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¶ … Social Systems (Egypt, Aksum, and Inland Niger Delta)
This paper makes comparisons between the early social systems of Egypt, Aksum, and the Inland Niger Delta.
Egypt
Society in early Egyptian history was more structured than either of the other two societies to be reviewed in this paper. Egyptian society was structured like a pyramid, according to U.S. History's pages on Ancient Civilizations. At the top of the pyramid the gods were placed; Isis, Ra, Osiris and other Egyptian gods were most revered and respected because Egyptians believed that gods had control of the universe. They could "make the Nile overflow, cause famine, or even bring death" (U.S. History). Leaders called "pharaohs" were also considered gods (in human form), and they had a huge amount of power to enact laws and lead the military, so they were high on the pyramid. In fact the pyramids in Egypt were built specifically to house pharaohs, who were worthy of god-like sanctity. Second on the pyramid were priests and government officials that had been appointed by pharaohs (also called "nobles").
Next in the pecking order were the Egyptian soldiers (who had responsibilities for leadership even in times of peace),...
Last on the list of the social structure were slaves and farmers (slaves were those captured as prisoners of war) and farmers tended fields, "…raised animals, kept canals and reservoirs in good order" (U.S. History).
Aksum
This is an Iron Age society that lived before and after the time of Christ in what is now Ethiopia. Although not as much is known about Aksum as is know of ancient Egypt, but Stuart Munro-Hay explains that they did leave "a legacy of written material" and those writings showed archeologists that Aksum exerted hegemony over "many peoples of northern Ethiopia" (Munro-Hay, 1991). In the first century BC "social elites" were gaining power because of the "elite architecture, elite tombs with monumental stele and royal thrones" (Hirst, 2011). And by the 6th century AD, a "stratified society was in place; there was an upper elite of kings and nobles, and a "lower elite with wealthy farmers" and lower status nobles, Hirst explains. Ordinary farmers, ordinary people and craftsmen were below those two categories on the social strata. The leader named Ezana ruled in the early 4th century, and is said for converting much of Ethiopia to…
Works Cited
Ancient Civilizations. (2008). Ancient Egypt / Egyptian Social Structure. U.S. History.
Retrieved January 14, 2013, from http://www.ushistory.org.
Hirst, Kris K. (2011). Aksum of Ethiopia. About.com. Retrieved January 14, 2013, from http://archaeology.about.com.
McIntosh, Susan Keech, and McIntosh, Roderick J. (2009). Jenne-Jeno, an Ancient African
City. Rice University. Retrieved January 14, 2013, from http://anthropology.rice.edu.
Munro-Hay, Stuart. (1991). Aksum: An African Civilisation of Late Antiquity. Retrieved January 14, 2013, from http://www.dskmariam.org.
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