Ancient Egyptians
The ancient Egyptians created one of the greatest civilizations in history. Their achievements, in the first place their monumental architecture continues to fascinate millions of people that visit Egypt each year as some of the most spectacular ancient Egyptian structures such as the Great Pyramid of Giza are challenging to reconstruct even with the use of modern technology. Yet, there they are, rising out of the sand as a reminder of the civilization that entered history five thousands years ago. But who were the ancient Egyptians and how they managed to create such magnificent monuments by using simple tools alone?
The population of ancient Egypt including their race have been a matter of debate for a long period of time. The use of modern concept of race and nationality in regard to ancient Egypt was rejected by most scholars as an anachronism because the present concept of both the race and nationality were developed only in the 18th century. However, the so-called Afrocentric claim that ancient Egypt was a “black civilization“ has renewed the investigation of the genetics of the ancient Egyptian population. So, where the ancient Egyptians “black“ or “white“? Well, they were most likely somewhere in between. Let’s see why.
Egypt spans northeastern Africa and southwestern Asia which have been physically separated only after the construction of the Suez Canal in 1869, while the Sahara was not always a desert. On the contrary, the Sahara was lush and green until about 4,000 BC. Ancient Egypt was therefore open to influences as well as to peoples from both Eurasia and the black sub-Saharan Africa. Without a doubt, the ancient Egyptians were not as white as northern European populations but the darker skin tone is observed in all Mediterranean peoples as a result of the climate. There must have been what we today consider “black“ Egyptians too but the evidence imply that ancient Egypt was not a “black civilization“.
The claim of Afrocentrism primarily bases on ancient Egyptian artworks which, however, are inadequate proof for the “black civilization“ theory. In addition, they are inconsistent. For instance, Tutankhamun is presented as both black and brown. What is more, the ancient Egyptians spoke an Afro-Asiatic language related to Berber and Semitic languages, while their “black“ neighbors have spoken a Nilo-Saharan language. The DNA studies do not support the Afrocentric theory either because they have shown that the North African peoples are a mixture between those of Eurasia and sub-Saharan Africa.
How the ancient Egyptians built all those amazing monuments is even a greater mystery. The most famous and the largest of all Egyptian pyramids as well as a number of other equally fascinating monuments make the impression that they required highly sophisticated mathematical and scientific knowledge which gave rise to many theories including the so-called ancient alien theory. Pyramid construction technique is still a matter of debate among scholars, however, they agree that pyramid building required only the elementary mathematical knowledge, skilled stonemasons and huge labor force.
