Egypt: A Summary Chronology

     Egyptian chronology is only firm back to about -700, with day dating from -690.  Dates before that depend on a variety of sources and interpretations and are subject to considerable professional debate.  The further back in time, the less likely any chronology is to be accurate, and dates for Predynastic and Early Dynastic may be off by as much as several centuries. However, for our purposes, we will follow the rough chronology below, remaining aware that it is not certain.  The periodization of Egypt - the division into 'Kingdoms' and 'Intermediate periods' - is a modern construction.
 
 
Period
Dynasties
Dates
Predynastic  
- c. 3100
Early Dynastic
Dynasties 1-3
c. 2950 - 2575
Old Kingdom
Dynasties 4-6
c. 2575 - 2150
First Intermediate Period
Dynasties 9-11
c. 2125 - 1975
Middle Kingdom
Dynasties 11-13
c. 1975 - 1640
Second Intermediate Period
Dynasties 15-17
c. 1630 - 1540
New Kingdom
Dynasties 18-20
c. 1539 - 1075
Third Intermediate Period
Dynasties 21-25
 c. 1075 - 715
Late Period
Dynasties 25-30
c. 715 - 332
Greco-Roman Period  
332 - +395
Byzantine Period  
+395 - +640


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Last modified: 25 September 2001
Duncan J. Melville

Comments to dmelville@stlawu.edu