Introduction
The role of the influence of Egypt on Africa and the African nature of the country’s culture has been discussed among scholars for the longest time. Some argue that the Ancient Egyptians must have been Black Africans, while others state that cannot be true, at least in terms of physical appearance., Combined with the peculiarity of Egyptian culture, from this emerges the idea of the ‘whiteness’ of Northern Africa and the ‘blackness’ of the continent’s South. However, despite Ancient Egypt being distinctive and unique, it was still a part of Africa and interacted with it, albeit without visible impact.
Discussion
Egyptian civilization was particularly resistant to external forces, but in ancient times many were affected by it, Africans included. However, no extensive expansion of Egyptian cultural influence took place. Many groups living along the Nile were not cohesive in terms of politics or religion. Moreover, their common culture and economy did not significantly differ in nature from modern African cultures. Typical ancient Egyptian artifacts and ceramics were never found outside the territories of the Nile valley or southern Second Cataract, and a certain impact was only felt along the upper Nile.
It is sometimes believed that the social structure and institutions of Ancient Egypt could generally be deemed ‘African’, but this indicates the consistency of beliefs and experiences across the continent, which cannot be verified. Furthermore, Egypt appears to have been hardly subjected to African or any other cultural influences. The Egyptians were most likely enabled to learn something about their neighbors in the South due to trading and military expeditions, yet not much was brought back to the country. Only a few Nubian gods were accepted as secondary deities in the Egyptian pantheon, and a couple of Nubian words became a part of the Egyptian language.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the issue of the interaction between Ancient Egypt and the rest of Africa is a particular matter that is studied by many researchers. Still, there is evidence that Egyptian civilization developed in its way, and its developments stayed within its borders. Therefore, Black Africans had no significant impact on Ancient Egypt, and it, in turn, had only limited influences on other cultures.
Bibliography
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Brett, Michael. Approaching African History. United Kingdom: James Currey, 2013.
O’Connor, David, and Andrew Reid, eds. Ancient Egypt in Africa. United Kingdom: Taylor & Francis, 2016.