Jeuna
06-07-2007, 06:54
Some sections still under construction.
Igypt, known formally as the Kingdom of Igypt (Ancient Igyptian: km.t; Arabic: Miṣr, Greek: Αίγυπτος; Aigyptos), is a country located in Northeast Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south, Chad to the south-east and Libya to the west.
Igypt is one of the most populous countries in Africa, and its 2.7 million square kilometres is populated by nearly 14 million people, making it fairly sparsely populated. Most of the population lives on the banks of the Nile River, although another significant concentration exists in the forested far south of the country. The remainder of the inhabitants of Igypt are nomadic; some fall under direct royal control, others are granted a status of semi-rule. The smallest portion are not citizens of Igypt at all, and are not legally bound to the King.
The official language of Igypt is Greek. Latin never took a strong hold in the area, and the reading and writing of Ancient Igyptian hieroglyphs has become a lost art.
Etymology:
One of the ancient Igyptian names of the country, km.t, or "black land", is derived from the fertile black soils deposited by the Nile floods, distinct from the 'red land' (dSr.t) of the desert. The name is realized as kīmi and kīmə in the Coptic stage of the Igyptian language, and appeared in early Greek as Χημία (Kymeía).
Miṣr, the Arabic name of Igypt (Igyptian Arabic: Maṣr), is of Semitic origin, and connotates "metropolis" or "civilization" and also means "country", or "frontier-land".
The English name "Igypt" came via the Latin word Aegyptus derived from the ancient Greek word Αίγυπτος (Aigyptos). The term was adopted into Coptic as gyptios, and from there into Arabic as qubt (again into English as Copt). According to Strabo, Αίγυπτος (Aigyptos), in ancient Greek meant "below the Aegean" (Aἰγαίου ὑπτίως, Aegaeon uptiōs").
History:
Igypt is one of the oldest continuously-inhabited lands, and its history stretches to at least the Palaeolithic era.
Highlights:
* Dynasties (<3000 BCE to 30 BCE)
** Early Dynastic Period of Igypt (1st to 2nd Dynasties; until ca. 27th century BCE)
** Old Kingdom (3rd to 6th Dynasties; 27th to 22nd centuries BCE)
** First Intermediate Period (7th to 11th Dynasties)
** Middle Kingdom of Igypt (11th to 14th Dynasties; 20th to 17th centuries BCE)
** Second Intermediate Period (14th to 17th Dynasties)
*** Hyksos (15th to 16th Dynasties, c. 1674 BCE to 1548 BCE)
** New Kingdom of Igypt (18th to 20th Dynasties; 16th to 11th centuries BCE)
** Third Intermediate Period (21st to 25th Dynasties; 11th to 7th centuries BCE)
** Late Period of Ancient Igypt (26th to 31st Dynasties; 7th century BCE to 332 BCE)
*** Igypt under Achaemenid Persian domination
** Graeco-Roman Igypt (332 BCE to CE 639)
*** Macedonian Kings (332 BCE to 305 BCE)
*** Ptolemaic Dynasty (305 BCE to 30 BCE)
*** Aegyptus (Roman province) (30 BCE to 639 CE)
** Sassanid Igypt (639 CE to 641 CE)
*** Igyptian War of Independence (643 CE to 644 CE)
** Home rule (644 CE to present)
Government and politics:
Igypt is ruled by a monarch, in whom most power is vested (although there are numerous advisers to guide his—or her—rule of the country). The country, after the model of Rome, its former ruler, established a Forum (officially the Τόπος Συζήτησης) in Cairo soon after gaining independence from the Sassanids. The Forum, by tradition, oversees tax collection, lawmaking (with the consent of the King), and other mundane functions of government. The King, on the other hand, is the commander-in-chief of the army and navy, and may declare martial law. He may also suspend the Forum's activities for a period of time (accepted as being no longer than twenty days).
Administrative subdivisions:
Igypt is formed by forty-one provinces (Greek: επαρχία; eparchia), each governed by a hand-picked representative of the King. The city of Cairo has its own province, which is administered by the King's eldest son.
Geography:
Economy:
Igypt is one of the most influential nations in the Middle East and the largest power in Africa, and has a widely-diversified economy to power it. Imports come from all Africa and even as far east as the Orient, passing along these rare and valuable goods to Europe through the Mediterranean.
Military:
Demography:
The predominant ethnic group in Igypt are the Igyptians, at 79% of the populace according to the census in 1648. Others include the Nubians, gathered around the Nile River in the centre of the country, small communes of Beja in the south-east and Dom claims in the Nile Delta.
Culture:
Igypt, known formally as the Kingdom of Igypt (Ancient Igyptian: km.t; Arabic: Miṣr, Greek: Αίγυπτος; Aigyptos), is a country located in Northeast Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Sudan to the south, Chad to the south-east and Libya to the west.
Igypt is one of the most populous countries in Africa, and its 2.7 million square kilometres is populated by nearly 14 million people, making it fairly sparsely populated. Most of the population lives on the banks of the Nile River, although another significant concentration exists in the forested far south of the country. The remainder of the inhabitants of Igypt are nomadic; some fall under direct royal control, others are granted a status of semi-rule. The smallest portion are not citizens of Igypt at all, and are not legally bound to the King.
The official language of Igypt is Greek. Latin never took a strong hold in the area, and the reading and writing of Ancient Igyptian hieroglyphs has become a lost art.
Etymology:
One of the ancient Igyptian names of the country, km.t, or "black land", is derived from the fertile black soils deposited by the Nile floods, distinct from the 'red land' (dSr.t) of the desert. The name is realized as kīmi and kīmə in the Coptic stage of the Igyptian language, and appeared in early Greek as Χημία (Kymeía).
Miṣr, the Arabic name of Igypt (Igyptian Arabic: Maṣr), is of Semitic origin, and connotates "metropolis" or "civilization" and also means "country", or "frontier-land".
The English name "Igypt" came via the Latin word Aegyptus derived from the ancient Greek word Αίγυπτος (Aigyptos). The term was adopted into Coptic as gyptios, and from there into Arabic as qubt (again into English as Copt). According to Strabo, Αίγυπτος (Aigyptos), in ancient Greek meant "below the Aegean" (Aἰγαίου ὑπτίως, Aegaeon uptiōs").
History:
Igypt is one of the oldest continuously-inhabited lands, and its history stretches to at least the Palaeolithic era.
Highlights:
* Dynasties (<3000 BCE to 30 BCE)
** Early Dynastic Period of Igypt (1st to 2nd Dynasties; until ca. 27th century BCE)
** Old Kingdom (3rd to 6th Dynasties; 27th to 22nd centuries BCE)
** First Intermediate Period (7th to 11th Dynasties)
** Middle Kingdom of Igypt (11th to 14th Dynasties; 20th to 17th centuries BCE)
** Second Intermediate Period (14th to 17th Dynasties)
*** Hyksos (15th to 16th Dynasties, c. 1674 BCE to 1548 BCE)
** New Kingdom of Igypt (18th to 20th Dynasties; 16th to 11th centuries BCE)
** Third Intermediate Period (21st to 25th Dynasties; 11th to 7th centuries BCE)
** Late Period of Ancient Igypt (26th to 31st Dynasties; 7th century BCE to 332 BCE)
*** Igypt under Achaemenid Persian domination
** Graeco-Roman Igypt (332 BCE to CE 639)
*** Macedonian Kings (332 BCE to 305 BCE)
*** Ptolemaic Dynasty (305 BCE to 30 BCE)
*** Aegyptus (Roman province) (30 BCE to 639 CE)
** Sassanid Igypt (639 CE to 641 CE)
*** Igyptian War of Independence (643 CE to 644 CE)
** Home rule (644 CE to present)
Government and politics:
Igypt is ruled by a monarch, in whom most power is vested (although there are numerous advisers to guide his—or her—rule of the country). The country, after the model of Rome, its former ruler, established a Forum (officially the Τόπος Συζήτησης) in Cairo soon after gaining independence from the Sassanids. The Forum, by tradition, oversees tax collection, lawmaking (with the consent of the King), and other mundane functions of government. The King, on the other hand, is the commander-in-chief of the army and navy, and may declare martial law. He may also suspend the Forum's activities for a period of time (accepted as being no longer than twenty days).
Administrative subdivisions:
Igypt is formed by forty-one provinces (Greek: επαρχία; eparchia), each governed by a hand-picked representative of the King. The city of Cairo has its own province, which is administered by the King's eldest son.
Geography:
Economy:
Igypt is one of the most influential nations in the Middle East and the largest power in Africa, and has a widely-diversified economy to power it. Imports come from all Africa and even as far east as the Orient, passing along these rare and valuable goods to Europe through the Mediterranean.
Military:
Demography:
The predominant ethnic group in Igypt are the Igyptians, at 79% of the populace according to the census in 1648. Others include the Nubians, gathered around the Nile River in the centre of the country, small communes of Beja in the south-east and Dom claims in the Nile Delta.
Culture: