Nile+River's+Resources


 * The Nile River**

The ancient Egyptians began with small settlements around the Nile River and were able to make permanent settlements only because of the presence of the Nile. As the Egyptian civilization grew, it became even more dependent on the Nile and its’ role in their economy. Finally, because of the Ancient Egyptian dependence on the Nile River, it became a centerpiece of their religious practices and their belief in the afterlife. In about 3000 BC settlements began to appear in small groups around the Nile River and a small fertile area around the Nile that we now call the Nile River Valley. These settlements were found almost nowhere else in Northern Africa at this period in time because the surrounding dry deserts lacked the necessities for permanent settlements such as water and fertile soil. The Nile provided both of these things for the Ancient Egyptians, and without it, permanent settlements would have been almost impossible.


 * [[image:greenofnile.jpg]]

FACTS** - 4187 miles long. - The only place for farming is 12 miles of the Nile riverbed. - Egyptian civilization was built 750 miles down from the first cataract. They built the civilization here because it had swirling water for fast travel. The wind from the Mediterranean made it able to sail down upstream with sails as well as being able to sail up stream without sails. - Every year the Nile overflows. This is useful because as the Nile waters recede it leaves behind a layer of fertile soil carried as sediment on the river bottom. -Egyptian farmers planned their work according to the flood. -Short canals were made to take the water from the Nile while it doesn’t flood and made to use for the farmers and their fields year round. -The Nile flows into the Mediterranean Sea. -The largest source of the Nile is Lake Victoria. -Its average discharge is 3.1 million litres (680,000 gallons) per second. -The Nile basin is huge and includes parts of Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Congo (Kinshasa), Kenya. -The Nile receives its name from the Greek Neilos, which means a valley or river valley.


 * touregypt.net/magazine/mag05012001/magf4a.htm**

Authors: Tommy O'Toole and Jason Brackett