Egyptian Society through the ages

Question 1

What was the most important value of ancient Egyptian society?

Answer 1

Ma’at

It signifies harmony and balance.

Question 2

How was the Ancient Egyptian social hierarchy shaped?

Answer 2

Like a pyramid.

Gods
King
Vizier and courtiers
Scribes and priests
Nomarchs
Generals
Artists, supervisors
Peasants and slaves

Question 3

The Egyptians had developed their own legal system as early as the Predynastic Period.

What was the timeline for this period?

Answer 3

6000 BCE - 3150 BCE

Question 4

Adultery was a serious offense in Ancient Egypt - husbands and wives were allowed to take their spouses to court if their infidelities were exposed.

What punishment did they face?

Answer 4

Husbands: receive up to 1,000 blows, no death penalty.

Wives: could be divorced, have her nose amputated, or be burned to death.

Question 5

Were the pyramids / buildings built by unpaid slaves?

Answer 5

It is believed that ancient artisans and workmen volunteered their time and skills to a king’s building project.

Slaves were used in the building of the pyramids, too. Usually people who did not pay their bills, committed a crime, or were captured during war.

Question 6

How did the Ptolemetic Period affect Egyptian laws?

Answer 6

The Egyptians were allowed to follow their own traditions and laws, but the Greeks were governed according to Greek laws, which meant that life in Egypt differed according to a person’s lineage.

Question 7

How did the Roman rule affect Egyptian law?

Answer 7

The Roman emperor allied himself with the pharaohs but ruled from Rome.

The Romans changed the laws in Egypt so that they conformed to Roman laws, and business was conducted according to Roman procedures.

Question 8

How was the Egyptian social structure affected by the Byzantine rule?

Answer 8

Byzantine society was controlled by the royal family and the wealthy elite.

However, unlike in ancient Egypt, social mobility was much more frequent, as people could advance due to wars, imperial favor, land ownership, or intermarriage.

Question 9

How was religion in Egypt affected during the rule of the Byzantine Empire?

Answer 9

Christianity was widely accepted, and the majority of the population converted to it.

Question 10

How was religion affected during the Islamic dynasties?

Answer 10

While other religions were allowed to coexist among Muslims, the treatment of them varied greatly.

Non-Muslims were required to submit to Islamic law and pay a special tax called the jizya, which allowed them to become a part of a protected class called the dhimmi. They did not enjoy the same privileges as the Muslims.

Question 11

Which religions were practiced during the Ottoman Empire’s rule?

Answer 11

Muslim Ottomans generally held more influence than Christians and Jews.

There were different laws for them. Non-Muslims were forces to pay higher taxes, and Christians paid blood tax (firstborn sons were taken away, converted to Islam, and forced to serve in the Ottoman army).

Question 12

What consequences did Egyptians face in the social structure during the British occupation?

Answer 12

Egyptians faced martial law, higher taxes, inflation, and forced military conscription.

Question 13

What is the Nile?

Answer 13

The Nile is the longest river in Africa and flows through several countries directly into the Mediterranean Sea.

Question 14

The Nile is comprised of two major tributaries, what are they?

Answer 14

White Nile: flows from Lake Victoria in Uganda.

Blue Nile: begins in Ethiopia.

Question 15

What are some of the crops grown next to the Nile?

Answer 15

Wheat, Cotton, Beans.

They could harvest up to 3 times a year!

Question 16

How was it possible for kingdoms to be built in Egypt, considering the climate?

Answer 16

Since people no longer needed to move around to find food (because of the Nile river), they were able to establish permanent settlements that eventually turned into cities, which then gave rise to the Egyptian kingdoms.

Question 17

How long is the Nile river?

Answer 17

About 4,160 miles (6,700km) long and it flows northward from east-Central Africa to the Mediterranean.

Question 18

How does one of the most important tributaries, the Blue Nile, flow?

Answer 18

It begins from Lake Tana in Ethiopia, where it flows for about 870 miles (1,400km) until it meets up with the White Nile in Khartoum, Sudan.

Question 19

9 countries

Where can parts of the Nile Basin be found?

Answer 19

Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Sudan, and Egypt.

Question 20

What fish could you find in the Nile?

Answer 20

Perch, bolti, catfish, tigerfish, elephant snout fish.

The Nile crocodile, soft-shelled turtle, and hippopotamus were also regular sights.

Question 21

How did Egypt connect to trade routes?

Answer 21

They were connected to the Mediterranean trade routes thanks to Alexandria.

They were connected to trade routes with the East because of its position on the Red Sea.

Question 22

What did Egyptians first discover (and how to make it), and concealed it form other nations?

Answer 22

The Egyptians were the first culture to discover how to make paper, and it quickly became Egypt’s main export, which caused the Egyptians to conceal the paper-making process so that they could control the paper trade.

Question 23

The Greeks developed their own Nile god - what was it called?

Answer 23

Nilus.

The modern word ‘Nile’ comes from the Greek word ‘Nelios’ which means river.
The ancient Egyptians called the Nile ‘Ar’, which means black (dark sand responsible for their crops).

Question 24

According to the ancient Egyptians, there were two main gods who were responsible for the Nile’s gifts.

Who were they?

Answer 24

Hapi: personification of the annual flooding of the Nile. Also associated with fertility, and he wielded an immense amount of influence in ancient Egypt.

Khnum: the god of fertility, usually involved with procreation and water.

Question 25

The Nile was known by two other names.

What were they?

Answer 25

Father of Life: an extension of Hapi, who was responsible for giving life to the land.

Mother of All Men: since the goddess Ma’at (harmony and truth) was closely associated with the Nile.

Question 26

There was an expedition organized in 1856 to find the origin of the Nile.

What was it?

Answer 26

Lake Victoria.

In 1858, they discovered Lake Tanganyika. One of the explorers had to turn back, the other went on to discover Lake Victoria, which he correctly claimed was the source of the Nile.

Question 27

What were the ancient Egyptians’ religious beliefs?

Answer 27

That all life was sacred and that nature was controlled by the deities.

The pharaoh was the head of the religion and the bridge between humans and the gods.

While alive, the pharaoh was seen as the son of Ra, a representation of the god Horus. Once he died, the pharaoh was deified and became associated with Ra and Osiris.

The ancient Egyptians also believed in heka (magic), which could influence their lives or cause things to happen.

Question 28

How many gods and goddesses were thought to be worshipped by Egyptians?

Answer 28

Over 2,000.

Question 29

Name some of the most important gods in Egyptian culture.

Answer 29

Isis, Osiris, Horus, Amun, Ra, Hathor, Neith, Sehmet, Bastet, Thoth, Anubis, Seth, Ptah.

Question 30

What did the gods Isis, Osiris, and Horus represent?

Answer 30

They were frequently depicted in carvings, and their myth dictated the basis of pharaonic authority and the Egyptian afterlife.

Question 31

What did the god Hathor represent?

Answer 31

Hathor was a goddess strongly associated with entertainment; she was the goddess of dancing, drunkenness, and music.

She was also the reflection of the Nile River and was originally known as Sekhmet, a destructive goddess who was also associated with Bastet.

Question 32

What did the god Amun or Amun-ra represent?

Answer 32

He was a minor god, but by the New Kingdom, he was almost exclusively worshiped throughout Egypt and became known as the most powerful of the gods.

Question 33

What was the ancient Egyptian mythology around the afterlife?

Answer 33

According to ancient Egyptian mythology, all humans possessed ka, or life essence, which left the body after death.

Mummification was also an important part of the religion, as it was believed that a person’s body needed to be kept intact in order to be transported to the afterlife.

Question 34

In ancient Egyptian beliefs, how was the ka (life essence) transported to the afterlife?

Answer 34

Once a person’s heart was weighed on the scales in front of Osiris, they were either allowed to pass into the afterlife or be devoured by the devourer of souls, Ammit.

If a person passed into the afterlife, they were met by a divine ferryman who carried them across Lily Lake into the Field of Reeds (Egyptian Paradise) where everything was like it was on Earth except for sickness, death, and disappointment.

However, a person had to pass Osiris’s judgement by living a good life in order to enter the Field of Reeds.

A lesser goddess known as Amantet met the dead souls as they arrived in the afterlife and provided them with food and drink. Hathor also played a role in the afterlife, as she guided the dead to paradise.

Question 35

What was Serapis?

Answer 35

Serapis was a blend of Egyptian and Greek gods, namely Osiris, Apis, and Zeus.

The cult of Serapis wasn’t very popular in Egypt, but spread to Rome and Greece.

Question 36

Was Judaism present in Egypt?

Answer 36

Yes, some of the earliest evidence of Judaism in Egypt can be dated back to around 650 BCE.

By the 3rd century, Jews were living in a number of Egyptian cities and villagees and were allowed to exist peacefully in Egypt as they oopened businesses and took part in trade.

However, the Jews were expelled from Alexandria around 415 CE during the Byzantine era when Christianity gained popularity.

Question 37

Was Christianity present in Egypt?

Answer 37

Yes, they played a massive role in the worldwide spread of Christianity.

It started to spread during the 1st century CE and became popular quickly.

By the 4th century, Christianity was the most prominent religion in Egypt.

By the 5th century, the Coptic Church had been established.

Question 38

During the Roman Empire rule, the emperor, Diocletian, began persecuting Christians throughout the Empire.

Why did he do that?

Answer 38

He declared that he was the son of Jupiter (the king of the Roman gods) and he was Jupiter’s apostle on earth.

This story was likely concocted in an effort to align himself with Christian beliefs, especially with regard to the significance of God’s son, Jesus Christ. The Christians refused to accept his new status and rejected his compromise.

He began persecuting Christians during this time.

Question 39

What did the Egyptians call the time Diocletian persecuted Christians?

Answer 39

The Age of Martyrs due to the number of Christians who were brutally martyred and killed.

Question 40

When were the caliphs created in Egypt?

Answer 40

Around the 6th century CE, following the death of Prophet Muhammad.

During the Rashidun Caliphate, Egypt was conquered and brought under the caliphate’s authority, which ruled over Egypt for hundreds of years.

By the 7th century, many Egyptians had converted to Islam, replacing Christianity as the state religion.

Question 41

What are the similarities and differences between Shia and Sunni branches in the Muslim faith?

Answer 41

Similarities: they all accept the importance of the Quran, they both draw from Hadith, and they accept the 5 pillars of Islam.

Differences: the question of religious authority, the split occurred shortly after the death of Prophet Muhammad.

Question 42

What did the Shia and Sunni peoples believe about religious authority?

Answer 42

Shia: People who followed Prosphet Muhammad’s cousin, Ali. They focus on Muhammad’s successors in the form of imams (religious instructors), who are thought to be divinely appointed.

Sunni: People who followed Prophet Muhammad’s closest friend, Abu Bakr. They base their worship on the example of Prophet Muhammad.

Question 43

How was Egypt split in Modern Egyptian times in terms of religion?

Answer 43

The population was primarily made up of Sunni Muslims who follow the Malike school of thought.

The state was also comprised of Shia Muslims, Christians, and Jews, who together made up about 10% of the population.