I was talking with someone about ancient religions, and he brought up that all of the gods in Greece and other parts of the ancient world, were really stolen/borrowed from Ancient Egypt (our discussion was on Isis, Ra, etc., so that is what Ancient Egypt is defined as in this context I guess). To me, this sound a lot like blackwashing history, so I was and am extremely skeptical about it. I agree that Egypt had an influence, but I find it hard to say that Greece's religion and culture is just Egypt's rebranded. He went on to say or imply that Ancient Egypt is the root of all religion. I brought up the fact that South America/Native Americans had religion/their own beliefs, and he said that there have been traces of Africa/Egypt found in South America. Several questions:
Edit: Ancient Greece being defined as Zeus, Poseidon, etc.
For connection to the Americas, the answer is simple: zero influence, as there was no contact.
The proposed "evidence" usually involves one or more of the following assertions:
Out of place Egyptian artifacts: There have never been any ancient Egyptian artifacts found in the Americas in archaeological contexts which suggest contact.
Bottlegourds and cotton: The former is quite capable of floating across the ocean and germinating. For the latter, Afro-Eurasian and American cotton are distinct species.
Thor Heyerdahl: In the late 60/early 70s, Heyerdahl and his team built raft in what they gleaned were the style of ancient Egypt using what they speculated to be equivalent materials. They then attempted to set sail to the Americas. The first attempt sank, but the second one reached the Caribbean, thereby proving that modern human beings with full knowledge of the globe, oceanic winds, and currents could, by using modern engineering and sailing knowledge and techniques, sail a craft which superficially looked like an ancient Egyptian vessel to the Americas. Provided, of course, they also had access to modern provisions and were able to maintain consistent radio contact with the outside world. All of this without ever stopping to question why ancient Egyptians would want to sail thousands of miles into uncharted open ocean.
The hypothesis that ancient Egyptians traveled to the Americas has zero evidence for it, and much evidence to militate against it.
Can't edit the title I guess? Let's act like that grammatical error never happened.