Social Structure In Ancient Egypt

Egypt would be nothing without their famous government and rulers. The biggest, most important ruler, of Ancient Egypt, was and is the Pharaoh. The Pharaoh was the most vital leader to not just of the government, but also of the religion in Egypt. There were tears of the Egyptian government. So, under the pharaoh, was the vizier. A vizier is the main overseer of the land. The other officials reported to vizier each day. Under the vizier, were the Nomarks. They rule over a certain area of land called a nome. Almost like a governor. A nome was almost like a state. The role of a nomark would be hereditary and be passed down from father to son. The laws of Ancient Egypt were believed to be partially codified. There were 8 books that set out the legal code. Most people believe that Egyptian law was based on common sense and the view of right and wrong. This is how Egyptian’s complex religion helped make Egypt a working civilization.

In Egypt, the social structure was very important to everyday life. At the top they had their main gods, Ra, Osiris, and Isis. They even elevated some of their own people to the top, giving the god status. These were the Pharaohs. The Pharaohs had total control and power over their subjects and pyramids were built as their graves. There is also a chain of command at the top of hte social structure. After Pharaohs came his appointed assistant, known as the Vizier who collected and kept track of the taxes. Under the vizier came their scribes to helped record all the documents. These were vitally important because they were largely the only ones in the entire community who could read and write. Then came the soldiers, quite high up on the ladder compared to many of the other civilizations. This was because fighting for the Pharaoh was highly appraised work. The middle class was made up of the craftsmen, traders and merchants, and artisans. These are the people who created the everyday tools for people up and down the entire social structure. And finally at the very bottom came the farmers and slaves, doing the unsklled work unlike the middle

Ancient Egypt was a captivating and intricate civilization. Over the years, historians have found it easier to study this civilization, rather than other historical civilizations, because the Egyptians went through great lengths to record their history. Besides being decent record keepers, they were very religious, and “ahead of their time,” due to their technological and economic breakthroughs. Because of the aspects of this culture, it has to be one of the greatest civilizations of the world.

Pharaoh, viziers, high priests and nobles, priests, engineers, doctors, scribes, craftsmen, slaves and farmers, these are examples of how the existing order of social class in Ancient Egyptian. What’s the difference between the social class order we have today? Classes such as upper class, middle class, and the lower or working class still resemble the class order and theme of then in the Ancient Egyptian time. Social class could be managed as much in wealth and income, possession of goods and the way individuals are viewed after death are essential elements in social class. Social class has a noteworthy part to play in the lives, for example, the lives in Egypt to the lives that we live in the 21st century. Social class is something that is observed at but mentioned in different context. Social class in Ancient Egypt was not only a description of how people lived but also how they were views after death. And this how the pyramids and other monuments played a role in class and status ranking.

When studied, early complex civilizations naturally settled in groups and developed social hierarchies. Whatever the emerging culture, there must of course be a leader. Whether it is a warrior protecting the group from warring neighbors, forcing his way to the head of the pack, or a wise and eloquent father figure, gently guiding and imparting knowledge to his subjects, in order for a society to function there must be a leader for the people to follow. Jared Diamond claimed that the emergence of social elites and eventually kings were dependent on the establishment or sedentary cultures, according to him, “only in farming populations could a healthy, non-producing elite set itself above the disease-ridden masses?”. (Diamond, 1987)

The people groups in ancient Egyptian were very different than our societies social groups today. Ancient Egyptians were grouped in a hierarchical system with the Pharaoh at the top and farmers and slaves at the bottom. The groups of people nearest to the top of society were the richest and most powerful. The Pharaoh was believed to be a god on earth and had the most power. He was responsible for making laws and keeping order. Ensuring that Egypt was not attacked or invaded by enemies and for keeping the gods happy so that the Nile flooded and there was a good harvest. The Vizier was the Pharaoh's chief advisor

Explain the distribution of power in Old Kingdom Egypt and the first intermediate period, the social, political, and economic reasons for the constructors of pyramids, and Egyptian belief concerning the afterlife.

The Old Kingdom is sometimes described as the “golden age” of Egypt, and as an ideal that the Middle Kingdom tried to emulate, while New Kingdom pharaohs looked to both earlier dynastic eras for inspiration.

Government and Religion were inseparable , the Pharaoh lead the Government and represented the Gods in Human form. the egyptian people would also use temples to worship Gods on a daily basis. The society was built on order, law and defending the country for the people, and to make sure they were taken care of. The hierarchy enabled Egypt to create stability and organization, from the Pharaoh to the farmers for 3000 years.

Ancient Egypt had a strong and well-organized government for many reasons. Pharaohs are exemplary when it comes to representing a well-organized government. They are the top dogs of Egypt. These rulers had dynasties which ruled over Egypt, sort of like the Caracalla dynasty of Rome. There were over 30 dynasties in Egypt. An instance of a dynasty was king Ramesses the second. Additionally, there were rules to being a pharaoh and how these rulers are proclaimed. This shows well-organized government because it is preventing people from randomly declaring themselves pharaoh and keeps the citizen of Egypt in line. One rule, for example, is that a Pharaoh could have many wives, but only one could be the great wife. The great wife’s son would be the

Some key points of this paper are going to be about the development of civilization, geography, social structure, Hierarchy, and where the Ancient Egyptian civilization began.

In comparing and contrasting the societies of Periclean Athens and ancient Egypt, we must first mention some of the characteristics of an actual society: a society has a stable food supply, social levels and classes, specialization of labor, a system of government, and a highly developed culture. Both the societies of ancient Athens and Egypt fit into these parameters. In this essay we will explore social classes, gender relations, social inequality, and hierarchy as they apply to these societies.

First and foremost, Ancient Egypt was structured in the form of a pyramid. The top of the pyramid of course was the gods. These gods included Ra, Osiris, and Iris, and according to the people of Egypt, these gods controlled almost the entire earth. Leaders in Egypt were called pharaohs so they were believed to be Gods in human form which is amazing. The ruler in status were powerful nobles and priests. Only nobles could hold government posts and in those positions they profited from tributes paid to the pharaoh. Priests were responsible for pleasing the gods. While soldiers fought in wars or quelled domestic uprisings. When there was no war to fight, the soldiers supervised

Egyptians were wonderful traders. They mostly traveled by boat.Ancient Egyptians imported and exported goods from several different neighborhoods. Goods were mostly raw materials and products but when people in the high society trade luxury items.

Egypt was a complex civilization because it had all of the important civilization indicators. Egypt was a smart resourceful they had strong beliefs. Under the rule of the Pharaoh, they build an empire and even now a thousand year later it is still one of the greatest civilization in history.