Modern word derived from Greek for the main waterway of ancient Egypt known simply then as the itrw (river), since there was no other river. It was the main artery for irrigation and transportation in Egypt. The Nile flooded annually from July to September fed by the rains in Ethiopia, and it brought fertile topsoil down to Egyptian farmlands and washed out harmful salts. As a result, Egypt was guaranteed hefty crop harvests unless the Nile was exceptionally low or high and thus presented the most stable area for settlement in the Middle East. The Nile also served as the main means of communication throughout the Nile Valley up to Elephantine (Aswan), where a series of cataracts or rapids impeded river traffic and so marked the historical border of Egypt.
See also Agriculture; Chronology.
Historical Dictionary Of Ancient Egypt by Morris L. Bierbrier
Ancient Egypt. A Reference Guide. EdwART. 2011.