Ancient Egyptian Society What are we learning today

Ancient Egyptian Society

What are we learning today? We are learning about the different jobs people did in ancient Egypt. We are learning that people had a place in society because of the job they did. Egyptian society means all the people living together in Egypt. Some people had more important jobs in society than others. Fewer people did the most important jobs.

Ancient Egyptian society was organised like a pyramid. At the top was the pharaoh and at the bottom were servants and labourers. Everyone had a place in society and a job to do. Some jobs were more important than others. Fewer people did these important jobs.

The pharaoh was at the top of the pyramid. There was only one pharaoh! He or she was the most important person in society. The pharaoh lived in luxury in a huge palace and owned all the land. The pharaoh was the ancient Egyptian king or queen but was also believed to be a junior god.

After the pharaoh came the priests, nobles and scribes. These were also important roles in society and not many people did these jobs. The pharaoh was the head of the ancient Egyptian religion, but the priests and priestesses ran the temples and organised festivals.

Scribes were from noble families. They were very important and helped to run the country and kept records. Scribes spent 7 years learning to read and write. If you wanted to send a letter then you paid a scribe to write it for you.

Next in importance came the craftspeople, architects and builders. The craftspeople made beautiful paintings, sculptures, jewellery and other objects. They were highly skilled. If scribes had a talent for drawing they would train to be artists. The ancient Egyptians were very talented builders and learned how to quarry and cut stone. They designed and constructed amazing buildings.

Farmers, traders and shopkeepers came next. Many ancient Egyptians were farmers. They worked on the fertile land next to the River Nile. They planted onions, garlic, cabbages and beans. Melons and dates grew well in the hot climate. Sheep, pigs and cattle were also kept for meat. Traders transported goods by land sea. They traded with distant places. The River Nile helped traders to move goods by boat.

At the bottom of the pyramid were the servants and labourers. There were many people doing these jobs. Labourers did the dirty and dangerous jobs like pulling stones on building sites or digging in the quarries and mines. Their efforts built the temples and pyramids that survive today.

Now you know about ancient Egyptian society and the different jobs people had. Imagine that you are an ancient Egyptian. What job would you like to have? Why would you like to do it? Where in the pyramid diagram would your job go? Are any of these jobs like the jobs people do today? Are there any that are different?