Egypt. It runs from the Nile River in the west to
the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez in the east.
The desert is mountainous and rutted by deep,
dry riverbeds. The ancient Egyptians used its
abundant quarries of granite, feldspar, and other
materials for many of their building projects.
ARABIAN DESERT
NILE RIVER
The Nile River is the longest river in the world,
stretching 4,160 miles. It flows northward from its
headstream in Central Africa to its delta on the
Mediterranean Sea. The Nile runs through parts of
Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda,
Burundi, and Zaire. At six different places along the
Nile, crystalline rocks form cataracts, or stretches of
rapids and waterfalls that are not navigable.
According to the ancient Greek historian Herodotus,
Egypt was “the gift of the Nile” because its waters
supported large scale agriculture, made
transportation easier, and provided a variety of
edible plants and animals.
NILE RIVER
MEDITERRANEAN SEA
The Mediterranean Sea is the world’s largest inland
sea. Surrounded by Europe, Africa, and Asia, it covers
an area approximately of nine hundred and sixty-five
thousand square miles. The Mediterranean Sea
connects with the Atlantic Ocean and the Black Sea by
way of the Aegean Sea. The shores of the sea are
mainly mountainous. Many species of fish, sponges,
and coral are abundant in the sea. The ancient
Egyptians were originally afraid to sail on the
Mediterranean, and so they relied on traders from other
lands to bring them goods from Anatolia (Turkey) and
Canaan. Eventually, the Egyptians got over their fear
and sailed the Mediterranean Sea doing their own
trading.
MEDITERRANEAN SEA
LIBYAN DESERT
The Libyan Desert is the northeastern part of Africa’s
Sahara Desert, the largest desert in the world. The
Libyan Desert covers parts of southwestern Egypt,
eastern Libya, and northwestern Sudan. The region
consists primarily of sand dunes, course, stony
plains, and plateaus of bare rock. Although its hot,
dry climate is harsher and more forbidding than that
of Egypt’s eastern deserts, the oases of this region
were known in ancient times for their wines and
agricultural products.
LIBYAN DESERT
Settling Ancient Egypt
1) Where did most people in Egypt settle?
Most Egyptians settled along the Nile River.
2) What are resources the Nile provided/gave to the Egyptians?
The Nile provides farmable soil from when it flooded, water for
bathing/drinking/etc., fish, ducks, geese, and papyrus.
3) What is a shaduf and why was it important to Egyptian farmers?
A shaduf is a device Egyptian farmers used to irrigate their cultivated fields. It
was important because they could water their plants with fresh water to keep
their fields fertile.
4) What are two reasons why the Egyptians did not have to worry about
fighting many enemies?
The Egyptians did not have to worry about fighting many enemies because they
were protected on 3 sides by deserts and they had plenty of farmland and did not
have to conquer others to get more.
5) What are the positive and negative aspects of settling in Egypt?
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river flooded predictably
relying on a river
rich soil near river
dry environment
protected by deserts
have to irrigate
plenty of resources
UNIFICATION OF EGYPT
PARTS of EGYPT
UPPER EGYPT
• southern Egypt
• over 500 miles long
• first cataract
northward to the
Nile Delta
LOWER EGYPT
• northern Egypt
• It is the Nile Delta
• 100 miles long but
very wide
Unification
1) Which Egyptian king united Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt and which part of
Egypt was he from?
Narmer united Upper and Lower Egypt and he was from Upper Egypt
2) What was the title given to the king/ruler of Egypt?
The king/ruler of Egypt was known as the “Pharaoh”
3) What did the Egyptians believe their ruler was?
The Egyptians believed their ruler was a god
4) What were the two responsibilities of the pharaoh?
keep Egyptian society in order
protect Egypt from its enemies
5) Ancient Egypt was ruled by over thirty different dynasties. What is a dynasty?
A dynasty is a series of rulers from the same family
KINGDOMS
Dates
Prehistoric
Egypt
Old
Kingdom
Middle
Kingdom
New
Kingdom
3700 – 2700
BCE
2686 – 2181
BCE
2055 – 1650
BCE
1570 – 1070
BCE
Age of
Pyramids
Period of
Reunification
Egypt’s
Golden Age
•Built the
Great
Pyramids
•Became strong •Became a
again
world power
•Achievements
by
in literature, art
conquering
and architecture others
Nickname
Important
Achievements
•Irrigation
•Formed
Government
•Hieroglyphs