For my research paper I’m interested in exploring the relationship between Ancient Egypt and Nubia. Specifically, I’d like to focus on Nubian identity and how this identity changed over time as Egyptian influence grew stronger. Given that burials are the prominent type of preserved sites in these areas, this will be explored through a mortuary context that will include both data from archaeological remains and ceramics. This increasing amount of Egyptian influence in Nubia has lead scholars to discuss this relationship with the term “Egyptianization.” This is important because it would provide us with insight into how cultural practices change through passive and aggressive interactions, given that Egypt exerted military force against Nubia. I am interested in this because I’m interested in cultural identity and how that changes in various environments. Was this “Egyptianization” the result of forced assimilation? Was this a natural combination of cultures that formed due to an increase in migration and interaction? How did the Nubians identify when they were ruled under the Egyptians? Was there a cause to preserve Nubian culture and protect it from these influences? At what point would the Nubians be considered Egyptians? Influences from nearby cultures is very common, but at what point is it considered to just be a part of their own culture? How exactly do we define these things? We often hear about protecting the heritage of cultures and I believe that this is important, but cultures do also naturally change and adapt. Is it even possible to “protect” culture? Is really a bad thing to be influenced by other cultures or for certain aspects of your culture to change? I think that this is a multi-faceted issue that can also help us better understand cultural identity in general.
For my sources, I tried to find a variety that provided historical contexts, mortuary contexts, new data, and the reevaluation of old data. All of these sources recognized the limitations caused by the small number of sites and a lack of diversity. In particular, this is what drew me to Lindsey Rae-Marie Weglarz’ dissertation research. This research attempts to find new contexts that haven’t been explored in this way yet. This source provides in-depth cultural and historical background as well as a great analysis of these contexts. However, this is a dissertation and may not be considered a scholarly source since it is lacking peer-review. In light of that, another source complements this one nicely. van Pelt’s article explores many of the same themes and evaluates the current research on the topic. Buzon’s articles also explore these themes but specifically in bioarchaeological context. Moving forward I am also looking at sources that provide mortuary contexts that include ceramics in an effort to have a diverse set of complementary data. These sources do briefly explore this, specially the dissertation. However, I’d like to have more sources that focus specifically on exploring these themes within that context to support this.
Sources
Buzon, Michele R. 2008 A Bioarchaeological Perspective on Egyptian Colonialism in Nubia during the New Kingdom on JSTOR. The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology.
Buzon, Michele R, Stuart Tyson Smith, and Antonio Simonetti Entanglement and the Formation of the Ancient Nubian Napatan State. DOI:10.1111/aman.12524.
Lindsey Rae-marie Weglarz, 2017 Continuity and Change: A Reevaluation of Cultural Identity and “Egyptianization” in Lower Nubia during the New Kingdom.
van Pelt, W. Paul 2013 Revising Egypto-Nubian Relations in New Kingdom Lower Nubia: From Egyptianization to Cultural Entanglement. Cambridge Archaeological Journal 23(03):523–550. DOI:10.1017/S0959774313000528.
I think that this is a very interesting topic to explore. It is something that I wouldn’t have even thought to look at. I also appreciate that instead of just looking at the evidence of ancient Egyptian culture in Nubia, you are choosing to consider all of the other issues related to this culture exchange (how do even define “culture”? Did the Nubians willingly adopt Egyptian traditions or were they forced to do so?). However, it may be more difficult to assess the thoughts of the Nubians themselves, including how they identified themselves, if all traces of their culture is overshadowed by traces of Egyptian culture. Regardless, it is more helpful, in my opinion, to know how and why Egyptian culture influenced Nubian culture rather than to just simply know that it happened.
I also think that the sources you chose to look at will be very helpful as you conduct your research into this topic. I am uncertain if that dissertation you cited counts as a scholarly source, but I believe that Professor Watrall could clear that up for you. However, the other sources look good and it’ll be beneficial for you to look at all these different kinds of sources (since you mentioned that you wanted to look at new data and old data in historical/mortuary contexts). I think it may also be useful to look at archaeological field notes from archaeologists who have worked at Nubian sites since it may give you further insight into what specific artifacts (such as pottery) can tell you about how ancient Egyptian culture influenced Nubian culture over time.
So I think that there is research lacking in this specific area for a reason…it is kinda hard to assess. Would not it be cool if we could explore culture through some sort of time capsule and see for ourselves how to answer our questions? I would use Egyptian accounts and historians’ account to examine your research. While not ideal or most reliable, it is a beginning point to actually look into the minds of Nubians themselves; and then you could interpret or reevaluate previous interpretations. Another way to approach your research question is to read through reviews and critiques of information regarding your topic and see if there is some way to refute those critiques by providing new evidence from your readings or from your interpretations from primary and secondary accounts. I mean, you said it yourself: “This research attempts to find new contexts that haven’t been explored in this way yet;” that means you are going to be putting new literature into the same archaeological canon that you are challenging. The existing data does not definitively answer these questions, and maybe you will or will not, but your research will help get closer to answering your research question and provide insight and reflections on methods/approached being used to in attempt to answer research questions like yours.
Overall, I think that your research will raise more questions as you go along. With the dissertation, do not be afraid to criticize and review it yourself. Consider yourself a peer and find critical evidence and formulate opinions that create further discussion. Email Lindsey about her dissertation and ask her opinion about your research. Whilst a challenge, I think that your research can prove to be fruitful in many ways.
I think this will be a great topic to dive into and I hope you get a lot out of it! I think that the questions you are trying to answer will be great in understanding how the Nubians fit into Egyptian society. On that note, I would like to add that it might be interesting to look into how the Nubians were governed between predynastic, kingdom, and intermediate periods because this might also effect how “Egyptianized” the people were which in turn could effect their culture. I think it might also be interesting to know not only when did the Egyptians consider (if at all) the Nubians Egyptian or at least a part of Egypt and if the Nubians ever considered themselves a part of Egypt. It would also be interesting to know if while the Nubians were under control of pharaoh, if they still had their own Nubian kings or leadership (and how much power either the pharaoh or Nubian leadership had over Nubia).