Dynastic race theory

Last updated

The dynastic race theory was the earliest thesis to attempt to explain how predynastic Egypt developed into the sophisticated monarchy of Dynastic Egypt. The theory holds that the earliest roots of the ancient Egyptian dynastic civilisation were imported by invaders from Mesopotamia who then founded the First Dynasty and brought culture to the indigenous population. This theory had strong supporters in the Egyptological community in the first half of the 20th century, but has since lost mainstream support. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

Contents

Origins

In the early 20th century, Egyptologist Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie deduced that skeletal remains found at pre-dynastic sites at Naqada (Upper Egypt) indicated the presence of two different races, with the Dynastic Race, also referred to as the "Followers of Horus", [6] differentiated physically by a noticeably larger skeletal structure and cranial capacity. [7] Petrie concluded that the physical differences of the remains in conjunction with the previously unknown burial styles, uncharacteristic tomb architecture, and abundance of foreign artifacts, implied this race must have been an invading ruling elite that was responsible for the seemingly sudden rise of Egyptian civilization. Based on plentiful cultural evidence, Petrie determined that the invader race had come from Mesopotamia, and imposed themselves on the native Badarian culture to become their rulers. Petrie adduced new architectural styles—the distinctly Mesopotamian "niched-facade" architecture—pottery styles, cylinder seals and a few artworks, as well as numerous Predynastic rock and tomb paintings depicting Mesopotamian style boats, symbols, and figures.

This came to be called the "dynastic race theory" [8] [9] The theory further argued that the Mesopotamians then conquered both Upper and Lower Egypt and founded the First Dynasty. Predynastic and First Dynasty burial sites similar to Naqada were also found at Abydos, Sakkara, and Hieraconpolis. [6]

Versions of the Dynastic race model were adopted by scholars as L. A. Waddell, [10] and Walter Bryan Emery, a former Chair of Egyptology at University College London.

Decline

The dynastic race theory is no longer an accepted thesis in the field of predynastic archaeology. While there is clear evidence the Naqada II culture borrowed abundantly from Mesopotamia, the most commonly held view today is that the achievements of the First Dynasty were the result of a long period of cultural and political development. [11] Such borrowings are much older than the Naqada II period, [12] the Naqada II period had a large degree of continuity with the Naqada I period, [13] and the changes which did happen during the Naqada periods happened over significant amounts of time. [14]

Modern Egyptology largely maintains the view that "state formation occurred as a mainly indigenous process", although significant differences in morphology indicated migration along the Nile Valley also took place. [15] The Dynastic Race theory has been largely replaced by the theory Egypt was a hydraulic empire.

In Afrocentrism

In the 1950s, when the Dynastic Race Theory was widely accepted by mainstream scholarship, the Senegalese scholar Cheikh Anta Diop was publicising his theory that the Ancient Egyptians were "Black Africans." Diop "paid special attention to the emergence of the Dynastic Race Theory", and claimed that European scholars supported this theory to avoid having to admit that the Ancient Egyptians were black and to characterise them as "Semitic" or "Caucasian". [16] Other prominent Afrocentrists, including Martin Bernal, later also argued against the dynastic race theory in favour of a "Black Egyptian" model. [17] Afrocentrists particularly condemn the alleged dividing of African peoples into racial clusters as being new versions of the Dynastic Race Theory and the Hamitic hypothesis. [18]

Revival

A version of the theory has been revived by some modern scholars, most notably David Rohl, [19] and Michael Rice, [20] who have advanced reasons in support of a Mesopotamian origin of Dynastic Egypt in books such as Rohl's Legend-The Genesis of Civilisation and Rice's Egypt's Making.

According to Rohl, "There is little evidence of kingship and its rituals very much before the beginning of the 1st Dynasty; no signs of the gradual development of metal working, art, monumental architecture and writing—the defining criteria of early civilisation. Much of what we know about the pharaohs and their complex culture seems to come into existence in a flash of inspiration." [21] Rohl believes the catalyst for this sudden development was the influx of a Mesopotamian "foreign elite" who made their way to Egypt by sailing around the coastline of the Arabian Peninsula into the Red Sea ultimately dragging their boats across the desert to the Nile. Rohl notes numerous pre-dynastic rock carvings found in several locations from Wadi Abbad to Abydos which is suggested depict large Mesopotamian style boats with crews of up to 75, some of which appear being pulled across land. [22] Rohl believes the most dramatic evidence to support this theory is the sudden introduction of distinctly Mesopotamian "niched-facade", also known as "palace facade", architecture found in several early Dynastic sites, most notably the large 1st Dynasty mastabas at Saqqara. A depiction of a building using this kind of architecture is also an integral part of the serekh, the early Egyptian seal of kingship, and is found before the 1st Dynasty as well in the Naqada III, or "Dynasty 0" period. He says, "It is highly improbable that such specialized building techniques were independently invented in two widely separated regions at the same historical period without cultural transmission. [23]

In addition to the evidence available to Petrie et al., proponents also point out similarities in the names of divinities and places in the religious beliefs of the two cultures, and in depictions of regalia. For example the primeval mound of the Egyptian first creation was called the Island of Nun, and was surrounded by the Waters of Nun, while the Sumerian name for the great temple in their original city of Eridu was Nun.ki—the 'Mighty Place'—and it was built on an island in the reed swamps. Several scholars have also noted that the name Osiris is a Greek pronunciation, and that the god would have been called Asar in Egyptian, while the Sumerian god of the Eridu area was also called Asar (the Babylonian Marduk). [24] The Uruk period of Ancient Mesopotamia (4100–2900 BC calibrated) predates the Naqada II period of Ancient Egypt (3500-3200 BC) and indeed there is evidence of colonies of this Uruk civilization over a wide area—from the Taurus Mountains, to the Mediterranean Sea in the west, and as far east as Central Iran. [25]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mesopotamia</span> Historical region within the Tigris–Euphrates river system

Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq. In the broader sense, the historical region of Mesopotamia included parts of present-day Iran, Kuwait, Syria, and Turkey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sumer</span> Ancient Mesopotamian civilization

Sumer is the earliest known civilization in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia, emerging during the Chalcolithic and early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. Like nearby Elam, it is one of the cradles of civilization, along with Egypt, the Indus Valley, the Erligang culture of the Yellow River valley, Caral-Supe, and Mesoamerica. Living along the valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, Sumerian farmers grew an abundance of grain and other crops, a surplus which enabled them to form urban settlements. The world's earliest known texts come from the Sumerian cities of Uruk and Jemdet Nasr, and date to between c. 3350 – c. 2500 BC, following a period of proto-writing c. 4000 – c. 2500 BC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Sumer</span> History of the Mesopotamian area called Sumer

The history of Sumer spans the 5th to 3rd millennia BCE in southern Mesopotamia, and is taken to include the prehistoric Ubaid and Uruk periods. Sumer was the region's earliest known civilization and ended with the downfall of the Third Dynasty of Ur around 2004 BCE. It was followed by a transitional period of Amorite states before the rise of Babylonia in the 18th century BCE.

Uruk, today known as Warka, was a city in the ancient Near East situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates River on the dried-up ancient channel of the Euphrates. The site lies 93 kilometers northwest of ancient Ur, 108 kilometers southeast of ancient Nippur, and 24 kilometers southeast of ancient Larsa. It is 30 km (19 mi) east of modern Samawah, Al-Muthannā, Iraq.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dilmun</span> Ancient Arabic civilization

Dilmun, or Telmun, was an ancient East Semitic-speaking civilization in Eastern Arabia mentioned from the 3rd millennium BC onwards. Based on contextual evidence, it was located in the Persian Gulf, on a trade route between Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley civilisation, close to the sea and to artesian springs. Dilmun encompassed Bahrain, Kuwait, and eastern Saudi Arabia. This area is certainly what is meant by references to "Dilmun" among the lands conquered by King Sargon II and his descendants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cradle of civilization</span> Locations where civilization emerged

A cradle of civilization is a location and a culture where civilization was developed independent of other civilizations in other locations. The formation of urban settlements (cities) is the primary characteristic of a society that can be characterized as "civilized". Other characteristics of civilization include a sedentary non-nomadic population, monumental architecture, the existence of social classes and inequality, and the creation of a writing system for communication. The transition from simpler societies to the complex society of a civilization is gradual.

The Early Dynastic Period, also known as Archaic Period or the Thinite Period, is the era of ancient Egypt that immediately follows the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt in c. 3150 BC. It is generally taken to include the First Dynasty and the Second Dynasty, lasting from the end of the archaeological culture of Naqada III until c. 2686 BC, or the beginning of the Old Kingdom. With the First Dynasty, the Egyptian capital moved from Thinis to Memphis, with the unified land being ruled by an Egyptian god-king. In the south, Abydos remained the major centre of ancient Egyptian religion; the hallmarks of ancient Egyptian civilization, such as Egyptian art, Egyptian architecture, and many aspects of Egyptian religion, took shape during the Early Dynastic Period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Third Dynasty of Ur</span> Royal dynasty in Mesopotamia

The Third Dynasty of Ur, also called the Neo-Sumerian Empire, refers to a 22nd to 21st century BC Sumerian ruling dynasty based in the city of Ur and a short-lived territorial-political state which some historians consider to have been a nascent empire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prehistoric Egypt</span> Period of earliest human settlement to the beginning of the Early Dynastic Period of Egypt

Prehistoric Egypt and Predynastic Egypt span the period from the earliest human settlement to the beginning of the Early Dynastic Period around 3100 BC, starting with the first Pharaoh, Narmer for some Egyptologists, Hor-Aha for others, with the name Menes also possibly used for one of these kings.

The Gerzeh culture, also called Naqada II, refers to the archaeological stage at Gerzeh, a prehistoric Egyptian cemetery located along the west bank of the Nile. The necropolis is named after el-Girzeh, the nearby contemporary town in Egypt. Gerzeh is situated only several miles due east of the oasis of Faiyum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naqada III</span> Last phase of the Naqada culture of ancient Egyptian prehistory

Naqada III is the last phase of the Naqada culture of ancient Egyptian prehistory, dating from approximately 3200 to 3000 BC. It is the period during which the process of state formation, which began in Naqada II, became highly visible, with named kings heading powerful polities. Naqada III is often referred to as Dynasty 0 or the Protodynastic Period to reflect the presence of kings at the head of influential states, although, in fact, the kings involved would not have been a part of a dynasty. In this period, those kings' names were inscribed in the form of serekhs on a variety of surfaces including pottery and tombs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Mesopotamia</span>

The history of Mesopotamia ranges from the earliest human occupation in the Paleolithic period up to Late antiquity. This history is pieced together from evidence retrieved from archaeological excavations and, after the introduction of writing in the late 4th millennium BC, an increasing amount of historical sources. While in the Paleolithic and early Neolithic periods only parts of Upper Mesopotamia were occupied, the southern alluvium was settled during the late Neolithic period. Mesopotamia has been home to many of the oldest major civilizations, entering history from the Early Bronze Age, for which reason it is often called a cradle of civilization.

The A-Group culture was an ancient culture that flourished between the First and Second Cataracts of the Nile in Lower Nubia. It lasted from c. 3800 BC to c. 3100 BC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Early Dynastic Period (Mesopotamia)</span> Archaeological culture of Mesopotamia

The Early Dynastic period is an archaeological culture in Mesopotamia that is generally dated to c. 2900 – c. 2350 BC and was preceded by the Uruk and Jemdet Nasr periods. It saw the development of writing and the formation of the first cities and states. The ED itself was characterized by the existence of multiple city-states: small states with a relatively simple structure that developed and solidified over time. This development ultimately led to the unification of much of Mesopotamia under the rule of Sargon, the first monarch of the Akkadian Empire. Despite this political fragmentation, the ED city-states shared a relatively homogeneous material culture. Sumerian cities such as Uruk, Ur, Lagash, Umma, and Nippur located in Lower Mesopotamia were very powerful and influential. To the north and west stretched states centered on cities such as Kish, Mari, Nagar, and Ebla.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gebel el-Arak Knife</span> Ivory and flint knife dating from Egyptian prehistory

The Gebel el-Arak Knife, also Jebel el-Arak Knife, is an ivory and flint knife dating from the Naqada II period of Egyptian prehistory, showing Mesopotamian influence. The knife was purchased in 1914 in Cairo by Georges Aaron Bénédite for the Louvre, where it is now on display in the Sully wing, room 633. At the time of its purchase, the knife handle was alleged by the seller to have been found at the site of Gebel el-Arak, but it is today believed to come from Abydos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jemdet Nasr period</span> Archaeological culture of Mesopotamia

The Jemdet Nasr Period is an archaeological culture in southern Mesopotamia. It is generally dated from 3100 to 2900 BC. It is named after the type site Tell Jemdet Nasr, where the assemblage typical for this period was first recognized. Its geographical distribution is limited to south-central Iraq. The culture of the proto-historical Jemdet Nasr period is a local development out of the preceding Uruk period and continues into the Early Dynastic I period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naqada culture</span> Archaeological culture of pre-dynastic Egypt

The Naqada culture is an archaeological culture of Chalcolithic Predynastic Egypt, named for the town of Naqada, Qena Governorate. A 2013 Oxford University radiocarbon dating study of the Predynastic period suggests a beginning date sometime between 3,800 and 3,700 BC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Population history of Egypt</span>

Egypt has a long and involved demographic history. This is partly due to the territory's geographical location at the crossroads of several major cultural areas: North Africa, the Middle East, the Mediterranean and Sub-Saharan Africa. In addition, Egypt has experienced several invasions and being part of many regional empires during its long history, including by the Canaanites, the Ancient Libyans, the Assyrians, the Kushites, the Persians, the Greeks, the Romans, and the Arabs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Egypt–Mesopotamia relations</span> Middle Eastern international relations

Egypt–Mesopotamia relations were the relations between the civilisations of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, in the Middle East. They seem to have developed from the 4th millennium BCE, starting in the Uruk period for Mesopotamia and the half a millennium younger Gerzean culture of Prehistoric Egypt, and constituted a largely one way body of influences from Mesopotamia into Egypt.

References

  1. ↑ Wilkinson, Toby (1999). Early dynastic Egypt. London: Routledge. p. 15. ISBN   0415186331.
  2. ↑ Smith, Stuart Tyson. Redford, Donald (ed.). p28 (1 February 2001). "Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt - Volume 3".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ↑ Yurco, Frank (1996). "An Egyptological Review". (1996). Black Athena revisited. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press. pp. 62–100. ISBN   0807845558.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  4. ↑ Zakrzewski, Sonia R. (2007). Population continuity or population change: Formation of the ancient Egyptian state. Highfield, Southampton: Department of Archaeology, University of Southampton.
  5. ↑
    • Pg33-"Early Nile Valley populations were primarily coextensive with indigenous African populations. Linguistic and archaeological data provide key supporting evidence for a primarily African origin".Shomarka Keita and A.J. Boyce "The Geographic and Origins and Population Relationships of Early Ancient Egyptians". Celenko Theodore (ed). (1996). Egypt in Africa. Indianapolis, Ind.: Indianapolis Museum of Art. pp. 20–33. ISBN   0936260645.
  6. 1 2 Emery, W.B. Archaic Egypt, Penguin Books, 1987 0-14-020462-8
  7. ↑ Derry, D.E., The Dynastic Race in Egypt, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, vol 42, 1956
  8. ↑ Mary R. Lefkowitz, Guy MacLean Rogers, Black Athena Revisited, pg65
  9. ↑ Early dynastic Egypt, by Toby A. H. Wilkinson, pg 15
  10. ↑ Egyptian Civilization Its Sumerian Origin and Real Chronology, by L. A. Waddell
  11. ↑ Early Dynastic Egypt (Routledge, 1999), p.15
  12. ↑ Redford, Donald B., Egypt, Israel, and Canaan in Ancient Times (Princeton: University Press, 1992), p. 13.
  13. ↑ Gardiner, Alan. Egypt of the Pharaohs (Oxford: University Press, 1961), p. 392.
  14. ↑ Shaw, Ian. and Nicholson, Paul, The Dictionary of Ancient Egypt (London: British Museum Press, 1995), p. 228.
  15. ↑ Sonia R. Zakrzewski: Population continuity or population change: Formation of the ancient Egyptian state - Department of Archaeology, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton (2003)
  16. ↑ Epic encounters: culture, media, and U.S. interests in the Middle East – 1945-2000 by Melani McAlister
  17. ↑ Heresy in the University: the Black Athena controversy and the Responsibilities of American Intellectuals. By Jacques Berlinerblau, pg 158
  18. ↑ History of Philosophy (3 Vols. Set), by William Turner, pg 8
  19. ↑ Legend – The Genesis of Civilisation, by David Rohl ::: http://www.davidrohl.com/dynastic_race_11.html
  20. ↑ Egypt's making: the origins of ancient Egypt, 5000-2000 BC, by Michael Rice
  21. ↑ Rohl, David M., Legend the Genesis of Civilisation (Arrow Books Limited, 1998), p. 253
  22. ↑ Rohl, David M., Legend the Genesis of Civilisation (Arrow Books Limited, 1998), p. 253-302
  23. ↑ Rohl, David M., Legend the Genesis of Civilisation (Arrow Books Limited, 1998), p. 332
  24. ↑ Dictionary of Ancient Deities, by Patricia Turner, Charles Russell Coulter
  25. ↑ Algaze, Guillermo (2005) "The Uruk World System: The Dynamics of Expansion of Early Mesopotamian Civilization", (Second Edition, University of Chicago Press)
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.