The Early Dynastic Period of Egypt is taken to include the First and the Second dynasties, lasting from ca. the 31st century BC, following the Protodynastic Period of Egypt, until ca. the 27th century, or the beginning of the Old Kingdom. Some Egyptologists also include the Third dynasty.

Ancient Egyptians considered themselves to be "the People of Two Lands", these lands being Lower and Upper Egypt.

According to Manetho, the first king was Menes. However, the earliest recorded king of the First dynasty was Hor-Aha, and the first king to claim to have united the two lands was Narmer (the final king of the Protodynastic Period. We know his name because it is written on a votive palette used for grinding minerals for eye make-up. Funeral practices for the peasants would have been the same as in predynastic times, but the rich demanded something more. Thus, the Egyptians began construction of the mastabas.

Prior to the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt in circa 3100 BC, the land was settled with autonomous villages. With the first dynasties, the rulers established a national administration and appointed royal governors.

The buildings of the central government were typically open-air temples constructed of wood or sandstone.