World History Chapter 2 Sections 3-4

delta

A delta is a triangular area of marshland formed by deposits of silt at the mouth of some rivers. Memphis, Egypt's first capital, is located near where the Nile empties into its delta. Deltas provide rich soil and life-giving water for people to use.

vizier

A vizier is a chief minister who supervised the business of government in ancient Egypt. The vizier's instructions were recorded by thousands of scribes. Pharaohs depended on a vizier, which is the first time that someone in a civilization is not the absolute ruler of the nation.

Akhenaton

Akhenaton was a pharaoh who devoted his life to the worship of Aton, a minor god. Akhenaton was too busy worshipping Aton to defend the empire. This is the one of the first times in history in which monotheism is practiced.

Hatshepsut

Hatshepsut is the first female Egyptian pharaoh. Hatshepsut encouraged trade with eastern Mediterranean lands and along the Red Sea coast of Africa. Hatshepsut showed that females could also exercise all the rights of a pharaoh, not just males.

hieroglyphics

Hieroglyphics are a system of writing in which pictures called hieroglyphs represent objects, concepts, or sounds. Hieroglyphics recorded important economic, administrative, and royal information. These include records that can now be interpreted by scholars who want to discover more about Egyptian culture.

Howard Carter

Howard Carter was a British archaeologist who discovered the tomb of the pharaoh Tutankhamen. The tomb discovered by Howard Carter had remained untouched for over 3,000 years. This discovery has allowed scholars interpret valuable information about Egyptian civilization.

negative confession

In order to have life after death, all would partake in negative confession. In negative confession, a person would say what they did not do in their life as opposed to what they did do in their life. Through a negative confession like this one, it was a reminder to the Egyptians about the laws of the land and what they should not be doing.

Menes

Menes was the King of Upper Egypt who united Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt. King Menes founded Egypt's first capital at Memphis. Without the two regions of Egypt being united, Egypt would most likely have gone to war and collapsed as a civilization and therefore, would not have made all of the advancements in society that they made.

mummification

Mummification is the preservation of dead bodies by embalming and wrapping them in cloth. Internal organs would also be mummified and placed within the tomb of the dead body. The tombs of dead bodies that have been mummified have provided scholars with lots of evidence about Egyptian civilization.

Nubia

Nubia is the ancient kingdom in northeastern Africa, also called Kush. Nubia provided Egypt with ivory, cattle, and slaves, and during the New Kingdom, Egypt conquered Nubia. Nubia influenced much of Egyptian art as many art pieces during the New Kingdom showed soldiers, musicians, and prisoners from Nubia.

Osiris and Isis

Osiris and Isis were a god and goddess, respectively, and their story touched human emotions such as love and jealously. Osiris was killed by his jealous brother, Set, but Isis reassembled his body and brought him back to life. Information about Osiris and Isis shows that the Egyptians believed in and prepared for the afterlife.

papyrus

Papyrus is a plant used to make a paper-like writing material in ancient Egypt. Papyrus grew along the banks of the Nile and was a much easier option for writing cursive scripts than chiseling words onto stone. Papyrus would later lead to the invention of paper in China.

pharaoh

Pharaoh is the title given to the rulers of ancient Egypt. Pharaohs organized a strong, centralized state and held absolute power. Pharaohs helped create political order and shape Egypt into the strong empire it became.

Ramses II

Ramses II was pharaoh of Egypt for sixty-six years, and he pushed the border of Egypt as far as Syria. While Ramses II was pharaoh, the first peace treaty in history was signed between the Egyptians and the Hittites. Ramses II extended the empire and opened up new trade routes and land opportunities.

Book of the Dead

The Book of the Dead contained spells, charms, and formulas for the dead to use in the afterlife. Egyptians relied on the Book of the Dead in order to survive in the dangerous underworld. This shows that Egyptians did not believe in predestination as they tried all they could to enter the Happy Field of Food.

Happy Field of Food

The Happy Field of Food is the place where worthy souls would live forever in bliss. In order to enter the Happy Field of Food, the dead person's heart had to be lighter than the feather of truth. This shows that the Egyptians did not only believe in an afterlife with a grim underworld.

Hyksos

The Hyksos are a warlike, nomadic group that invade Egypt and occupy the Nile delta region. The Hyksos were impressed by Egyptian civilization, and they went on to rule over Egypt for one hundred years. With their horse-drawn chariots, the Hyksos influenced the Egyptians to create their own military technology.

Rosetta Stone

The Rosetta Stone is a stone monument that includes the same passage carved in hieroglyphics, demotic script, and Greek and that was used to decipher the meanings of many hieroglyphs. A French scholar, Jean Champollion, was able to interpret the meaning of ancient hieroglyphs by deciphering passages that were written on the Rosetta Stone. Scholars could now read the thousands of records that survived from ancient Egypt.