EGYPT

LOCATION:

EGYPT

The Origin of the Word Egypt

by Nermin Sami and Jimmy Dunn

Official name is Junhuriyah Misr al-Arabiyah, which in

English means the Arab Republic of Egypt .
Egyptians themselves refer to Egypt as Misr.

Three groups of names which have applied to Egypt

1. In the early period of Egypt, during the Old Kingdom, Egypt was referred to as Kemet (Kermit), or simply Kmt,
which means the Black land. They called themselves "remetch en Kermet",
which means the "People of the Black Land".The term refers to the rich soil found in the Nile Valley and Delta.
But it was also sometimes referred to as Deshret, or dshrt, which refers to the "Red Land", or deserts of which Egypt is
mostly comprised.

2. Later, Egyptians referred to their country as "Hwt-ka-Ptah" (Ht-ka-Ptah, or Hout-ak Ptah), which means "Temple
for Ka of Ptah", or more properly, "House of the Ka of Ptah" Ptah was one of Egypt's earliest Gods
3. As in modern Egypt, this was both a name for the administrative center of Egypt, what we call Memphis today, as well
as the name of the country as a whole.

Cosmetics

The two main forms of eye makeup were green eye paint and black kohl. The green eye paint
was made of malachite, a green carbonate of copper, and the black kohl was made from a
substance called galena, a dark grey ore of lead. The malachite was used in the early
predynastic period, whereas galena was introduced in the late predynastic period (Lucas 41).
Kohl has two components: laurionite and phosgenite. These two minerals were not readily
available in Egypt, which means that the ancient Egyptians must have used wet chemistry in
order to synthesize them by filtering of rock salt and natron (Spotts). Facial makeup included
stain for cheeks and lips that was produced from red ochre from naturally colored clay that was
mined and washed then dried in the sun or burnt to achieve the red pigment (Egyptian Make
up). Henna, a naturally occurring plant, was used by the ancient Egyptians to paint their nails
and dye their hair. Makeup was very important to them at that time.

 Theancient Egyptiansregarded beauty as a

sign of holiness. Everything the ancient
Egyptians used had a spiritual aspect to it,
includingcosmetics, which is why cosmetics
were an integral part of their daily lives. In
tombs, cosmetic palettes were found buried
with the deceased as grave goods which
further emphasized the idea that cosmetics
were not only used for aesthetic purposes
but rathermagicalandreligiouspurposes.

Beauty

Nefertiti

Ancient Egyptian agriculture

A combination of favorable geographical features contributed to the success of ancient Egyptian culture, the most important of
which was the rich fertile soil resulting from annual inundations of the Nile River.

The ancient Egyptians were thus able to produce an abundance of food, allowing the population to devote more time and
resources to cultural, technological, and artistic pursuits.

Farming in Egypt was dependent on the cycle of the Nile River. The Egyptians recognized three seasons: Akhet (flooding),
Peret (planting), and Shemu (harvesting). The flooding season lasted from June to September, depositing on the river's banks
a layer of mineral-rich silt ideal for growing crops

In order to fully utilize the waters of the Nile River, the Egyptians developed systems of irrigation. Irrigation allowed the
Egyptians to use the Niles waters for a variety of purposes. Notably, irrigation granted them greater control over their
agricultural practices. Flood waters were diverted away from certain areas, such as cities and gardens, to keep them from
flooding. Irrigation was also used to provide drinking water to Egyptians.

The Egyptians grew a variety of crops for consumption, including grains, vegetables and fruits. However, their diets revolved
around several staple crops, especially cereals and barley. Barley was grown with the intent of later being fermented to make
beer. Other major grains grown included einkorn wheat and emmer wheat, grown to make bread.

Grapes and watermelon were found throughout pre-dynastic Egyptian sites, as were the sycamore fig, Dom palm and Christs
thorn. The carob, olive, apple and pomegranate were introduced to Egyptians during the New Kingdom. Later, during the
Greco-Roman period peaches and pears were also introduced.

Cattle were the most important livestock; the administration collected taxes on livestock in regular censuses, and the size of a
herd reflected the prestige and importance of the estate or temple that owned them. In addition to cattle, the ancient Egyptians
kept sheep, goats, and pigs. Poultry such as ducks, geese, and pigeons were captured in nets and bred on farms, where they
were force-fed with dough to fatten them. The Nile provided a plentiful source of fish. Bees were also domesticated from at
least the Old Kingdom, and they provided both honey and wax.

The ancient Egyptians used donkeys and oxen as beasts of burden, and they were responsible for plowing the fields and
trampling seed into the soil.

Social status

Constructions

The Great Sphinx is one of the world's largest and oldest statues but basic facts about it are still subject to debate, such
as when it was built, by whom, and for what purpose. These questions have resulted in the popular idea of the "Riddle of
the Sphinx", alluding to the original Greek legend of the Riddle of the Sphinx.
The Great Sphinx is 241 feet long, 20 feet wide and 66 feet high. The eyes on the face are 6 feet tall, the ears over three
feet tall, and the nose would have been nearly 5 feet long before it was knocked off. It is carved out of the bedrock in a
trench at the Giza site.
No one is entirely sure exactly how the nose got knocked off. There are stories that Napoleon's men accidentally knocked
off the nose, but that theory has proven untrue as pictures have been found without the nose prior to Napoleon's arrival.
Other stories have the nose getting shot off in target practice by Turkish soldiers. Many people now believe that the nose
was chiseled off by someone who considered the Sphinx evil.

A ka statue is a type of ancient Egyptian statue intended to provide a resting place for the ka, or spirit, of the person
after death. The ancient Egyptians believed the ka (or life-force), along with the physical body, the name, the ba
(personality or soul), and the wt (shadow), made up the five aspects of a person.
The "act of ka" was represented as two arms extended upwards from a base, supposed to be the breast muscles.
Although the hands are extended as in adoration, in fact, an embrace is meant. To put one's arms around another was
to impart one's vital essence to that person.
The transmission of life power or vital energy is therefore linked with the "ka". This was the general meaning of the
concept, applicable to all situations of life. The underlying idea being the sharing of this vital energy with others, be
they humans or gods.

Religion and beliefs

Religion played a big part in the lives of the Ancient Egyptians. They believed in a wide
variety of gods and goddesses. These gods could take different forms, usually as animals. The
same animal may represent a different god depending on the area, temple, or timeframe.

Major Gods and Goddesses

Ra Ra was the sun god and the most important god to the Ancient Egyptians. Ra was

drawn as a man with a hawk head and a headdress with a sun disk. At one point Ra was
combined with another god Amun and the two made an even more powerful god, Amun-Ra.
Ra was said to have created all forms of life and was the supreme ruler of the gods.
Isis - Isis was the mother goddess. It was thought that she would protect and help people in
need. She was drawn as a woman with a headdress in the shape of a throne.
Osiris - Osiris was ruler of the underworld and god of the dead. He was the husband of Isis
and father of Horus. Osiris was drawn as a mummified man with a feathered headdress.
Horus - Horus was the god of the sky. Horus was the son of Isis and Osiris. He was drawn as
a man with the head of a hawk. The ruler of the Egyptians, Pharaoh, was thought to be the
living version Horus. In this way Pharaoh was the leader of the Egyptian religion and the
people's representative to the gods.
Thoth - Thoth was the god of knowledge. He blessed the Egyptians with writing, medicine,
and mathematics. He was also god of the moon. Thoth is drawn as a man with an Ibis bird
head. Sometimes he was represented as a baboon.

Temples
Many Pharaohs built large temples in honor of their gods.
These temples would have large statues, gardens, memorials,
and a place of worship. Towns would have their own temples as
well for their own local gods.
Some famous temples include the Luxor Temple, the Temple of
Isis at Philae, the Temple of Horus and Edfu, the Temples of
Rameses and Nefertiti at Abu Simbel, and the Temple of Amun
at Karnak.
Was Pharaoh considered a god?
The Ancient Egyptians considered Pharaoh to be their main
intermediary to the gods; perhaps more of a high priest than a
god. He was, however, closely associated with the god Horus
and may have, at times, been considered a god in human
form.
Luxor Temple Pic.

Mummification
Afterlife
The Egyptians believed that there was
a life after death. They thought that
people had two important parts: a
"ka", or life force that they only
had while alive, and a "ba" which
was more like a soul. If the "ka"
and "ba" could be united in the
afterworld the person would live in
the afterlife. A key component was
that the body be preserved for this to
happen. This is why the Egyptians
used the embalming process, or
mummification, to preserve the dead.
The Book of the Dead - Drawn on the
walls of a tomb Picture

Forms of Writings

The ancient Egyptians believed that it was important to

record and communicate information about religion and
government. Thus, they invented written scripts that could be
used to record this information.
The most famous of all ancient Egyptian scripts is
hieroglyphic. However, throughout three thousand years of
ancient Egyptian civilisation, at least three other scripts were
used for different purposes. Using these scripts, scribes were
able to preserve the beliefs, history and ideas of ancient Egypt
in temple and tomb walls and on papyrus scrolls.
Hieroglyphics Alphabet and written on Papyrus Scrolls Pictures

Astrology

Ancient Egypt
Over 8,000 years ago, Egypt formed along the banks of
the River Nile.
Kings and Queens ruled over Egypt for more than 2,000
years. We now split this time into 3 periods called Old
Kingdom, Middle Kingdom and New Kingdom.

EGYPTIAN PHARAOHS
Akhenaten-LearnaboutthepharaohthatchangedEgyptandpushedhispeopletowardsa
newreligion--thebeliefinonegod.

AmenhotepIII-ThispharaohruledduringapeacefultimeandbeautifiedEgypt.

AhmoseI-ThispharaohsetthestagefortheriseoftheNewKingdomwhereEgyptreached
thepeakofitspower.
CleopatraVII-Readherincrediblestoryandfindoutwhatshedidtomaintainherpoweras
pharaoh.
Hatshepsut-Thisladywasfullofambitionanddressedlikeapharaohtopreserveher
dominance.

Khufu-Readabouthisgreatestaccomplishment--theconstructionofthelargestpyramid.

KingTut(Tutankhamun)-Comeexplorethevirtualtomboftheboypharaohandreadabout
hislife.

Menes-KingMenesisshroudedinmysterythatmaybelostinthefoldsofhistoryforever.He
isconsideredbymanyscholarstobethefirstpharaohtoruleEgyptandthefirstpharaohof
theDynastyIperiod.
RamsesII-ComereadaboutthepharaohRamsesIIasheisperhapsoneofEgypt'smost
powerfulrulers.

Snefru-Readaboutthepharaohthatwasresponsibleforsomanypyramids.