The flooding of the Nile comes at the rise of the Dog Star Sirius. Festivals abound and people create agriculture calendars around it. Floods bring fertility and abundance; insufficient floods mean drought and famine.
Too much water swamps villages and destroys fields and dams. Balance is crucial. Ancient Egyptians celebrate the flooding of the Nile with a two-week holiday festival, Wafaa El-Nil.
The Nile travels from its source in Lake Victoria, east central Africa, through several countries including today's Tanzania, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Eritrea, South Sudan, Sudan and Egypt.
At the Nile Delta in Egypt, the river runs into the Mediterranean Sea.
Considered the longest river in the world, the Nile comprises seven sections. From south to north:
Lake Plateau of East Africa
Al-Jabal (El-Jebel)
White Nile
Blue Nile
Atbara
Nile north of Khartoum in Sudan and Egypt
Nile delta
The Nile travels 6,600 kilometers (4,100 miles) from source to sea. The Nile river expands into one of the largest deltas worldwide, encompassing 240 km (150 mi) of Mediterranean coastline. The river brings life to barren lands and gives rise to rich civilizations.
The year of the ancient Egyptians is divided into three seasons:
Akhet (Inundation)
Peret (Growth)
Shemu (Harvest)
Akhet covers the Egyptian flood cycle. The cycle is so consistent the Egyptians can time its onset to the heliacal rising of Sirius, a key event used to set the calendar.
The heliacal rising of the star Sirius, the brightest star of the night sky, is the first day when Sirius is visible in the east at dawn.
Because it's part of the constellation Canis Major, Sirius is also known as the Dog Star. Ancient Egyptians know the heliacal rising of Sirius occurs shortly before the annual flooding of the Nile.
The Nile Floods begin with monsoon season in Ethiopia. The primary monsoon season is Kiremt, between June and September, when 50 - 80% of rain falls.
The massive deluge brings nutrient rich soils and silt rushing from the highlands downriver. The Nile river begins its rise in June, and continues steadily through July, when the water level increases substantially.
At the beginning of September the Nile flood levels stabilize until October, when a small rise occurs. The flood reaches its highest level in October.
From there the water begins to lower again, coming to its lowest level the following June. The cycles continue. Flood waters rise to 45 ft (14 m) at Aswan, 38 ft (12 m) at Luxor and Thebes, and 25 ft (7.6) at Cairo.
Basin Irrigation
Basin irrigation has been used in Egypt since c. 7000 BCE to store and deliver water. If the floods are too low, the basins can't fill, depriving the people, plants and animals of food and life.
Before basin irrigation, the Egyptian people work the crops around the flooding times. Later, architectural engineering constructs dams and dikes throughout the croplands to channel water into basins.
Once flooded the basins are closed off for about six weeks, allowing the nutrient saturated silt to settle. The water is then channeled into lower croplands or back into the Nile. Sowing or planting begins immediately afterward.
Perennial Irrigation
Muhammad Ali Pasha, Khedive (Viceroy) of Egypt (r. 1805 - 1848), makes it a priority to modernize Egypt. He tries to extend arable land and bring in extra revenue with cotton cultivation. Cotton is a crop with a longer growing season and need for water at all times.
New canals are built, shifting from the traditional basin irrigation to perennial irrigation, which can irrigate farmland throughout the year. In this way, crops can be harvested twice or even three times a year.
Agricultural output sees significant increases. In 1873, Isma'il Pasha commissions the construction of the Ibrahimiya Canal, extending perennial irrigation.
In the 20th century, the Aswan High Dam is completed. The Lake Nasser reservoir can store water the height of even the highest floods. The annual flooding cycle in Egypt comes to an end.
Lake Nasser, the southernmost freshwater region of the Egyptians at Sudan, is the largest artificial lake in the world.
Flood Deities
The Nile is a vital part of ancient Egyptian spiritual life. God of the Nile and the annual flooding is Hapi, a dual-sexed god. Both he and the Pharaoh were thought to have powers of flood control.
The annual flooding of the Nile is called the Arrival of Hapi. Since this flooding provides fertile soil in an area otherwise desert, Hapi symbolises fertility, hope, nourishment and well-being.
Although Hapi is referenced as a male god, he has pendulous breasts and pronounced belly, feminine attributes of fertility and nourishment. He may be depicted as a dyad of identical gods. He wears a crown of papyrus, an essential plant for Egypt.
The god Osiris in his agricultural role is also closely associated with the Nile and fertility of the land. During Inundation festivals, figures of Osiris are made of mud, and planted with barley.
Another deity associated with the flooding of the Nile is Heqet, the frog goddess. Frogs are beloved as symbols of life, music, medicine, prosperity and happiness.
Due to floods washing away sediment, deposits of the gemstone carnelian appear on the Nile water terraces, as well as small naturally occuring stones in the river. In ancient Egypt carnelian holds the power of the Sun.
Natural carnelian has been used in beadwork since prehistoric times. A bow drill is an early example of a hole-making tool.
Carnelian is highly valued by the Egyptians due to its rich glow and solar qualities, and is found in tombs of Pharaohs such as Tutankhamun. Today the annual floods are part of Nile history.
Non-Fiction Books:
Fiction Books:
READ: Lora Ley Adventures - Germanic Mythology Fiction Series
READ: Reiker For Hire - Victorian Detective Murder Mysteries