Kemet: The Black and African Egypt that History Tried to Erase. Long before modern nations existed, the land we now call Egypt was known to its people as Kemet, meaning “the Black Land”—a reference to the rich dark soil left by the Nile River’s floods. This civilization rose in Northeast Africa more than 5,000 years ago and became one of the most influential cultures in human history. Kemet was an African civilization, deeply connected to the continent’s people, traditions, and environment. Its