(1) The season of inundation in the ancient Egyptian calendar, the rising of Sirius, the dogstar, called SOPDU by the Egyptians and Sothis by the Greeks, signaled the beginning of the annual flooding of the Nile. When this sign appeared in the heavens the river was set to spread over the fields and orchards along the banks, revitalizing the land with silt and effluvium from Africa’s core. Akhet was the first season of the year, starting as it did with the rising of the Nile, a factor that all Egyptians understood as basic to the nation’s vitality. Akhet was one of the three major seasons of the Egyptian calendar year, with a duration of four 30-day months. Akhet was followed on the calendar by the seasons PROYET and SHOMU. See also CALENDAR; SEASONS.
