quote: There were three main population centres: the Nile valley between Thebes and the first cataract, the Faiyum, and the Delta.
To make all the lower lying land along the upper reaches of the Nile fit for cultivation the earth banks of the river had to be cut, in order for the annual flood waters to fill the large scale irrigation basins which had come into being through the building of dams. These earthworks often required cooperation on a scale beyond the capabilities of single villages and was contributory to the formation of regional power centres. The Faiyum, a natural oasis irrigated by the Bahr Yussuf was developed during the Middle Kingdom, when large tracts of land were reclaimed from the Lake and put under cultivation. Under the Ptolemies it was preferred to other regions by the Greeks who settled there in large numbers.
The Delta posed problems of drainage and was difficult to settle as few regions were permanently above the level of the high Nile. The marshes along the northern coastline were much of the time water-logged. These problems were overcome to some extent by building dams and drainage canals. In the end the majority of the Egyptian population lived in Lower Egypt.
Well, what made you think the reverse was true?
Posts: 7103 | From: Fallbrook, CA | Registered: Mar 2004
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Maybe by "in the end," they mean by the end of Ancient Egypt, which is easily believable, because by Roman and Greek times, this did become the case, partly due to the influx of foreigners. Especially since many date the end of AE to 30 BC with the death of Cleopatra, when it had been ruled by Greeks for 300 years and Persians for 200 before that. During this time there would have been a population increase in the delta compared to other regions due to the building of Alexandria and its closeness to regions from which foreigners would emigrate.
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quote:Originally posted by Yom: Maybe by "in the end," they mean by the end of Ancient Egypt, which is easily believable, because by Roman and Greek times, this did become the case, partly due to the influx of foreigners. Especially since many date the end of AE to 30 BC with the death of Cleopatra, when it had been ruled by Greeks for 300 years and Persians for 200 before that. During this time there would have been a population increase in the delta compared to other regions due to the building of Alexandria and its closeness to regions from which foreigners would emigrate.
That is possible, but I have seen the phrase "in the end" used to conclude a paragraph (e.g "in the end, it doesn't really matter"). The author could have meant "in conclusion, the majority of the population lived in Lower Egypt".
The weird thing is that I've also read claims that the population concentration varied depending on the location of the capital; i.e. most people would have lived in southern Egypt during the New Kingdom and in northern Egypt during the Old Kingdom. I actually have seen a statement from a peer-reviewed source saying that the population was mostly in Upper Egypt, but I cannot find it at the momemnt.
Why does this have to be so confusing?
Posts: 7103 | From: Fallbrook, CA | Registered: Mar 2004
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^Yes, it is baseless...unless the author can specify the timeframe(s) in question, and what set of premises he/she is deriving his/her conclusion, e.g. why the Delta would have higher population than further up the Nile:
The author tells us why the Delta was a relatively uninhabitable place, or else why it proved to be a challenging environment for inhabitation, then immediately dives into this:
In the end the majority of the Egyptian population lived in Lower Egypt.
I mean, surely the author is not telling us that the relatively less populated upper Nile Valley overpowered the more heavily populated Delta region, and became the basis for the predominant ruling sections in the ensuing dynastic period, are they?
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