Mummification
- is the process of preserving a diseased body, through a periodic process of embalming and drying, which was also commonly associated with early Egyptian Society
Significance- In early African cultures, the process of mummification was new and represented advancement in culture because of its representation of an interest in religion, what comes after death, and honoring the diseased. Discovered bodies and tombs have also has brought many insights into the ways and traditional culture of early Egyptians.
Demographic Pressures
- are things such as human populations, including their size, growth, density, and distribution which affect or "pressure"(in either a positive or negative way) their environment
Significance- Early Egyptians placed heavy demographic pressures on certain areas of the Nile, because they were dependent on that specific source of nutrients to survive, due to the commonly dry and surrounding arid climate.
Pharaoh
is the title or name given to ancient Egyptian Kings, but has later come to be known as certain kings or tyrants in general
Significance- In early Egypt, groups of Egyptians began developing kings, also known as Pharaohs, to rule over them. Through the authority of these Pharaohs, Egypt has become an iconic figure of the ancient times, because of the amazing architectural and technological advancements that they had commanded.
Scribe
- is the name of a person who serves as a professional copyist, especially one who made copies of manuscripts before the invention of printing
Significance- Scribes first appeared in Ancient Egypt, and helped to write the hundreds of thousands of sacred writings and records, which has now presently helped us to understand the culture of that time.
Hieroglyphics
- are a set of ancient Egyptian pictographs in written language, used to record and explain much of the ancient Egyptian culture; these pictographs commonly represent what they are depicting
Significance- Hieroglyphics were the first set of writings discovered in ancient Egypt, which helped to uncover much of their lost culture and how their civilization developed.
Pyramids
- are quadrilateral masonry masses which have smooth, steeply sloping sides that meet at an apex, and are used as tombs for Ancient Egyptian peoples and Pharaohs
Significance- In early Egypt, these pyramids were constructed with brute labor and intelligence which not only showed signs of improved architecture and enforcement of labor, but also intense master of the land and natural resources.
Savannah
- is a grassy plain in tropical and subtropical regions, with few trees
Significance- During the dramatic climate change in early African
development, much of the Savannah grassland throughout the continent dried up in to the Sahara and other arid deserts, causing the African peoples to cluster around certain groups of water sources.
Menes
- was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the early dynastic period, credited by classical tradition with having united Upper and Lower Egypt, and as the founder of the first dynasty
Significance- Menes was the first Pharaoh of Egypt to extend his reign from lower to upper Egypt, especially by creating the city Memphis, which served as a capital between the two regions and binding them together.
Mercenary
- is a professional hired to serve in a foreign army
Significance- Many migrant men from Nubia became mercenaries in the Egyptian military forces, and often intermarried with Egyptian women, therefore binding the two societies even closer together.
Cataracts
- are/is a descent of water over a steep surface, such as a waterfall, especially one of considerable size
Significance- In Ancient Egypt, the natural boundaries, or cataracts and desserts, distinctly formed the Egyptian region, and sub regions, specifically in regards to the first cataract which determined the boundary line between the Egyptian and Nubian territory.
Rosetta Stone
- is a stone slab found in 1799 near Rosetta, bearing parallel inscriptions in Greek, Egyptian Hieroglyphics, and demotic characters, making it possible to decipher ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphics.
Significance- The Rosetta stone helped to unlock the ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphics, which helped then to shed light onto the traditional and cultural ways of the everyday lives of the ancient Egyptians.