Khety I was an

ancient Egypt Ancient Egypt () was a cradle of civilization concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in Northeast Africa. It emerged from prehistoric Egypt around 3150BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology), when Upper and Lower E ...

ian

nomarch A nomarch (, Great Chief) was a provincial governor in ancient Egypt; the country was divided into 42 provinces, called Nome (Egypt), nomes (singular , plural ). A nomarch was the government official responsible for a nome. Etymology The te ...

of the 13th '' nomos'' of

Upper Egypt Upper Egypt ( ', shortened to , , locally: ) is the southern portion of Egypt and is composed of the Nile River valley south of the delta and the 30th parallel North. It thus consists of the entire Nile River valley from Cairo south to Lake N ...

(''"the Upper

Sycamore Sycamore is a name which has been applied to several types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms. The name derives from the Ancient Greek () meaning . Species of otherwise unrelated trees known as sycamore: * ''Acer pseudoplatanus'', a ...

"'') during the 10th dynasty (c. 21st century BCE, during the

First Intermediate Period The First Intermediate Period, described as a 'dark period' in ancient Egyptian history, spanned approximately 125 years, c. 2181–2055 BC, after the end of the Old Kingdom of Egypt, Old Kingdom. It comprises the seventh Dynasty, Seventh (altho ...

). Like many other local governors, he also was a priest of the native deity

Wepwawet In Egyptian mythology, Wepwawet ( hieroglyphic ''wp-w3w.t''; also rendered Upuaut, Wep-wawet, Wepawet, Apuat, and Ophois) was originally a jackal deity of funerary rites, war, and royalty, whose cult centre was Asyut in Upper Egypt (Lycopolis in ...

. It is generally assumed that Khety I was the earliest of a trio of related nomarchs datable to the Herakleopolite period; he was likely followed by his son

Tefibi Tefibi (or Itj-ibj – ''It(.i)ib(.i)''Donald B. Spanel, in Donald B. Redford (ed), ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt'' vol. 1, Oxford University Press, 2001, pp. 154-6. – in a more modern reading) was an ancient Egyptian nomarch ...

and then by his grandson Khety II.Donald B. Spanel, in Donald B. Redford (ed), ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt'' vol. 1, Oxford University Press, 2001, pp. 154-6.

Biography

He was member of a long line of nomarchs in

Asyut AsyutAlso spelled ''Assiout'' or ''Assiut''. ( ' ) is the capital of the modern Asyut Governorate in Egypt. It was built close to the ancient city of the same name, which is situated nearby. The modern city is located at , while the ancient city i ...

with strong bonds of loyalty and friendship towards the Herakleopolite dynasty: as a child he was raised along with the herakleopolite royal princes and their father – the

pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian language, Egyptian: ''wikt:pr ꜥꜣ, pr ꜥꜣ''; Meroitic language, Meroitic: 𐦲𐦤𐦧, ; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') was the title of the monarch of ancient Egypt from the First Dynasty of Egypt, First Dynasty ( ...

– appointed Khety as nomarch and also joined the

mourning Mourning is the emotional expression in response to a major life event causing grief, especially loss. It typically occurs as a result of someone's death, especially a loved one. The word is used to describe a complex of behaviors in which t ...

for the death of Khety's grandfather. Khety ruled his ''nomos'' during a peaceful period, and is known that he ordered the realization of many new

irrigation canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface f ...

s and imposed the maintenance of the existing ones, thus expanding the cultivable land. During a period of

famine A famine is a widespread scarcity of food caused by several possible factors, including, but not limited to war, natural disasters, crop failure, widespread poverty, an Financial crisis, economic catastrophe or government policies. This phenom ...

caused by a particularly small Nile flood, he bestowed grain to the people of his district, although he denied the grain to the inhabitants of the neighboring ''nomoi'', also affected by famine, by closing the borders of his district. Although he ruled during peaceful times, Khety boasted his ability as a warrior and ordered the organization of a provincial defence militia.Hayes, op. cit., p. 468-469. After his death, Khety was buried in Asyut (tomb V) and his titles passed to his son

, who is likely to have lived during the reign of

Wahkare Khety Wahkare Khety was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh of the 9th or 10th Dynasty during the First Intermediate Period. Identity The identity of Wahkare Khety is controversial. While some scholars believe that he was the founder of the 9th Dynasty, ...

and Merykare.

Biography

References

Further reading