# Old Kingdom

> English word · Proper noun

## Definitions
1. Egypt from the start of the 3rd Dynasty to its disintegration into regional states at the end of the 6th Dynasty.

## Etymology
Calque of German Altes Reich, eventually displacing Old Empire, an older calque of the same term. Coined in the 1840s as part of a periodization of Ancient Egyptian history into Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-09-03.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/old-kingdom