Topic 2: History and growth of human settlements during the ancient periods

The Nile / Egyptian Civilization

Sources:
The Urban Pattern” by Simon Eisner, Arthur Gallion and Stanley Eisner (Page52 - 54)
Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia

# Nature of the Nile / Egyptian Civilization:

 Ancient Egypt, civilization that thrived along the Nile River in north-eastern Africa for more than 3,000 years,
from about 3300 B.C. to 30 B.C.
 Ancient Egypt was divided in three
different periods.
 The population had probably
risen to close to 2 million during
the Old Kingdom (about 2575-
2134 B.C.).
 It increased during the Middle
Kingdom (about 2040-1640
B.C.), and By the New Kingdom
(about 1550-1070 B.C) the
population had grown to
between 3 and 4 million.
 This figure almost doubled under Hellenistic rule (332-30 bc), with perhaps as many as 7 million
people inhabiting the country at the time it was annexed to the Roman Empire.
 It is the longest lived civilization of the ancient world where the ancient Egyptians lived in the valley and
delta of the Nile.
 The climate was very hot and dry because of the Sahara Desert running through.
 One of the most important parts of this area is the Nile River which runs towards the Mediterranean Sea.
 Every year the Nile floods because the snow on the mountains melts. The floods bring nutrients that leave
the soil along the Nile fertile enough for plants to grow.

# Factors behind rising up Egypt Civilization:

 In Egypt’s relatively cloudless sky the sun almost always shone, consistently providing heat and light.
 The Nile served as a water highway for the people, a constant source of life-giving water, and the sustainer
of all plants and animals.
 Natural barriers provided good protection from other peoples. The desert to the west, the seas to the north
and east, and the Nile’s rapids, or cataracts, to the south prevented frequent hostile attacks.

# Evolutions in Nile / Egypt Civilization:

1. Housing:
 Most people in ancient Egypt lived in mud-brick houses with a wall with
mud bricks and plaster and buildings were one, two or three storied.
 The activities of everyday life occurred in and around the houses.
 They cooked in outdoor domed ovens, performed daily chores under
thatched rooftop awning, and children played games.

2. Agriculture and Farming:

 Agriculture was the base of economy.
 The fertile soil left by the Nile’s yearly receding floodwaters provided the
means for growing a wide variety of grains, vegetables, and fruits.
 Two of the most important crops, emmer (a type of wheat) and barley, were used to make bread and beer.
 After the crops were harvested, the same fields served as grazing areas for herds of cattle, sheep, and other
animals, which in turn served as sources of meat and dairy products.
 In addition, the river’s waters and marshes were a source of fish and fowl, important parts of the economy.
3. Trade:
 Egyptians used direct trade to get the things they needed even after coins were introduced.
 This trade made farmers rich. During a famine which happened often, the people who stored their food
didn’t starve. Most of the farmers would trade food for land so that they could become wealthy.
 People could also buy slaves for money. To buy a female slave it would have cost 4 Deben and 1 kit of Silver.

4. Town:
# First towns were built in third millennium B.C. by the Pharaoh’s order to house the slaves and workers who were
engaged in building pyramids.
 Towns were look like huge barracks.
 There were narrow lanes in the town used for drainage sewers and common passageways.
 Walls surrounded the towns which protected the towns from seasonal flood rather than the attack of enemy
armies.
 Streets were arranged in regular pattern.
 Dwellers compactly built interior courts.
 “Set Back Rule” was first introduced where building heights were established in proportion to the width of
the street as one, two or three.
 Underground sewerage system with a disposal link to each house was developed through the towns to
ensure sanitation.

# Pharaohs built temple cities in second millennium B.C. on the bank of the Nile for them.
 There were monumental avenues, colossal temple plazas and tombs made by rock which represent the
luxurious life of the pharaohs.
 The cities were very large and slums or tenants were spread around the cities.

5. Ruling / Government:
 The king was the supreme ruler and was also the highest-level spiritual leader, representing humankind’s
link to the gods. Under him in the government were the
 Vizier, or chief minister, and many bureaucratic officials. Under the king as head of state was the
office of vizier, or chief minister. The vizier ran all aspects of the government on behalf of the king.
He controlled the courts, the treasury, and the administration. However, at any time the king could
exert his own control over any aspect of government. It is uncertain whether more than one vizier
held office at a time in the earlier periods, but later texts clearly indicated two official viziers, one for
Upper Egypt and one for Lower Egypt.
 Below him in the religious leadership were the high priest, other priests, and the lower ranks of the
temple bureaucracy.

 The administrative system was under royal control in order to guarantee the fair and proper distribution of
the water and fertile land.
 The king was the commander in chief of Egypt’s army and navy, and
 He decided when and how the country's borders were to be protected or expanded.
 Texts recorded both naval and land battles. Often, several divisions of troops composed of infantry,
archers, and cavalry participated in battles.
 A hierarchy existed within the ranks. It consisted of different levels of officers and administrators for
the different units of soldiers and sailors.
 Egyptians hired mercenaries, or warriors who were recruited for pay, from outside the borders of
Egypt.

6. Language:
 Pictures were used to write the language. They were called hieroglyphics.
 The pictures could be written from left to right, right to left, or up and
down.
 At first they were strictly used to keep records of the king’s belongings.
7. Education:
 People, who could afford for their sons to go to school, sent them at the age of 7.
 They learned about religion.
 Wealthy children learned to read, write and do math.
 Girls didn’t go to school.

8. Religion:
 Religion was the most important thing in Egyptian life.
 They worshipped as many as 2000 gods and goddesses. The gods and goddesses were usually symbolized by
half human, half animal characters.
 They worshipped some animals such as the bull, the cat, and the crocodile. They believed that the world
started as just an ocean and then a pile of dry land rose up and the god of the sun, Re, appeared.
 They believed Sun god created light and all things. The job of the priests was to take care of the gods and
attend to their needs. Some of the gods were Amun, Amon-Ra, Lisa and Osiris

9. Pyramids: Unique sign of Egyptian Civilization:

 Pyramids were located on the west bank of the Nile River
on the outskirts of Cairo, the pyramids at Giza, Egypt, rank
as some of the best-known monuments in the world. The
ancient Egyptians constructed the pyramids to serve as
royal tombs. Built without the use of cranes, pulleys, or
lifting tackle, the massive structures stand as testaments
to the engineering skills of their makers.
 Egyptian pyramids served as tombs for kings and queens, but they were also places of ongoing religious
activity. After a ruler died, his or her body was carefully treated and wrapped to preserve it as a mummy.
According to ancient Egyptian belief, the pyramid, where the mummy was placed, provided a place for the
monarch to pass into the afterlife.
 A pyramid never stood alone in the desert. Instead, it was the focus of a complex of temples and smaller
pyramids. Most pyramid complexes had satellite pyramids and queens’ pyramids. The satellite pyramids
were too small to serve as burial places, and their purpose remains mysterious. They may have contained
statues representing the king’s ka, an aspect of his spirit. The queens’ pyramids were simpler, smaller
versions of the kings’,

Md. Sohel Rana

Chairman
Department of Urban & Regional Planning (URP)
Pabna University of Science and Technology (PUST)
Email: sohelrana1017051@gmail.com