Complex Identities on Egypt's Early Peripheries: A Focus on the 'Egyptian' Colonisation of Indigenous Landscapes of the Western Desert and Upper Nile

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My proposed research focuses on the interconnected network of the Western Desert Oases and Upper Nile Valley towns in the Old Kingdom. I propose that we identify these sites as peripheries, and the Neolithic groups in these areas as indigenous African cultures, colonised by invading Lower Nile Valley groups. The latter introduced Egyptian settlement and administration, providing an early model of colonisation. My research asks, how far were the indigenous groups at these sites impacted by the development of administrative hubs within Egypt's south and western border peripheries? Following this, how did this early colonisation affect the emergence of social, political, and administrative identities of elites and multiple non-elite groups, within a heavily 'Egyptian' context? I will use all evidence available to trace these specific indigenous communities present throughout this interconnected network of sites, prior to and throughout their colonisation in the Old Kingdom. This will enable me to determine what types of identities emerged as Egyptian material culture and architecture supposedly dominated the social and political landscape. The application of a variety of theoretical models pertaining to transculturation, world systems analysis and post-colonial analysis of indigenous peoples will enable me to enhance my interpretations, thinking thematically about aspects of data that are often overlooked as 'disappearing' or becoming Egyptianized as state influence expands.