Wikipedia:Articles for creation/2007-10-20

Profile
Sharolaid is the originally self described "Queen of Ghetto." That title has since been adopted by Chris Crocker. She started her internet fame by posting comedy videos on YouTube in January, 2006. The videos featured several characters including Ethel Rosenburg, Eva Shattswell, and Miss P. But Sharolaid has been the main, and most popular character. The videos consist of prank calls to places like Taco Bell, America Online, Walmart, Walgreens, Petsmart, and Blockbuster Video. Sharolaid is extremely popular on YouTube, easily gaining hundreds of subscribers in a short period of time. But due to the sometimes offensive nature of the videos, YouTube users constantly report Sharolaid to the YouTube staff and they will then suspend the account. Sharolaid has not given up, however. She describes herself as AIDS and once you have it, there is no curing it. Or a weed in a flower garden. Sharolaid has many YouTube profiles and even has her fans upload Sharolaid videos to make sure her videos will live on the website forever.

Sharolaid has also had great success uploading videos to sites like Revver.

On January 9th, 2006, Sharolaid was interviewed by a Lifetime TV corespondent.

Declined. We cannot accept unsourced suggestions or sources that are not reliable per the verifiability policy. Please provide reputable, third-party sources with your suggestions. Third party sources are needed both to establish the verifiability of the submission as well as its notability. Ariel ♥  Gold  00:35, 20 October 2007 (UTC)
 * style="text-align:center;" | This is an archived discussion. Please do not modify it. 
 * }
 * }

Sharolaid V Jeffree Star
In October 2007, Myspace celebrity Jeffree Star, along with other notables such as John Hock, made a video directed at Sharolaid which uses racial slurs against African Americans and Mexicans. The video was done in response to Sharolaid creating a fake Jeffree Star profile on Stickam.

The bad blood between Sharolaid and Jeffree Star began when Sharolaid e-mailed Star to ask how he applies his makeup. Star responded back by saying "It's geting old" and then blocked Sharolaid. This led to Sharolaid mentioning Star in her prank call videos which Star later found out about and Star sent a letter to Sharolaid threatening a law suit. So far, no suit has been filed.

Martin Fillo
Declined. We cannot accept blank suggestions. Please consider submitting to Requested articles instead. Ariel ♥  Gold  04:55, 20 October 2007 (UTC)
 * style="text-align:center;" | This is an archived discussion. Please do not modify it. 
 * }
 * }

Antonio Esteban Tone Bonilla
Antonio Bonilla was born in July 16, 1992 he is also known as Tone.B. A verry important person in the history of the planet earth. Tone.B is a Martial Arts Expert in Aikido, Capoeira, Choy Li Fut, Dim Mak, Gojukai Goju, Ryu Hapkido, Hsing, Iaido, Jeet Kune Do, Judo, Jujutsu, Kali,Kendo, Kenpo Karate, Krav Maga, Kyokushinkai, Muay Thai, Ninjutsu, Shorin Ryu, Shorinji Kempo, Shotokan, Shukokai, Yoseikan, and specialy Changquan. When Antonio was born he was sent to Japan to learn Martial Arts and as he grew up he was sent to China, Taiwan, and Thai. There he trained extremly hard with other Martial Arts Experts to prepare himself until the time comes. When The time comes we will call on Antonio to help us from the terror the earth will face in exactly 32 years from when Antonio was born. For now Antonio Must hide his Gift as the Savior of Planet Earth.

Quiet Company
Quiet Company, led by Taylor Glen Muse, is a Piano Rock band band hailing from Austin, Texas.

Biography
Copyright violation removed

Albums
1. Shine Honesty 23 March 2006

Music Videos

 * Fashionabel (2007) (Directed By Cameron McCasland)

Members

 * Taylor Muse
 * Thomas Blank
 * Tim Robbins

Former Members

 * Alex Bhore (record)

john a huff
Jhon a huff lived in a small town called armada located in southeastern michigan. he was a farmer. he is buried in the bruce and armada cemetery just out side of armada. he was a sharpshooter for the union army during the civil war. when he served he single handedly killed j.e.b. stuart the souths best commander. he alone shifted tides of the war. he alone won the american civil war.

Saadia Ali Aschemann
Saadia Ali Aschemann was born on March 13, 1972, in St. Charles, Missouri. She and her family moved to Quincy, Illinois in 1978 where she was an honor student in the Quincy Public School System. Aschemann earned her bachelors degree in Government and Politics from George Mason University in 1993. She went on to earn a Masters degree in Education from the University of Illinois in Springfield.

Aschemann began publishing poetry in 2005 on a blogger.com weblog entitled Saadia's World using the screen name Girly_Girl. Intitially, her poetry was read by only a handful of bloggers. Within a year, her readership had grown exponentially. Aschemann has readers all over the world and was able to attract the attention of Diane Dorce at FireFly Publishing. Dorce encouraged Aschemann to compile a collection of poetry for a book. lavish lines/luscious lies, Aschemann's first collection of poetry was published in 2007 by FireFly publishing.

Though Saadia Ali Aschemann is a published poet, she still updates her poetry blogs daily. She is currently working on her second book.

Links
http://www.amazon.com/Lavish-Lines-Luscious-Saadia-Aschemann/dp/0977412628/ref=sr_1_1/103-0286894-5363075?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1180990042&sr=8-1

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&EAN=9780977412624&itm=1

http://www.xanga.com/Saadias_World

http://www.blogger.com/profile/04240365376170214782

www.saadiaonline.com/id1.html


 * Note by Ariel  ♥  Gold  : None of these are reliable, third-party sources.

74.141.165.246 03:16, 20 October 2007 (UTC) Category:Articles for creation templates

Declined. This suggestion doesn't sufficiently explain the importance or significance of the subject. See the speedy deletion criteria (A7) and/or guidelines on notability. Please provide more information on why the subject is worthy of inclusion in an encyclopedia. Thank you. -- Pump  me  up  05:44, 20 October 2007 (UTC)
 * style="text-align:center;" | This is an archived discussion. Please do not modify it. 
 * }
 * }

Vijayant Thapar
Captain Vijayant Thapar, A young soldier of Indian Army, gave the supreme sacrifice in the Kargil war defending his motherland against the pakistani intruders. On 28 June 1999 Captain Vijyant Thapar was commanding the Leading platoon of Alfa Company, which was tasked to assault area Knoll in Drass Sector frome the north during Operation Vijay. While advancing, the platoon was hit by accurate enemy artillery barrage and it sufferred heavy casualties. Captain Thapar organized evacuation of the casualties and quickly rallied his shell-shocked platoon for the attack. Personally leading the attack from the Northern face against enemy's Medium Machine Gun fire, which was holding up the Company's assault, he fearlessly charged at the enemy position firing from the hip and throwing grenades. During this act, he was grievously injured in the hand and stomach but continued to advance ordering his men to follow him. Roused by the actions of their young Platoon Commander barely out of the Academy, the platoon charged up the hill against the dominating enemy position. This audacious action unnerved and forced the enemy to abandon a tactically superior position. The officer, however, succumbed to his injuries.

The whole country remembers his for his sacrifice.He was awarded Vir Chakra for on 15Aug 1999.

Tamurbek Davletshin
Tamurbek Davletshin (b. 1904, village of Zildyar, Bahkortostan -- 1983, Munich) -- Tatar jurist, writer, journalist, public figure.

After finishing high school, Tamurbek started studying law in 1924[[, first in [[Kazan and later in Irkutsk and Moscow. He completed his studies in 1930. Two years later he began working in the economics section of the newly established Industrial Research Institute in Ufa. He became its chairman in 1934. In 1938 he was charged with being a "bourgeois nationalist" and "enemy of the people" but subequently acquitted. Davletshin volunteered to join the army and was sent to the front in 1941. During one of the battles he was captured and taken prisoner. After World War II Davletshin started working for the Tatar-Bashkir Center in Munich and writing for the newspaper Azad Vatan (1952-1954). He was invited to join the Institute for the Study of the USSR in Munich and became one of its researchers. Davletshin contributed some 80 studies to the Institute's publications and was the editor of the Institute's journal East Turkic Review. Much of his work is available in English.

Davletshin's major scholarly contribution was his his Russian-language book "Советский Татарстан" (Soviet Tatarstan) published in London in 1974. The book was translated into German and Turkish. He is also the author of one of the first Tatar-German dictionaries.

Ellie Spain - British Pole Vaulter
Ellie Spain first came into the limelight as a 17 year old when she smashed the British Junior Record in 2000, raising it from 3.70m to 3.90m in one go. Later that year she competed in the World Junior Championships in Santiago de Chile, representing the Great Britain Junior Athletics Team. She reached the final of the Championships.

However, in 2001 she underwent left and right knee constructions which ruled her out of competition for a year and a half. On her return to competition she won the British U23 Championships and was consistent over 4m.

Her senior debut came in 2006 when she was selected to represent Team England in the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, again she reaced the final and finished 11th. That summer Ellie won her first senior British title, winning the UK senior Championships with a new stadium record of 4.21m. Her nearest rival on this occasion jumped 3.90m. The same year Ellie was selected for her senior Great Britain debut for the European Championships in Goteborg, Sweden.

The indoor season in 2007 started well for Ellie, where she jumped 4.26m in Vienna to go to the top of the British rankings. Unfortunately however, unbenown to her she was carrying a stress fracture in L5 pars at this time. By the end of February she had to stop competing and get the stress fracture healed to prevent any further risk to her spine. Despite this, Ellie is currently British number 2 and training full time in Loughborough. 2008 brings the Beijing Olympics, and all eyes are on making an Olympic debut in preparation for competing in London 2012.

CDB
CDB are widely regarded as pioneers of Australian R & B. Back when Bobby Brown was taking every little step to be there, brothers Gary and Brad Pinto, Andrew De Silva and Danny Williams were taking their own first steps along a road that would lead them to multi platinum success.

Their debut single "HOOK ME UP" reached Gold sales, pushed up the charts by fans hungry for a new sound in Australia. The success of their second single "HEY GIRL" meant CDB were here to stay and defined their genre as Australian R & B - smooth, with a pop-feel appeal. At a time when Grunge was weighing top heavy on the charts, CDB brought disco back to Australia. Their platinum selling single "LETS GROOVE" debuted at the top end of the charts and stayed there for an eternity, winning them an Aria for the highest selling single of ‘96.

Their first album "GLIDE WITH ME" debuted higher than The Beatles Anthology and Madonna and soon reached platinum status. Their second album "LIFTED" had success with singles, "GOOD TIMES", "BACK THEN". As a hard working touring band, CDB honed their skills as artists, their energetic shows and strong vocalization wowed audiences across the country. It wasn’t long before they were opening for acts such as Boys II Men, K-ci and Jo-jo, even Celine Dion – to name a few.

In 2007 and out of love & respect for their brotherhood, the CDB sound is back! They are currently working on an exciting new project.

Declined. We cannot accept unsourced suggestions or sources that are not reliable per the verifiability policy. Please provide reputable, third-party sources with your suggestions. Third party sources are needed both to establish the verifiability of the submission as well as its notability. Precious Roy 10:58, 20 October 2007 (UTC)
 * style="text-align:center;" | This is an archived discussion. Please do not modify it. 
 * }
 * }

Bajaj Exceed 125 DTS-SI
The Bajaj DTS-SI is a 125 cc motorcycle manufactured in India. It is designed for the average commuter.The machine provides 8000rpm@9.5bhp. More importantly it introduces a technology called swirl induction which increases its mileage to 109kmpl.This is achieved by cross aligning fuel injection valves to produce a swirl effect to make for complete combustion of fuel.This will provide users the capacity to move on to higher engine displacements without compromising fuel efficiency.

Sources:THE TIMES OF INDIA BUSINESS TIMES

121.241.69.162 09:19, 20 October 2007 (UTC) Category:Articles for creation templates

Declined. We cannot accept unsourced suggestions or sources that are not reliable per the verifiability policy. Please provide reputable, third-party sources with your suggestions. Third party sources are needed both to establish the verifiability of the submission as well as its notability. Precious Roy 10:57, 20 October 2007 (UTC)
 * style="text-align:center;" | This is an archived discussion. Please do not modify it. 
 * }
 * }

Metaphor, Meaning and Macbeth By Usman Rafique Mughal, 16th-century arguments for the ethical grounding of style.
copyright violation removed

Blagodir Software
Blagodir Software, Inc. is a rapidly growing custom development and software outsourcing company. Our offshore development department is located in Ukraine (Eastern Europe). We specialize in the development of custom software applications and offshore software outsourcing services based on SugarCRM solution. Specifically, our company carries out custom programming, database design, client-server and internet/intranet software application development.

Remixed & Official 3" EP
Remixed and Official is a 3" promotional CD given away free with the Japanese 1990 Kylie Annual.

Track Listing

 * 1) Hand On Your Heart : The Heartache mix 5:22
 * 2) Wouldn't Change A Thing : Espagna mix 5:51
 * 3) Never Too Late : Extended mix 6:11
 * 4) Tears On My Pillow : More Tears mix^ 4:05

^Labelled as Extended mix

Lech Tomasz Kisielewicz
Lech Tomacz Kisielwicz, (often misspelled Lech Tomacz Kisielwicz) is a French businessman, who flew on Thai Airways in 1995. After getting into disagreement with two fellow passengers, who happened to be relatives of Thai dictator Bhumibol Adulyadej, he was kidnapped by police and held hostage in Thai jail. After an international outcry, dictator had him released and deported.

Seee also:

list of dictators Censorship_in_Thailand

65.143.85.82 13:31, 20 October 2007 (UTC) Category:Articles for creation templates

Declined. We cannot accept unsourced suggestions or sources that are not reliable per the verifiability policy. Please provide reputable, third-party sources with your suggestions. Third party sources are needed both to establish the verifiability of the submission as well as its notability. Precious Roy 19:50, 20 October 2007 (UTC)
 * style="text-align:center;" | This is an archived discussion. Please do not modify it. 
 * }
 * }

Eat
Based in King's Cross, London, Eat first formed in 1986, though their roots were in the picturesque location of Bath, Avon, rather than the squats of the capital. With music described as "Louisiana swamp mindfuck blues", they signed to Fiction Records, initially on a one-off contract for the Autogift EP. The band, comprising brothers Paul and Max Nobel (guitar), Ange Dolittle (vocals), Tim Sewell (bass) and Pete Howard (drums), soon ingratiated themselves with their north London following by playing frequently at the underground Mutoid Waste events, while both Paul Nobel and Sewell could be found DJing at warehouse parties during the rise of acid house. There was always an endearing quality to the band; at a gig at London's Borderline club in its opening week they handed cash out to the audience after deciding the entrance fee was "a rip off". Disc jockey John Peel regularly played one track from the debut, "Skin", leading to a full five-album contract with Fiction Records and a second EP, The Plastic Bag Tour. Pinned around the anti-yuppie anthem "Babyboom", it further revealed the depth of the band, with Dolittle's vocals distinctively cast through a Bullit harmonica microphone. Always a somewhat fractious band, after their debut album there was a split between the Nobel brothers and the rest of Eat in November 1990 (the second album was consequently delayed). As Dolittle pointed out: "It got to the point where we just couldn't bear to be in the same room as each other'. Paul and Max Nobel went on to form TV Eye. In 1991 the band were re-formed with Dolittle joined by former members Sewell and Howard, plus guitarists Jem Moorshead and Maz Lavilla. The cover of 1992's Golden Egg EP showed Dolittle naked with his genitals airbrushed out, causing complaints from various councils who vowed not to put up the posters. The singer also exposed himself on stage with the Wonder Stuff, a band rarely outdone in onstage excess. However, despite generally positive reviews for 1993"s Epicure, much of the momentum earned on tours with the aforementioned band and James had evidently elapsed. In 1995 Dolittle joined with former members of the Wonder Stuff to become Weknowhereyoulive.

Lea Manor High School Performing Arts College
Lea Manor High School Performing Arts College is a high school in the town of Luton, south Bedfordshire, England. It is used by over 1000 students and adult learners. The school includes a full working theatre, a large libruary, high tech music rooms, student support rooms, an Apple Mac media room and many other fantastic features. The school uses the ajecent Lea Manor recreation centre for P.E lessons which includes a dual level gym, sauna, swimming pool, two sports halls and the Countries' first Dance Revolution system which are all used in P.E lessons. The centre also includes an astroturf, tennis courts, netball pitches and a large sports field with running tracks.

Performing Arts
The school has only been recently given the status as a performing arts school and has taken the role on with great enthusiasm - buying state of the art keyboards, installing Dance Revolution and soon to be built - a dazzling new theatre which will be a centre piece to the community.

Reward System
The school runs a reward system through out the school supporting the students to follow the 4 C's (Courtesy, Commitment, Co-operation and Consideration) and make their way up the rewards pyramid towards the top prize - an iPod Nano when 1000 reward stamps have been achieved. The Pyramid goes similar to this:
 * 1000 - End of term award - Entered into a draw to win either a 20 inch T.V or a laptop...
 * 1000 - Lea Manor Special Award - iPod Nano...
 * 500 - Head Teachers Award - £25 shop voucher or £10 book voucher...
 * 400 - Deputy Head Teachers Award - £15 to spend at the school shop...
 * 300 - Assistant Head Teachers Award - £5 to spend at the school shop...
 * 200 - Senior Tutor Award - £2 to spend at the school shop...
 * 100 - Form Tutor Award - £1 to spend at the school shop...

Presentation Day
Lea Manor's presentation day is normally on a friday afternoon in November/December. In the show, nominated students recieve awards for various subjects which they have done good in the previous school year. Some of the awards are pesented by celebrities (previous year; Stefan Booth) and there is normally a musical performance by well known acts such as Voices With Soul from the X Factor. This year, presentation day is on Friday 30th November.

Isiah Carey FOX News Journalist
Isiah Carey (b. October 17, 1970) is a news journalist from Baton Rouge, La. who works for the FOX O&O (www.myfohouston.com) in Houston, Texas. Carey was recently the subject of an article about journalists who also operate blogs in the Houston Chronicle (Chron.com) newspaper in Texas. The veteran journalist has also won numerous broadcast awards including an Emmy and honors from the Society of Professional Journalists. The news reporter has appeared in such national shows as The Women of Enron and Pimp C DVD: Pimpalation. Isiah has worked for several broadcast entities around the country including WAFB-TV, KARK-TV, WVLA-TV, WHBQ-TV, and BET National News. He's also made frequent appearances on CNN and FOX national news covering such high profile cases as Enron and Houston's Atrium building fire deaths. He recently made headlines when a judge issued him a subpoena to testify in the ongoing trial of Dr. Priscilla Slade. She's the former President of Texas Southern University. Slade was indicted for allegedly using university funds for her own personal use. The focus of the subpoena was to determine where Houston journalists learned details of an alleged plea bargain between Slade and Harris County Prosecutors. Isiah is currently just as well known for his personal blog The Insite (www.carey2.blogspot.com) as he is for his television reporting. Carey is also known to cover such Houston entertainers as Scarface, Willie D, Slim Thug, Chamillionaire, Paul Wall and James Prince of Rap-A-Lot Records. Isiah has been a journalist for 17 years now.

Links:

Isiah Carey bio: http://www.myfoxhouston.com/myfox/pages/InsideFox/Detail?contentId=665811&version=13&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=5.3.1

Isiah Carey's Personal Blog: http://carey2.blogspot.com

Isiah Carey in the Houston Chronicle: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ent/4867316.html

Isiah Carey in the urban report: http://www.myurbanreport.com/?p=44

98.199.76.220 16:14, 20 October 2007 (UTC) Category:Articles for creation templates

Declined. This suggestion doesn't sufficiently explain the importance or significance of the subject. See the speedy deletion criteria A7 and/or guidelines on biographies. Please provide more information on why the person or group is worthy of inclusion in an encyclopedia, and cite reliable, published third-party sources, so that the information in the article is verifiable. Thank you. MasterXC 16:29, 22 October 2007 (UTC)
 * style="text-align:center;" | This is an archived discussion. Please do not modify it. 
 * }
 * }

Matthew-McKenzie
The Matthew-McKenzie is an endangered creature of the Siberian Highlands. It was discovered in 1492 by Christopher Columbus as he journeyed through the American wilderness. Named after Czar Matthew-McKenzie the Great of France, the Matthew-McKenzie is one of the least known species of our world. Covered from head to toe in wooly pink fur, it is said to resemble the great Sasquatch, a difference is only disernable by looking at it's long yellow antlers. It is a very territorial animal, nipping all those who come within 8.62549 yards of their young. The young, also known as m&m's are small and mostly black, but dotted with pink spots. They will not turn completely pink until they mature, around the age of 96, they die exactly one year later. No known Matthew-McKenzie has ever died at any other age. The Matthew-McKenzie preys on the carniverous maple tree, and the occasional Comi. Never in living memory has a Democrat been attacked or harmed by the Matthew-McKenzie. Most of these creatures communicate with grunted words, but the rare Matthew-McKenzie will speak english with a Jamaican accent. It is the chief mascot of many schools, including several former Soviet Union schools. The most famous of these is Rasputin College and Stalin University of Iraq.

Alex Cox
Alex Cox( born Alex Cornel Cox on the 7th of October 1992 in Newcastle) is lead guitarist for Newcastle based rock group Gods invisable Scooter. He is a distinctive guitarist who has a very retro 1960s guitar sound. Cox is often considered by his peers to be one of the most talented up and coming guitarists. Cox is also a very outspoken and often contreversial figure, when interviewed for newcastle based music magazine the crach about wheather or not being excluded from his secondery school could effect his future he simply replied what I can't be today I can be tommorrow. When asked in the same interview who was the best guitairst he knew was he stated himself. On stage Alex uses three guitars, mainly Gibson Les pauls, Gibson SG and Fender Telecasters. He also uses a wide variety of guitar effect pedals, the effects he uses are Boss distortion (ds1), Boss compresser sustainer (cs3), Boss Tremolo (tr2) Boss Super Chrous (sc2)and a Jim Dunlop Cry Baby. Cox writes all of Gods Invisable Scooters lyrics and music, which lead to him being nicknamed the general by his fellow band mates

Brian Peppers
Brian Peppers (born November 1, 1968) is a resident of Whitehouse, Ohio (a suburb of Toledo), who became the subject of an Internet meme that originated in 2005 concerning the circulation of his photograph, obtained from the Ohio Electronic Sex Offenders Registry.

The appearance of the photograph led many viewers to suggest that it was faked. Snopes investigated the case and determined it was most likely true. They also found high school yearbook photos of Peppers. The Ohio Attorney General's office told them "This is an accurate photo of this offender."

Snopes suggests that Peppers' unusual appearance may be due to malformation of the cranium caused by a branchial arch condition such as Apert syndrome or Crouzon syndrome.

Peppers was sentenced to 30 days in jail with 5 years probation thereafter in 1998 for the crime of "Gross Sexual Imposition". Gross Sexual Imposition is defined as unwilling sexual contact with one who is not one's spouse.

It was said on a YTMND that he was sentenced for allegedly groping a nurse, but he was really just trying to get her attention. Whether this letter is completely true or not is yet to be known, but many people believe it to be true.

Erie Bell
The Erie Bell is a old bell from a train on the Erie Railroad. Each year, Southside High School (Elmira, NY) and Elmira Free Academy (Elmira, NY) play a football game for ownership of the Erie Bell.

72.189.252.179 20:39, 20 October 2007 (UTC) Category:Articles for creation templates

Declined. This article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. Please see tips on how to better format your article. Hers fold  (t/a/c) 21:32, 20 October 2007 (UTC)
 * style="text-align:center;" | This is an archived discussion. Please do not modify it. 
 * }
 * }

Old African Kingdoms
This is a page about African culture and History

Egyptian Empire (1570 BC – 1070 BC) founders...Egyptians dominion over...Egyptians, Nubians, Berbers, Israelites, Phoenicians

Ancient Egypt was a civilization in Northeastern Africa concentrated along the middle to lower reaches of the Nile River, reaching its greatest extent in the second millennium BC, during the New Kingdom. It stretched from the Nile Delta in the north as far south as Jebel Barkal at the Fourth Cataract of the Nile, in modern-day Sudan. Extensions to the geographic range of ancient Egyptian civilization included, at different times, areas of the southern Levant, the Eastern Desert and the Red Sea coastline, the Sinai Peninsula, and the oases of the Western desert.[2]

The civilization of ancient Egypt developed over more than three and a half millennia. It began with the political unification of the major Nile Valley cultures under one ruler, the first pharaoh, around 3150 BC,[3] and led to a series of golden ages known as Kingdoms separated by periods of relative instability known as Intermediate Periods. After the end of the last golden age, the New Kingdom, the civilization of ancient Egypt entered a period of slow, steady decline, when Egypt was conquered by a succession of foreign adversaries. The power of the pharaohs officially ended in 31 BC, when the early Roman Empire conquered Egypt and made it a province of the Empire.[1]

The civilization of ancient Egypt was based on balanced control of natural and human resources under the leadership of the pharaoh, religious leaders, and court administrators, characterised by controlled irrigation of the fertile Nile Valley; the mineral exploitation of the valley and surrounding desert regions; the early development of an independent writing system and literature; the organization of collective construction and agricultural projects; trade with surrounding regions in east and central Africa and the eastern Mediterranean; and finally, military ventures that defeated foreign enemies and asserted Egyptian domination throughout the region. Motivating and organising these activities was a bureaucracy of elite scribes, religious leaders, and administrators under the control of the quasi-divine pharaoh (becoming divine upon death), who ensured the cooperation and unity of the Egyptian people by means of an elaborate system of religious beliefs. History Dynasties of Pharaohs in Ancient Egypt Predynastic Egypt Protodynastic Period Early Dynastic Period 1st 2nd Old Kingdom 3rd 4th 5th 6th First Intermediate Period 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th (Thebes only) Middle Kingdom 11th (All Egypt) 12th 13th 14th Second Intermediate Period 15th 16th 17th New Kingdom 18th 19th 20th Third Intermediate Period 21st 22nd 23rd 24th 25th 26th First Persian Period Late Period 28th 29th 30th Second Persian Period Graeco-Roman Period Alexander the Great Ptolemaic Dynasty Roman Egypt Arab Conquest Main articles: History of ancient Egypt and History of Egypt The Nile has been the lifeline of Egypt since nomadic hunter-gatherers began living in the region during the Pleistocene, some 1.8 million years ago.[2] The lifestyles of early humans were highly dependent on climate, and by the late Paleolithic the arid climate of northern Africa had become increasingly hot and dry, forcing the population to concentrate along the Nile valley.[2] The fertile floodplain of the Nile gave humans the opportunity to develop a settled agricultural economy and a more developed, centralized society that became a cornerstone in the history of human civilization.[2]

Predynastic period Main article: Predynastic Egypt By about 5500 BC, small tribes living in the Nile valley had developed into a series of unique cultures demonstrating firm control of agriculture and animal husbandry. These cultures are identifiable by their unique pottery and personal items, such as combs, bracelets, and beads. The largest of these early cultures in upper Egypt, the Badari culture, is known for its high quality ceramics, stone tools, and its use of copper.[5] Badari burials are simple pit graves and show signs of social stratification; evidence that the culture was coming under the control of more powerful leaders.[2]

In upper Egypt, a culture with Badari features began to expand along the Nile by about 4000 BC, and is known as the Naqada culture. Over a period of about 1000 years, the Naqada culture developed from a few small farming communities into a powerful civilization whose leaders were in complete control of the people and resources of the Nile valley.[6] Establishing a power center at Hierakonpolis, and later at Abydos, Naqada leaders expanded their control of Egypt northwards along the Nile and engaged in trade with Nubia, the oases of the western desert, and the cultures of the eastern Mediterranean.[2]

The Naqada culture manufactured a diverse array of material goods including painted pottery, high quality derocative stone vases, cosmetic palettes, and jewelrey made of gold, lapis, and ivory, reflecting the increased power and wealth of the elite. They also developed a ceramic glaze known as faience, which was used to decorate cups, amulets, and figurines well into the Roman Period.[7] During the last phase of the predynastic, the Naqada culture began using written symbols which would eventually evolve into a full system of hieroglyphs for writing the ancient Egyptian language.[8]

Early dynastic period Stela of the second dynasty pharaoh Raneb, displaying the hieroglyph for his name within a serekh, surmounted by Horus, on display at the Metropolitan Museum of ArtMain article: Early Dynastic Period of Egypt Although the transition to a fully unified Egyptian state under the rule of the pharaoh happened gradually, ancient Egyptians writing many centuries later chose to begin their official history with a king named "Meni" (or Menes in Greek), who they believed had united the two kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt.[2]

The long line of pharaohs to follow would be grouped into 30 dynasties by an Egyptian priest named Manetho, writing in the third century BC. This system is still used today. Scholars have suggested the mythical Menes is the pharaoh Narmer based on an interpretation of the Narmer Palette, a ceremonial cosmetic palette depicting this ruler wearing pharaonic regalia.[1]

During the early dynastic period, beginning about 3150 BC, the first pharaohs solidified their control over lower Egypt by establishing a capital at Memphis. From this new city, they could control trade routes to the levant and the labor and agricultural produce of the fertile delta region.

The increasing power and wealth of the pharaohs during the early dynastic period is reflected in their elaborate mastaba tombs and mortuary cult structures at Abydos which were used to celebrate the deified pharaoh after his death.[2] The strong institution of kingship these pharaohs developed served to legitimize the state control over the land, labor, and resources which allowed the civilization of ancient Egypt to flourish.[9]

Old Kingdom Main article: Old Kingdom The pharaohs of the Old Kingdom made stunning advances in architecture, art, and technology, fueled by the increased agricultural productivity made possible by a well developed central administration.[2] Under the direction of the vizier, state officials coordinated irrigation projects to improve crop yield, collected taxes, drafted peasants to work on construction projects, and established a justice system to maintain peace and order.[2] With the surplus resources made available by a productive and stable economy, the state was able to sponsor the building of colossal monuments and royal workshops producing exceptional works of art. The pyramids built by Djoser, Khufu, and their descendants stand as eternal symbols of the power of the pharaohs.

With the increasing importance of the central administration, a new class of educated scribes and officials arose who were granted estates by the pharaoh in payment for their services. Pharaohs also made land grants to their mortuary cults and local temples to ensure these institutions would have the necessary resources to worship the pharaoh after his death. By the end of the Old Kingdom, five centuries of these practices had slowly eroded the economic power of the pharaoh, who could no longer afford to support a large centralized administration.[2] As the power of the pharaoh diminished, regional governers called nomarchs began to challenge the supremacy of the pharaoh which ultimately undermined the unity of the country. Coupled with severe droughts between 2200 and 2150 BC,[10] the country entered a 140 year period of famine and strife known as the First Intermediate Period.[11]

Graywacke statue of the pharaoh Menkaura and his consort Queen Khamerernebty II, originally from his Giza Valley temple, now on display at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston First Intermediate Period Main article: First Intermediate Period Pottery model of a house used in a burial from the First Intermediate Period, on display at the Royal Ontario Museum.After the fall of the Old Kingdom came a roughly 200-year stretch of time known as the First Intermediate Period, which is generally thought to include a relatively obscure set of pharaohs running from the end of the Sixth to the Tenth, and most of the Eleventh Dynasty. Most of these were likely local monarchs who did not hold much power outside of their own limited domain, and none held power over the whole of Egypt.

By 2160 BC a new line of pharaohs (the Ninth and Tenth Dynasties) consolidated Lower Egypt from their capital in Herakleopolis Magna. A rival line (the Eleventh Dynasty) based at Thebes reunited Upper Egypt and a clash between the two rival dynasties was inevitable. Around 2055 BC the Theban forces defeated the Heracleopolitan Pharaohs, reunited the Two Lands. The reign of its first pharaoh, Mentuhotep II marks the beginning of the Middle Kingdom.

Middle Kingdom Main article: Middle Kingdom of Egypt An Osiride statue of Mentuhotep II, the founder of the Middle Kingdom, on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.The Middle Kingdom is the period in the history of ancient Egypt stretching from the establishment of the Eleventh Dynasty to the end of the Fourteenth Dynasty, roughly between 2030 BC and 1640 BC.

The period comprises two phases, the 11th Dynasty, which ruled from Thebes and the 12th Dynasty onwards which was centered around el-Lisht. These two dynasties were originally considered to be the full extent of this unified kingdom, but historians now[12] consider the 13th Dynasty to at least partially belong to the Middle Kingdom.

The earliest pharaohs of the Middle Kingdom traced their origin to a nomarch of Thebes, "Intef the Great, son of Iku", who is mentioned in a number of contemporary inscriptions. However, his immediate successor Mentuhotep I is considered the first pharaoh of this dynasty.

An inscription carved during the reign of Wahankh Intef II shows that he was the first of this dynasty to claim to rule over the whole of Egypt, a claim which brought the Thebeans into conflict with the rulers of Herakleopolis Magna, the Tenth Dynasty. Intef undertook several campaigns northwards, and captured the important nome of Abydos.

Warfare continued intermittently between the Thebean and Heracleapolitan dynasts until the 14th regnal year of Nebhetepra Mentuhotep II, when the Herakleopolitans were defeated, and the Theban dynasty began to consolidate their rule. Mentuhotep II is known to have commanded military campaigns south into Nubia, which had gained its independence during the First Intermediate Period. There is also evidence for military actions against Palestine. The king reorganized the country and placed a vizier at the head of civil administration for the country.

Mentuhotep IV was the final pharaoh of this dynasty, and despite being absent from various lists of pharaohs, his reign is attested from a few inscriptions in Wadi Hammamat that record expeditions to the Red Sea coast and to quarry stone for the royal monuments. The leader of this expedition was his vizier Amenemhat, who is widely assumed to be the future pharaoh Amenemhet I, the first king of the 12th Dynasty. Amenemhet is widely assumed by some Egyptologists to have either usurped the throne or assumed power after Mentuhotep IV died childless.

Amenemhat I built a new capital for Egypt, known as Itjtawy, thought to be located near the present-day el-Lisht, although the chronicler Manetho claims the capital remained at Thebes. Amenemhat forcibly pacified internal unrest, curtailed the rights of the nomarchs, and is known to have at launched at least one campaign into Nubia. His son Senusret I continued the policy of his father to recapture Nubia and other territories lost during the First Intermediate Period. The Libyans were subdued under his forty-five year reign and Egypt's prosperity and security were secured.

Senusret III (1878 BC–1839 BC) was a warrior-king, leading his troops deep into Nubia, and built a series of massive forts throughout the country to establish Egypt's formal boundaries with the unconquered areas of its territory. Amenemhat III (1860 BC–1815 BC) is considered the last great pharaoh of the Middle Kingdom.

Egypt's population began to exceed food production levels during the reign of Amenemhat III, who then ordered the exploitation of the Fayyum and increased mining operations in the Sinaï desert. He also invited Asiatic settlers to Egypt to labor on Egypt's monuments. Late in his reign the annual floods along the Nile began to fail, further straining the resources of the government. The Thirteenth Dynasty and Fourteenth Dynasty witnessed the slow decline of Egypt into the Second Intermediate Period in which some of the Asiatic settlers of Amenemhat III would grasp power over Egypt as the Hyksos.

Second Intermediate Period and the Hyksos Main articles: Second Intermediate Period and Hyksos The Second Intermediate Period marks a period when Ancient Egypt once again fell into disarray between the end of the Middle Kingdom, and the start of the New Kingdom. This period is best known as the time the Hyksos made their appearance in Egypt, the reigns of its kings comprising the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Dynasties.

The Thirteenth Dynasty proved unable to hold onto the long land of Egypt, and a provincial ruling family located in the marshes of the western Delta at Xois broke away from the central authority to form the Fourteenth Dynasty. The splintering of the land accelerated after the reign of the Thirteenth Dynasty king Neferhotep I.

The Hyksos first appear during the reign the Thirteenth Dynasty pharaoh Sobekhotep IV, and by 1720 BC took control of the town of Avaris. The outlines of the traditional account of the "invasion" of the land by the Hyksos is preserved in the Aegyptiaca of Manetho, who records that during this time the Hyksos overran Egypt, led by Salitis, the founder of the Fifteenth Dynasty. In the last decades, however, the idea of a simple migration, with little or no violence involved, has gained some support.[13] Under this theory, the Egyptian rulers of 13th Dynasty were unable to stop these new migrants from travelling to Egypt from Asia because they were weak kings who were struggling to cope with various domestic problems including possibly famine.

The Hyksos princes and chieftains ruled in the eastern Delta with their local Egyptian vassals. The Hyksos Fifteenth Dynasty rulers established their capital and seat of government at Memphis and their summer residence at Avaris.

The Hyksos kingdom was centered in the eastern Nile Delta and Middle Egypt and was limited in size, never extending south into Upper Egypt, which was under control by Theban-based rulers. Hyksos relations with the south seem to have been mainly of a commercial nature, although Theban princes appear to have recognized the Hyksos rulers and may possibly have provided them with tribute for a period.

Around the time Memphis fell to the Hyksos, the native Egyptian ruling house in Thebes declared its independence from the vassal dynasty in Itj-tawy and set itself up as the Seventeenth Dynasty. This dynasty was to prove the salvation of Egypt and would eventually lead the war of liberation that drove the Hyksos back into Asia. The two last kings of this dynasty were Tao II the Brave and Kamose. Ahmose I completed the conquest and expulsion of the Hyksos from the delta region, restored Theban rule over the whole of Egypt and successfully reasserted Egyptian power in its formerly subject territories of Nubia and Canaan.[14] His reign marks this beginning of the Eighteenth Dynasty and the New Kingdom period.

New Kingdom Main article: New Kingdom of Egypt Egypt was reunited again, and as a result of the foreign rule of the Hyksos during the Second Intermediate Period, the New Kingdom saw Egypt create a buffer between the Levant and Egypt, and attain its greatest territorial extent. It expanded far south into Nubia and held wide territories in the Near East. Egyptian armies fought Hittite armies for control of modern-day Syria.

This became a time of great wealth and power for Egypt. Some of the most important and best-known Pharaohs ruled at this time. Hatshepsut, unusual because she was a female pharaoh and thereby a rare occurrence in Egyptian history—was an ambitious and competent leader—extending Egyptian trade south into present-day Somalia and north into the Mediterranean. Her architecture achieved the highest development by Egypt and was unparalleled in the entire Mediterranean area for a thousand years. She ruled for twenty years through a combination of deft political skill and the selection of highly-skilled administrators. Her co-regent and eventual successor, Thutmose III ("the Napoleon of Egypt"), expanded Egypt's army and wielded it with great success. Late in his reign he ordered her name hacked out from many of her monuments and inserted his own. Amenhotep III built extensively at the temple complexes of Thebes and he further userped many accomplishments of Hatshepsut.

Golden mask from the mummy of TutankhamunOne of the best-known eighteenth Dynasty pharaohs is Amenhotep IV, who changed his name to Akhenaten in honor of the Aten and whose exclusive worship of the Aten is often interpreted as history's first instance of monotheism. He moved the capital to a new city he built and called it, Akhetaten (modern Armana). Akhenaten's religious fervor is cited as the reason why this period was subsequently written out of Egyptian history. A political and religious revolutionary, Akhenaten introduced Atenism by the fourth year of his reign, raising the previously obscure god Aten (sometimes spelled Aton) to the position of supreme deity, suppressing the worship of other deities, and attacking the power of the entrenched Amen-Ra priestly establishment.

A house altar depicting the Pharaoh Akhenaten and his family receiving life from the rays of the Aten sun disk, on display at the Ägyptisches Museum BerlinA new culture of art was introduced during this time that was more naturalistic and realistic. It was a departure from the stereotypical style that had predominated in Egyptian art for the previous 1700 years. Depictions of Akhenaten show exaggerated physical features. Styles of art that flourished during this short period are markedly different from other Egyptian art, bearing a variety of affectations, from elongated heads to protruding stomachs, exaggerated features, and as a contrast, the beauty of his queen Nefertiti.

Bust of Nefertiti by the sculptor, Thutmose, on display at the Altes Museum, BerlinThe period following Akhenaten's death is confused and poorly attested, but worship of the old gods was revived and the reign of Tutankhamun marks the certain re-emergence of the old traditions. He was a young child when he ascended to the throne, and undoubtedly it was his advisers who made decisions for him. His given name was Tutankhaten, but with the resurgence of Amun, he was re-named Tutankhamun.

Tutankhamun died while he was still a teenager and was succeeded by Ay, who probably married Tutankhamun's widow to make his claim to the throne. When Ay died a few years later, Tutankhamun's former General Horemheb became ruler, and a new period of positive rule began. He set about securing internal stability and re-establishing the prestige that the country had before the reign of Akhenaten. When Horemheb died without an heir, he named his General Paramessu as his successor. Paramessu took the throne name Ramesses, and is considered the founder of the Nineteenth Dynasty.

Colossal depictions of Ramesses II at a temple dedicated to him at Abu SimbelRamesses I only reigned for a couple of years and was succeeded by his son Seti I. Seti I carried on the work of Horemheb in restoring power, control, and respect to Egypt. He also was responsible for creating the the best known part of the temple complex at Abydos, his own mortuary temple.

Arguably, Ancient Egypt's power as a nation-state peaked during the reign of Ramesses II ("the Great") of the nineteenth dynasty. He reigned for 67 years from the age of 18. He carried on his immediate predecessor's work and created many more splendid temples, such as that of Abu Simbel on the Nubian border. He sought to recover territories in the Levant that had been held by eighteenth dynasty Egypt. His campaigns of reconquest culminated in the Battle of Kadesh, where he led Egyptian armies against those of the Hittite king Muwatalli II, but was caught in history's first recorded military ambush. Ramesses II was famed for the huge number of children he sired by his numerous wives and concubines. The tomb he built for his sons, many of whom he outlived, in the Valley of the Kings has proven to be the largest funerary complex in Egypt.

His immediate successors continued the military campaigns, although an increasingly troubled court complicated matters. Ramesses II was succeeded by his son, Merneptah, and then by Merenptah's son, Seti II. Seti II's throne seems to have been disputed by his half-brother, Amenmesse, who temporarily may have ruled from Thebes. The power of dynasty slowly receeded and failed, leading to the reign of the last "great" pharaoh from the New Kingdom, Ramesses III, the son of Setnakhte who reigned three decades after the time of Ramesses II. In Year 8 of his reign, the Sea Peoples, invaded Egypt by land and sea. Ramesses III defeated them in two great land and sea battles. He claimed that he incorporated them as subject peoples and settled them in Southern Canaan, although there is evidence that they forced their way into Canaan. Their presence in Canaan may have contributed to the formation of new states in this region, such as Philistia, after the collapse of the Egyptian Empire. He was also compelled to fight invading Libyan tribesmen in two major campaigns in Egypt's Western Delta in his Year 6 and Year 11 respectively.[15]

The heavy cost of these battles slowly exhausted Egypt's treasury and contributed to the gradual decline of the Egyptian empire in Asia. The severity of these difficulties is stressed by the fact that the first known labor strike in recorded history occurred during Year 29 of Ramesses III's reign, when the food rations for the Egypt's favoured and elite royal tomb-builders and artisans in the village of Deir el Medina could not be provisioned.[16]

Following Ramesses III's death there was endless bickering among his heirs. Three of his sons would go on to assume power as Ramesses IV, Ramesses VI, and Ramesses VIII respectively. However, at this time Egypt also was increasingly beset by a series of droughts, below-normal flooding levels of the Nile, famine, civil unrest, and official corruption. The power of the last pharaoh of this dynasty, Ramesses XI, grew so weak that in the south the High Priests of Amun at Thebes became the effective defacto rulers of Upper Egypt, while Smendes controlled Lower Egypt even before Ramesses XI's death, this was a period of turmoil known as Whm Mswt. Smendes eventually would found the twenty-first dynasty at Tanis.

Third Intermediate Period Main article: Third Intermediate Period Sphinx of the Nubian pharaoh Taharqa.After the death of Ramesses XI, his successor Smendes ruled from the city of Tanis in the north, while the High Priests of Amun at Thebes had effective rule of the south of the country, whilst still nominally recognizing Smendes as king.[17] In fact, this division was less significant than it seems, since both priests and pharaohs came from the same family. Piankh, assumed control of Upper Egypt, ruling from Thebes, with the northern limit of his control ending at Al-Hibah. They were replaced without any apparent struggle by the Libyan kings of the twenty-second dynasty.

Shoshenq I, the first king of the new dynasty, briefly re-unified the country, putting control of the Amun clergy under that of his own son. The scant and patchy nature of the written records from this period suggests that it was an unsettled time, leading eventually to a separate group of pharaohs who established their control over Upper Egypt (comprising the twenty-third dynasty) which ran concurrently with the latter part of the twenty-second dynasty.

Under king Piye, the Nubian founder of twenty-fifth dynasty, the Nubians pushed north in an effort to crush his Libyan opponents ruling in the Delta. He managed to attain power as far as Memphis. His opponent Tefnakhte ultimately submitted to him, but he was allowed to remain in power in Lower Egypt and founded the short-lived twenty-fourth dynasty at Sais. Piye was succeeded first by his brother, Shabaka, and then by his two sons Shebitku and Taharqa.

The international prestige of Egypt declined considerably by this time. The country's international allies had fallen under the Assyrian sphere of influence and, from about 700 BC the question became when, not if, there would be war between the two states. Taharqa's reign and that of his successor, Tanutamun, were filled with constant conflict with the Assyrians against whom there were numerous victories. Ultimately Thebes was occupied and Memphis sacked.

Late Period Main articles: Late Period of Ancient Egypt and History of Achaemenid Egypt From 664 BC Egypt was ruled by client kings established by the Assyrians, establishing the Twenty-Sixth Dynasty. Psamtik I was the first to be recognized as the king of the whole of Egypt, and he brought increased stability to the country during a 54-year reign from the new capital of Sais. Four successive Saite kings continued guiding Egypt successfully and peacefully from 610-526 BC. By the end of this period a new power was growing in the Near East: Persia. The pharaoh Psamtik III had to face the might of Persia at Pelusium; he was defeated and briefly escaped to Memphis, but ultimately was captured and then executed at Susa, capital of the Persian king Cambyses, who assumed the formal title of Pharaoh, starting a period of Persion domination.

Memphis and the Delta region became the target of many attacks from the Assyrians, until Psammetichus I managed to reunite Middle and Lower Egypt under his rule forming the Twenty-sixth dynasty.

The last pharaoh of the Twenty-Sixth dynasty, Psammetichus III, was defeated by Cambyses II of Persia in the battle of Pelusium in the eastern Nile delta in 525 BC, Egypt was then joined with Cyprus and Phoenicia in the sixth satrapy of the Achaemenid Empire. Thus began the first period of Persian rule over Egypt (also known as the Twenty-Seventh dynasty of Egypt), which ended around 402 BC.

The Thirtieth Dynasty was established in 380 BC and lasted until 343 BC. This was the last native house to rule Egypt. The brief restoration of Persian rule is sometimes known as the Thirty-First Dynasty, which lasted for a brief period (343–332 BC). In 332 BC Mazaces handed over the country to Alexander the Great without a fight. The Achaemenid empire had ended, and for a while Egypt was a satrapy in Alexander's empire. Later the Ptolemies and then the Romans successively ruled the Nile valley.

Ptolemaic dynasty Main article: Ptolemaic Dynasty Cleopatra VII adopted the ancient traditions and language of EgyptIn 332 BC Alexander III of Macedon conquered Egypt with little resistance from the Persians. He was welcomed by the Egyptians as a deliverer. He visited Memphis, and went on pilgrimage to the oracle of Amun at the Oasis of Siwa. The oracle declared him to be the son of Amun. He conciliated the Egyptians by the respect which he showed for their religion, but he appointed Greeks to virtually all the senior posts in the country, and founded a new Greek city, Alexandria, to be the new capital. The wealth of Egypt could now be harnessed for Alexander's conquest of the rest of the Persian Empire. Early in 331 BC he was ready to depart, and led his forces away to Phoenicia. He left Cleomenes as the ruling nomarch to control Egypt in his absence. Alexander never returned to Egypt.

Following Alexander's death in Babylon in 323 BC, a succession crisis erupted among his generals. Initially, Perdiccas ruled the empire as regent for Alexander's half-brother Arrhidaeus, who became Philip III of Macedon, and then as regent for both Philip III and Alexander's infant son Alexander IV of Macedon, who had not been born at the time of his father's death. Perdiccas appointed Ptolemy, one of Alexander's closest companions, to be satrap of Egypt.

Ptolemy ruled Egypt from 323 BC, nominally in the name of the joint kings Philip III and Alexander IV. However, as Alexander the Great's empire disintegrated, Ptolemy soon established himself as ruler in his own right. Ptolemy successfully defended Egypt against an invasion by Perdiccas in 321 BC, and consolidated his position in Egypt and the surrounding areas during the Wars of the Diadochi (322 BC-301 BC). In 305 BC, Ptolemy took the title of King. As Ptolemy I Soter ("Saviour"), he founded the Ptolemaic dynasty that was to rule Egypt for nearly 300 years.

The later Ptolemies took on Egyptian traditions by marrying their siblings, had themselves portrayed on public monuments in Egyptian style and dress, and participated in Egyptian religious life.[18][19]

Hellenistic culture thrived in Egypt well after the Muslim conquest. The Ptolemies had to fight native rebellions and were involved in foreign and civil wars that led to the decline of the kingdom and its annexation by Rome.

Roman domination Main article: History of Roman Egypt After the defeat of Marc Antony and Ptolemaic Queen Cleopatra VII in the Battle of Actium in 30 BC by Octavian (the future Emperor Augustus), Egypt became a province of the Roman Empire, encompassing most of modern-day Egypt except for the Sinai Peninsula, bordered by the provinces of Cyrenaica to the west and Arabia, Egypt would come to serve as a major producer of grain for the empire. The reign of Constantine also saw the founding of Constantinople as a new capital for the Roman Empire, and in the course of the fourth century the Empire was divided in two, with Egypt finding itself in the Eastern Empire with its capital at Constantinople. This meant that within a few years Latin, never well established in Egypt, disappeared, and Greek reasserted itself as the language of government. During the fifth and sixth centuries the Eastern Roman Empire gradually became the Byzantine Empire, a Christian, Greek-speaking state that had little in common with the old empire of Rome, which disappeared in the face of the barbarian invasions in the fifth century. Another consequence of the triumph of Christianity was the final oppression and demise of the pagan culture: with the disappearance of the Egyptian priests and priestesses who officiated at the temples, no-one could read the hieroglyphics of Pharaonic Egypt, and its temples were converted to churches or abandoned to the desert.

The Eastern Empire became increasingly "oriental" in style as its links with the old Græco-Roman world faded. The Greek system of local government by citizens had now entirely disappeared. Offices, with new Byzantine names, were almost hereditary in the wealthy land-owning families. Alexandria, the second city of the empire, continued to be a centre of religious controversy and violence. Cyril, the patriarch of Alexandria, convinced the city's governor to expel the Jews from the city in 415 with the aid of the mob, in response to the Jews' nighttime massacre of many Christians. The murder of the philosopher Hypatia marked the final end of classical Hellenic culture in Egypt. Another schism in the Church produced a prolonged civil war and alienated Egypt from the Empire.

Muslim conquest Main article: Muslim conquest of Egypt Egypt had been occupied just a decade before the conquest by the Persian Empire under Khosrau II (616 to 629 AD). An army of 4,000 Arabs led by Amr Ibn Al-Aas was sent by the Caliph Umar, successor to Muhammad, to spread Islamic rule to the west. These Arabs crossed into Egypt from Palestine in December 639, and advanced rapidly into the Nile Delta. The Imperial garrisons retreated into the walled towns, where they successfully held out for a year or more (although the Arabs were victorious at the Battle of Heliopolis in July 640.[20] But the Arabs sent for reinforcements, In April 641 they captured Alexandria. The Thebaid seems to have surrendered with scarcely any opposition. Most of the Egyptian Christians welcomed their new rulers: the accession of a new regime meant for them the end of the persecutions by the Byzantine state church. The Byzantines assembled a fleet with the aim of recapturing Egypt, and won back Alexandria in 645, but the Muslims retook the city in 646, completing the conquest

Government and economy

Administration and taxation Scribes were elite, educated members of society who assessed taxes, kept records, and were responsible for administration in ancient EgyptFor administrative purposes, ancient Egypt was divided into districts, referred to by Egyptologists by the Greek term, nomes; they were called sepat in ancient Egyptian. The division into nomes can be traced back to the Predynastic Period (before 3100 BC), when the nomes originally existed as autonomous city-states. The nomes remained in place for more than three millennia, with the area of the individual nomes and their order of numbering remaining remarkably stable. Under the system that prevailed for most of pharaonic Egypt's history, the country was divided into forty-two nomes: twenty comprising Lower Egypt, whilst Upper Egypt was divided into twenty-two. Each nome was governed by a nomarch (Greek for "ruler of the nome",) a provincial governor who held regional authority. The position of the nomarch was at times hereditary, at times appointed by the pharaoh.

The ancient Egyptian government imposed a number of different taxes upon its people. As there was no known form of currency until the latter half of the first millennium BC, taxes were paid for "in kind" (with produce or work). The vizier (ancient Egyptian: tjaty) controlled the taxation system through the departments of state. The departments had to report daily on the amount of stock available and how much was expected in the future. Taxes were paid for depending on a person's craft or duty. Landowners paid their taxes in grain and other produce grown on their property. Artisans paid their taxes with goods they produced. Hunters and fishermen paid their taxes with produce from the river, marshes, and desert. One person from every household was required to pay a corvée or labor tax by doing public work for a few weeks every year, such as digging canals, mining, or serving in the temples. However, the rich could hire poorer people to fulfill their labor taxes.

Legal system The head of the legal system in ancient Egypt was officially the pharaoh, who was responsible for proclaiming laws, delivering justice, and maintaining law and order, a concept the ancient Egyptians referred to as Ma'at.[4] Though no legal codes from ancient Egypt have survived, the many court documents which have survived show that Egyptian law was based on a common sense view of right and wrong that emphasized reaching agreements and resolution of conflict rather than strict adherence to a complicated set of statues.[21][22]

The ancient Egyptians viewed men and women, and people from all social classes except slaves, as essentially equal under the law, and even the lowliest peasant was entitled to petition the vizier and his court for redress.[21] In cases of tomb robbery or assassination plots, the state took on both the role of prosecutor and judge, and could torture the accused with beatings to obtain a confession and the names of any co-conspirators. Whether the charges were trivial or serious, court scribes documented the complaint, testimony, and verdict of the case for future reference.[22]

Punishment for minor crimes involved either imposition of fines, beatings, facial mutilation, or exile, depending on the severity of the offense. Serious crimes such as murder and tomb robbery were punished by death, which could be carried out by decapitation, drowning, or by impaling the criminal on a stake. Punishment could also be extended to the criminal's family.[4]

From at least the New Kingdom, some legal cases, disputes, and even military or agricultural decisions were resolved by consultation with a divine oracle.[23] The oracle, usually a statue in the image of the deity, could be asked a yes or no question to which the oracle could respond by a movement through the hidden actions of a priest.[23]

Agriculture A tomb relief depicts workers plowing the fields, harvesting the crops, and threshing the grain under the direction of an overseer.Egypt has a favorable combination of geographical features which contributed to the success of the ancient Egyptian culture, the most important of which was the rich fertile soil provided by annual inundations of the Nile river. This resulted in the ability of the ancient Egyptians to grow an abundance of food, which freed up the population to devote more time and resources for cultural, technological, and artistic pursuits. Land management was crucial in ancient Egypt, because taxes were assessed based on the amount of land a person owned.[4]

Farming in Egypt was dependent upon the cycle of the Nile River. The Egyptians distinguished between three seasons in their written records, which they called Akhet (flooding), Peret (planting), and Shemu (harvesting). The flooding season lasted from June to September, after which a layer of mineral-rich silt was deposited on the banks, being perfect for growing crops.

The growing season occurred between October and February, after the flood waters had receded. Farmers plowed and planted seeds in the fields, which were irrigated with dikes and canals. Egypt receives little rainfall, so farmers relied on the Nile to water their crops.

The harvesting season followed in March, April, and May. Farmers would harvest the crops by cutting them down with sickles. The crops would then be threshed by beating them with a flail, in order to separate the straw from the grain. Then the crops would be winnowed to remove the chaff. The grain was then ground on a stone to make flour, brewed to make beer, or stored for later use.

The ancient Egyptians cultivated wheat, emmer, barley, and several other cereal grains, which they used to make their two main food staples, bread and beer. Flax plants were grown, uprooted before they started flowering, and the fibres of their stems extracted. These fibres were split along their length, spun into thread which was used to weave sheets of linen to make into clothing. Papyrus growing on the banks of the Nile River was used to make paper. Vegetables and fruits were grown in garden plots close to their habitations on higher ground and had to be watered by hand.[24]

Natural resources Egypt is a land rich in building and decorative stone, copper and lead ores, gold, and semiprecious stones, which the ancient Egyptians used to build monuments, sculpt statues, make tools, and fashion jewelry. They left no stone unturned in their search for gold, as no deposits of gold have since been found in Egypt that they overlooked.[25] Embalmers used salts from the Wadi Natrun for mummification, which also provided the gypsum needed to make plaster.[26]

The ore bearing rock formations in Egypt are found in distant, inhospitable Wadis in the eastern desert and the Sinai and required large state controlled expeditions to obtain the gold, copper ores, and decorative stones found there. The Wadi Hammamat was a notable source of granite, greywacke, and gold. Whenever possible, prisoners and slaves were forced into mining service, but Egyptian peasants might also be conscripted for this unpleasant labor.[27]

Flint was the first mineral collected and used to make tools, and flint handaxes are the earliest evidence of habitation in the Nile vally. Nodules of the material were carefully flaked to make blades and arrowheads of moderate hardness and durability even after copper was adopted for this purpose.[28] The Egyptians worked deposits of the lead ore galena at Gebel Rosas to make net sinkers, plumb bobs, and small figurines. Copper was the most important metal for toolmaking in ancient Egypt, and was smelted in furnaces from malachite ore mined in the Sinai.[29] Workers collected gold by washing the nuggets out of sediments in alluvial deposits, or by the more labor intensive process of grinding and washing gold-bearing quartzite. Iron deposits found in upper Egypt were utilized in the Late Period.[30]

High quality building stones are abundant in Egypt; the ancient Egyptians quarried limestone all along the Nile vally, granite from Aswan, and basalt and sandstone from the wadis of the eastern desert. Deposits of decorative stones such as porphyry, greywacke, alabaster, and carnelian dot the eastern desert and were collected even before the First Dynasty. In the Ptolemaic and Roman Periods, miners worked deposits of emeralds in Wadi Sikait and amethyst in Wadi el-Hudi.[30]

Language Main article: Egyptian language Ancient Egyptian constitutes an independent part of the Afro-Asiatic language phylum. Its closest relatives are the Berber, Semitic, and Beja groups of languages. Written records of the Egyptian language have been dated from about 3200 BC, making it one of the oldest, and longest documented languages. Scholars group the Egyptian language into six major chronological divisions:[8]

Archaic Egyptian (before 3000 BC) Consists of inscriptions from the late Predynastic and Early Dynastic periods. The earliest known evidence of Egyptian hieroglyphic writing appears on Naqada II pottery vessels.

Old Egyptian (3000–2000 BC) The language of the Old Kingdom and First Intermediate Period. The Pyramid Texts are the largest body of literature written in this phase of the language. Tomb walls of elite Egyptians from this period also bear autobiographical writings representing Old Egyptian. One of its distinguishing characteristics is the tripling of ideograms, phonograms, and determinatives to indicate the plural. Overall, it does not differ significantly from the next stage.

Middle Egyptian (2000–1300 BC) Often dubbed Classical Egyptian, this stage is known from a variety of textual evidence in hieroglyphic and hieratic scripts dated from about the Middle Kingdom. It includes funerary texts inscribed on sarcophagi such as the Coffin Texts; wisdom texts instructing people on how to lead a life that exemplified the ancient Egyptian philosophical worldview (see the Ipuwer papyrus); tales detailing the adventures of a certain individual, for example the Story of Sinuhe; medical and scientific texts such as the Edwin Smith Papyrus and the Ebers papyrus; and poetic texts praising a deity or a pharaoh, such as the Hymn to the Nile. The Egyptian vernacular had already begun to change from the written language as evidenced by some Middle Kingdom hieratic texts, but classical Middle Egyptian continued to be written in formal contexts well into the Late Dynastic period (sometimes referred to as Late Middle Egyptian).

Late Egyptian (1300–700 BC) Records of this stage appear in the second part of the New Kingdom. It contains a rich body of religious and secular literature, comprising such famous examples as the Story of Wenamun and the Instructions of Ani. It was also the language of Ramesside administration. Late Egyptian is not totally distinct from Middle Egyptian, as many "classicisms" appear in historical and literary documents of this phase. However, the difference between Middle and Late Egyptian is greater than that between Middle and Old Egyptian. It is also a better representative than Middle Egyptian of the spoken language in the New Kingdom and beyond. Hieroglyphic orthography saw an enormous expansion of its graphemic inventory between the Late Dynastic and Ptolemaic periods.

Demotic Egyptian (700 BC–300 AD) Coptic (300–1700 AD)

Writing See also: Egyptian hieroglyphs The Rosetta stone is a multilingual text written in hieroglyphs, demotic, and Greek, and enabled linguists to begin the process of hieroglyph decipherment.[8]For many years, the earliest known hieroglyphic inscription was the Narmer Palette, found during excavations at Hierakonpolis (modern Kawm al-Ahmar) in the 1890s, which has been dated to c.3150 BC. However, recent archaeological findings reveal that symbols on Gerzean pottery, c. 3250 BC, resemble the traditional hieroglyph forms. Also in 1998 a German archaeological team under Günter Dreyer excavating at Abydos (modern Umm el-Qa'ab) uncovered tomb U-j, which belonged to a Predynastic ruler, and they recovered three hundred clay labels inscribed with proto-hieroglyphs dating to the Naqada IIIA period, circa 3300 BC.

Egyptologists refer to Egyptian writing as hieroglyphs, today standing as the world's earliest known writing system. The hieroglyphic script was partly syllabic, partly ideographic. Hieratic is a cursive form of Egyptian hieroglyphs and was first used during the First Dynasty (c. 2925 BC – c. 2775 BC). The term Demotic, in the context of Egypt, came to refer to both the script and the language that followed the Late Ancient Egyptian stage, i.e. from the Twenty-fifth dynasty of Egypt until its marginalization by Greek Koine in the early centuries AD. After the conquest of Amr ibn al-A'as in the 700s AD, the Coptic language survived as a spoken language into the Middle Ages. Today, it continues to be the liturgical language of a Christian minority.

Beginning from around 2700 BC, Egyptians used pictograms to represent vocal sounds — ignoring vowels and representing only consonant vocalizations (see Hieroglyph: Script). By 2000 BC, 26 pictograms were being used mainly to represent twenty-four (known) vocal sounds, but hundreds of other signs also were being employed. The world's oldest known alphabet (c. 1800 BC) is only an abjad system and was derived from these uniliteral signs as well as other Egyptian hieroglyphs.

The hieroglyphic script finally fell out of use around the 300 AD. Attempts to decipher it in the West began after the fifteenth century, though earlier attempts by Muslim scholars are attested (see Hieroglyphica).

Literature See also: Ancient Egyptian literature The Edwin Smith surgical papyrus, a document that describes anatomical observations and the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of traumatic injuries.Writing first appears associated with kingship, labels and tags for items found in royal tombs. This developed by the Old Kingdom into the tomb autobiography, such as those of Harkhuf and Weni. The genre known as Instructions evolved to provide teachings and guidance from famous nobles, the Ipuwer papyrus, a poem of lamentations describing natural disasters and social upheaval, is an extreme example of an instruction, although from an uncertain date. During the First Intermediate Period and the Middle Kingdom, the prose style of literature evolved, with the Story of Sinuhe perhaps being the classic of Egyptian Literature.[31] Also written at this time (although the surviving copies date from the end of the Second Intermediate Period), the Westcar Papyrus is a set of stories told to Khufu by his sons relating the marvels performed by priests.[32] Towards the end of the New Kingdom, the Story of Wenamun tells the story of a noble who is robbed on his way to buy cedar from Lebanon, and his struggle to return to Egypt, and shows the end of the united Egypt, and the start of the Third Intermediate Period, a period of turmoil known as Whm Mswt.

Culture

Architecture See also: Ancient Egyptian architecture Karnak temple's hypostyle halls are constructed with rows of thick columns supporting the roof beams. The temple was constructed one section at a time over a period of almost 1600 years.[33]The architecture of ancient Egypt includes some of the most famous structures in the world, such as the Great Pyramids of Giza, Abu Simbel, and the temples at Thebes. All major building projects were organized and funded by the state, whose purpose was not only to provide functional religious, military, and funerary structures but to reinforce the power and reputation of the pharaoh and ensure his legacy for all time.[33] The ancient Egyptians were skilled builders with expert knowledge of basic surveying and construction techniques. Using simple but effective measuring ropes, plum bobs, and sighting instruments, architects could build large stone structures with accuracy and precision.

Most buildings in ancient Egypt, even the pharaoh's palace, were constructed from perishable materials such as mud bricks and wood, and do not survive. Important structures such as temples and tombs were intended to last forever and were instead constructed of stone. The first large scale stone building in the world, the mortuary complex of Djoser, was built in the Third Dynasty as a stone imitation of the mud-brick and wooden structures used in daily life.[34]

The architectural elements used in Djoser's mortuary complex, including post and lintel construction with huge stone roof blocks supported by external walls and closely spaced columns, would be copied many times in Egyptian history. Decorative styles introduced in the Old Kingdom, such as the lotus and papyrus motifs, are a recurring theme in ancient Egyptian architecture.[33]

The earliest tomb architecture in ancient Egypt was the mastaba, a flat-roofed rectangular structure of mudbrick or stone built over an underground burial chamber. The mastaba was the most popular tomb among the nobility in the Old Kingdom, and the first pyramid, the step pyramid of Djoser, is actually a series of stone mastabas stacked on top of each other. The step pyramid was itself the inspiration for the first true pyramids. Pharaohs built pyramids in the Old Kingdom and later in the Middle Kingdom, but later rulers abandoned them in favor of less conspicuous rock-cut tombs.[35] New Kingdom pharaohs built their rock-cut tombs in the Valley of the Kings. By the Third Intermediate Period, the pharaohs had completely abandoned building grand tomb architecture.

The earliest preserved ancient Egyptian temples, from the Old Kingdom, consist of single enclosed halls with columns supporting the roof slabs. The mortuary temples connected to the pyramids at Giza are examples of this early type. During the Fifth Dynasty, pharaohs developed the sun temple, the focus of which is a squat pyramid-shaped obelisk known as a ben-ben stone. The ben-ben stone and other temple structures are surrounded with an outer wall and connected to the Nile by a causeway terminating in a valley temple. In the New Kingdom, architects added the pylon, the open courtyard, and the enclosed hypostyle hall to the front of the temple's sanctuary. Because the common people were not allowed past the entry pylon, the deity residing in the inner sanctuary was distanced from the outside world. This type of cult temple was the standard used until the Ptolemaic and Roman Periods.[36]

Art See also: Art of Ancient Egypt The Narmer Palette exemplifies the artistic style used by the ancient Egyptians for more than 3500 years, which was already highly developed before the start of the Old Kingdom.[37]The ancient Egyptians produced art that was made for functional purposes rather than as a form of pure creative expression. Artists adhered to artistic forms that were developed during the Old Kingdom for more than 3500 years, following a strict set of principles that resisted foreign influence and internal change.[37] Their artistic canon, characterized by the flat projection of figures with no effort to indicate spatial depth, combined with simple lines, shapes, and flat areas of color, created a sense of order and balance within a composition. Because of the rigid rules that governed its highly stylized and symbolic appearance, ancient Egyptian art served its political and religious purposes with precision and clarity.[4]

Pharaohs used reliefs carved on stelae, temple walls, and obelisks to record victories in battle, royal decrees, and religious scenes. These art forms glorify the pharaoh, record that ruler's version of historical events, and establish the relationship between the Egyptians and their deities. Common citizens had access to pieces of funerary art, such as shabti statues and books of the dead, which they believed would protect them in the afterlife.

The ancient Egyptians made little distinction between images and text, which were intimately interwoven on tomb and temple walls, coffins, stelae, and even statues. This mentality is evident even in the earliest examples of Egyptian art, such as the Narmer Palette, where the characters themselves may be read as hieroglyphs.[37]

Religious beliefs See also: Ancient Egyptian religion The Egyptian religion, embodied in Egyptian mythology, is a succession of beliefs and a changing pantheon reflecting the beliefs held by the people of Egypt, as early as predynastic times and all the way until the coming of Christianity and Islam in the Græco-Roman and Arab eras. These were conducted by Egyptian priestesses, priests, or magicians, but the use of magic and spells is questioned. The oldest oracle of record was in Egypt at Per-Wadjet, and has been suggested as having been the source of the oracular tradition that spread into other early religious traditions, such as Crete and Greece.[38]

A supplicant before a deity, Sekhmet, flanked by the symbols of both Upper and Lower Egypt Wadjet, the cobra, and Nekhbet, the white vultureEvery animal portrayed and worshiped in ancient Egyptian art, writing, and religion is indigenous to Africa, all the way from the predynastic until the Graeco-Roman eras, over 3000 years.

Displayed to the right is an image that exemplifies the totemic aspects of the religion of ancient Egypt from its earliest times to the sunset of the culture. An ancient deity represented as a lioness is seated on a throne that is flanked by the two other oldest among the earliest triad of deities, the Egyptian cobra and the white vulture. These three animals were consistently represented as the protectors and the patrons of both Upper and Lower Egypt. The supplicant, Hariesis, represents Horus, the son of Hathor, the similarly ancient cow deity who is considered another aspect of their primal Earth mother as sun goddess.

The inner reaches of the temples were sacred places where only priestesses and priests were allowed. On special occasions ordinary people were allowed into the temple courtyards.

The religious nature of ancient Egyptian civilization influenced its contribution to the arts of the ancient world. Many of the great works of ancient Egypt depict deities and pharaohs, who were also considered divine after death. Ancient Egyptian art in general is characterized by the idea of order.

Burial customs See also: Egyptian burial rituals and protocol Anubis was the ancient Egyptian god associated with mummification and burial rituals. Here, he is shown attending to a mummyThe ancient Egyptians maintained an elaborate set of burial customs that they believed were necessary to ensure their immortality after death. These customs involved preservation of the body by mummification, performance of burial ceremonies, and interment with grave goods for the deceased to use in the afterlife.[2] The word mummy comes from a misinterpretation of the process. Poorly embalmed bodies (from the Late Period) are often black and very brittle. It was believed these had been preserved by dipping them in bitumen, the Arabic word for bitumen being mumiya.

Before the Old Kingdom, bodies buried in desert pits were naturally preserved by desiccation. This was the best scenario available for the poor throughout the history of ancient Egypt, who could not afford the elaborate burial preparations available to the elite. When the Egyptians started to bury their dead in stone tombs, natural mummification from the desert did not occur. This necessitated artificial mummification which, for the wealthy in the Old and Middle Kingdoms, meant removing the internal organs, wrapping the body in linen, coating with plaster or resin, and sometimes painting or sculpting facial details. The body was buried in a rectangular stone sarcophagus or wooden coffin. From the Fourth Dynasty, internal organs were stored in sets of four canopic jars.[39] The intestines, lungs, liver and stomach were preserved separately and stored in these jars, who were protected by the Four sons of Horus, whose likenesses were often represented on the jars. Such was the perceived power of these jars that even when the Twenty-First Dynasty started to return the organs to the body after preservation, empty jars continued to be included in the tombs.

By the New Kingdom, the art of mummification was perfected; the best technique took 70 days and involved removing the internal organs, removing the brain through the nose, and desiccating the body in a mixture of salts called natron. The body was then wrapped in linen with protective amulets inserted between layers, and placed in a decorated anthropoid coffin. In this New Kingdom, coffins changed shape from the Middle Kingdom rectangle to the familiar mummy-shape with a head and rounded shoulders. At first these were decorated with carved or painted feathers, but later were painted with a representation of the deceased. They were also put together like Russian Matryoshka dolls in that a large outer coffin would contain a smaller one, which contained one that was almost moulded to the body. Each one was more elaborately decorated than the one larger than it. By the Late Period, mummies were placed in painted cartonnage mummy cases. In the Ptolemaic and Roman periods, preservation technique declined and emphasis was placed on the outer appearance of the mummy, decorated with elaborate rhomboidal patterns formed by the wrapping bandages.[40]

All burials regardless of social status included grave goods such as food and personal items such as jewelry. Wealthy members of society expected larger quantities of luxury items and furniture. From the New Kingdom, books of the dead were popular items of funerary literature which contained spells and instructions for protection in the afterlife. New Kingdom Egyptians also expected to be buried with shabti statues, which they believed would perform manual labor for them.[41]

Whether they were buried in mastabas, pyramids, or rock-cut tombs, every Egyptian burial would have been accompanied by rituals in which the deceased was magically re-animated. This procedure involved touching the mouth and eyes of the deceased with ceremonial instruments to restore the power of speech, movement, and sight. After burial, living relatives were expected to occasionally bring food to the tomb and recite prayers on behalf of the deceased.

Leisure and games The ancient Egyptians maintained a rich cultural heritage complete with feasts and festivals accompanied by music and danceThe ancient Egyptians enjoyed a variety of leisure activities, including games and music. The game of senet, a kind of board game with pieces moving according to random chance, was particularly popular from the very earliest times. Another similar game was mehen, which had a circular gaming board. Juggling and ball games were popular with children, and wrestling is documented in a tomb at Beni Hasan.[4] The wealthy members of ancient Egyptian society enjoyed hunting and boating as well.

Music and dance were popular entertainments for those who could afford them in ancient Egypt; musicians played flutes and a type of harp.[42] The sistrum, a musical instrument that was especially important in religious ceremonies, was a rattle and there were several other devices used as rattles.

Foreign relations

Trade The ancient Egyptians engaged in trade with their foreign neighbors to obtain rare, exotic goods not found in Egypt. In the predynastic, they established trade with Nubia to obtain gold and incense. They also established trade with Palestine, as evidenced by Palestinian type oil jugs found in burials of the First Dynasty pharaohs.[2]

By the Second Dynasty the ancient Egyptians had established trade with Byblos, a critical source of quality timber not found in Egypt. In the Fifth Dynasty, trade was established with the Land of Punt, which provided gold, aromatic resins, ebony, ivory, and wild animals such as monkeys and baboons.

Egypt relied on trade with Anatolia for supplies of tin, a component of bronze which was not mined by the ancient Egyptians, and supplementary supplies of copper. The ancient Egyptians prized the blue stone lapis lazuli, which had to be imported from far-away Afghanistan. Egypt's Mediterranean trade partners also included ancient Greece and Crete, which provided, among other goods, supplies of olive oil.[1] Hatshepsut is known to have imported live trees for transplantation into her gardens.

In exchange for its luxury imports and raw materials, Egypt mainly exported gold and papyrus, in addition to some finished goods including glass objects. The first glass beads are thought to have been manufactured in Egypt.

Military Main article: Military history of Egypt Wooden figures of Egyptian soldiers, from the tomb of Mesehti, 11th DynastyThe ancient Egyptian military was responsible for maintaining Egypt's domination in the ancient near-east. The military protected mining expeditions to the Sinai in the Old Kingdom and fought civil wars during the First and Second Intermediate Periods. The military was responsible for maintaining forts along important trade routes, for example at the city of Buhen on the way to Nubia. Forts also were constructed to serve as military bases, such as the fortress at Sile, which was a base of operations for expeditions to the Levant. In the New Kingdom, a series of pharaohs used the standing Egyptian army to attack and conquer Kush and territory in the levant.[2]

Typical military equipment included round-topped shields made of animal skin stretched over a wooden frame, bows and arrows, and spears. In the New Kingdom, the military began using chariots which were introduced by Hyksos invaders in the Second Intermediate Period. Weapons and armor continued to improve after the adoption of bronze. Shields were now made from solid wood with a bronze buckle, spears were tipped with a bronze point, and a type of scimitar made of bronze, the Khopesh, was adopted from Asian soldiers.[4]

The Egyptian pharaoh usually is depicted in art and literature leading at the head of the Army, and there is certain evidence that at least a few pharaohs are known to have, such as Seqenenre Tao II and his sons.[2] Soldiers were recruited from the general population, but during and especially after the New Kingdom, mercenaries from Nubia, Kush, and Libya were hired to fight for Egypt under the command of their own officers.[4]

Achievements and unsolved problems See also: Ancient Egyptian technology and Egyptian mathematics See Predynastic Egypt for inventions and other significant achievements in the Sahara region before the Protodynastic Period. The achievements of ancient Egypt are well known, and the civilization achieved a very high standard of productivity and sophistication. Hydraulic cement was first invented by the Egyptians. The Al Fayyum Irrigation (water works) was one of the main agricultural breadbaskets of the ancient world. There is evidence of ancient Egyptian Pharaohs of the twelfth dynasty using the natural lake of the Fayyum as a reservoir to store surpluses of water for use during the dry seasons.

The earliest evidence (circa 1600 BC) of traditional empiricism is credited to Egypt, as evidenced by the Edwin Smith and Ebers papyri. The roots of the scientific method may be traced back to the ancient Egyptians. The Egyptians created their own alphabet (however, it is debated as to whether they were the first to do this because of the margin of error on carbon dated tests), the decimal system.[43]

Glass making was highly developed in ancient Egypt, as is evident from the glass beads, jars, figures, and ornaments discovered in the tombs.[44]Recent archeology has uncovered the remains of an ancient Egyptian glass factory.[45]

Medicine Ancient Egyptian physicians were well renowned in the ancient near-East for their healing skills, and medical papyri show that they relied on thorough patient examinations and treatments based on a combination of natural product derived remedies, prayers, and protective amulets. Wounds were treated by bandaging with raw meat, honey was used to prevent infection, and opium was used to relieve pain. Garlic and onions were used regularly to promote good health and were thought to relieve asthma symptoms. Ancient Egyptian surgeons stitched wounds, set broken bones, and amputated diseased limbs, but recognized that some injuries were so serious that the only advice they could offer was to "Moor [the patient] at his mooring stakes, until the period of his injury passes by..." in other words, until the patient died.

Mathematics Texts such as the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus show that the ancient Egyptians could perform addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and calculation of the surface areas of rectangles, triangles, circles and even spheres. Although the ancient Egyptians were not familiar with the concept of pi, they were able to approximate the areas of circles by subtracting 1/9th of the circle's diameter and squaring the remainder. They could also calculate the volumes of boxes and pyramids, and were comfortable using fractions.

The golden ratio seems to be reflected in many constructions, such as the Egyptian pyramids,[46] however, some scholars assert that this may be the consequence of combining the use of knotted ropes with an intuitive sense of proportion and harmony.[47]

Open problems and scientific inquiry Ancient Egypt is a fertile field for scientific inquiry, scholarly study, religious inspiration, and open speculation. Speculation and inquiry include the degree of sophistication of ancient Egyptian technology, and several open problems exist concerning real and alleged ancient Egyptian achievements. Certain artifacts and records do not correspond with conventional technological development systems.

It is not known why there seems to be no neat progression to an Egyptian Iron Age as in other developing cultures nor why the historical record shows the Egyptians possibly taking a long time to begin using iron. A study of the rest of Africa could point to the reasons: Sub-Saharan Africa confined their use of the metal to agricultural purposes for many centuries. The ancient Egyptians had a much easier form of agriculture with the annual Nile floods and fertile sediment delivery and strong metal tools to till soil were unnecessary. It should be stressed that while steel is derived from iron, it is by no means an intuitive leap. Small percentages of impurities can ruin a batch of molten iron, preventing it from becoming steel. Copper alloys are much more robust metallurgically and naturally plentiful in their environment. Several naturally occurring proportions of zinc, arsenic, tin, phosphorus will combine with copper and improve the properties of bronze. Bronze is stronger than iron, and does not rust, so to prefer bronze in this context is entirely rational. Given iron's greater abundance, it is likely that the Iron Age began when demand for 'any metal' outstripped supply of the 'quality metal' - bronze.

The exact date the Egyptians started producing glass is debated. There is some question whether the Egyptians were capable of long distance navigation in their boats and when they became knowledgeable sailors.

Beekeeping is known to have been particularly well developed in Egypt, as accounts are given by several Roman writers — Virgil, Gaius Julius Hyginus, Varro, and Columella. It is unknown whether Egyptian beekeeping developed independently or as an import from Southern Asia.

The Dromedary, domesticated first in Arabia, was introduced into Egypt during the 500s B.C., shortly before the Greek dynasties began and although often thought as associated with Egypt by modern readers, camels evolved in the western hemisphere.

Timeline (All dates are approximate; see Egyptian chronology for a detailed discussion.)

Predynastic See main article and timeline: Predynastic Egypt.

3500 BC: Senet, possibly the world's oldest board game 3500 BC: Faience, world's earliest known earthenware

Dynastic 3200 BC: Egyptian hieroglyphs fully developed (see First dynasty of Egypt) 3200 BC: Narmer Palette, world's earliest known historical document 3100 BC: Decimal system,[48] world's earliest (confirmed) use 3100 BC: Wine cellars, world's earliest known[49] 3050 BC: Shipbuilding in Abydos[50] 3000 BC: Exports from Nile to Canaan and Levant: wine (see Narmer) 3000 BC: Copper plumbing (see Copper: History) 3000 BC: Papyrus, world's earliest known paper 3000 BC: Medical Institutions 2700 BC: Surgery, world's earliest known 2700 BC: precision surveying 2700 BC: Uniliteral signs, forming basis of world's earliest known alphabet 2600 BC: Sphinx, still today the world's largest single-stone statue 2600s–2500 BC: Shipping expeditions: King Sneferu and Pharaoh Sahure.[51] 2600 BC: Barge transportation, stone blocks (see Egyptian pyramids: Construction Techniques) 2600 BC: Pyramid of Djoser, world's earliest known large-scale stone building 2600 BC: Menkaure's Pyramid & Red Pyramid, world's earliest known works of carved granite 2600 BC: Red Pyramid, world's earliest known "true" smooth-sided pyramid; solid granite work 2580 BC: Great Pyramid of Giza, the world's tallest structure until AD 1300 2500 BC: Beekeeping 2400 BC: Astronomical Calendar, used even in the Middle Ages for its mathematical regularity 2200 BC: Beer[52] 1860 BC: possible Nile-Red Sea Canal (Twelfth dynasty of Egypt) 1800 BC: Alphabet, world's oldest known 1800 BC: Moscow Mathematical Papyrus, generalized formula for volume of frustum 1650 BC: Rhind Mathematical Papyrus: geometry, cotangent analogue, algebraic equations, arithmetic series, geometric series 1600 BC: Edwin Smith papyrus, medical tradition traces as far back as c. 3000 BC 1550 BC: Ebers Medical Papyrus, traditional empiricism; world's earliest known documented tumors (see History of medicine) 1300 BC: Berlin Mathematical Papyrus,[53] 19th dynasty - 2nd order algebraic equations 1258 BC: Peace treaty, world's earliest known (see Ramesses II) 1160 BC: Turin papyrus, world's earliest known geologic and topographic map 1000 BC: Petroleum tar used in mummification[54] 500s BC–400s BC (or perhaps earlier): battle games petteia and seega; possible precursors to Chess (see Origins of chess)

Kushite Empire (780 BC – 656 BC) founders...Kushites dominion over...Kushites, Egyptians, Nubians, Berbers, Israelites, Phoenicians

Origins The first developed societies arose in Nubia before the time of the First dynasty of Egypt (3100-2890 BC). Around 2500 BC, Egyptians began moving south, and it is through them that most of our knowledge of Kush (Cush) comes. But this expansion was halted by the fall of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt. About 1500 BC Egyptian expansion resumed, but this time encountered organized resistance. Historians are not sure whether this resistance came from multiple city states or a single unified empire, and debate whether the notion of statehood was indigenous or borrowed from the Egyptians. The Egyptians prevailed, and the region became a colony of Egypt under the control of Thutmose I, whose army ruled from a number of sturdy fortresses. The region supplied Egypt with resources.

In the eleventh century BC internal disputes in Egypt caused colonial rule to collapse and an independent kingdom arose based at Napata in Nubia. This kingdom was ruled by locals who overthrew the colonial regime.

[edit] Napata This Napata based kingdom was united by Alara in the period of around 780-755 BC; Alara is universally regarded as the founder of the Kushite kingdom by his successors. The kingdom grew in influence and came to dominate the Southern Egyptian region of Elephantine and even Thebes by the reign of Kashta, Alara's successor who managed in the 8th century BC to compel Shepenupet I, half-sister of Takelot III and the serving God's Wife of Amen, to adopt his own daughter Amenirdis I as her successor. After this event, Thebes was under the de facto control of Napata. Its power reached a climax under King Piye, Kashta's successor, who conquered all of Egypt in his Year 20 and established the 25th dynasty.

When the Assyrians invaded in 671 BC, Kush became once again an independent state. The last Kushite king to attempt to regain control over Egypt was Tantamani who was firmly defeated by Assyria in 664 BC. Thereafter, the kingdom's power over Egypt declined and terminated in 656 BC when Psamtik I, founder of the 26th Saite Dynasty, reunited Egypt. In 591 BC the Egyptians under Psamtik II invaded Kush, possibly because Kush ruler Aspelta was preparing to invade Egypt, and effectively sacked and burned Napata.

[edit] Move to Meroë It is clear from various historical records that Aspelta's successors moved their capital to Meroë, considerably farther south than Napata. The exact date this change was made is uncertain but some historians believe it was during Aspelta's reign, in response to the Egyptian invasion of Lower Nubia. Other historians believe it was the attraction of iron working that drove the kingdom south: around Meroë, unlike Napata, there were large forests that could fire the blast furnaces. The arrival of Greek merchants throughout the region also meant that Kush was no longer dependent on trade along the Nile. Instead, it could export its goods to the Red Sea and the Greek trading colonies there.

An alternate theory is that two separate but closely linked states developed, one based at Napata and the other at Meroë. The Meroë-based state gradually eclipsed the northern one. No royal residence has been found north of Meroë and it is possible Napata had only been the religious headquarters. But Napata clearly remained an important centre, with the kings being crowned and buried there for many centuries, even when they lived at Meroë.

In about 300 BC the move to Meroë was made more complete when the monarchs began to be buried there, instead of at Napata. One theory is that this represents the monarchs breaking away from the power of the priests at Napata. Diodorus Siculus tells a story about a Meroitic ruler named Ergamenes who was ordered by the priests to kill himself, but broke tradition and had the priests executed instead. Some historians think Ergamenes refers to Arrakkamani, the first ruler to be buried at Meroë. However, a more likely transliteration of Ergamenes is Arqamani, who ruled many years after the royal cemetery was opened at Meroë. Another theory is that the capital had always been based at Meroë.

Kush continued for several centuries, yet there is little information available. Earlier Kush had used Egyptian hieroglyphics, but Meroë developed a new script and began to write in the Meroitic language, which has not been fully deciphered. The state seems to have prospered, trading with its neighbours and continuing to build monuments and tombs. In 23 BC the Roman governor of Egypt, Petronius, invaded Nubia in response to a Nubian attack on southern Egypt, pillaging the north of the region and sacking Napata (22 BC) before returning north.

[edit] Decline The decline of Kush is a hotly debated topic. A diplomatic mission in Nero's reign travelled to Meroë; (Pliny the Elder, N.H. 6.35). After the second century AD the royal tombs began to shrink in size and splendour, and the building of large monuments seems to have ceased. The royal pyramid burials halted altogether in the middle of the fourth century AD. The archeological record shows a cultural shift to a new society known as the X-Group, or Ballana culture.

This corresponds closely to the traditional theory that the kingdom was destroyed by the invasion by Ezana of Axum from the Ethiopian kingdom of Axum around 350. However, the Ethiopian account seems to be describing the quelling of a rebellion in lands they already controlled. It also refers only to the "Noba," (in Greek "Nobatae") and makes no mention of the rulers of Meroë.

The last ruler of Meroë was a man called Sect Lie; his exact name has been lost. Not much is known about him, but a few stories still survive in folk telling. Apparently he was an evil man, who lusted for gold and women. This possibly helped cause the invasion of Meroë.

Many historians theorize that these Nuba are the same people the Romans called the Nobatae. Procopius reports that when the Roman empire withdrew from northern Nubia in 272, they invited the Nobatae to fill the power vacuum.

The other important elements were the Blemmyes, likely ancestors of the Beja. They were desert warriors who threatened the Roman possessions and thereby contributed to the Roman withdrawal to more defensible borders. At the end of the fourth century AD they had managed to control a part of the Nile valley around Kalabsha in Lower Nubia.

By the sixth century, new states had formed in the area once been controlled by Meroë. It seems almost certain that the Nobatae evolved into the state of Nobatia, and were also behind the Ballana culture and the two other states that arose in the area, Makuria and Alodia were also quite similar. The Beja meanwhile were expelled, back into the desert by the Nuba kings around 450 AD. These new states of Nubia inherited much from Kush, but were also quite different. They spoke Old Nubian and wrote in a modified version of the Coptic alphabet; Meroitic and its script seemed to disappear completely. Unlike their predecessors were armed with weapons that far-surpassed Kush technology at the time.

The origin of the Nuba/Nobatae who replaced Meroë is uncertain. They may have been nomadic invaders from the west who conquered and imposed their culture and language on the settled peoples. P.L. Shinnie has speculated that the Nobatae were in fact indigenous and were natives of the Napata region who had been dominated by Meroitic leaders for centuries, and that the word Nobatae is directly related to Napata.

Aksumite Empire (50 AD - 937 AD) founders...Habesha dominion over...Habesha, Nubians, Arabs, Jews, Sidama The Aksumite Empire or Axumite Empire, Ge'ez አክሱም), was an important trading nation in northeastern Africa, growing from the proto-Aksumite period ca. 4th century BC to achieve prominence by the 1st century AD. [edit] History Located in northern Ethiopia and Eritrea, Aksum was deeply involved in the trade from India and the east to the Mediterranean.

Aksum is mentioned in the 1st century CE Periplus of the Erythraean Sea as an important market place for ivory, which was exported throughout the ancient world:

{{tlx|quote|"From that place to the city of the people called Auxumites there is a five days' journey more; to that place all the ivory is brought from the country beyond the Nile through the district called Cyeneum, and thence to Adulis; Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, Chap.4.

According to the Periplus, the ruler of Aksum in the 1st century CE was Zoscales, who, besides ruling in Aksum also held under his sway two habours on the Red Sea: Adulis (near Massawa) and Avalites (Assab). He is also said to have been familiar with Greek litterature:

"These places, from the Calf-Eaters to the other Berber country, are governed by Zoscales; who is miserly in his ways and always striving for more, but otherwise upright, and acquainted with Greek literature."

—Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, Chap.5[1] In the 3rd century, Aksum began interfering in South Arabian affairs, controlling at times the western Tihama region among other areas. By the late 3rd century it had begun minting its own currency and was named by Mani as one of the four great powers of his time along with Persia, Rome, and China. It converted to Christianity in 325 or 328 under King Ezana and was the first state ever to use the image of the cross on its coins. At its height, Aksum controlled northern Ethiopia, Eritrea, northern Sudan, southern Egypt, Djibouti, western somalia, Yemen, and southern Saudi Arabia, totalling 1.25 million km².[2]

It was a quasi-ally of Byzantium against the Persian Empire of the day and declined after the 7th century due to unknown reasons, but informed speculation suggests the rise of Islam heavily impacted its ability to trade with the Far East in the era when shipping was limited to coastal navigation as well as cut it off from its principal markets in Alexandria, Byzantium and Southern Europe.

After a second golden age in the early 6th century, the kingdom began to decline, eventually ceasing its production of coins in the early 7th century. It finally dissolved with the invasion of the pagan or Jewish queen Gudit in the 9th or 10th century, resulting in a Dark Age about which little is known until the rise of the Zagwe dynasty.

[edit] Origins Aksum was previously thought to have been founded by Semitic-speaking Sabaeans who crossed the Red Sea from South Arabia (modern Yemen) on the basis of Conti Rossini's theories and prolific work on Ethiopian history, but most scholars now agree that it was an indigenous development.[3][4] Scholars like Stuart Munro-Hay point to the existence of an older D’mt or Da'amot kingdom, prior to any Sabaean migration ca. 4th or 5th c. BC, as well as to evidence of Sabaean immigrants having resided in the region for little more than a few decades.[5] Furthermore, Ge'ez, the ancient Semitic language of Eritrea and Ethiopia, is now known to not have derived from Sabaean, and there is evidence of a Semitic speaking presence in Ethiopia and Eritrea at least as early as 2000 BC.[6][7] Sabaean influence is now thought to have been minor, limited to a few localities, and disappearing after a few decades or a century, perhaps representing a trading or military colony in some sort of symbiosis or military alliance with the civilization of D`mt or some proto-Aksumite state.[8] Adding more to the confusion, there existed an Ethiopian city called Saba in the ancient period that does not seem to have been a Sabaean settlement.

[edit] Geography The Kingdom of Aksum at its height extended across portions of present-day Eritrea, northern Ethiopia, Yemen, southern Saudi Arabia northern Somalia, Djibouti, and northern Sudan. The capital city of the kingdom was Aksum, now in northern Ethiopia. Other important cities included Yeha, Hawulti, Matara, Adulis, and Qohaito, the last three of which are now in Eritrea.

[edit] Societal structure Proto-Tigrayans and Proto-Amharas are believed to be the main ethnicity of the kingdom of Axum in the first millennium CE. Their language, in form of Ge'ez, remained the language of later Ethiopian imperial court as well as the Eritrean and Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

The Aksumite people represented a mix of a dominant Semitic-speaking people, Cushitic-speaking people, and Nilo-Saharan-speaking people (the Kunama and Nara) collectively known as Habeshas.

The Aksumite kings had the official title ነገሠ ፡ ነገሠተ ngś ngśt - King of Kings (later vocalization Ge'ez ንጉሠ ፡ ነገሥት nigūśa nagaśt, Modern Ethiosemitic nigūse negest). Aksumite kings traced their lineage to Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. This royal heritage and title was claimed and used by all emperors of Ethiopia.

[edit] Foreign relations and economy Aksum traded with India and Rome (later Byzantium), exporting ivory, tortoise shell, gold and emeralds, and importing silk and spices. Aksum's access to both the Red Sea and the Upper Nile enabled its strong navy to profit in trade between various African (Nubia), Arabian (Yemen), and Indian states. In the 3rd century AD, Aksum acquired tributary states on the Arabian Peninsula across the Red Sea, and by 350, they conquered the Kingdom of Kush.

Aksum remained a strong empire and trading power until the rise of Islam in the seventh century. However, because the Axumites had sheltered Muhammad's first followers, the Muslims never attempted to overthrow Aksum as they spread across the face of Africa. Nevertheless, as early as 640, Umar ibn al-Khattāb sent a naval expedition against Adulis under Alkama bin Mujazziz, but it was eventually defeated.[9] Aksumite naval power also declined throughout the period, though in 702 Aksumite pirates were able to invade the Hejaz and occupy Jeddah. In retaliation, however, Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik was able to take the Dahlak Archipelago from Aksum, which became Muslim from that point on, though later recovered in the 9th century and vassal to the Emperor of Ethiopia.[10]

Eventually, the Islamic Empire took control of the Red Sea and most of the Nile, forcing Aksum into economic isolation. However, it still had relatively good relations with all of its Muslim neighbors. Two Christian states northwest of Axum (in modern day Sudan), Maqurra and Alwa, survived until the thirteenth century when they were finally forced by Muslim conversion to become Islamic. Aksum, however, remained untouched by the Islamic movements across Africa.

[edit] Cultural achievements The Kingdom of Aksum is notable for a number of achievements, such its own alphabet, the Ge'ez alphabet (which evolved from Epigraphic South Arabian during the late pre-Aksumite and proto-Aksumite period), which was modified to include vowels, becoming an abugida. Furthermore, in the early times of the kingdom, around 1700 years ago, giant Obelisks to mark King's (and nobles') tombstones (underground grave chambers) were constructed, the most famous of which is the Obelisk of Axum.

Aksum obelisk, symbol of the Aksumite civilizationUnder King Ezana, the kingdom adopted Christianity in place of its former polytheistic and Judaic religions around 325. This gave rise to the present day Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church (1959), and Eritrean Orthodox Tewahdo Church (1993). Since the schism with Rome following the Council of Chalcedon (451), it has been an important Miaphysite church, and its scriptures and liturgy are still in Ge'ez.

A story recorded by Rufinus has it that at that time, a foreign boy named Frumentius was made a slave of the royal court, and later a tutor to the royal children. When the king died, the queen asked Frumentius to help rule Axum. He had declined promised freedom and remained until the queen's son, Ezana, was old enough to rule. Frumentius established a number of Christian churches, and when Ezana became king he made Christianity the official religion of Aksum.[11] This custom of a slave who teaches kings remained an important tradition for the next few hundred years.

It was a cosmopolitan and culturally important state. It was a meeting place for a variety of cultures: Egyptian, Sudanic, Arabic, and Indian. The major Aksumite cities had Sabean, Jewish, Nubian, Christian, and even Buddhist minorities.

The Kingdom of Aksum was also the first African polity to issue its own coins. From the reign of Endubis up to Armah (approximately 270 to 610), gold, silver and bronze coins were minted. Issuing coinage in ancient times was an act of great importance in itself, for it proclaimed that the Axumite kingdom considered itself equal to its neighbors. The presence of coins also simplified trade, and was at once a useful instrument of propaganda and a source of profit to the kingdom.

Typical Aksumite architecture - the monastery of Debre Damo. [edit] Decline Aksum began to decline in the 7th century, and the population was forced to go farther inland to the highlands, eventually being defeated c. 950. Local history hold that a Jewish Queen named Yodit (Judith) or "Gudit" (a play on "Yodit" meaning "evil") defeated the kingdom and burned its churches and literature, but while there is evidence of churches being burned and an invasion around this time, her existence has been questioned by some modern authors. Another possibility is that the Axumite power was ended by a southern pagan queen named Bani al-Hamwiyah, possibly of the tribe al-Damutah or Damoti (Sidama). After this period, the Axumite kingdom was succeeded by the Zagwe dynasty in the eleventh century or twelfth century, although limited in size and scope. However, Yekuno Amlak, who killed the last Zagwe king and founded the modern Solomonic dynasty traced his ancestry and his right to rule from the last king of Axum, Dil Na'od.

Kanem Empire (700 AD - 1376 AD) founders...Zaghawa dominion over...Zaghawa, Sao, Berbers, Arabs, Maba, Baguirmi, Hausa, Adamawa The Kanem Empire existed in modern Chad and Libya. It was known to the Arabian geographers as the Kanem-bornu Empire from the 9th century AD onward and lasted, in some form, until 1893. At its height it encompassed an area covering not only much of Chad, but also parts of modern southern Libya and eastern Niger. Its succeeding state, the Bornu Empire, would dominate these lands as well as northeastern Nigeria and northern Cameroon. The history of the Empire from the 13th century onwards is mainly known from the Royal Chronicle or Girgam discovered in 1851 by the German traveller Heinrich Barth. Origins The Kanem Empire originated at an unknown period to the northeast of Lake Chad. It was located at the southern end of the trans-Saharan trade route between Tripoli and the region of Lake Chad. Besides its urban elite it included a confederation of nomadic peoples who spoke languages of the Teda–Daza (Toubou) group. One theory, based on early Arabic sources, suggests that the dominance of the Zaghawa people bound the confederation together. The Diwan refers to the Zaghawa as Duguwa. The Sayfuwa, often thought to have been the only dynasty of Kanem, only took power in the process of Islamization. Their ancestor Sef was since the thirteenth century identified with the legendary Yemenite hero Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan, hence it became customary to call the second ruling dynasty Sayfawa instead of Sefuwa. Both, the Duguwa and the subsequent Sayfawa, seem to have belonged to the same ruling establishment of the Magumi. Also the royal title Mai would appear to have been shared by the Duguwa and the Sayfawa. In the pre-Islamic period the subjects regarded their king as divine.

The major factor that influenced the history of the state of Kanem was the early penetration of Islam. North African traders, Berbers and Arabs, brought the new religion. Towards 1068, Hummay, a member of the Sayfawa establishment, who was already a Muslim, discarded the last Duguwa king Selma from power and thus established the new dynasty of the Sayfuwa. Islam offered the Sayfawa rulers the advantage of new ideas from Arabia and the Mediterranean world, as well as literacy in administration. But many people resisted the new religion favouring traditional beliefs and practices. When Hummay had assumed power on the basis of his strong Islamic following, for example, it is believed that the Duguwa/Zaghawa began some kind of internal opposition. This pattern of conflict and compromise with Islam occurs repeatedly in Chadian history.

When the ruling dynasty changed, the royal establishment abandoned its capital of Manan and settled in the new capital Njimi further south of Kanem (the word for "south" in the Teda language). By the 13th century, Kanem's rule expanded. At the same time, the Kanembu people drew closer to the new rulers and increased the growing population in the new capital of Njimi. Even though the Kanembu became the main power-base of the Sayfuwa, Kanem's rulers continued to travel frequently throughout the kingdom and especially towards Bornu, west of lake Chad. Herders and farmers alike recognized the government's power and acknowledged their allegiance by paying tribute.

[edit] Mai Dunama Dabbalemi Kanem's expansion peaked during the long and energetic reign of Mai Dunama Dabbalemi (ca. 1221–1259), also of the Sayfawa dynasty. Dabbalemi initiated diplomatic exchanges with sultans in North Africa and apparently arranged for the establishment of a special hostel in Cairo to facilitate pilgrimages to Mecca. During his reign, he declared jihad against the surrounding tribes and initiated an extended period of conquest. After consolidating their territory around Lake Chad the Fezzan region (in present-day Libya) fell under Kanem's authority, and the empire's influence extended westward to Kano (in present-day Nigeria), eastward to Ouaddaï, and southward to the Adamawa grasslands (in present-day Cameroon). Portraying these boundaries on maps can be misleading, however, because the degree of control extended in ever-weakening gradations from the core of the empire around Njimi to remote peripheries, from which allegiance and tribute were usually only symbolic. Moreover, cartographic lines are static and misrepresent the mobility inherent in nomadism and migration, which were common. The loyalty of peoples and their leaders was more important in governance than the physical control of territory.

Dabbalemi devised a system to reward military commanders with authority over the people they conquered. This system, however, tempted military officers to pass their positions to their sons, thus transforming the office from one based on achievement and loyalty to the mai into one based on hereditary nobility. Dabbalemi was able to suppress this tendency, but after his death, dissension among his sons weakened the Sayfawa Dynasty. Dynastic feuds degenerated into civil war, and Kanem's outlying peoples soon ceased paying tribute.

[edit] From Kanem to Bornu By the end of the 14th century, internal struggles and external attacks had torn Kanem apart. Between 1376 and 1400, six mais reigned, but Bulala invaders (from the area around Lake Fitri to the east) killed five of them. This proliferation of mais resulted in numerous claimants to the throne and led to a series of internecine wars. Finally, around 1396 the Bulala forced Mai Umar Idrismi to abandon Njimi and move the Kanembu people to Bornu on the western edge of Lake Chad

lynne willis
Awsome mother to single child, full of love

New Line Cinema's House of Horror
House of Horror is a licensing division of New Line Cinema encompassing the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Friday the 13th, and A Nightmare on Elm Street film series. It was created after the success of Freddy vs. Jason and the 2003 remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre revitalized waning public interest in these franchises. Since then, the House of Horror name has appeared on numerous comic books, toylines and games based around cross-overs of these films.

As of June 2005, New Line has had an agreement with New Amsterdam Entertainment to license "specific products" for the classic zombie film, Dawn of the Dead under the House of Horror banner.

Characters

 * Leatherface
 * Jason Voorhees / Jason X
 * Freddy Krueger
 * Chop Top
 * Plaid Shirt Zombie
 * Flyboy Zombie

Nathan Miller
Hi Nathan Miller is a business intended to teach people how to eat chickens. It has been reported that it is illegal though. We do not reccomend trying the chicken eating programme. The Business was started in 1999 when young Nathan Miller (56 years of age), decided that he had nothing better to do. On his will Nathan has discussed that his estate will be left to Roger, the fly.

Sandwiches
Nathan loves crap on toast

Robert Ross (wrestler)
Robert Lee Ross, Jr. is a semi-retired American professional wrestler who competed in North American regional and independent promotions during the 1980s and early 1990s, most notably as Ranger Ross in Jim Crockett Promotions and later World Championship Wrestling.

Early life and career
Born in Acworth, Georgia, Ross enlisted with the U.S. Rangers. During his 8-year career as an airborne paratrooper, he participated in several combat and rescue missions including Operation Urgent Fury before becoming a professional wrestler.

Making his debut in 1986, he briefly held the NWA Alabama Heavyweight Championship defeating Moondog Spot in January 1988 before loosing the title to Jonathan Boyd in Birmingham, Alabama on January 11, 1988.

Jim Crockett Promotions & World Championship Wrestling
Appearing in Jim Crockett Promotions the following year, he had a short-lived feud with The Iron Sheik defeating him by disqualification at Clash of the Champions VI on April 2, 1989. Prior to the match, he had made his entrence by rapelling 300 feet from the top of The Superdome.

Later that month he would team with Randy Rose against Jack Victory & Rip Morgan and, in singles competition, faced The Great Muta and Butch Reed loosing to Reed at Wrestlewar '89 on May 7.

On May 23, he and Ron Simmons would later participate in the NWA World Tag Team Championship Tournament loosing to the Samoan Swat Team in the opening rounds and began feuding with Simmons soon after. Defeating The Terrorist at Clash of the Champions VII in Fort Bragg, North Carolina on June 14, he was eliminated in the two-ring battle royal by former tag team partner Ron Simmons (Ross would later eliminate Simmons while in the second ring before being eliminated by Dan Spivey) at the Great American Bash on July 23 and later faced Keith Steinborn several times the following month.

Although loosing to Sid Vicious at Clash of the Champions VIII on September 12, he would later feud with The Cuban Assassin as well as defeating Rusty Riddle and Bob Emery during the next several weeks. Facing Pat Rose on December 2, he also teamed with various partners during the end of the year teaming with Eddie Gilbert against The Galaxians on December 23 and with "Wildfire" Tommy Rich against Cactus Jack & Ned Brady on December 30, 1989. During the match, Cactus Jack would turn on Ned Brady, giving Ross and Tommy Rich the victory.

During the next two years, he would wrestle for the promotion on a limited basis loosing to Mike Rotundo at a house show in Hammond, Illinois on January 11, 1990. Several months later he fought to a time limit draw against Jack Victory at the Philadelphia Civic Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on April 7 before loosing to Abdullah the Butcher in Augusta, Georgia later that month. While touring Japan, he would team with Abdullah the Butcher facing Shohei Baba & Rusher Kimura at an event for All Japan Pro Wrestling on May 26. In one of his last appearances, he later defeated El Cubano at Clash of the Champions XIV on January 30, 1991.

Retirement and armed robbery
After leaving WCW on bad terms, he later filed a discrimination suit against the organization. Working as private investigator as well as a part-time probation officer in Acworth during the early 1990s, he also collected fines and probation fees in the local area.

In February 1996, Ross was arrested at his home in Acworth and formerly charged with four counts of bank robbery as the "Motorcycle Bandit", an unidentified man who made his escape on a Honda motorcycle, who had been robbing banks in the Acworth area for over three years as well as being charged in connection with the robbery of an Ingle's grocery store in Atlanta the pervious December. Following the robbery of a bank in downtown Acworth, Ross surrendered to federal agents on February 9.

He was also alleged to have attempted to set fire to the Acworth city clerk's office in addition to embezzeling funds from the city.

Recent years
In early 2004, he began wrestling for several Southeastern independent promotions including appearances the North American Wrestling Alliance and Wrestling Xtreme Overload teaming with Lash Leroux & Danny Dollar in a 6-man tag team match and later on teamed with Lash Leroux defeated The Turbulators by disqualification at a televised event for Wrestling Xtreme Overload on August 21, 2004.

In 2005, he defeated Alan Martin at a Wrestle Inc. event on August 12 and, the following night, lost to Rainman in a four way match with Brad Armstrong and Simon Sermon at an event for Pro Wrestling Evolution. During the next two months, he and Leroux would also win the New Age Championship Wrestling Tag Team titles and, the following month, teamed with "Mr. USA" Tony Atlas, The Patriot and The Stro defeating Ivan Koloff's Russian Army. Returning to Pro Wrestling Evolution in early 2006, Ross defeated Adam Raddick by disqualification on April 22 and, at an event for TNT Pro Wrestling, teamed with Ken Aldridge to defeat Kamala & Mr. Terrific on May 6, 2006.

Championships and accomplishments

 * National Wrestling Alliance
 * Regional
 * NWA Alabama Heavyweight Championship (1 time)


 * Pro Wrestling Illustrated
 * PWI ranked him # 231 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the PWI 500 in 1991

World Humanitarian Forum
The goal of the Humanitarian Forum is to help create a conducive, unbiased and safe environment for the implementation of technically sound and principled humanitarian action by

- providing a platform for dialogue, - promoting mutual understanding, - supporting capacity building and development of NGOs and charities, - Advocating for a legal framework for greater transparency and accountability, - promoting humanitarian principles and standards and - improving communication and co-operation.

The Humanitarian Forum was initiated in June 2004 as an inclusive coming together of humanitarian organizations, which in particular seeks to foster partnerships and closer co-operation among humanitarian and charitable organizations from Muslim countries or denominations on the one hand, and humanitarian and charitable organizations from the ‘West’ and the multi-lateral system on the other.

Mars Callahan
Mars Callahan is an American actor, director, and screenwriter. He was born in Studio City, California. By age eleven he was touring with a children’s musical group for Columbia Artists across the Untied States and by fifteen he had landed a supporting role on the hit television series The Wonder Years.

Continuing to work in television, he appeared in many other popular series, such as Cagney and Lacey, Growing Pains, The Facts of Life, and ER.

After honing his skills as an actor in television he appeared in several big screen films helmed by directors such as Dominic Sena who cast him in Kalifornia, Lawrence Kasdan who featured him in The Accidental Tourist and Tom Hanks in That Thing You Do!

In 1999 he wrote and directed the feature film Double Down (previously titled Zigs) starring Jason Priestly and in 2000 wrote, directed, and starred in the feature film Poolhall Junkies whose supporting cast included Academy Award winners Christopher Walken, Rod Steiger, and Academy Award nominee Chazz Palminteri.

He is the CEO of Big Sky Motion Pictures and continues to write and direct new material, including the new romantic comedy What Love Is starring Cuba Gooding, Jr., Anne Heche, Sean Astin, and Gina Gershon and Spring Break '83 starring John Goodman.

Sect (Planescape)
Redirect to Planescape#Sect

Early life and early career
SAEEDA VORAJEE or Sahara knite her stage name is a Lancashire girl, born and bred, from Bolton Her hereditary routes are in the Gujarat region of the Indian sub-continent and South East Asia. Sahara has never been a refugee of any sort. She is British through and through. She never wears a Burka. Sahara is a successful Graduate from Southampton College of Art and Design and gave up a well paid junior executive job in the Fashion Industry at French Connectionto be a full time Porn Model.

She claims not to smoke, eat meat or drink alcohol, she has a prayer mat and a Koran. But her career choice has left her shunned by both family and faith. Saeeda, or Sahara Knite, as she is now known, is the UK’s only Muslim porn star.

Links
[| official site]

Category:Asian English porn stars Category:Indian actors Category:Gujarati Indians Category:Female porn stars Category:Living people

Declined. We cannot accept unsourced suggestions or sources that are not reliable per the verifiability policy. Please provide reputable, third-party sources with your suggestions. Third party sources are needed both to establish the verifiability of the submission as well as its notability. Ariel ♥  Gold  00:33, 21 October 2007 (UTC)
 * style="text-align:center;" | This is an archived discussion. Please do not modify it. 
 * }
 * }

Red Bats with Teeth
"Red Bats with Teeth" is a song written by Angelo Badalamenti in 1997 for David Lynch film Lost Highway, and it was included in the soundtrack CD published in the same year with the same name. It consist in a jazz piece with a very strong support of instruments, led by a dark strange tenor sax melody. The 17" sax solo played at the end of the song is an extremely crazy composition, with quite inusual and weird sounds. Angelo Badalamenti has also worked in some other Lynch's works like Blue Velvet, the Twin Peaks saga and Mulholland Drive.

Relation With the Movie
In the film, it is featured when Fred Madison (Bill Pullman) is playing jazz with a band in a night club. It is also featured when Peter Dayton (Balthazar Getty) is fixing a car and this song is being played on the radio. For some strange reason, he can't stand that music and almost immediatly changes the radio station.

Declined. We cannot accept unsourced suggestions or sources that are not reliable per the verifiability policy. Please provide reputable, third-party sources with your suggestions. Third party sources are needed both to establish the verifiability of the submission as well as its notability. Ariel ♥  Gold  00:30, 21 October 2007 (UTC)
 * style="text-align:center;" | This is an archived discussion. Please do not modify it. 
 * }
 * }