List of ancient Egyptian dynasties
In Ancient Egyptian history, dynasties are series of rulers sharing a common origin. They are usually, but not always, of the same family.[note 1]
Ancient Egypt's historical period is traditionally divided into thirty-two pharaonic dynasties. The first thirty divisions are due to the 3rd century BC Egyptian priest Manetho, and appeared in his now-lost work Aegyptiaca, which was perhaps written for the Greek-speaking Ptolemaic ruler of Egypt. The names of the last two, the short-lived Thirty-First Dynasty and the longer-lasting Ptolemaic Dynasty, are later coinings.
While widely used and useful, the system does have its shortcomings. Some dynasties only ruled part of Egypt and existed concurrently with other dynasties based in other cities. The Seventh might not have existed at all, the Tenth seems to be a continuation of the Ninth, and there might have been one or several Upper Egyptian Dynasties before the First Dynasty.
This page lists articles on dynasties of Ancient Egypt. The cities in which power seems to have been held in each dynasty follow their names, in brackets.
Early Dynastic Period
Old Kingdom
First Intermediate Period
- Seventh Dynasty of Egypt (Memphis, according to Manetho),[1]:396 usually considered spurious.[1]:393[2]:xiii
- Eighth Dynasty of Egypt (Memphis, according to Manetho)[1]:396
- Ninth Dynasty of Egypt (Herakleopolis Magna)
- Tenth Dynasty of Egypt (Herakleopolis Magna), continuation of the ninth[3]
Middle Kingdom
Second Intermediate Period
- Fourteenth Dynasty of Egypt (Avaris)
- Fifteenth Dynasty of Egypt (Avaris)
- Sixteenth Dynasty of Egypt (obscure, Thebes or Avaris)
- Abydos dynasty (obscure, Abydos)
- Seventeenth Dynasty of Egypt (Thebes), concurrent with the Fifteenth Dynasty
New Kingdom
- Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt (Thebes, Amarna, then again Thebes)
- Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt (Thebes, Memphis, then Pi-Ramesses)
- Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt (Pi-Ramesses)
Third Intermediate Period
- Twenty-first Dynasty of Egypt (Tanis)
- Twenty-second Dynasty of Egypt (Bubastis)
- Twenty-third Dynasty of Egypt (obscure, perhaps Herakleopolis Magna, Hermopolis Magna, or Thebes)
- Twenty-fourth Dynasty of Egypt (Sais, Western Nile Delta)
- Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt (Memphis, under foreign control of Napata, Nubia)
Late Period
- Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt (Sais)
- Twenty-seventh Dynasty of Egypt or the First Egyptian Satrapy (under control of the First Persian Empire)
- Twenty-eighth Dynasty of Egypt (Sais)
- Twenty-ninth Dynasty of Egypt (Mendes)
- Thirtieth Dynasty of Egypt (Sebennytos)
- Thirty-first Dynasty of Egypt or the Second Egyptian Satrapy (under control of the First Persian Empire)
Graeco-Roman Period
- Ptolemaic dynasty (Alexandria)
- Roman Period (Alexandria, under control of Rome)
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ For example, neither of the last two pharaohs of the Eighteenth Dynasty, Ay and Horemheb, were related to the other pharaohs of the dynasty. The latter is thought to have been of common birth.
- ↑ Starting on the far right of this chart, only one dynasty lasted over 250 years (18th dynasty). Two dynasties lasted between 200 and 225 years (two boxes). One dynasty lasted between 175 and 200 years (one box), etc.
References
- 1 2 3 Hratch Papazian (2015). "The State of Egypt in the Eighth Dynasty". In Peter Der Manuelian; Thomas Schneider. Towards a New History for the Egyptian Old Kingdom: Perspectives on the Pyramid Age. Harvard Egyptological Studies. BRILL.
- ↑ Wilkinson, Toby (2010). "Timeline". The Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt. New York: Random House. p. xiii. ISBN 9781408810026.
The system of dynasties devised in the third century B.C. is not without its problems—for example, the Seventh Dynasty is now recognized as being wholly spurious, while several dynasties are known to have ruled concurrently in different parts of Egypt...
- ↑ Seidlmayer, Stephan (2000). Shaw, Ian, ed. The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press. p. 118. ISBN 0-19-815034-2.
After the 8th Dynasty power was held by a succession of rulers originating from Herakleopolis Magna, which was located in northern Middle Egypt. These kings appear as both the 9th and 10th Dynasties in Manetho's history, having been mistakenly subdivided in the course of the transmission of the original king-list.