Memphis (English spelling)

Japanese: メンフィス（英語表記）Memphis

An ancient city located 20km south of Cairo, Egypt. Currently Mithrahina. It is said that around 3100 BC, when King Menes unified Upper and Lower Egypt, he built a capital here, where the two lands meet. The name Memphis comes from Men-nefer, the city of pyramids of Pepi I of the 6th dynasty. The city was originally called "White Walls" (white being the royal color) and was dedicated to the god Ptah. It is unclear whether it was the capital of the 1st or 2nd dynasty, but it became the capital of the 3rd dynasty, where the first large stone buildings were built under the famous architect Imhotep, and its glory reached its zenith in the 4th dynasty. The reliefs in the tombs recall life at that time, and the excavated items show traces of excellent craftsmanship not seen even in later Egyptian times. It then went into decline, but during the 18th Dynasty it flourished again as the second capital of Egypt. A royal palace was built, and the worship of Amon flourished. Temples of Ptah were built one after another, and it became an administrative, military, and religious center, as well as an international city. It was later captured by Esarhaddon of Assyria (671 BC), Cambyses II of the Achaemenid Empire (525 BC), and Alexander III the Great of Macedonia (332 BC). During the Ptolemaic period it became an international city with a large Greek population, and it remained an important provincial city during the Roman period. However, as Christianity flourished, the temple was destroyed, the city went into decline, and it was completely destroyed by the Muslims (640). Today, the Saqqara Necropolis is located on the western plateau, but little remains of the city itself remain. Excavations were started by F. Petrie from 1908 to 1913, and were continued by the University of Pennsylvania Expedition (1917, 1955, 1956) and others. In 1979, it was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with the pyramids of Giza and Dahshur.

Memphis
Memphis

A city on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the southwestern tip of Tennessee, United States. As a city, it is the largest commercial and industrial city in Tennessee, and a river port city. As a metropolitan area, it has the second largest population after the state capital of Nashville-Davidson. The city's name comes from the ancient Egyptian city of Memphis. Settlement began in 1819, and it became a key point for water and rail transport on the Mississippi River, and developed as a market town with the expansion of cotton cultivation in the southern states. It became a city in 1826. During the Civil War, it was occupied by the Union Army in June 1862, the year after the outbreak of the war. It is a large distribution center for cotton and lumber, and has many pharmaceutical and food wholesalers, corporate branches and factories, and has the characteristics of a regional central city with a wide commercial area. Various industries such as food processing and machinery have also developed. It is also an educational city, and is home to Rhodes College (founded in 1848), the University of Memphis (founded in 1912), and the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. It is one of the birthplaces of blues, and Beale Street in the city is famous for the songs of WC Handy, the father of blues. It is also known as the birthplace of rock music, and many singers, including Elvis Presley, began their careers here. It is also the place where Presley died, and his mansion and grave are located here. In 1968, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated here, and the motel where the assassination took place is now a museum. Population: 646,889 (2010).

Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia About Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia Information

Japanese:

エジプト，カイロの南方 20kmにあった古代都市。現ミトラヒナ。前 3100年頃メネス王が上下エジプトを統一したとき，両地の接点であるこの地に都を築いたのが始めとされる。メンフィスの名称は第6王朝ペピ1世のピラミッドの町メン＝ネフェル Men-neferに由来。町は最初「白い壁」 (白は王家の色) と称され，プター神がまつられた。第1，2王朝の首都であったかは不明であるが，第3王朝の首都となり，有名な建築家イムホテプのもとに最初の大石造建築が建造され，第4王朝にいたってその栄光は絶頂に達した。墓の浮彫には当時の生活が偲ばれ，出土品には後世エジプトにもみられない優れた技巧の跡がみられる。その後衰退の道をたどったが，第 18王朝の時代に再びエジプト第2の都として栄え，王宮もつくられ，アモン信仰が盛んになるなかで，プター神殿も次々と建立されるとともに，行政，軍事，宗教の中心地として，さらに国際都市としての様相を呈するにいたった。その後，アッシリアのエサルハッドン (前 671) ，アケメネス朝ペルシアのカンビセス2世 (前 525) ，マケドニアのアレクサンドロス3世 (大王) (前 332) によって攻略されたが，プトレマイオス朝時代にはギリシア人の多い国際都市となり，ローマ時代も重要な地方都市として残った。しかしキリスト教が栄えるに及んで神殿は破壊され，町は衰退し，さらにイスラム教徒によって完全に滅ぼされた (640) 。現在は西側台地上にサッカラの大墓地遺跡があるが，都市の遺構そのものはほとんど残っていない。 1908～13年 F.ピートリーによって発掘調査が始められ，その後ペンシルバニア大学調査隊 (1917，1955，1956) ，その他による発掘が進められた。 1979年ギザ，ダハシュールのピラミッド群とともに，世界遺産の文化遺産に登録。

メンフィス
Memphis

アメリカ合衆国，テネシー州の南西端，ミシシッピ川東岸にある都市。市としてはテネシー州最大の商工業都市，河港都市であり，都市圏としては州都ナッシュビル＝ダビッドソンの都市圏に次ぐ人口を抱える。市名は古代エジプトの都市メンフィスにちなむ。1819年入植が始まり，ミシシッピ川の水運，鉄道交通の要衝となって，南部諸州のワタ栽培の拡大に伴い市場町として発展。1826年に市となった。南北戦争時は開戦翌年の 1862年6月に北軍に占領された。綿花と木材の大規模な集散地で，医薬品，食料品の卸問屋，企業の支店や工場も多く，広い商圏をもつ地方中心都市の性格が強い。食品加工，機械など多様な工業も発達。文教都市でもあり，ローズ大学（1848創立），メンフィス大学（1912創立），テネシー大学健康科学センターなどがある。ブルース誕生の地の一つで，市内のビール通りは，ブルースの父 W.C.ハンディの曲によって有名。ロック音楽の発祥地としても知られ，エルビス・プレスリーなど多数の歌手がここから活躍を始めた。プレスリーの没地でもあり，その邸宅と墓がある。1968年マーチン・ルーサー・キング・ジュニア牧師がこの地で暗殺され，暗殺現場のモーテルは今日では博物館になっている。人口 64万6889（2010）。

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