Question

how were mesopotamian and egyptian civilizations shaped by their interactions with near and distant neighbors?

Answer 1

Egyptian agriculture drew upon wheat and barley, which reached Egypt from Mesopotamia, as well as gourds, watermelons, domesticated donkeys, and cattle, which derived from Sudan. Some scholars argue that Egypt's steep pyramids and its system of writing were stimulated by Mesopotamian models. The practice of divine kingship seems to have derived form the central or eastern Sudan. Ind-Europeans Hittites—and pastorals—Hyksos-- influenced both Egypt and Mesopotamia (Babylonia) by bringing with them the domesticated horse, wheeled carts, and chariot technology, which were introduced into their own military forces. The Egyptians absorbed foreign innovations, such as the horse-drawn chariot; new kinds of armor, bows, daggers, and swords; improved methods of spinning and weaving; new musical instruments; and olive and pomegranate trees. After expelling the Hyksos, the Egyptians went on to create their own empire, both in Nubia and in the eastern Mediterranean regions of Syria and Palestine. The Babylonian and Egyptian Empires were also bound together by marriage alliances as part of an international political system.