Blue Nile River In Ancient Egypt

The Nile was the center of Ancient Egypt. It was the reason the Egyptians developed the civilization. The areas surrounding Egypt are desert land. The Nile keeps it fertile. “It rises south of the Equator and flows northward through northeastern Africa to drain into the Mediterranean Sea,” said Charles Smith, “It has a length of about 4,132 miles (6,650 kilometres) and drains an area estimated at 1,293,000 square miles (3,349,000 square kilometres).”(britannica.com) The Nile river actually has 2 sections that merge into one. The are called the Blue Nile and the White Nile. The White Nile is the main stream of the Nile and increases in Africa. The Blue Nile is the reason that annual floods bring rich soil to Egypt's farms. In the time of Ancient
Egypt, it rained heavily near the Nile. It causes the tributaries to fill and merge. The Egyptians calculated when the Nile would flood so that they can time the planting and growing of crops. The floods would nourish the soil. The Egyptians used the Nile to travel in boats to trade with other areas of the kingdom. They also used cargo ships to transport items. It is thought that the stone for the pyramids was quarried, then taken on a barge to the building sites. The Pharaohs used the boats for pleasure trips. The Nile River was part of their religion. They believed that the Nile river was the way to the afterlife. All burial tombs are on the west side of the Nile. The Egyptian calendar was also based on the cycles of the Nile. Without the Nile, the Ancient Egyptians would never have had a successful civilization.