How Many Debens Do You Got?

Let's see, what is the main source of transportation for Egypt? You guessed it, the Nile! Most Egyptians in ancient Egypt lived along the Nile because it served as, transportation, irrigation, and the main source of water. Think about what's in the water, what goes in the water, and what is around the water, (try not to throw up in your mouth), that they DRANK!

Trade with Nubia, their neighboring country, was so important that they built a canal to make it a quicker journey! Jee- I wish I had a canal going to my neighbors house! Also, when it came to making boats, they were very skilled. They would build the boats out of bundles of reeds tied together, and, I know, this sounds fake, but they floated really well! Out of plants! That shows you the genius in them.

When the Egyptians were trading along the Nile, they needed a way to measure the value of their products, so they used... How many debens do you got?

Living Along the Nile- With Animals!

Pictured above- Tilapias

There are lots of animals that live on the Nile! LOTS of them! A majority of them are fish and birds, but there are also many other different types. Some of these include Hoopoes (never heard of them, but they sure sound cute!), Turtledoves, Hawksbills, Cattlegrets, and Water Buffaloes. Some other common animals are Crocodiles and Hippopotamus'.

Tilapias, a type of fish, swim through the water incubating their babies in their mouth. This provides warmth and other conditions to help babies develop underwater. Awwww!

Swamp, Desert? Hot, Cold? Smooth, Rough?...

The northern and southern parts of the Nile (lower and upper) have two, totally different climates! The northern is a dry, hot desert (pictured right). It can reach 120 degrees, and it rarely has rain! On the other hand, the southern is more moist, also since it is near Ethiopia.

Do you know what Suddi, Sudan is like? Well, lets just say, it's the world's LARGEST SWAMP! Didn't you always think that the Nile River ran through miles, and miles, and mi... of desert?

There is no way to describe the Nile, I think that it is amazing! There are cataracts, almost like waterfalls, lakes, swamps, and much else. Cataracts are places where water forces itself through rock and causes rapids. (upper left picture)

Transferring Water? Easy!!!

Believe it or not, around 1550 BC, geniuses roamed the earth! The Egyptians thought of so many amazing ways to transfer water from the Nile, it was crazy! For example- the Shaduf (pictured left) was an invention that anyone could use! All that you had to do was pull a rope and- wah lah- water was being scooped up and transferred up a hill. Some other genius ideas that the Egyptians thought of were to have multiple shadufs in a row, transferring the water up a high hill- like a team! The Shaduf was not the only invention though! There were also these huge screws that would literally "screw" the water to the farmer's fields, called the Archimedes Screw! Both of these inventions are even used today, along with the modern pumps.

Adios Floods!

Oh no! Take cover! The flood season is coming!

Actually, the Egyptians WANTED the flood! Sound Crazy? Well every year the Nile River would flood when it rained in Ethiopia- no its not Utopia, its Ethiopia- and leave very, very fertile soil along the Nile's basin. No wonder the Egyptians had amazing crops! Soon this was about to change...:-(

In 1902 the Aswan Dam was built to prevent big floods and control the water levels. The water levels were so controlled that the farmers could plant crops ALL YEAR LONG! Sounds great, huh? Well, after the construction was done, something else was created that caused major problems...

LAKE NASSER!

The second largest man made lake in the world! This lake flooded villages and destroyed ancient temples! Still agreeing with the builders of the dam? On top of that, some farmers and their crops are suffering because the flood isn't as effective anymore!

Describe the difference between river use in ancient Egypt and modern day uses.

Would you want to live along the Nile? Why or why not?

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