Arab Republic of EGYPT

Revised in 2007 by: Kristie Benton

Egypt is 1 ½ times the size of

Texas.

Geography – Where in the world is Egypt?

• Continent: Africa (Middle East)• Landforms: Sahara Desert, Nile River Delta, Sinai

Peninsula• Waterways: Nile River, Suez Canal, Red Sea,

Mediterranean Sea• Famous Landmarks: Pyramids of Giza, Sphinx, Library of

Alexandria, Egyptian Museum in Cairo • Climate: Desert with fertile valley by Nile River

Geography

Landmarks• Egyptian history dates back to about 4000 BC, when the

kingdoms of upper and lower Egypt were united.• The early Egyptians built great stone pyramids and

other monuments. A pyramid is a large triangular tomb to bury pharaohs and all their possessions.

The Pyramids of Giza are some of the only remaining ancient wonders of the world.  It’s hard to comprehend their huge size or extreme age.

The Sphinx and Great Pyramid of Khufu at Giza are popular ancient monuments to visit. 

Library at Alexandria

Egyptian Museum - Cairo

Egypt in Vegas – Luxor Hotel

What was the purpose of the Egyptian pyramids?

The embalmed body of the pharaoh-Egyptian king, and all his possessions (including servants and pets) were entombed within the pyramid.

What happened to his possessions? Did they go with him to the afterlife?

Gold funeral mask of King Tutankhamen, found in his tomb in the Valley of the Kings.  Now in the Egyptian Museum, Cairo.

The four huge statues of Ramses II that guard the entrance of his Great Temple at Abu Simbel are over 20 meters high. That’s over 60 ft tall!

Ancient History• Ruled by pharaohs including King Tut, Ramses II, &

Cleopatra• The Egyptians also traded with people from other places. To

identify themselves and their goods, the Egyptians used hieroglyphics. Hieroglyphics are Egyptian writing that uses pictures and symbols that stand for ideas or words.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiUe4J2ARuA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4GqYz4F2h4&feature=related

“Phamous Pharaohs”• Khufu (reigned 2589 - 2566 B.C)

– Built the Great Pyramid at Giza & the Step Pyramid

• Khafra (reigned 2558 - 2532 B.C.)– Built the Second Pyramid at Giza & the Sphinx

• Hatshepsut (reigned 1498 - 1483 B.C.)– She reigned longer than any other women of

the Egyptian dynasty. 

• Tutankhamen (reigned 1334 - 1325 B.C.)– Known as King Tut– youngest pharaoh in the Egyptian history– Ruled from age 9 or 10 & died at age 18– famous tomb in the Valley of the Kings with treasures

• Ramses II (reigned 1279 - 1212 B.C.) – powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian empire– reigned the longest (67 yrs) & was the oldest (died at 92)– The average person only lived to be about 40 years old – Built many temples and statues of himself including the

temple at Abu Simbel.

• Cleopatra (reigned 51 - 30 B.C.)– Educated (spoke 6 languages)

– Devised a plot to rule, including killing her siblings & marrying the leader of the Roman Empire

– She was a compassionate ruler & helped to boost Egypt’s economy.

– Cleopatra was the last pharaoh to rule Egypt (she died by poisonous snake bite at age 39).

On what did Ancient Egyptians write their hieroglyphs?

Papyrus - ancient paper made from reeds that grew near the Nile River.

Hieroglyphics were also carved on walls of temples to tell stories

and record history.

However, the winner got to

write the history.

• After the Ancient Egyptians were conquered, their written language – hieroglyphics - was no longer used. In time, no one could read it.

• In 1799, a French army officer stumbled on a large black stone near the city of Rosetta, Egypt.

• This amazing discovery turned out to have 3 different kinds of writings (2 Egyptian and Ancient Greek)

• In 1822, another Frenchman decoded the hieroglyphics for the first time since the Ancient Egyptians wrote them.

• Rosetta Stone – stone with 3 types of writing that enabled us to decipher ancient hieroglyphics language

Rosetta Stone

• After being conquered many times by other countries, Britain gained control of Egypt after the completion of the Suez Canal.

• Egypt gained independence on Feb. 28, 1922 and remained neutral during World War II.

• After 30 years of rule, the monarchy was abolished & a republic proclaimed on June 18, 1953, when a president & prime minister took power.

• Tensions between Egypt and its neighbor Israel have continued for 1,000s of years.

• In 1967, border tensions between Egypt and Israel led to the Six-Day War. On June 5, Israel launched an air assault, and within days had annexed the Sinai Peninsula, the East Bank of the Jordan River, and the Golan Heights (still disputed territories today). In 1973, another war ended with Egypt obtaining control of the Sinai Peninsula and the Suez Canal.

Modern History

• Recently, Egypt has had many riots and violence in the attempt to overthrow the government. Protesters flooded the streets demanding government reform and resignation of the president (who has been in power for 30 years). The riots were organized by social media like cell phones, Facebook, & YouTube.

• On Feb. 11, President Mubarak announced his resignation and handed power over to the military. Cairo erupted in joyous celebration, with crowds chanting, "Egypt is free!“ However, protests against the government and the military have continued while the transition takes place, including a violent outbreak at a soccer game, killing 75 spectators.

• In June 2012, Mubarak was sentenced to life in prison for killing protestors in 2011.

• Terrorist attacks targeting Christians have continued.

• It is very dangerous to travel to Egypt today.

Modern History

Riots

• Monarchy (pharaohs), conquered by many other countries

• Since becoming a country, Egypt has been conquered and ruled by:

– Persia– Alexander the Great– The Ptolemy dynasty (including Cleopatra)– Romans– Arabs– Turks– Napoleon's armies– and Britain

Past Governments

• Republic with elected president, but recent protests led to government takeover

• still lots of corruption and unrest

Government Today

Mubarak: 1981-2011 president for 30 years

Morsi – recently elected president in 2011 during

Egyptian Revolution

Economy

• Monetary Unit: Egyptian Pound• 1 E£ = $0.15 USD

• Capital City: Cairo

• Industries: Agriculture along Nile River Valley, Fishing, Textiles (cotton), Tourism, Oil

CAIRO• Cairo, Egypt’s capital & largest city, was

founded more than a 1,000 years ago along the Nile River.

• Today, Cairo has more than 11 million people, & is a mixture between modern buildings and mud-brick houses.

Economy - The Nile River• The Nile, the world’s

longest river, flows northward through the eastern Sahara Desert.

• Water from the Nile is used for irrigation of surrounding farmland.

• Irrigation - transporting water for crops

The Nile River

• Before modern irrigation methods, the Nile River flooded the Nile Valley once a year.

• The river overflowed its banks during the rainy season. After the water drained away, it deposited rich silt, or tiny particles of soil & sand, which made these farmlands fertile.

• The annual flooding was measured by a nilometer and used to determine the amount of taxes the people would pay to the Pharaoh each year.

The Nile River

Economy - Industries• A, warm sunny climate and water

for irrigation make the Nile delta ideal for growing cotton, vegetables, grain, and fruit.

• 40% of Egyptian workers are farmers.

• Egypt’s main export is crude oil• They also export cotton & other

textiles.• The tourism industry has suffered

greatly from violence and rioting.

Farming: There are hundreds of farms along

the Nile, and usually farmers use boats to

transport items (such as rice, wheat, cattle, and hay) between locations

on the Nile.

Fishing: Almost everyone who lives on the Nile fishes, and for some, fishing is a main source of income and

wealth. Each year thousands of tons of fish

are caught.

Animal powered water wheel used for irrigating crops

Economy - The Nile River

Nile River Predators

What can you infer about the population density from this night time picture of Egypt taken from space?

About 99% of Egypt’s population lives in the Nile River Valley & Nile Delta.

Tourism in Egypt http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVxUUotm1P4

Economy - Suez Canal• Completed in 1869• Connects the Red Sea to the

Mediterranean Sea• Ships use the canal to avoid

long trips around southern Africa

• Ships pay tolls to pass through it

• One of the world’s busiest waterways to transport oil from the Middle East

• Ancient Egyptians believed in many gods. They had a god for almost every part of nature in the world around them.

• They made statues and carved hieroglyphs in the temples to represent their many gods.

• Pharaohs even believed that they were gods.• Polytheistic means believing in many

gods.

Culture

Culturegod of Appearance

• Sun head of falcon and sun disk• Music horns of cow and sun disk• Destruction head of lion• Sky blue with golden stars• Earth color of plants and Nile mud• Dead dressed in white with crook and flail• Desert animal head with long curved snout• Pharaoh head of hawk and crown of Egypt• Magic throne on head or holding baby• Wisdom head of ibis• Embalming head of jackal• Justice feathers• Creation crowned with feathers• Cats head of cat

• Population: 80,000,000 • Languages: Ancient–

Hieroglyphics, Today-Arabic (official), English and French widely understood by educated classes

• Religion: Ancient-Polytheistic (many Egyptian gods), Today-Islam (Muslim)

Culture

Islamic Mosque

Culture - Holidays

• Revolution Day (Jan. 25) - day of the beginning of the Egyptian revolution

• Christmas (Jan. 7th) • Muslim holidays – Ramadan, Islamic New

Year • Flooding of the Nile (Aug. 15) – beginning

of the Nile floods• :Sportmens’ Day (March 3) celebrates

Egypt’s sports

Cinema in Cairo

School children in Egypt

Young children playing in Egypt

Culture - Food

• Vegetarian diet, lamb (meat very expensive)

• Bread (edible utensil)• Seafood on coast

Pita breadEgyptian pie

Fried falafel (chic peas)

Lamb kebab

Central Cairo

Market

Vegetable Shop

Butcher Shop

Culture - Sports• Wrestling, Gymnastics,• Archery, Equestrian,• Chariot Racing,• Fishing, • Today - Soccer

Challenges• The flooding of the Nile brought rich soil, but it also

caused problems. Floodwaters destroyed homes and farms. Egyptians built dams to control floods.

• Egypt's farmland is limited so a lot of fertilizer is used to keep the land productive. That washes into the river.

• Many people still live in poverty. Half of the people today cannot read or write.

• Violence and unrest are still going on in Egypt today. Tensions between Egypt and its neighbor Israel also continue to cause fear from threat of war.

Electric power generators of the Aswan Dam

The End