Thesis (MA (Ancient Studies)--University of Stellenbosch, 2002. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study deals with the ancient Egyptian family. Cultural anthropology is used as a point of departure to reconstruct the daily lives of the ancient Egyptians. Cultural anthropology usually applies to living communities but most of the principles it uses are just as relevant in the study of a dead culture. The emphasis of this study is on the different cultural domains, which include education, religion, family livelihoods, family recreation, entertaimnent and travel and social organization and how these are interrelated. Most of our ancient Egyptian knowledge comes from the tombs of wealthy individuals, and thus incomplete since we have no record of how peasants perceived the world, as they could not afford a good burial. Other sources are the ancient documents and artefacts from town sites all associated with wealthy individuals. While peasants were too poor to send their children to school, wealthier Egyptians did send their children to school especially boys. Agriculture was central in ancient Egyptian life. The nobility and other higher classes depended on the toil of the peasant for basic commodities and food. The peasant families in the rural areas were unable to attend the lavish festivals in the cities. Their basic focus was centred on their homes, families and on the success of the harvest. The peasant had his own private god or gods to whom he could tum for aid or comfort in times of trouble. Surplus items of food, clothing, oil and such like could be used for barter for purchasing essential items for everyday living. During their spare time the Egyptian families entertained friends, engaged in the various pastimes and travel. The peasant, as providers of food, formed an important social base for the Egyptian state. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie handel oor die Egiptiese familie. Kulturele antropologie word gebruik as metode om die daaglikse lewe van die antieke Egiptenare te rekonstrueer. Kulturele antropologie word gewoonlik op "lewende" gemeenskappe toegepas, maar die beginsels daarvan is net so relevant vir die bestudering van "dooie" kulture. Die fokus van hierdie studie is op die verskillende kulturele domeine wat insluit onderrig, religie, familie aktiwiteite, familie ontspanning, vermaak, reis en sosiale organisasie en hoe hierdie domeine op mekaar inwerk. Meeste van die kennis oor antieke Egipte word verkry uit die grafte van ryk individue en is daarom gebrekkig ten opsigte van kleinboere en hul siening van die wêreld, omdat hulle nie behoorlike grafte kon bekostig nie. Ander bronne is die antieke tekste en artefakte wat gevind word in dorpe, wat ook meestal behoort het aan ryk persone. Die kleinboere kon nie bekostig om hul kinders na 'n skool te stuur nie, maar ryk Egiptenare kon wel - veral dan seuns. Landbou was baie belangrik tot Egiptiese lewe. Die aristokrasie en ander klasse was afhanklik van die sukkelbestaan van kleinboere om hulle te voorsien van die basiese goedere en voedsel. Kleinboer families, wat in die platteland gebly het kon nie die groot feeste in die stede bywoon nie. Hul persoonlike oortuigings het daarom gefokus op die huishouding, familie en suksesvolle oeste. Kleinboere het 'n persoonlike god of gode gehad wat tot hul hulp kon kom, of troos kon bied in tye van krisis. Surplus goedere soos, onder andere, voedsel, klere en olie kon as ruilmiddel gebruik word om ander items wat benodig word, te bekom. In vrye tyd het families vriende onthaal, verskillende stokperdjies beoefen en rondgereis. Die kleinboere, as verskaffers van voedsel, het 'n belangrike sosiale basis van die Egiptiese staat gevorm.

This thesis examines the Egyptian and Sudanese policy of Gladstone's Second Ministry. Sources include microfilms of letters from the prime ministers to the Queen, and Cabinet papers. Essential were Hansard, The Times, and Herslet, as well as biographical and autobiographical studies of the persons involved. The thesis narrates the Egyptian events preceding the formation of Gladstone's Ministry. It then discusses the revolt in Egypt, which resulted in British occupation, and the Mahdi's rebellion in the Sudan, which led to the fall of Khartoum. The thesis concludes that Gladstone failed because he did not want Britain to be in Egypt or the Sudan. Therefore, there was no consistent policy, and his failures were among the elements that led to the fall of his Government.

This study is a literary and ethnographic examination of The Vision of Theophilus, a fourth century Coptic narrative, as influential counter-narrative and source of counterdiscourse against the narrative created by the historically dominant Egyptian Arab Muslim state. It shows that The Vision has provided the Copts with the means to articulate their identity as different from their oppressors through its function as a repository of Coptic ideology, history and knowledge. Specifically, it has helped them resist the erosion of those aspects of their cultural identity targeted by colonial practices through its promotion of the Coptic language, pride in Coptic history, and Christianization of the landscape. This study also suggests that The Vision tradition has helped alleviate the conditions of material and economic oppression of Copts. Drawing upon theories of Foucauldian genealogy and postcolonialism my research examines the development of Coptic identity and subjectivity in relation to assimilation practices. Using oral studies and ethnopoetics, this study traces the process of composition, transmission, stabilization and systemization of The Vision over sixteen hundred years and its dispersion over a wide geographic region from Egypt to Ethiopia, Syria, and the US. My research suggests that the resilience and effectiveness of The Vision as oral tradition lies in the stability of its core message and its ability to absorb and adapt peripheral changes to the needs of each given historical period. Close analysis of this core message as gleaned through comparative manuscript study also supports important revisions to its datation, and enables us to claim its Coptic authenticity. Previously, the only academic scholarly work concerning The Vision centered on its diffused Syrian and Ethiopian variants while its Coptic manuscript history remained largely unknown. / This study, which emphasizes the specifically Coptic origins, history and significance of The Vision of Theophilus, therefore fills a vital scholarly gap: Locating cultural resistance and agency in orality, this study shows how The Vision has historically acted (and still acts today) as a repository of Coptic history and culture enabling Copts to articulate a separate identity over long periods of time, and amidst a wide range of historical and socio-economic factors. / by Fatin Morris Guirguis. / Vita. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2010. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2010. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

Scholarship on the modern history of the Middle East has undergone profound revision in the previous three decades or so. Many earlier perceptions, largely based on modernization theory, have been either contested or modified. However, the perception of the Egyptian ulama (the traditionally-educated, religious Muslim scholars) in academic scholarship remains largely affected by the legacy of hypotheses of the modernization theory. Old assumptions that the Egyptian ulama were submissive to political power and passive players incapable of accommodating, let alone of fathoming, conditions of the modern world, and who chose or were forced to retreat from this world, losing much, if not all, of their relevance and significance, still infuse the scholarly literature. Making use of materials obtained from the Egyptian National Archives, this study offers an examination of modern legal reform in Egypt from the nineteenth century through the first part of the twentieth century with the ulama and their legal institutions in mind. As the findings of this study effectively illustrate, the Egyptian ulama were by no means submissive. Rather, they were patient. Far from being passive agents of the past, the Egyptian ulama were active participants who played a critical role in the building of modern Egypt. The ulama had at their disposal sustained social and moral influence, a long-standing position as community leaders, a reputation as defenders and representatives of Islam, the power to validate or invalidate the political establishment by means of public and doctrinal legitimization, and the final authority over laws of family and personal status. Through these strengths, the ulama were able to influence the direction of change and to impact its scope and nature during transitional period that witnessed the making and remaking of modern Egypt. Considering the nature of changes that they allowed to be introduced to the shari-based justice system and the ones they resisted, as well as their stance regarding social matters, the Egyptian ulama comprehended and recognized modernity as useful. Advanced techniques had to be embraced to strengthen state institutions. However, the ulama thwarted massive and sudden adoption of modernity's cultural elements, so that Egypt would not become a chaotic country and go astray. On the weight of their position as the ultimate authority over family law, the Egyptian ulama blocked rapid social change imposed from the top. Alterations to family law and the social structure were undertaken gradually and with a great deal of delicacy. Therefore, the long-standing social order was not suddenly destroyed and replaced with a new one. Instead, changes to the long-standing social structure were allowed to evolve slowly, while the core was largely preserved. The ulama's far-reaching plan, which was realized in the long run, was to maintain Islam's position in modern Egypt as a guide and as the main source of legitimacy. As will be shown in this study, the history of the Egyptian ulama reveals not passivity, detachment, or submission but careful, and deliberate action.

This dissertation will critically analyse a gilded bronze Osiris statuette from the Middle Kingdom Period. An attempt is made to verify its authenticity, provenance and probable date of origin, while also gathering information which will help in placing the artefact and others like it in their proper cultural context. Furthermore the value of several investigative techniques employed during the course of this research is also explored. / Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern Studies / M.A. (Ancient Near Eastern Studies)

Several scholars have attempted to characterize the secretaries of the bureaucracies of the Islamic empires during various eras.

This thesis involved the various discourses around Egyptian novelist Naguib Mahfouz's representation of women in four of his most well-known novels, which were originally written in Arabic. At the one extreme, he is described as a feminist writer who takes up an aggressive anti-patriarchal stance, delivering a multi-faceted critique on Egyptian society. Mahfouz's personal milieu, as well as the broader social context in which he finds himself, was given careful consideration. It was also considered whether the genre in which the four novels have been written has a significant influence on the manner in which Mahfouz has represented his female characters.

This thesis involved the various discourses around Egyptian novelist Naguib Mahfouz's representation of women in four of his most well-known novels, which were originally written in Arabic. At the one extreme, he is described as a feminist writer who takes up an aggressive anti-patriarchal stance, delivering a multi-faceted critique on Egyptian society. Mahfouz's personal milieu, as well as the broader social context in which he finds himself, was given careful consideration. It was also considered whether the genre in which the four novels have been written has a significant influence on the manner in which Mahfouz has represented his female characters.

No description available.

No description available.