Ancient Egypt Geography

Essential Question:

What continent is Egypt located on?

Name ________________________________________________ Date _________________________________________________ Period _______________________________________________ Subject ______________________________________________

How did ancient Egyptians use the physical features of the land and climate to create a stable food supply?

I. Egypt A. 4000BCE-350BCEB. Located in AfricaC. Physical features inside and around Egypt include:

1. Nile River2. Delta3. Cataracts4. Mediterranean Sea5. Deserts

II. Nile RiverA. Longest river in the world (4,150 miles long)B. Flows from south to northC. Leads into the Mediterranean SeaD. Gave life to the EgyptiansE. Gave gifts for a stable food supply:

1. Food- radish, asparagus, grapes, watermelon, cucumbers, barley, celery, onions, lettuce.2. Animals- gazelles, ox, hares, fox, jackal, hyenas, snakes, crocodile, cats, ostrich, leopards, donkeys, hippos, giraffes, mongoose, golden eagles, egret, heron, ibis, scorpions, locusts3. Desert Plants- date palms, lotus, acacia trees, and papyrus

III. DeltaA. Marshy land at the mouth of the Nile RiverB. Leads into the Mediterranean SeaC. Life flourishes thereD. Plants, reeds, and animals live there

IV. CataractsA. Rushing rocky waterfalls and rapids along the NileB. Bring water to the NileC. Used as landmarks

V. Mediterranean SeaA. Nile River flows into itB. Mediterranean Sea is the “gateway” to other culturesC. Used to transport/trade goods with other cultures

VI. DesertsA. Deserts were on both sides of the NileB. Arabian and Nubian Desert on the east side of the NileC. Libyan Desert on the west side of the NileD. Deserts served as barriers to invaders E. Burial grounds (pyramids at Giza, Valley of the Kings)

VII. RegionsA. Upper Egypt

1. Southern part of Egypt 2. Once its own kingdom with its own king3. This king wore a white crown

B. Lower Egypt1. Northern part of Egypt, closest to the 2. Mediterranean Sea3. Once its own kingdom4. King wore a red crown5. Kingdoms united under King Menses6. Crowns were joined to show union of both kingdoms in 3100BCE

VIII. ClimateA. Very dry, hot days/cold nightsB. Rainy season in springC. Nile sometimes flooded with rain water and melting snow from the highlands of Ethiopia.

IX. Farming and SeasonsA. Akhet: July-October: The time of “inundation,”

where the fields were flooded. No work could be done on the land. Peasants recruited as laborers to work on building projects like pyramids and temples.

B. Peret: November-February- During “emergence,” when the fields reappeared, flood damage was fixed. This included repairing ditches and dikes and replacing dislodged boundary stones. Fields were plowed and seed was sown.

C. Shemu: The time of drought, when the fields were baked dry by the sun, gardens needed constant watering. Peasants

worked hard to collect the harvest before the floods came in the New Year.

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