History and Citizenship

Origin and elements of Egyptian civilisation 

Activity 7.1

Use the map of Africa in your atlas to locate the following:

• Egypt 

• River Nile 

• Cairo

River Nile is the longest river in the world. It flows all the way from Lake Victoria in Uganda to Mediterranean Sea in Egypt. The history of the Egyptian civilisation is as long and old as that of River Nile.

The roots of Egyptian civilisation go back more than 6,000 years. The roots start from the beginning of settled life along the banks of River Nile. The country has an unusual geographical and cultural unity. That has given the Egyptian people a strong sense of identity. It has also given them pride in their heritage as descendants of humankind’s earliest civilised community. 

Certain events have been crucial to the development of Egyptian society and culture. One of these was the unification of the Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt. This happened sometimes in the third millennium BC. 

The unification of the Upper Egypt and lower Egypt was an important event in Egyptian history. It was compared to the ‘first time’, or the creation of the universe. With the unification of the ‘two lands’ by the legendary King Menes, the glorious Pharaonic age began. Power was centralised in the hands of a god-king, and thus, Egypt became the first organised society.

Elements of Egyptian civilisation

Activity 7.2

Use the knowledge obtained from Unit 4 about the civilisation of precolonial Rwanda to answer the following question. 

State the features of civilisation

From your findings, you realise out that all world civilisations have many similarities. For example, they started along river valleys. They were based on art, agriculture, religion and political systems.

The following were some of the elements of Egyptian civilisation: 

• The ancient Egyptians were the first people of antiquity to believe in life after death. 

• They were the first to build using stones and to fashion the arch using stones and bricks. 

• The Egyptians had developed a system of writing. This happened even before the unification of the two lands. 

Fig. 7.1: An example of ancient Egypt writing on a stone tablet

• They were accomplished sailors and ship builders. 

• They learned to chart the heavens in order to predict the Nile floods. 

• Their physicians prescribed healing remedies and performed surgical operations. 

• They sculpted in stone. They also decorated the walls of their tombs with naturalistic murals in vibrant colours. 

The legacy of the ancient Egypt is written in stone across the face of the country. It starts from the pyramids of Upper Egypt. It goes up to the rock tombs in the Valley of the Kings. It extends to the Old Kingdom temples of Luxor and Karnak. It continues to the Ptolemaic temples of Edfu and Dendera and to the Roman temple. It ends at Isis on Philae Island.

Fig. 7.2: Elements of Egyptian civilisation 

The Egyptian civilisation history happened in a series of stable periods known as: 

• The Old Kingdom (2780-223 BC) 

• The Middle Kingdom (2130- 1600 BC) 

• The New Kingdom (1500- 1200 BC) 

The civilisation was separated by periods of relative instability known as intermediate periods. 

The Old Kingdom (2780-223 BC)

Egypt had two states, Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt. These states had different rulers. King Menes united the two states with the capital at Memphis.

Fig. 7.3: A map of Egypt, Old Kingdom

During the time of Old Kingdom, civilisation of Egypt took a step ahead. The three great pyramids were built as the tombs of Great Kings. The pyramids were built at places such as Giza and Khufu. It took more than 20 years to build them. 

The Middle Kingdom (2130-1600 BC)

During this period, there was a lot of confusion, hate and jealousy. All this was because of the power of the pharaoh over the control of Egypt administration. This was experienced by a new line of pharaohs that took over the administration. They brought calm and unity. In this period, the pharaoh had less power, and was never buried in pyramids. The pharaoh lived a unique life than in the past.

The Middle Kingdom is notably known when Egypt was attacked and invaded. It was attacked and invaded by Hyksos from western Asia. They governed, ruled and controlled Egypt for more than 150 years. Prince Ahmose staged an uprising against the Hyksos, which consequently led to their defeat. They were pushed out of Egypt.

Fig. 7.4: A map of Egypt, Middle Kingdom

The New Kingdom (1500-1200 BC) 

Just like other pharaohs, Ahmose continued with the line of duty that made Egypt expand. Egypt became richer too. It was during this reign that the Egyptian empire was established. Egypt expanded and brought Syria and Palestine under its control. This brought glory and a good image to Egyptians and beyond. 

Egypt’s economy improved drastically through trade. Its cities grew larger and borders extended in conquest wars.

Fig. 7.5: A map of Egypt, New Kingdom

Contributions of Egyptian civilisation to the modern world

Activity 7.3

1. a)    Give a list of the subjects you study in Senior 

 b)  For each of the subjects you mentioned above, give an importance.

You must have realised that all subjects that are taught in school are very important. These subjects are interdependent too. Link your findings to the following fields: 

(i) Hieroglyphics

 This was the earliest Egyptians type of writing where pictures, symbols and signs were used to represent ideas. It was later copied by other countries to come up with modern writing. 

(ii) Mummification

 This was the conservation of the dead bodies. The Egyptians believed in life after death, and took great care to bury their dead. The pharaohs and some nobles had their bodies preserved. This has prevailed to date. 

(iii) Medicine 

Egyptians contributed so much in field of medicine. They were the first specialist eye doctors, dentists, veterinary doctors and surgeon doctors. 

(iv) Paper

 Egyptians invented paper and books from papyrus. This led to introduction of paper and books for record keeping. 

(v) Calendar

 Egyptians were the first people to devise the means of counting days in a week, month and year. It is this that led to the introduction of modern calendar. 

(vi) Irrigation

 Egyptians had the system of irrigation called Shadoofs and Sakias. They also had the system of digging canals. The canals were for the distribution of water in fields hence giving rise to modern irrigation. 

(vii) Mathematics

 Egyptians were people remembered to be so good in Mathematics. They developed modern mathematical concepts such as fractions, addition, multiplication, division and subtraction. These concepts are still being used. 

(viii) Architecture  

Egyptians were excellent builders using stones. They built the great pyramids, temples and tombs. These styles are still applied in modern society. 

(ix) Science 

Egyptians made an important contribution to the science of astronomy. This practice was copied and is used in modern societies.

(x) Art  

Egyptians were specialists in arts. They had coloured paintings to adorn the sides of monuments, walls of temples, palaces and tombs. This gave rise to modern art and craft.

 (xi) Technology

 Egyptians had developed a glassy material known as faience. Faience is believed to have contributed to modern technology of making glasses. 

We can comfortably conclude that Egyptian civilisation is still felt in the current world.

Activity 7.4

Look at your school environment and identify any four things that were adopted from the Egyptian civilisation.

Fig. 7.6: Egyptian architecture and art works 

Influence of Egyptians’ religious beliefs on ancient Egypt 

Activity 7.5

1. Identify four religious denominations in Rwanda. 

2. Discuss the role of religion in your community.

Religion plays a very important role in the society. It tells us about equality of human beings before God. It influences our society the same way it did to the Egyptian society. 

The Egyptians were very religious. Religion was part and parcel of their life. They had a clear idea of the life after death. 

Egyptians worshipped many gods. Every village, town and district had at least one god. The Egyptian gods exceeded three thousands. The most important ones included: 

(i) Sun-god (Ra). 

(ii) The god of the Nile and judge of the dead (Osiris) 

(iii) The wife of Osiris (Isis)

Fig. 7.7: Egyptian gods

Religion acted as a unifying factor to all the Egyptians under the same umbrella of civilisation. They became strong believers in religion, a thing that laid a foundation of the Egyptian culture.

Religious beliefs also promoted political stability of the Egyptians. They believed in their leaders (pharaohs) as having divine powers. The pharaohs were also religious leaders. 

Religious beliefs promoted a sense of discipline and respect as a social norm among the Egyptians. They had it in mind that the gods would punish them in case of indiscipline. They also believed that the gods would reward you in case you appeased them. The Egyptians appeased their gods by doing good deeds and offering sacrifice. 

Religious beliefs also influenced Egyptians’ economic activities such as agriculture. There was a god for better harvests for their crops. 

The Egyptians had their god for the Nile. They believed that this god protected them against floods.

                                                                       Remember! 

Religions teach us to love on another and to promote peace.

Revision questions 

1. Explain why River Nile is considered as the lifeline of Egypt. 

2. State the use of papyrus in ancient Egypt. 

3. Explain ways through which ancient Egypt contributed to the civilisation of modern world. 

4.  a) Name the three main kingdoms of Egypt. 

b) State the events that took place in those kingdoms during ancient Egyptian civilisation. 

5. a) State the name given to Egyptian type of writing. 

b) Give its contribution to modern civilisation. 

6. a) Define the term ‘irrigation’. 

b) Give reasons why it was important during Egyptian civilisation.