The ancient Egyptians and the Mesopotamians shared many traits, but differed as well, despite emerging around the same years. The Egyptians, a religiously optimistic people, set up a bureaucratic government that eventually reflected their social system. In Mesopotamia, where life was not viewed as optimistically, the more diverse social system led to a decentralized political system. Evidence shows, however, that both societies trusted in an afterlife, established a unique writing structure and excelled significantly in the arts and sciences.
Mesopotamia, unfortunately, did not have a seasonal flooding from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which would force them to create an organized agricultural system. This would explain their negative view of the afterlife and the general mood of the gods. Egypt, nevertheless, stood along the fertile soils of the Nile River valley, which provided a familiarized flooding. This allowed the Egyptians to see the universe as orderly and beneficial. So sacred this afterlife that they believed in preserving the body at death for the journey to the afterlife by the process of mummification. The Mesopotamians, fearing to disappoint the gods, believed that their purpose was to serve the gods and thus religion played a more important role in government. Priests, for example, were much more prominent than in Egypt. No matter the situation, both civilizations thrived in agriculture.
Both communities had a social system broken down into three groups. King Hammurabi's law declared these three groups: the free landowning, containing royalty, priests, and officials; the dependent farmers and artisans; and the slave class, who were usually prisoners of war. Temple leaders were considered royalty and controlled large estates along with the Lugal (king). While male dominance existed, women did have rights in Mesopotamia. They could own land and business and could trade, but child rearing was preferred. Women eventually lost social standing from the spread of agriculture and the rise of the middle class. Social class in Egypt was less pronounced: consisting of the king and his officials; the lower level officials, priests, farmers, and professionals; and the peasants at the bottom. The peasant class executed much of the agricultural labor, since slavery was limited. Obesity, as in many ancient civilizations, was a sign of wealth and status. Female subordination to man is apparent in Egypt as well. Women yet had slightly more rights. This included owning property, inheritance and the ability to will property to whomever.
A king of some sort ultimately ruled both Egypt and Mesopotamia. Egyptians were governed by a bureaucracy, where the pharaoh was the supreme ruler, followed by his appointed officials. The officials were chosen by merit, rather than by heritage as in Mesopotamia. The pharaoh was viewed as god on earth, granted with the responsibility to ensure welfare and prosperity. The palace was in control of long distance commerce as well as collecting taxes to put towards construction and the army. Priests, on the other hand, did not play a big role in politics as in Mesopotamia. The two centers of power in Mesopotamia were the temple and the palace of the king. The temple and the palace were usually the center and surrounded by agricultural lands, known as a city state. These city-states developed independently and traded among themselves. The theocratic king was called the Lugal and was responsible for property rights, defense, and the law. Slightly different from Egypt, the Lugal was only the representative or mediator of the gods.
Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia based their economies on agriculture. This tedious labor demanded for more productive ways to work, hopefully through technological advancements. Both societies used the process of irrigation through canals and dikes. Stone tools were the most commonly used along with some bronze. Egypt skillfully utilized simple machines such as levers and pulleys to build the magnificent monuments. Mesopotamians facilitated pottery making with the creation of the potter's wheel. The most considerable innovation was the distinctive writing structures of the two civilizations. The Mesopotamians preferred the method of cuneiform- by creating wedge shaped symbols with reeds. Fortunately for the discovery of the Rosetta stone, we can interpret the multitude of hieroglyphs of the Ancient Egyptians.
Despite being isolated, both civilizations managed to abide by the basic structure of human nature and apply the indicators of a civilization. From this came the specific qualities that make up the classes of Mesopotamians and ancient Egyptians.
Tuesday, 16 February 2010
Sunday, 14 February 2010
The Role of Animals of Ancient Egypt
To the ancient Egyptians, animals were created by the gods and given rights equal to that of mankind. They saw animals not as their subjects, but rather as independent beings, and treated them with respect. [A]
The Nile served as a source of food and was the most important factor to the agriculture of the region. Fish were plentiful and could be eaten roasted, boiled, salted, preserved, or simply dried in the sun. Because the Nile would flood annually, it revitalized the land with water and fertile silt, enriching the soil to grow wheat, fruits, and vegetables. Additionally, it provided thick grasses on which animals would graze.
The people of ancient Egypt were mainly pescarian, meaning they would often eat fish. The Nile supplied many types of fish, including: catfish, mullet, tilapia, sturgeon, eel, carp, and perch, which were all an important source of nourishment. Along the Nile, there were restrictions on the types of fish that could be eaten because of their connections with the gods. The Pharaoh and other priests would abstain from eating fish altogether because it was forbidden by one of their deities as a food reserved for peasants.
Bread was their main staple, made from wheat and barley. From time to time, they supplemented their diet with antelope, which they hunted. Occasionally they ate pork and goat, which were raised on farms.
The Egyptians also raised sheep, cattle, geese and ducks. These animals not only provided them with food, drink, leather and skins, but also helped with their daily lives. Oxen and cattle were used for plowing the fields, and other animals were used for trampling seeds into the soil, and eating unwanted grain.
Birds were of extreme importance to the ancient Egyptians as well. Along the Nile, the bird-life included the falcon, kite, goose, crane, heron, pigeon, ibis, vulture and owl. Numerous birds were actually kept in sacred flocks and some were elevated in status to become temple animals. From the vast collection of ancient Egyptian artwork, evidence exists of several species of birds that are now extinct.
Beekeeping began in Egypt around 2500 BC in the Fifth Dynasty. Egyptians loved honey and they would take great pains to cultivate it. They not only kept bees, but they also actively went out and searched for the honey of wild bees. They would use bee wax for embalming, offerings to the gods, medicines, makeup, and as a bonding agent. They named the honeybee after the bull-like god named Apis because they believed it had similar characteristics. (The historian Herodotus described this bull as being black, with a white diamond on its forehead and two white hairs on its tail.)
Horses were introduced much later into Egyptian society - around 1500 BC. They were a status symbol for the owners and were mainly used to carry chariots into battle and for ceremonial occasions. Horses were rarely ridden and if so, only by royalty. They were well cared for and given individual names. Donkeys were the main beasts of burden. They were used as pack animals and for carrying heavy bundles of grain from the field to the threshing floor. Female donkeys, which produced higher-protein and sweeter milk than cows, were kept as dairy animals.
Hunting was seen as a symbol of mastery over animal forces. Egyptians believed it was their role to conquer the land. Dogs, resembling greyhounds, would help them while hunting. There is evidence from the tomb paintings that the ancient Egyptians sometimes took along cheetahs they had tamed.
The hunters knew their animals well. They studied their characteristics, including their diet and mating habits. This knowledge brought about a great respect for the animals and aided them in the hunt. Oftentimes, they would hunt great cats, which were not always killed. [C] Smaller jungle mammals and wild cats, such as the cheetah, were often kept as family pets. Ramses the Great is said to have had a pet lion.
Dog, cats, monkeys, and birds were also a part of the nuclear family. So devoted were these ancient people to their pets, that upon the pet's passing, they would often carry out the same rites and rituals as they would for any other family member. Pets and sacred animals were mummified and put in special cemeteries. Animals that belonged to the Pharaoh's royal family were mummified and buried with them so they could continue in the afterlife together. The following inscription for a well-loved dog was found in a tomb dating from the 5th or 6th dynasty:
"The dog which was the guard of His Majesty. Abuwtiyuw is his name. His Majesty ordered that he be buried, that he be given a coffin from the royal treasury, fine linen in great quantity, incense. His Majesty gave perfumed ointment and [ordered] that a tomb be built for him by the gang of masons. His Majesty did this for him in order that he might be honored". [1]
For many years, animal mummies have been overlooked while research went on regarding human mummies and other treasures found in the tombs. The study of this previously neglected area of Egyptology has finally changed, thanks to the work of Dr. Salima Ikram, one of the leading experts in Egyptian funerary archaeology. Dr. Ikram is the founder and co-director of the Animal Mummy Project at the Cairo Museum. This project has shed new light on the past, revealing the techniques of mummification and the reasons for it. Regarding the latter, Dr. Ikram tells us four reasons why animals were mummified.
1.They were mummified because they were sacred.
2. They were mummified to please the animal deities (i.e. as offerings to the gods).
3. The ancient Egyptians believed that the afterlife included animals. Therefore, they wanted their pets to continue with them in the afterlife.
4. A certain number of animals were mummified in order to provide food for eternity.
These ancient tombs are time capsules filled with ancient treasures, many of which we are still deciphering and trying to understand. Some of the tomb findings have been items made of animal products, which were used in many ways. Bone was plentiful and the ancient Egyptians fashioned it into jewelry and arrowheads. Glue was made from animal hide and from sinews. Feathers were used as ornaments. Twisted animal gut and sinews were used in the making of stringed instruments. Ivory usually came from Nile hippos and were used for carving combs and jewelry.
Egyptian burials often included sculpted clay and carved wooden figures, tools, and utensils in hopes they would service the dead in the afterlife. These were often part of a larger diorama or miniature three-dimensional scene. Because so many of these elaborate models have been found in the tombs of the royal families, we've learned a great deal about the customs of these people. For example, there are miniature models of butcher shops, scenes of counting and inspecting cattle, and scenes of plowing the fields. There are wonderfully detailed wall paintings and reliefs decorating the tombs, giving us further information about daily life in Ancient Egypt. It is interesting to note that much of this remained hidden for 4,000 to 5,000 years.
As Robert Fulford has written, "...Because the tombs were hidden so well, many of them remained intact until about 200 years ago, when the modern world began discovering them and prying them open, one after another, in wonderment and excitement and gratitude. And so our own civilization, through the collaboration of grave-robbers, scholars and art lovers, has come to know far more about Egypt than would otherwise be possible". [2]
[A] oi.uchicago.edu/OI/MUS/ED/TRC/EGYPT/animals.html [B]
members.tripod.com/~ib205/apis_2.html [C]
bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/egyptians
[1] Giza Digital Library: Giza Bibliography of George A. Reisner (1867-1942) Reisner, George A. "The Dog Which was Honored by the King of Upper and Lower Egypt." Bulletin of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston 34, No. 206 (December 1936), pp. 96-99.
[2] "Eternal optimists: The Royal Ontario Museum's exhibition of Egyptian art reminds us of a civilization that believed you can take it with you" The National Post Toronto, Canada 2 March 2004
Copyright 2008 Melanie Light
Melanie Light is an artist, art historian and educator. She is site owner of Vintage Pets [http://www.zazzle.com/vintagepets], an online gift shop which features dog art, cat art, and horse art. She also runs ArtZpet, an online store featuring exceptional pet lover gifts by hand selected artists.
You may display this article on your website, but you will need to include the author information at the bottom of each article or else you will be violating our usage and federal copyright laws.
The Nile served as a source of food and was the most important factor to the agriculture of the region. Fish were plentiful and could be eaten roasted, boiled, salted, preserved, or simply dried in the sun. Because the Nile would flood annually, it revitalized the land with water and fertile silt, enriching the soil to grow wheat, fruits, and vegetables. Additionally, it provided thick grasses on which animals would graze.
The people of ancient Egypt were mainly pescarian, meaning they would often eat fish. The Nile supplied many types of fish, including: catfish, mullet, tilapia, sturgeon, eel, carp, and perch, which were all an important source of nourishment. Along the Nile, there were restrictions on the types of fish that could be eaten because of their connections with the gods. The Pharaoh and other priests would abstain from eating fish altogether because it was forbidden by one of their deities as a food reserved for peasants.
Bread was their main staple, made from wheat and barley. From time to time, they supplemented their diet with antelope, which they hunted. Occasionally they ate pork and goat, which were raised on farms.
The Egyptians also raised sheep, cattle, geese and ducks. These animals not only provided them with food, drink, leather and skins, but also helped with their daily lives. Oxen and cattle were used for plowing the fields, and other animals were used for trampling seeds into the soil, and eating unwanted grain.
Birds were of extreme importance to the ancient Egyptians as well. Along the Nile, the bird-life included the falcon, kite, goose, crane, heron, pigeon, ibis, vulture and owl. Numerous birds were actually kept in sacred flocks and some were elevated in status to become temple animals. From the vast collection of ancient Egyptian artwork, evidence exists of several species of birds that are now extinct.
Beekeeping began in Egypt around 2500 BC in the Fifth Dynasty. Egyptians loved honey and they would take great pains to cultivate it. They not only kept bees, but they also actively went out and searched for the honey of wild bees. They would use bee wax for embalming, offerings to the gods, medicines, makeup, and as a bonding agent. They named the honeybee after the bull-like god named Apis because they believed it had similar characteristics. (The historian Herodotus described this bull as being black, with a white diamond on its forehead and two white hairs on its tail.)
Horses were introduced much later into Egyptian society - around 1500 BC. They were a status symbol for the owners and were mainly used to carry chariots into battle and for ceremonial occasions. Horses were rarely ridden and if so, only by royalty. They were well cared for and given individual names. Donkeys were the main beasts of burden. They were used as pack animals and for carrying heavy bundles of grain from the field to the threshing floor. Female donkeys, which produced higher-protein and sweeter milk than cows, were kept as dairy animals.
Hunting was seen as a symbol of mastery over animal forces. Egyptians believed it was their role to conquer the land. Dogs, resembling greyhounds, would help them while hunting. There is evidence from the tomb paintings that the ancient Egyptians sometimes took along cheetahs they had tamed.
The hunters knew their animals well. They studied their characteristics, including their diet and mating habits. This knowledge brought about a great respect for the animals and aided them in the hunt. Oftentimes, they would hunt great cats, which were not always killed. [C] Smaller jungle mammals and wild cats, such as the cheetah, were often kept as family pets. Ramses the Great is said to have had a pet lion.
Dog, cats, monkeys, and birds were also a part of the nuclear family. So devoted were these ancient people to their pets, that upon the pet's passing, they would often carry out the same rites and rituals as they would for any other family member. Pets and sacred animals were mummified and put in special cemeteries. Animals that belonged to the Pharaoh's royal family were mummified and buried with them so they could continue in the afterlife together. The following inscription for a well-loved dog was found in a tomb dating from the 5th or 6th dynasty:
"The dog which was the guard of His Majesty. Abuwtiyuw is his name. His Majesty ordered that he be buried, that he be given a coffin from the royal treasury, fine linen in great quantity, incense. His Majesty gave perfumed ointment and [ordered] that a tomb be built for him by the gang of masons. His Majesty did this for him in order that he might be honored". [1]
For many years, animal mummies have been overlooked while research went on regarding human mummies and other treasures found in the tombs. The study of this previously neglected area of Egyptology has finally changed, thanks to the work of Dr. Salima Ikram, one of the leading experts in Egyptian funerary archaeology. Dr. Ikram is the founder and co-director of the Animal Mummy Project at the Cairo Museum. This project has shed new light on the past, revealing the techniques of mummification and the reasons for it. Regarding the latter, Dr. Ikram tells us four reasons why animals were mummified.
1.They were mummified because they were sacred.
2. They were mummified to please the animal deities (i.e. as offerings to the gods).
3. The ancient Egyptians believed that the afterlife included animals. Therefore, they wanted their pets to continue with them in the afterlife.
4. A certain number of animals were mummified in order to provide food for eternity.
These ancient tombs are time capsules filled with ancient treasures, many of which we are still deciphering and trying to understand. Some of the tomb findings have been items made of animal products, which were used in many ways. Bone was plentiful and the ancient Egyptians fashioned it into jewelry and arrowheads. Glue was made from animal hide and from sinews. Feathers were used as ornaments. Twisted animal gut and sinews were used in the making of stringed instruments. Ivory usually came from Nile hippos and were used for carving combs and jewelry.
Egyptian burials often included sculpted clay and carved wooden figures, tools, and utensils in hopes they would service the dead in the afterlife. These were often part of a larger diorama or miniature three-dimensional scene. Because so many of these elaborate models have been found in the tombs of the royal families, we've learned a great deal about the customs of these people. For example, there are miniature models of butcher shops, scenes of counting and inspecting cattle, and scenes of plowing the fields. There are wonderfully detailed wall paintings and reliefs decorating the tombs, giving us further information about daily life in Ancient Egypt. It is interesting to note that much of this remained hidden for 4,000 to 5,000 years.
As Robert Fulford has written, "...Because the tombs were hidden so well, many of them remained intact until about 200 years ago, when the modern world began discovering them and prying them open, one after another, in wonderment and excitement and gratitude. And so our own civilization, through the collaboration of grave-robbers, scholars and art lovers, has come to know far more about Egypt than would otherwise be possible". [2]
[A] oi.uchicago.edu/OI/MUS/ED/TRC/EGYPT/animals.html [B]
members.tripod.com/~ib205/apis_2.html [C]
bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/egyptians
[1] Giza Digital Library: Giza Bibliography of George A. Reisner (1867-1942) Reisner, George A. "The Dog Which was Honored by the King of Upper and Lower Egypt." Bulletin of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston 34, No. 206 (December 1936), pp. 96-99.
[2] "Eternal optimists: The Royal Ontario Museum's exhibition of Egyptian art reminds us of a civilization that believed you can take it with you" The National Post Toronto, Canada 2 March 2004
Copyright 2008 Melanie Light
Melanie Light is an artist, art historian and educator. She is site owner of Vintage Pets [http://www.zazzle.com/vintagepets], an online gift shop which features dog art, cat art, and horse art. She also runs ArtZpet, an online store featuring exceptional pet lover gifts by hand selected artists.
You may display this article on your website, but you will need to include the author information at the bottom of each article or else you will be violating our usage and federal copyright laws.
Saturday, 13 February 2010
The True Descendants of Ancient Egypt
There are several theories regarding who exactly are the true descendants of the ancient Egyptians. Any one of the following theories might hold the key to the mystery but as yet nobody can say for sure.
• One theory suggests that the modern Egyptian Christians who are commonly known as Copts (and which make up around 10% of the population) are the true descendants of ancient Egypt. They claim that when the Arabs invaded Egypt in 664 CE they segregated themselves and never mixed with the newcomers. If this is true (and it may very well be) then the bloodline would still be pure and they could be classed as the true descendants of ancient Egypt.
• A second theory suggests that the ancient Egyptian race is dead or so diluted that it is no longer detectable. It has been around 1400 years since the Arab nations invaded and conquered the land of ancient Egypt so it is understandable why certain scholars believe that the bloodlines of the ancient Egyptian people must be dead.
• Others believe that a band of ancient Egyptian people either fled the country and the foreign invaders or were exiled by the conquerors and so settled in the neighbouring country of Africa. They supposedly reconstructed their lives in the foreign land with the same economical, political, social and religious systems so that Egypt in effect became a colony of Africa. Today there are several African tribes who profess to be the descendants of specific pharaohs; for example, the Binis of the Benin Empire claim to be descended from Ahmose I while the Dogons say they descend from Ramesses II. Whether these claims are true or not will probably never be confirmed with any certainty. It is compelling though how some societies in other parts of Africa seem to have been influenced by the practices of ancient Egypt.
• Another theory puts the true descendants of the ancient Egyptians all over the world including America. It is suggested that the Islamic invaders began the first known trans-Atlantic slave trade and that Egyptian inhabitants were captured and sold into slavery. An expert in Afro-American history and culture claims that many of the traditions that the Afro-American community celebrate are very similar to those of the Egyptians and he doesn’t think this is a coincidence.
The ancient Egyptians were humanity’s first true civilisation along with Mesopotamia who developed at around the same time. The ancient Egyptians thrived for more than 3000 years and so it seems implausible that they could have been wiped out without a trace. Whether they fled to the safety of Africa, got sold into slavery by the invading Arabs or just integrated with the foreigner so much that they are no longer a true race is a matter of opinion and a final answer may never be agreed upon.
Readers of this article may also have an interest in my blog on Ancient Egypt. Why not come and take a look at http://ancient-egypt-articles.blogspot.com
Readers of this article may also have an interest in my blog on Ancient Egypt. Why not come and take a look at http://ancient-egypt-articles.blogspot.com
• One theory suggests that the modern Egyptian Christians who are commonly known as Copts (and which make up around 10% of the population) are the true descendants of ancient Egypt. They claim that when the Arabs invaded Egypt in 664 CE they segregated themselves and never mixed with the newcomers. If this is true (and it may very well be) then the bloodline would still be pure and they could be classed as the true descendants of ancient Egypt.
• A second theory suggests that the ancient Egyptian race is dead or so diluted that it is no longer detectable. It has been around 1400 years since the Arab nations invaded and conquered the land of ancient Egypt so it is understandable why certain scholars believe that the bloodlines of the ancient Egyptian people must be dead.
• Others believe that a band of ancient Egyptian people either fled the country and the foreign invaders or were exiled by the conquerors and so settled in the neighbouring country of Africa. They supposedly reconstructed their lives in the foreign land with the same economical, political, social and religious systems so that Egypt in effect became a colony of Africa. Today there are several African tribes who profess to be the descendants of specific pharaohs; for example, the Binis of the Benin Empire claim to be descended from Ahmose I while the Dogons say they descend from Ramesses II. Whether these claims are true or not will probably never be confirmed with any certainty. It is compelling though how some societies in other parts of Africa seem to have been influenced by the practices of ancient Egypt.
• Another theory puts the true descendants of the ancient Egyptians all over the world including America. It is suggested that the Islamic invaders began the first known trans-Atlantic slave trade and that Egyptian inhabitants were captured and sold into slavery. An expert in Afro-American history and culture claims that many of the traditions that the Afro-American community celebrate are very similar to those of the Egyptians and he doesn’t think this is a coincidence.
The ancient Egyptians were humanity’s first true civilisation along with Mesopotamia who developed at around the same time. The ancient Egyptians thrived for more than 3000 years and so it seems implausible that they could have been wiped out without a trace. Whether they fled to the safety of Africa, got sold into slavery by the invading Arabs or just integrated with the foreigner so much that they are no longer a true race is a matter of opinion and a final answer may never be agreed upon.
Readers of this article may also have an interest in my blog on Ancient Egypt. Why not come and take a look at http://ancient-egypt-articles.blogspot.com
Readers of this article may also have an interest in my blog on Ancient Egypt. Why not come and take a look at http://ancient-egypt-articles.blogspot.com
Monday, 8 February 2010
Origin of Human Civilisation
It is more or less widely accepted that human civilization consisting of planned cities, organized governance, writing, manufacture and trading began about five thousand years ago in a region of earth comprising the Indus valley, Mesopotamia and Egypt.
The precise details of when and where specific aspects of civilization began are not yet known fully. There are many similarities between Sumer, Egypt and the Indus Valley – the sites of earth’s earliest civilizations. These are some of the hottest, driest and most inhospitable places on the planet. It takes considerable agronomic and hydrological knowledge to convert the marshes and control the floods to turn these into productive farmlands. Civilization originated in these harsh, desert environs lacking many basic resources. Rapidly they invented mining, chariot, sailboat, writing, cities, engineering and so on, and all this while most of the world’s tribes was still living as hunter-gatherers. It is difficult to explain the radical departure from the human norm by several tribes without invoking some insexplicable genetic deviations. Recent discoveries including the discovery of submerged cities of the gulf of Camaby India are however shedding new light on the matter. A possible scenario for the emergence of civilization is as follows.
About six thousand years a small tribal community living on the western coast of India was inspired because of a yet unexplained genetic evolution to begin the construction of planned cities and invent the first few symbols to depict human words or language. They emerged from their prehistoric existence as civilized humans that wanted to develop pottery, cities, and agriculture, and become literate by developing writing. These communities developed the first few pictorial symbols to represent human names and words. Remaining at first a small community for the first few hundred years these coastal people were eventually forced to move northwards and westwards due to seismic disturbance and submergence of their coastal cities about five and a half thousand years ago. They chose only arid plains to establish their new habitations, along the greatest of rivers that flowed at that time, since it is these they were used to and familiar with. Interaction with existing local communities in their new habitats provided them with much needed manpower for a rapid expansion of civilization. Forests scared them because of the threat of wild animals and they were completely unfamiliar with mountain territories considering them unsuitable for agriculture and hence these were avoided in the first march of human civilization. A branch of this community migrated to what is now Iraq and developed the Sumerian civilization on the banks of the Tigris and Euphrates. From here they spread to the Nile valley as well.
The Indus valley people began moving towards Sumer as early as 3300 BC and established their first settlements in ancient Sumer. They spoke the language of their forefathers. It was a completely different language from that of local populations of the area. Ancient Sumerian language is different from other languages of the area such as Hebrew, Akkadian, Babylonian, Assyrian and Aramaic, which are Semitic languages, and Elamite a non-Semitic tribal language of the area with African connections. However, as the ruling class, the colonizers made Sumerian the official language. The local population continued to use Akkadian language. The Sumerian language is a linguistic isolate unrelated to other languages on earth many of which belong to well-known groups of languages. The isolated character of the language is proof that it belonged to a single tribe that had developed in isolation. Whenever an official language differs from a local one, it is a clear indication that the rulers are of foreign origin. It is surprising that ancient historians on earth have not used this as a clue to tracing the origin of the people who brought civilization to Mesopotamia. The extent of the civilized world around 3000 BC lies in a belt extending from the Nile valley to the Indus valley. Since ancient Sumerian is completely different from the local languages around Mesopotamia, it is not difficult to guess where these new colonizers had come from. Their language was different from that of Nile Valley as well. However, since it was the Sumerians who established civilization in the Nile Valley too, some of their vocabulary did enter Egypt and continues to be used till today, as for example the word Khet for an agricultural holding. By the time Sumerians reached the Nile valley they had no need to establish Sumerian as the official language of Nile valley since they had become familiar with local languages of the area. As intermarriages between local Akkadians and ruling Sumerians increased, Sumerian was replaced by Akkadian as a spoken language around 2000 BC. Nevertheless, it continued to be used as a sacred, ceremonial and scientific language in Mesopotamia until about 1 AD. From the beginning of the second millennium, Babylonians and Assyrians maintained and utilized the extinct Sumerian language in much the same way that ancient Greek and Latin are used for artistic, religious and scholarly purposes today.
Although the Sumerian language is not an Indo-Aryan language it uses the root system for developing words. This was later adapted by Indo-Aryans in the development of Sanskrit in the Indus Valley. The use of Sumerian language began first in southern Mesopotamia and spread northwards indicating from which direction Indus people arrive in Mesopotamia, probably through the sea route. Ancient scribes have provided equivalence between Sumerian and Akkadian words and these can be employed to advantage by historians struggling to decipher the Indus Script. So far they have been looking elsewhere trying to establish its equivalence with Dravidian or Indo-European languages and failed. The Indus language was replaced by Indo-Aryan languages in the Indus valley as in much of the old world with the arrival of Aryans. Some of the words of the Indus-Sumerian language however continue to persist in local dialects till today.
Egyptian civilization began with an ancient historic event. The Sumerians Nirmer along with his son Menes and an army of 5000 Akkadian guards set out on a conquest of the Nile valley around 3200 BC. They followed the northern route along Euphrates that reached the Nile valley through Syria. On the periphery of the Nile valley they subjugated local people of African origin and expanded their army further, eventually conquering the Egyptian valley without much of a fight. A prehistoric flint knife, with a handle carved from the tooth of a hippopotamus, in the possession of Louvre and found at Gebel el Arak near Nag Hamâdi depicts a scene from the conquest. On one side of the handle is a battle-scene including some remarkable representations of ancient boats. Many of the warriors are nude with the exception of a loin girdle, but, while one set of combatants have shaven heads or short hair, the others have abundant locks falling in a thick mass upon the shoulder. The nude warriors are obviously of local African origin. It displays the wisdom of the conquerors in utilizing locals for their campaigns. On the other face of the handle is carved a hunting scene. In the upper field is a remarkable group, consisting of a personage struggling with two lions arranged symmetrically. The rest of the composition is not very unlike other examples of prehistoric Egyptian carving in low relief, but here attitude, figure, and clothing are un-Egyptian. The hero wears a turban on his abundant hair, and a full and rounded beard descends upon his breast. A long garment clothes him from the waist and falls below the knees, his muscular calves ending in the claws of a bird of prey. There is no doubt that the heroic personage is represented in the familiar attitude of the Babylonian hero Gilgamesh struggling with lions, a favorite subject of early Sumerian and Babylonian seals. His garment is Sumerian rather than Egyptian. The design itself is unmistakably of Mesopotamian origin. There was no physical barrier to the use of the river-route from Mesopotamia into Syria and of the tracks thence southward along the land bridge to the Nile's delta.
After the conquest Nirmer (The Scorpion King) returned to Babylon leaving his son Menes in charge of the new kingdom. Menes unified the scattered communities of the entire Nile Valley. There he established the First Egyptian Dynasty with a Sumerian civilization. The unified state led to the development of writing, the start of large scale construction and the venturing out from the Nile Valley to trade. The most remarkable evidence of cultural connection is shown in the architecture of Early Dynastic tombs of Egypt and Mesopotamian seal-impressions showing exactly similar buildings. A problem that early Sumerian ruling class faced upon arrival in Egypt was the different, even contrary religious beliefs. Egyptians glorified the floods whereas the Sumerian dreaded it because of their religious records of the deluge that had originally flooded their homeland and beautiful cities on the western coast of India leading to their exodus. However the Sumerians soon assimilated everything useful they found in the new lands and thus developed their culture even further. Unlike the colonists of eighteenth century the Sumerians arrived in any new territory with the intention of making it their home and progressed from strength to strength as they marched westwards. However the Nile valley was the limit of their expansion since their were no other great rivers flowing through vast arid plains to the west of the Nile. Nimes established the first Egyptian dynasty. The second Egyptian dynasty that ruled with the symbol of the dog rather than a bird appears to have emerged on Egyptian soil itself.
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The precise details of when and where specific aspects of civilization began are not yet known fully. There are many similarities between Sumer, Egypt and the Indus Valley – the sites of earth’s earliest civilizations. These are some of the hottest, driest and most inhospitable places on the planet. It takes considerable agronomic and hydrological knowledge to convert the marshes and control the floods to turn these into productive farmlands. Civilization originated in these harsh, desert environs lacking many basic resources. Rapidly they invented mining, chariot, sailboat, writing, cities, engineering and so on, and all this while most of the world’s tribes was still living as hunter-gatherers. It is difficult to explain the radical departure from the human norm by several tribes without invoking some insexplicable genetic deviations. Recent discoveries including the discovery of submerged cities of the gulf of Camaby India are however shedding new light on the matter. A possible scenario for the emergence of civilization is as follows.
About six thousand years a small tribal community living on the western coast of India was inspired because of a yet unexplained genetic evolution to begin the construction of planned cities and invent the first few symbols to depict human words or language. They emerged from their prehistoric existence as civilized humans that wanted to develop pottery, cities, and agriculture, and become literate by developing writing. These communities developed the first few pictorial symbols to represent human names and words. Remaining at first a small community for the first few hundred years these coastal people were eventually forced to move northwards and westwards due to seismic disturbance and submergence of their coastal cities about five and a half thousand years ago. They chose only arid plains to establish their new habitations, along the greatest of rivers that flowed at that time, since it is these they were used to and familiar with. Interaction with existing local communities in their new habitats provided them with much needed manpower for a rapid expansion of civilization. Forests scared them because of the threat of wild animals and they were completely unfamiliar with mountain territories considering them unsuitable for agriculture and hence these were avoided in the first march of human civilization. A branch of this community migrated to what is now Iraq and developed the Sumerian civilization on the banks of the Tigris and Euphrates. From here they spread to the Nile valley as well.
The Indus valley people began moving towards Sumer as early as 3300 BC and established their first settlements in ancient Sumer. They spoke the language of their forefathers. It was a completely different language from that of local populations of the area. Ancient Sumerian language is different from other languages of the area such as Hebrew, Akkadian, Babylonian, Assyrian and Aramaic, which are Semitic languages, and Elamite a non-Semitic tribal language of the area with African connections. However, as the ruling class, the colonizers made Sumerian the official language. The local population continued to use Akkadian language. The Sumerian language is a linguistic isolate unrelated to other languages on earth many of which belong to well-known groups of languages. The isolated character of the language is proof that it belonged to a single tribe that had developed in isolation. Whenever an official language differs from a local one, it is a clear indication that the rulers are of foreign origin. It is surprising that ancient historians on earth have not used this as a clue to tracing the origin of the people who brought civilization to Mesopotamia. The extent of the civilized world around 3000 BC lies in a belt extending from the Nile valley to the Indus valley. Since ancient Sumerian is completely different from the local languages around Mesopotamia, it is not difficult to guess where these new colonizers had come from. Their language was different from that of Nile Valley as well. However, since it was the Sumerians who established civilization in the Nile Valley too, some of their vocabulary did enter Egypt and continues to be used till today, as for example the word Khet for an agricultural holding. By the time Sumerians reached the Nile valley they had no need to establish Sumerian as the official language of Nile valley since they had become familiar with local languages of the area. As intermarriages between local Akkadians and ruling Sumerians increased, Sumerian was replaced by Akkadian as a spoken language around 2000 BC. Nevertheless, it continued to be used as a sacred, ceremonial and scientific language in Mesopotamia until about 1 AD. From the beginning of the second millennium, Babylonians and Assyrians maintained and utilized the extinct Sumerian language in much the same way that ancient Greek and Latin are used for artistic, religious and scholarly purposes today.
Although the Sumerian language is not an Indo-Aryan language it uses the root system for developing words. This was later adapted by Indo-Aryans in the development of Sanskrit in the Indus Valley. The use of Sumerian language began first in southern Mesopotamia and spread northwards indicating from which direction Indus people arrive in Mesopotamia, probably through the sea route. Ancient scribes have provided equivalence between Sumerian and Akkadian words and these can be employed to advantage by historians struggling to decipher the Indus Script. So far they have been looking elsewhere trying to establish its equivalence with Dravidian or Indo-European languages and failed. The Indus language was replaced by Indo-Aryan languages in the Indus valley as in much of the old world with the arrival of Aryans. Some of the words of the Indus-Sumerian language however continue to persist in local dialects till today.
Egyptian civilization began with an ancient historic event. The Sumerians Nirmer along with his son Menes and an army of 5000 Akkadian guards set out on a conquest of the Nile valley around 3200 BC. They followed the northern route along Euphrates that reached the Nile valley through Syria. On the periphery of the Nile valley they subjugated local people of African origin and expanded their army further, eventually conquering the Egyptian valley without much of a fight. A prehistoric flint knife, with a handle carved from the tooth of a hippopotamus, in the possession of Louvre and found at Gebel el Arak near Nag Hamâdi depicts a scene from the conquest. On one side of the handle is a battle-scene including some remarkable representations of ancient boats. Many of the warriors are nude with the exception of a loin girdle, but, while one set of combatants have shaven heads or short hair, the others have abundant locks falling in a thick mass upon the shoulder. The nude warriors are obviously of local African origin. It displays the wisdom of the conquerors in utilizing locals for their campaigns. On the other face of the handle is carved a hunting scene. In the upper field is a remarkable group, consisting of a personage struggling with two lions arranged symmetrically. The rest of the composition is not very unlike other examples of prehistoric Egyptian carving in low relief, but here attitude, figure, and clothing are un-Egyptian. The hero wears a turban on his abundant hair, and a full and rounded beard descends upon his breast. A long garment clothes him from the waist and falls below the knees, his muscular calves ending in the claws of a bird of prey. There is no doubt that the heroic personage is represented in the familiar attitude of the Babylonian hero Gilgamesh struggling with lions, a favorite subject of early Sumerian and Babylonian seals. His garment is Sumerian rather than Egyptian. The design itself is unmistakably of Mesopotamian origin. There was no physical barrier to the use of the river-route from Mesopotamia into Syria and of the tracks thence southward along the land bridge to the Nile's delta.
After the conquest Nirmer (The Scorpion King) returned to Babylon leaving his son Menes in charge of the new kingdom. Menes unified the scattered communities of the entire Nile Valley. There he established the First Egyptian Dynasty with a Sumerian civilization. The unified state led to the development of writing, the start of large scale construction and the venturing out from the Nile Valley to trade. The most remarkable evidence of cultural connection is shown in the architecture of Early Dynastic tombs of Egypt and Mesopotamian seal-impressions showing exactly similar buildings. A problem that early Sumerian ruling class faced upon arrival in Egypt was the different, even contrary religious beliefs. Egyptians glorified the floods whereas the Sumerian dreaded it because of their religious records of the deluge that had originally flooded their homeland and beautiful cities on the western coast of India leading to their exodus. However the Sumerians soon assimilated everything useful they found in the new lands and thus developed their culture even further. Unlike the colonists of eighteenth century the Sumerians arrived in any new territory with the intention of making it their home and progressed from strength to strength as they marched westwards. However the Nile valley was the limit of their expansion since their were no other great rivers flowing through vast arid plains to the west of the Nile. Nimes established the first Egyptian dynasty. The second Egyptian dynasty that ruled with the symbol of the dog rather than a bird appears to have emerged on Egyptian soil itself.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ashok_Malhotra
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