People lived on the banks of the Nile River from the very beginning of the history of civilization. In the struggle for survival, a man decided on the economic use of the Nile River. It overcomes six and a half thousand kilometers from the heart of Africa to the Mediterranean Sea, affecting the lifestyle and beliefs of people in different places of the continent. Echoes of ancient beliefs are still in the heights of Ethiopia, in the vast swamps of Sudan and in the fields of Egypt. It was in Egypt that the Nile gave birth to one of the great civilizations on the planet. The ideas of the Egyptians continue to amaze us today. Egypt was the birthplace of Western man. Here he first planted crops and turned the Nile into a beautiful garden of Eden. Ancient Egyptian man made nature his god. In our article you will learn about the economic importance and use of the Nile River.
Agriculture
Cairo, the capital of modern Egypt, founded by a general a thousand years ago. The name of the city in the translation of "Al Qahir" means a victorious city. Its location was of particular importance. Pyramids were built nearby. And the city spread to the other side in the place where the river. Most of all, the Nile is bottled in the delta.
Several million people live in the capital. It is one of the largest cities in Africa. But, despite this, emotionally people are attached to agricultural life. Many of them want to be farmers. To realize their dream, they live in Cairo. Landowners are often also traders, so they spend most of their time on a farm in the river delta, where they practice the economic use of the Nile River. However, there is the most fertile soil in Egypt. Several centuries ago, in these places there were a lot of lakes where reeds were extracted in order to make papyrus. The ancestors of modern Egyptians used this land and made it the most fertile site on the planet. The soil in these places is so fertile that if a person owns only one hectare of land, then a competent owner can make a good condition on this site. In these places, farmers grow rice for their needs. Due to the large amount of ripening grain in these places, the ancient Egyptians moved from subsistence farming to pharaonic civilization.
Construction
The Egyptians were the most prominent builders in ancient times. The pyramids at Giza are the most magnificent buildings that a man has ever seen. There is a misconception that these monuments erected slaves. However, it is not! The construction of ancient Egyptian monuments was carried out by seasonal workers from the fields, which led to the construction of the annual flood of the Nile, as well as the desire to earn while their fields were under water. It was silt from the bottom of the river that helped the Egyptians build such strong, solid structures. Egyptian farms and buildings have thrived on valuable chernozem. Locals say that chernozem is the secret of Egypt. And they also believe that Egypt is a gift of the Nile to man. Chernozem contains a lot of iron, zinc and manganese. In a word, everything that plants need to grow. Every year he gives the Egyptians this miracle. The Egyptians were successful in the economic use of the Nile River not only in agriculture, but also in construction!
Animals and religion
Deep in tropical Africa, the Nile Valley looks the same as 1000 years ago in the era of the Pharaohs. Here, the Nile is rich in inhabitants. And you know from ancient art that most of the creatures that we see in these swamps were familiar to the ancient Egyptians. Climate change, as well as an increase in the number of hunters, forced most animals to leave these places. A thousand years ago, elephants, giraffes and rhinos were among the first to flee. But even when the elephants died, the Egyptians made a religion with animals. You may be surprised, but one of the main deities in the ancient Egyptian pantheon was the hippo. Sensual female hippo embodied in the image of the goddess of motherhood Taurta.
The connection of past eras and modern civilization
The transition of Ancient Egypt from nomadic shepherds to a settled state was a direct result of climate and geography. Here was a land of endless sun and rich soil. The Egyptians did everything possible to turn it into an earthly paradise. As you can see, the economic use of the Nile River by man began in the most ancient times. He provided people with an abundance of food. There was enough fish in the waters of the river. There were a large number of ducks and geese in the lakes. Prosperity was natural, like juicy and sweet dates ripening on trees by the river. The connection between ancient and modern farmers is very strong. For example, the definition of the day to harvest remained the same as in ancient times. Farmers are guided by the pharaonic calendar.
Conclusion
So to summarize. The Nile is the second largest river on planet Earth. It is the only river of its kind that crosses the Sahara Desert in such a way that its channel does not dry out, and the watercourse is constant due to precipitation that falls in the upper river. Most of the Egyptian cities are located along the river bed; therefore, the economic use of the Nile River is very widely developed here. Farmers irrigate fertile fields with this water. Nile is also used in the energy industry, thanks to which the state receives electricity. In the waters of the sacred Nile, fishing and fish farming are developed. This waterway is watering Egypt, and shipping is well developed in the country. This is the economic use of the river. Neil and Amazon are very similar in many ways, but that's another story ...