Limited Worldview. The Egyptians' knowledge of geography was restricted to Egypt itself and the eastern Mediterranean. The primary sources preserving Egyptian knowledge of geography are lists of place-names and relief sculptures that depicted foreign countries.

Lists of Place-Names. Egyptian student scribes learned the names of Egyptian towns and foreign locations by memorizing lists. The best-known example of such a list was prepared on papyrus by a scribe named Amenemope during Dynasty 20 (circa 1190-1075 B.C.E.). The geographical list is included along with lists of names of things in the sky, earth, and water; names of persons, offices, and occupations; names of classes, tribes, and types of humans; names of buildings; and names of foodstuff, beverages, and types of meat. There is a logical order to the list. The towns of Upper Egypt are arranged in the list from south to north. The towns...