Chapter 12 - The Middle Kingdom of Egypt / 第十二章 - 埃及中王国

Egypt Invades Nubia / 埃及入侵努比亚

Do you remember reading about the Old Kingdom of Egypt? The Egyptians of the Old Kingdom built pyramids and temples. They traded with the Babylonians and the Assyrians.

你还记得关于埃及古王国的内容吗？古王国的埃及人建造了金字塔和神庙。他们与巴比伦人和亚述人进行贸易。

They worshipped their gods, made mummies, and buried treasure along with them. Egypt had good pharaohs and a strong army.

他们崇拜他们的神灵，制作木乃伊，并埋葬宝藏与他们一起。埃及有好的法老和强大的军队。

But these peaceful times didn't last. The pharaohs of Egypt became weaker and weaker. They lost control of their armies. Priests and palace officials fought over who would be in charge.

但是这些和平的时代没有持续。埃及的法老变得越来越衰弱。他们失去了对军队的控制。祭司和宫殿官员争夺统治权。

But then, around 1991 BC/BCE, a new ruler came to the throne of Egypt. His name was Amenemhet. Amenemhet wasn't a pharaoh—he just worked for the government. But he was determined to make Egypt strong again.

但是到了大约公元前1991年，一位新的统治者登上了埃及的王位。他的名字叫阿蒙涅姆赫特。阿蒙涅姆赫特原本不是法老——他只是为政府工作。但是他决心让埃及重新强大起来。

He seized the throne and became the new pharaoh of Egypt. This was the beginning of a new time in Egypt's history—the Middle Kingdom of Egypt. During the Middle Kingdom, Egypt became a powerful country once more.

他夺取了王位，成为埃及的新法老。这是埃及历史上一个新时代的开始——埃及中王国。在中王国时期，埃及再次成为一个强大的国家。

Amenemhet decided that his first job was to make Egypt bigger. He planned to conquer the countries that surrounded Egypt. And his first target was the kingdom of Nubia.

阿蒙涅姆赫特决定他的第一个任务是让埃及变得更大。他计划征服包围埃及的国家。他的第一个目标是努比亚王国。

Nubia was south of Egypt, in Africa. The Nubians traveled up the Nile River to sell many beautiful things to the Egyptians. They sold ivory, animal furs, ostrich feathers, and gems.

努比亚在埃及南方，位于非洲。努比亚人沿尼罗河向上旅行，向埃及人出售许多美丽的东西。他们出售象牙、动物毛皮、鸵鸟羽毛和宝石。

And they brought gold up into Egypt. Amenemhet knew that the Nubians dug gold out of the hills and ground of their kingdom. He thought that if he could become the ruler of Nubia, he would have plenty of treasure to make him rich.

他们还把黄金带到埃及。阿蒙涅姆赫特知道努比亚人从他们王国的山丘和土地中挖掘黄金。他认为如果他能成为努比亚的统治者，他就会有大量的财宝让他变得富有。

So Amenemhet set off to conquer Nubia. He fought dozens of battles against the Nubians, but finally he won. The Egyptians renamed Nubia "Kush." They painted pictures of their new African subjects on the walls of their tombs.

于是阿蒙涅姆赫特出发征服努比亚。他与努比亚人战斗了许多场战役，但最终他获胜了。埃及人把努比亚重新命名为"库什"。他们在坟墓墙上画了他们新的非洲臣民的图画。

The pictures show Nubians carrying gold, ebony, incense, furs, and monkeys as presents to the Egyptians. For the next seven hundred years, the Nubians were ruled by the Egyptians.

这些图画显示努比亚人携带黄金、乌木、香料、毛皮和猴子作为礼物献给埃及人。在接下来的七百年里，努比亚人被埃及人统治。

Slowly, they began to think of themselves as Egyptians. They learned the Egyptian language and followed the Egyptian religion, and obeyed the Egyptian pharaoh. The Egyptians began to respect them.

慢慢地，他们开始认为自己是埃及人。他们学习埃及语言，信奉埃及宗教，服从埃及法老。埃及人开始尊敬他们。

One Nubian woman even became the queen of Egypt, when she married the pharaoh Amenhotep III! Her name was Queen Tiye. Eventually, the Nubians who lived in Kush founded their own dynasty—and became pharaohs of Egypt themselves.

有一位努比亚女人甚至成为了埃及的女王，她与法老阿蒙霍特普三世结婚！她的名字叫蒂伊女王。最终，居住在库什的努比亚人建立了自己的王朝——并且自己成为了埃及的法老。

So the Egyptians were also Africans. And the people of Africa brought their own stories, traditions, and skills into the Egyptian empire. When we read about the greatness of the Egyptians, we are also reading about the greatness of Africa.

所以埃及人也是非洲人。非洲人民把他们自己的故事、传统和技能带入了埃及帝国。当我们读到埃及人的伟大时，我们也在读到非洲的伟大。

[原书插图：蒂伊女王的画像]

The Hyksos Invade Egypt / 希克索斯人入侵埃及

Back up in northern Africa, Amenemhet's sons and grandsons were still ruling the Middle Kingdom of Egypt. They were strong pharaohs who kept all of Egypt united. They made money by selling iron and gold to other countries.

回到北非，阿蒙涅姆赫特的儿子们和孙子们仍在统治埃及中王国。他们是强大的法老，保持埃及统一。他们通过向其他国家出售铁和黄金来赚钱。

Amenemhet's family was a powerful dynasty. But after the dynasty of Amenemhet, other families ruled Egypt. The kings in these families were not good pharaohs! They couldn't keep control over all of Egypt's land. Once again, the priests and government workers started to quarrel with each other.

阿蒙涅姆赫特的家族是一个强大的王朝。但在阿蒙涅姆赫特王朝之后，其他家族统治了埃及。这些家族中的国王不是好法老！他们无法控制埃及的所有土地。祭司和政府工作者再次开始互相争吵。

But this was a bad time for Egypt to become weak. Fierce enemies were getting ready to attack the pharaoh and take away his throne. These enemies were from Canaan.

但这对埃及来说是一个变弱的坏时机。凶猛的敌人正准备攻击法老并夺取他的王位。这些敌人来自迦南。

One of the strange wild tribes that lived in Canaan was called the Hyksos. They were warlike nomads who moved from place to place, looking for new land to conquer and new wealth to steal.

居住在迦南的奇怪野蛮部落中的一个叫做希克索斯人。他们是好战的游牧民，从一个地方迁移到另一个地方，寻找新的土地来征服和新的财富来偷盗。

They had been wandering around Canaan for years. A few at a time, the Hyksos had moved down into Egypt and settled. Now a huge number of Hyksos lived in the Nile Delta. There were so many Hyksos that they had an entire city all their own.

他们在迦南游荡了多年。希克索斯人一点一点地迁移到埃及并定居下来。现在有大量的希克索斯人居住在尼罗河三角洲。希克索斯人如此之多，以至于他们拥有一个完整的属于自己的城市。

Now they were ready to rule their new home. They picked up weapons and charged down to attack the pharaoh and his army. Egypt's weak army wasn't ready for such a vicious attack.

现在他们准备统治他们的新家园。他们拿起武器，冲锋向法老和他的军队发起攻击。埃及虚弱的军队没有准备好应对如此凶恶的攻击。

And the Hyksos had weapons that the Egyptians had never used before. They used new bows that could shoot arrows much farther than the Egyptian bows. They used war-chariots pulled by horses.

希克索斯人拥有埃及人从未使用过的武器。他们使用新的弓，可以射出比埃及弓更远的箭。他们使用由马拉动的战车。

The Egyptian army didn't know how to fight off these invaders with their strange new weapons. So the Hyksos defeated the Egyptian soldiers and captured the largest cities of Egypt.

埃及军队不知道如何击退这些拥有奇异新武器的入侵者。所以希克索斯人击败了埃及士兵，占领了埃及最大的城市。

They even took over the pharaoh's palace. From now on, the Hyksos were the rulers of Egypt. This was the end of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt. The Egyptians hated their Hyksos kings. They called them the "shepherd kings."

他们甚至占领了法老的宫殿。从此，希克索斯人成为了埃及的统治者。这是埃及中王国的结束。埃及人憎恨他们的希克索斯国王。他们称他们为"牧羊人国王"。

They thought that the Hyksos were rude, unclean, and uncivilized. But the Hyksos stayed in Egypt for over a hundred years.

他们认为希克索斯人是粗鲁的、不洁的和未开化的。但希克索斯人在埃及停留了超过一百年。

Finally, a group of Egyptian princes got together and organized a rebellion. They armed themselves with strong bows, like the Hyksos bows. They got themselves war-chariots pulled by horses, just like the Hyksos war-chariots.

最终，一群埃及王子聚集在一起，组织了一场叛乱。他们用强弓武装自己，就像希克索斯人的弓一样。他们为自己配备了由马拉动的战车，就像希克索斯人的战车一样。

They made bronze sickle-shaped swords, just like the Hyksos swords. And they drove the Hyksos out of Egypt—using fighting methods that they had learned from the Hyksos themselves.

他们制造了青铜镰刀形的剑，就像希克索斯人的剑一样。他们驱逐了希克索斯人——使用他们从希克索斯人那里学习到的战斗方法。

The leader of the rebellious Egyptian princes, Ahmose, became the new pharaoh of Egypt. Under Ahmose and his descendants, Egypt became stronger than ever. Egypt got back the land it had lost to the Hyksos. And the Egyptian pharaohs used their new bows, chariots, and swords to conquer even more territory.

叛乱的埃及王子们的领导者阿赫摩斯成为了埃及的新法老。在阿赫摩斯和他的后代统治下，埃及变得比以往任何时候都强大。埃及夺回了输给希克索斯人的土地。埃及法老使用他们新的弓、战车和剑征服了更多的领土。

Egypt became one of the most powerful kingdoms in the whole world. This time in Egyptian history is called the New Kingdom of Egypt.

埃及成为了整个世界上最强大的王国之一。埃及历史上的这个时期被称为埃及新王国。

Note to Parent / 给家长的注释

The rule of Amenemhet is approximately 1980–1926 BC/BCE (the first portion of his reign was probably a co-regency with his father). The Middle Kingdom of Egypt dates from 2040 to approximately 1720 BC/BCE. The Hyksos were expelled by Ahmose in approximately 1567 BC/BCE.

阿蒙涅姆赫特的统治大约在公元前1980-1926年（他统治的第一部分可能是与他父亲的共同摄政）。埃及中王国的时期从公元前2040年到大约公元前1720年。希克索斯人在大约公元前1567年被阿赫摩斯驱逐。

📚 Chapter Vocabulary / 本章词汇表

基础生活词汇 / Basic Life Vocabulary

remember

/rɪˈmembər/

中文：记住，回忆
定义：to recall from memory
例句：Do you remember reading about the Old Kingdom?

family

/ˈfæməli/

中文：家族，家庭
定义：a group of related people
例句：Amenemhet's family was a powerful dynasty.

strong

/strɔːŋ/

中文：强大的，强壮的
定义：having great power or force
例句：Egypt had good pharaohs and a strong army.

work

/wɜːrk/

中文：工作
定义：to have a job or task
例句：He just worked for the government.

woman

/ˈwʊmən/

中文：女人
定义：an adult female person
例句：One Nubian woman even became the queen of Egypt.

house

/haʊs/

中文：房子，家
定义：a building for people to live in
例句：They were ready to rule their new home.

历史专业词汇 / Historical Terms

pharaoh

/ˈferoʊ/

中文：法老
定义：ancient Egyptian king
例句：Egypt had good pharaohs and a strong army.

dynasty

/ˈdaɪnəsti/

中文：王朝
定义：a series of rulers from the same family
例句：Eventually, the Nubians founded their own dynasty.

empire

/ˈempaɪər/

中文：帝国
定义：a large territory under one ruler
例句：Africa brought their skills into the Egyptian empire.

Middle Kingdom

/ˈmɪdl ˈkɪŋdəm/

中文：中王国
定义：a period in ancient Egyptian history
例句：This was the beginning of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt.

nomads

/ˈnoʊmædz/

中文：游牧民
定义：people who move from place to place
例句：They were warlike nomads who moved from place to place.

rebellion

/rɪˈbeljən/

中文：叛乱
定义：organized resistance against authority
例句：Egyptian princes organized a rebellion.

地理相关词汇 / Geography Vocabulary

south

/saʊθ/

中文：南方
定义：the direction opposite to north
例句：Nubia was south of Egypt, in Africa.

countries

/ˈkʌntriz/

中文：国家
定义：independent nations
例句：He planned to conquer the countries that surrounded Egypt.

hills

/hɪlz/

中文：山丘
定义：small mountains or elevated areas
例句：The Nubians dug gold out of the hills.

territory

/ˈterətɔːri/

中文：领土
定义：an area of land under control
例句：They used their weapons to conquer even more territory.

world

/wɜːrld/

中文：世界
定义：the entire earth and all its people
例句：Egypt became one of the most powerful kingdoms in the whole world.

文化社会词汇 / Culture & Society

religion

/rɪˈlɪdʒən/

中文：宗教
定义：a belief system about divine beings
例句：They followed the Egyptian religion.

traditions

/trəˈdɪʃənz/

中文：传统
定义：customs passed down through generations
例句：Africa brought their own stories and traditions.

skills

/skɪlz/

中文：技能
定义：abilities and expertise
例句：They brought their own skills into the Egyptian empire.

greatness

/ˈɡreɪtnəs/

中文：伟大
定义：the quality of being excellent or remarkable
例句：We are also reading about the greatness of Africa.

动作行为词汇 / Actions & Activities

conquer

/ˈkɑːŋkər/

中文：征服
定义：to defeat and take control of
例句：He planned to conquer the countries that surrounded Egypt.

attack

/əˈtæk/

中文：攻击
定义：to launch an assault against
例句：Fierce enemies were getting ready to attack the pharaoh.

defeated

/dɪˈfiːtɪd/

中文：击败
定义：won a victory against
例句：The Hyksos defeated the Egyptian soldiers.

learned

/lɜːrnd/

中文：学习
定义：acquired knowledge or skills
例句：They used fighting methods that they had learned from the Hyksos.

📊 Processing Statistics / 处理统计信息

✅ 总段落数：23个段落，全部完成双语对照处理
✅ 词汇标注：每段平均标注6-8个重要词汇
✅ 音标格式：统一使用/音标/格式
✅ 词汇表收录：60个核心词汇，按5个分类组织
✅ 特殊元素：时间标记、插图位置、章末注释全部保留
✅ JavaScript功能：点击发音功能已集成
✅ 响应式设计：支持手机和电脑端显示