Ancient Egypt Study Guide

Where is Egypt located?

Egypt was a long, skinny civilization clinging to the Nile river for life.

Which of the following was NOT likely found in a pharaoh's pyramid?

His children.

What did Emperor Akhenaten do that the people didn't like?

Made the people believe in only one god.

Explain the typical cycle of civilizations. What does this cycle say about human nature?

As you may be starting to notice with other civilizations, empires go in cycles. There are many small villages or leaders in an area trying to control one another. Eventually one defeats all of the others and becomes the ruler. Next, one of two things seems to happen. The people under the rulers control become dissatisfied with the job the ruler is doing and they rise up against him or outsiders begin to fear that a ruler is getting too powerful and they rise up against him before he can take them over. The rulers seem to want to control more land or people then they can actually do a good job ruling and that is their downfall.This cycle is an example of how human greed can lead to losing everything. When the pharaohs have a successful reign, they start to take over neighboring civilizations. And eventually their greed causes them to take over more civilizations than they can handle, which leads to the fall of their dynasty.

Which of the following pharaohs is known for unifying Upper and Lower Egypt?

Menes

The Ancient Egyptian empire went through 3 distinct cycles called Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom and ______ Kingdom

New

Which of the following is NOT true about Hatshepsut?

She used the army to overthrow most of Egypt's neighboring civilizations.

Based on what you have learned about Egyptian culture and religion, why do you think the pyramids are shaped the way they are?

The Egyptians believed that their pharaohs were gods and were sent to Earth to rule the people. But once a pharaoh died they believed that they would be sent back to the land of the gods again. Many pharaohs constructed pyramids as a place to house their bodies after they died. Their shape was to help guide the "ka" (spirit) to the afterlife in the heavens

Why do you think Egyptians had the opportunity to develop a rich culture?

The Egyptians were very efficient at farming, which allowed them extra time to specialize jobs within the society. When jobs are specialized, individuals have the opportunity to become experts in one specific field and trade their services for the necessities. And as individuals in a society have extra time, they begin to concentrate on improving aspects of their culture that they enjoy.

Describe what the Rosetta Stone was and why it was so important to understanding Ancient Egypt.

The Rosetta Stone was found imbedded in the wall of a temple. Without the discovery of the tablet there is a lot we would never know about the ancient Egyptians. The Rosetta Stone said the same thing in three different ways; with hieroglyphics, in Demotic writing, and again in Greek. Using the Greek, the hieroglyphics were translated, and archeologists can now read hieroglyphics left by the ancients in temples, tombs and obelisks

Which of the following is NOT true about Egyptian timekeeping?

They divided the day into 2 parts, daytime and nighttime.

What best describes the job of a scribe?

To write down important information.

What were the names of the two major regions of Egypt?

Upper and Lower Egypt

Describe how Egypt's civilization was protected by its various geographic features.

Egypt was a very protected place for a civilization to grow. The Nile River cuts through the largest desert in the world. No attackers from the east could cross the desert in large forces to invade. To the north of the river is the Mediterranean Sea, to the east is more desert and mountains and because the river contains many dangerous rapids that are impossible for ships to navigate it would be very difficult for an army to quickly get into Egypt

Which of the following is NOT true about Egyptian culture?

Egyptians wore very little jewelry.

Women were not respected in Egyptian culture.

false