Chapter 4 - REVIEW QUESTIONS- Section One
Why was it important to the Egyptians that the Nile's flooding be consistent?
Because it received so little rain, most of Egypt was desert. The flooding gave an area of fertile soil needed to grow food.
How did the Egyptian farmers use the Nile to grow their crops?
Farmers in Egypt developed an irrigation system. They built basins to collect water during the yearly floods and to store this precious resource long afterward. They also built a series of canals that could be used in the dry months to direct water from the basins to the fields where it was needed.
By 3200 B.C., what were the names of the two kingdoms developing in Egypt?
Lower Egypt and Upper Egypt
Who was Egypt's first pharaoh? Describe how he came to power?
Menes. His armies invaded and took over Upper Egypt. Menes then united the two kingdoms. Menes wore both the white crown of Upper Egypt and the red crown of Lower Egypt. This symbolized his leadership over the two kingdoms.
Why was the Nile Delta well suited for settlement?
The Nile Delta is a triangle-shaped area of land made of soil deposited by the flooding of the Nile River. The Nile would flood causing very fertile land. The silt from the flooding of the Nile made the soil ideal for farming. Two thirds of Egypt's fertile farmland was located in the Nile Delta.
Why was it difficult for outsiders to invade Egypt?
The Nile River had natural barriers which made Egypt hard to invade..... The desert to the WEST was too big and hard to cross. To the NORTH, the Mediterranean sea kept many enemies away. The Red Sea provided protection against invasion as well. Cataracts in the Nile River made it difficult for outsiders to sail in from the SOUTH.
List several facts about the Nile River
The Nile River is the longest river in the world. The Nile River begins in Central Africa and runs 4000 miles North to the Mediterranean Sea. Egyptian civilization developed along a 750 mile stretch of the Nile River in Northern Africa.
Why is Lower Egypt above Upper Egypt?
The Northern Region (above) is known as Lower Egypt because the Northern Region is located down river. The Southern Region (below) is known as Upper Egypt because it is located Up-River in relation to the Nile's flow of water.
Explain why Egypt was called the "Gift of the Nile.
The river brought life to Egypt. The river was so important to the people in this region that the Greek historian Herodotus called Egypt the gift of the Nile.
