A very important part of Egypt is
the Nile River. Egypt is a desert, and the Nile is the only source of water. In
the old days people lived by the Nile for farming. The Nile River flooded every
year on June 18th. The flooding was very good for farming because of
all the water. People lived by the Nile, and that is one reason it is a symbol
of life. Another reason is all of the water because people need water to live.
The ankh, a symbol of life, looks like the Nile; the delta as the circle and
the arms as the dividing between Upper and Lower Egypt.
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| The Ankh: symbol of life and the Nile River |
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| Mom and me in the Valley of the Kings. Notice the green Nile Valley in the background. |
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| A family walks their flock of sheep to the Nile to drink. |
Upper and Lower
Egypt are the two main parts of Egypt. Lower Egypt is actually north of Upper
Egypt! It is called Upper Egypt because it has lots of mountains, and the Nile
flows north (but downhill) to Lower Egypt and then into the Mediterranean Sea.
So north and south are not the same as up and down in Egypt (even if it looks
that way on a map).
The Red Sea is
another very important part of Egypt. It helps with two of the five main
incomes: tourism and the Suez Canal. The Suez Canal is a source of income because
ships pay to travel through it instead of going all the way around Africa. Tourism
is a source of income because tourists came to see all of the cool temples. But
once you’ve seen the temples and pyramids, you’re done. Most tourists don’t come back to see them
again. But tourists like to come every year to vacation at the resorts. So Egypt has developed all the resorts on the
Red Sea where it used to just be desert.
Egyptians
made up myths to explain lots of things. Here are two myths:
Sirius
The Star
Sirius the star is a myth to tell
when the Nile floods. Sirius shows up on June 18th (when the Nile
floods), stays in the sky, and disappears for 70 days until the next flood.
The
Rise of Osiris Cult
Another Egyptian myth is how Upper
and Lower Egypt came to be. Osiris and Set are brothers, Isis and Osiris are
married Set kills Osiris to over come the throne. But Isis brings Osiris back
to life. Set kills Osiris again and cuts him in two, Upper and Lower Egypt. But
Osiris’ spirit helps Isis and they have a son, Horus. Horus has a fight with
Set and kills Set! Peace once again!
Osiris=God
of the afterlife
Set=God
of chaos and change
Isis=Goddess
of magic and protection
Horus=God
of the sky
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| Horus |
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| Isis |
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| Osiris |
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| Set |
wow, I did not know any of this.
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