Photo Gallery

AIDA: History vs. Fiction

Although AIDA is a fictional story about the people of Egypt and Nubia, the history of their conflict is real, as were the cultures from which the creators of this show drew their inspiration.

EGYPT
Egypt is one of the oldest civilizations we know about. The Roman Empire lasted 1,500 years; the United States is a mere 225 years old. Egyptian civilization began over 5,000 years ago! Ancient Egypt was a prosperous civilization with many accomplishments. It had a large, highly educated bureaucracy, gifted artists and craftsmen, and talented engineers and scientists. Egyptian physicians drew medicines from plants and herbs, and passed their knowledge on to the Greeks, Romans, and Arabs. Egyptian mathematicians measured the year to the nearly exact 365 days, which they divided into 12 months. Egyptian merchants traded up and down the Red Sea and along the coast of the Mediterranean. The pyramids are Egypt’s most famous accomplishment. The first pyramid was built around 2700 B.C.E. The great pyramids that have fascinated generations of scholars and tourists were built a short time later, using masses of human beings for power, and technology no more sophisticated than levers and sleds and earthen ramps. The largest, the Great Pyramid of Giza, was 460 feet high and 755 feet along each side. These enormous structures have survived for thousands of years to serve the inhabitants of modern Egypt. Many of the blocks were removed to provide building materials for the modern-day capital of Cairo.

NUBIA
Nubia, “the land upriver,” was Egypt’s most important neighbor. Nubia included the territories of modern-day Sudan, Ethiopia, and Eritrea. Relations between Egypt and Nubia go back at least to 2500 B.C.E., and include periods of warfare, trade, colonization, and domination. Egypt’s main interest in Nubia was economic. Nubia was Egypt’s main source of gold. It also provided hard stone, copper, and other metals. Nubia also served as a trade link with regions farther south. This trade included frankincense, myrrh, ivory, ebony, animal skins, and ostrich feathers. Nubia was also an important source of manpower. Over the centuries, Nubians often migrated north to live and work, many serving as soldiers in Egypt’s armies. Nubians often achieved high rank in Egypt, and more than one pharaoh had Nubian blood flowing in his veins. But often the labor was involuntary, and Egyptian forces frequently marched south to take prisoners, who were sent back as slaves. Egypt was not always the more powerful nation; sometimes Nubia was. Often, Egyptians marched into Nubia, killed all the men, burned all the buildings and crops, and carried the women and children off into slavery. At other times, Egyptians moved in peacefully, living and working with Nubians, making Nubia a province of Egypt. Around 1079 B.C.E., the Nubians rose up in revolt, declaring their land independent of Egypt. The two regions dealt with each other as equals. As Egypt grew weaker, Nubia grew stronger. After 1079, Egyptian power declined. Nubia conquered Egyptian territories on their border. Over the years, Nubian armies moved steadily north. Eventually, in 732 B.C.E., the Nubians triumphed, and a Nubian was crowned pharaoh. Nubian rule ended a century later. Shortly afterwards, Egypt was conquered by the Assyrians. The story of AIDA takes place during one of the times, prior to 1079, when Egypt was conquering and enslaving its neighbors, including Nubia.

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