Like the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers are frequently described as the “cradle of civilization,” references to the “gift of the Nile River” in Egypt are likewise commonplace. To determine the reasons why, this paper provides a discussion concerning this statement in relation to the river system of agriculture, the people, riverine culture, worship and trade. Finally, a summary of the research and important findings concerning the Nile River are presented in the conclusion.
Nile River and Agriculture
At around 4,250 miles long, many people know that the Nile River is the longest river in the world, but far fewer fully understand the importance of this river system on the lives of the hundreds of millions of people who live along its pathways through the eleven countries that comprise the more than 1,293,000 square miles of the Nile River basin (see map at Appendix A) (Arah 109). All of these countries remain categorized by the international community as being \\\"relatively underdeveloped and poor\\\" and agriculture still represents the primary source of employment in these countries today (Arah 109).
Nile River and the People
More than 437 million people live along the Nile River’s pathways through Egypt, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Sudan, Rwanda, the Republic of Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda (Arah 109).
Riverine Culture along the Nile
It is important to note that the hundreds of millions of people who live along the Nile River do not comprise a homogeneous collection, but rather represent dozens of individual cultures within these countries. Despite these fundamental differences, though, the vast majority of these peoples share a common cultural preference with respect to the gift of the Nile. In this regard, the editors of the Manila Bulletin point out that, “Most people prefer the riverine culture for easy living like the beneficiaries of the Nile” (Illegal logging 37). Indeed, except for the periodic droughts that plagued the ancient world and which have largely been eliminated through modern water management practices, the gift of the Nile River can be conceptualized a reliable source of livelihood that has shaped the riverine cultures of the nations that have lined its banks for millennia.
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Given the overarching importance of the Nile’s annual flooding to the lives of the people who live in its drainage basin, it is not surprising that the river has played an important role in shaping religious practices (Parker 613). Indeed, the ancient Egyptians even worshiped the God Hapi whom they believed “dwells at the foothills of the Mountains of the Moon” where the Nile originates and was responsible for the annual flooding that made successful agriculture in an otherwise desert setting possible (Delices 63). Like many ancient deities, Hapi was a demanding god and Egyptians sacrificed “their most beautiful girl” as the “bride of Hapi” each year to “please the river Nile” (Pabla 180).
Nile River and Trade
Given its enormous length and massive size of its drainage basin, it is also little wonder that the Nile River has played a major role in facilitating trade for thousands of years. The importance of the Nile for intra- and international commerce has assumed even greater importance in recent years, however, and some analysts believe that conflict between the countries that share the Nile’s blessings may be inevitable within the foreseeable future. For instance,….....
Arah, Benjamin. (2015, September). “Governing the Nile River Basin: The Search for a New Legal Regime.” African Studies Quarterly, vol. 15, no. 4, pp. 109-114.
Delices, Patrick. (2016, February). “Cementing Scholarship with Service: Dr. Ben at the Foothills of the Mountains of the Moon Where the God Hapi Dwells.” The Journal of Pan African Studies, vol. 8, no. 10, pp. 62-65.
“Illegal logging.” (2009, February 5). Manila Bulletin, 37.
Leithead, Alastair. (2018, February 24). “The ‘water war’ brewing over the new River Nile dam.” BBC. Accessed http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-43170408.
Pabla, Prabhleen K. (2009, Autumn). “Encounters with Civilizations: From Alexander the Great to Mother Teresa.” International Journal on Humanistic Ideology, vol. 2, no. 2, pp. 179-183.
Parker, Jonathan D. (2014, Summer). “New Meanings for Ancient Texts: Recent Approaches to Biblical Criticisms and Their Applications.” Anglican Theological Review, vol. 96, no. 3, pp. 613-619.
Pflanz, Mike. (2010, June 4). “Egypt, Sudan Lock Horns with Lower Africa over Control of Nile River.” The Christian Science Monitor, p. 3.
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