Image via Wikipedia
Image via Wikipedia
The Nile River is the longest river in the world. It has two main sources. One begins near Lake Victoria in eastern Africa. The other source comes from the Ethiopian highlands. It stretches over 4,000 miles from its sources to the Mediterranean.
Image via Wikipedia
Egyptians settled over 700 miles of land along side of the river .
As you study history you will see that people always settled near a reliable source of water. Settling along the river not only allowed them access to water for their daily use and their crops, it made it possible to transport things up and down the river, instead of over land, which could take a very long time and be dangerous.
The river flows from south to north and the winds blow from north to south, so it was fairly easy for boats to travel both directions.
The Nile Valley is full of limestone, sandstone and granite, which the Egyptians used to build with. The ease of travel, up and down the river, allowed them move these heavy rocks around to build many great cities. Since these cities were connected by the river pathway they were able to trade & communicate pretty easily, leading to the creation of Egyptian Kingdoms.
Every year the Nile floods its banks, leaving behind fertile soil. Farmers dug canals to carry the water to their fields and were able to grow more than one crop per year, sometimes up to three .
Because of such successful crops many people were able to thrive, which helped lead to a great civilization.
The Nile Valley is surrounded by desert and seas which protected the Egyptians from would be invaders. Over the centuries they were able to worry more about building their great cities and monuments than the danger of invaders.
Homeschool Lesson for Review questions:
1. What body of water does the Nile flow to?
2. Which minerals are found in the Nile Valley?
3. In which direction does the river flow?
Homeschool lesson for The Nile River Valley is part of a series about early civilizations.
