Ancient Egypt Vocabulary

a ruler of ancient Egypt

• vizier

• kaiser

• tsar

• pharaoh

ancient Egyptian writing system using picture symbols for ideas or sounds

• cuneiform

• hieroglyphics

• pictograms

• logographs

a series of rulers from a single family

• dynasty

• oligarch

• tyranny

• republic

massive structure with a rectangular base and four triangular sides built as a burial place for pharaohs

• tumuli

• mastaba

• sarcophagus

• pyramid

a waterfall or rapids in a rive

• strait

• fjord

• cataract

• bifurcation

the yearly time of flooding in ancient Egypt

• eclipse

• crest

• monsoon

• inundation

ancient Egyptian irrigation tool consisting of a bucket-and-lever water lifting device

• burin

• shaduf

• cleaver

• sickle

a government controlled by religious figures

• oligarchy

• theocracy

• monarchy

• aristocracy

a land form made of sediment (silt) that is deposited where a river flows into an ocean or lake

• cataract

• delta

• cliff

• plateau

a reed that grows along the banks of the Nile River in Egypt. From it was produced a coarse, paper like writing medium used by the Egyptians and many other peoples in the ancient Mediterranean and Middle East

• papyrus

• lychnis

• arum

• lotus