Interesting Facts about the River Nile It is

Interesting Facts about the River Nile It is the only river its flow is backward. The Nile flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The largest source of the Nile is Lake Victoria. The Nile has a length of about 6, 695 kilometers (4, 160 miles). Its average discharge is 3. 1 million liters (680, 000 gallons) per second. The name Nile comes from the Greek “neilos”, which means valley.

Nile River ‘s location (Africa)

Where is the River Nile? �The River Nile is in Africa. It originates in Burundi, south of the equator, and flows northward through northeastern Africa, eventually flowing through Egypt and finally draining into the Mediterranean Sea.

Where is the source of the Nile River? Lake Victoria, Africa's biggest lake, is generally thought of as the source of the River Nile. On the northern edge of the lake, water pours over a waterfall, known as Ripon Falls, into a narrow opening which some people believe is the beginning of the River Nile.

Source of the Nile River

What are the two main rivers that flow into the River Nile? �The River Nile is formed from the White Nile, which originates at Lake Victoria and the Blue Nile, which originates at Lake Tana in Ethiopia. These rivers meet in Sudan and then go on their long journey northwards towards the Mediterranean sea. �The White Nile is a lot bigger than the Blue Nile, but because of losses along the way it only contributes about 15% to the flow of the combined Nile. The Blue Nile, rising in Ethiopia, contributes about 85% to the flow of the Nile that passes through Egypt to the Mediterranean.

Why did the Ancient Egyptians live near the River Nile? �Most Egyptians lived near the Nile as it provided water, food, transportation and excellent soil for growing food.

Why was the Nile River so important to the Ancient Egyptians? �Ancient Egypt could not have existed without the river Nile. Since rainfall is almost non-existent in Egypt, the floods provided the only source of moisture to sustain crops. �Every year, heavy summer rain in the Ethiopian highlands, sent a torrent of water that overflowed the banks of the Nile. When the floods went down it left thick rich mud (black silt) which was excellent soil to plant seeds in after it had been ploughed. �The ancient Egyptians could grow crops only in the mud left behind when the Nile flooded. So they all had fields all along the River Nile.

What else did the Nile provide for the Ancient Egyptians? �Reeds, called papyrus, grew along side the Nile. The Egyptians made paper and boats from the reeds. �Find out about Egyptian Writing �The Nile also gave the ancient Egyptians food. They used spears and nets to catch fish. They would also use the nets to catch birds that flew close to the surface of the water. �Another way the Nile helped the ancient Egyptians was in trade. The Nile was the quickest and easiest way to travel from place to place.

What was the area next to the River Nile called? �This area was known as the Black Land. Further away from the river was the Red Land, a region of inhospitable desert.

Black land Red land

Why did the Nile Flood? �Melting snow and heavy summer rain in the Ethiopian Mountains sent a torrent of water causing the banks of the River Nile in Egypt to overflow on the flat desert land.

The flood

Why does the Nile not flood now ? �The construction of the Aswan Dam in the 1960's meant that from 1970 the annual flood was controlled.

Aswan Dam

Current Situation Of Nile River

Current situation of Nile river �We Egyptians have polluted the water of River Nile because we don’t care about it as lots of companies dump their chemical wastes into it, which harms people’s health and fishes as well. �And another problem is that if Ethiopians Complete the gigantic dam which we will cause to us a lot of harm maybe even turning Egypt into a dry wasteland.