egyptian hieroglyphsw

Chapter One Egyptian hieroglyphic writing

General remarks A. A short introduction to hieroglyphs B. The three main functions of signs C. Phonetic signs or phonograms D. Determinatives E. Ideograms F. Comments on spelling G. Characteristics of the writing system

18 Egyptian hieroglyphic writing

General remarks

1. A writing system used for over 3,000 years

[16] Hieroglyphic writing underwent a certain evolution over the centuries. During the Classical period, the hieroglyphic system functioned with nearly 800 signs, the most important of which, approximately 200, will be dealt with specifically in this book. Hieroglyphs tended to increase in number during the Greco-Roman period, numbering several thousand.

[17] The style of hieroglyphs is dependent upon the nature of the medium and the skill of the artist or copyist. It may also be characteristic of a period, or even of a given location. Certain hieroglyphs changed in value over time. Thus, during the Middle Kingdom, the sign representing gazelle ribs (Aa13) had the value im, but during the New Kingdom, it also took on the value m and could replace the owl.

2. A handwritten script

[18] The handwritten script most commonly used by scribes was the cursive known as hieratic, as seen in papyri. The hieroglyphic writing used on monuments, on the other hand, whose signs needed to be close to the realities they represented, generally required the final intervention of an artisan, sculptor or painter, who would have a certain level of skill.

[19] Although sometimes incised into metal, wood or clay, hieroglyphic inscriptions are most often carved into stone. A wide variety of stone was used in statuary, while monuments were generally constructed of limestone, sandstone or granite. Hieroglyphs carved in relief, incised, or incised in relief can be found. When they are painted, they may be completely black, or use realistic or conventional colours.

3. A standardised writing system

[20] Modern works on Egyptology use standardised hieroglyphs, written to be read from left to right. Used until recently in printing, the Gardiner and IFAO fonts have today given way to computerised fonts managed by specific software. In this book, the hieroglyphic sequences have been produced using ric Aubourgs MacScribe software.

4. A writing system to be personalised

[21] In parallel to memorising hieroglyphs, one should also learn how to draw them in a way that is both simple and precise. For the 200 signs most commonly found, the interactive DVD-Rom that accompanies this book includes animations allow-ing everyone to draw hieroglyphs using simple lines. These animations are based on Ancient Egyptian Calligraphy, by H.G. Fisher.

General remarks 19

5. The organisation of written signs

[22] The example of the White Chapel of Senusret I in Karnak

Amongst hieroglyphic signs, some extend horizontally, while others are instead vertical. As much as possible, scribes arranged the various signs into quadrats (imaginary squares or rectangles) in order to avoid the presence of excessive unused space. In the case of grouped signs, we begin with the one in the highest position.

a. Horizontal lines

To read a horizontal line of text, we must begin at the end towards which the faces of the animate beings are turned, and continue reading by meeting their gaze. For Egyptians, the normal direction of writing was from right to left, as in Arabic. In hieroglyphs, however, we can also write from left to right, as in English. This is especially done when we wish to create an axis of symmetry between two inscriptions: Egyptians were firstly concerned with the left-hand portion of the inscription, while Europeans tend to want to begin with the right-hand section.

b. Vertical columns

It is not uncommon for a text or inscription to be written not in horizontal lines, but in vertical columns. The quadrat system makes this arrangement easier.

6. Words and phrases used in this book

[23] The selected phrases are taken from texts or inscriptions written in Middle Egyptian or in Traditional Egyptian, belonging, for the most part, to the Middle Kingdom, the time of the Senusret kings. Phrases taken from texts originally in hieratic signs, such as literary texts, have been transcribed into hieroglyphs.


A. A short introduction to hieroglyphs

1. A first word to analyse

[24] The word is composed of three signs. a. The first two are pronounced: (mouth) pronounced /r/

C (ripple of water) pronounced /n/ The word is transliterated rn. It is conventionally pronounced ren. The pronunciation of transliterated words is purely conventional, due to the absence of notation

for most vowels. Certain semi-consonants are pronounced as if they were vowels, while an e allows other difficulties to be overcome. It is advisable, from the learning phase, to note only the transliteration and the translation in writing.

b. The third sign represents the cartouche, which usually surrounds royal names. It is a determinative. It is not pronounced, but complements the writing of the word by giving an indication of its meaning. The word is translated as the name.

2. Available resources

a. The list of signs

[25] The hieroglyphic signs are divided into 26 categories, according to what they represent (A = men; etc.). A complete list of classical signs appears on pp. 214-217, with their values given on pp. 218-249.

[26] The phonetic value of a sign is given after the notice Phon. After the notice Deter., we find the meanings of a sign used as a determinative.

b. The list of words

[27] To find the translation of a word, refer to the Egyptian-English vocabulary on pp. 250-298. These words are classified according to their transliteration, using the classification of uniliterals established by Egyptologists. The ending -t of feminine words, and the endings -i and -w of weak verbs, are not taken into account.

3. A preliminary exercise With the help of the resources, give the transliteration and translation of the following words.

01 08 15

02 09 16

03 10 17

04 11 18

05 12 19

06 13 20 (2 deter.)

07 14 21 The solutions to this and the following exercises are provided exclusively on the DVD-Rom.

B. The three main functions of signs 21

B. The three main functions of signs

[28] Used to write a given word, a hieroglyphic sign generally performs one of the following roles: ideogram, phonogram (or phonetic sign), or determina-tive. The signs that can perform each of the three roles, in different words of course, are relatively few. This is, however, the case with the signs L (O1), D (N35a) and u (D4), which, through the careful study of the nine following words, allow the concepts to be specified. The key questions to be asked concerning the use of a sign within a word are to know whether it is pronounced in the word (phonetic value), or if it helps to specify the meaning (semantic value).

words translit. translation phonetic value

semantic value

function

1. pr estate, house pr enclosed area ideo.

2. prt Peret season pr phon.

3. xnrt camp enclosed area deter.

4. mw water mw water ideo.

5. hrmw aviary mw phon.

6. wab (to be) pure water deter.

7. irt eye ir eye, sight ideo.

8. irtt milk ir phon.

9. gmH to perceive eye, sight deter.

C. Phonetic signs or phonograms

1. Uniliterals

[29] Approximately thirty hieroglyphic signs are the representation of a sound. Unknown to the Egyptians, the phonetic classification of uniliteral signs given in the table has been used for a century in modern works. A more precise phono-logical table is provided by MALAISE-WINAND, p. 20. The DVD-Rom includes an animation showing how to draw all these signs, as well as two words of common vocabulary illustrating the signs studied, in the form of a transliteration and translation exercise. These are the same exercises that appear in the Exercise Book, to which the following information refers: [Ex. 2], [Ex. 3], etc.


a. Semi-consonants and pharyngeals

n signs transliteration pronunciation

G1 U Egyptian vulture A aleph a M17 reed-leaf i yod y (yes) / i (indent)

two reed-leaves y i variant D36 arm a ayin a G43 quail chick w waw w (wet) / u (glue) variant

b. Labials


D58 lower leg b b Q3 reed mat p p I9 horned viper f f

c. Nasals and liquids [Ex. 2]


G17 g owl m m variant NK N35 C ripple of water n n variant MK , NK D21 human mouth r r / l

d. Aspirates and gutturals


O4 O building outline h simple h very slight aspiration V28 rope plait H dotted h slight aspiration Aa1 lid (?) x round h guttural spirant F32 @ belly of mammal X underlined h guttural spirant

Transcribing Egyptian words into Greek allows these phonemes to be better distinguished. In the absence of a guttural fricative, Greek substitutes khi, which we transcribe into Eng-lish as kh, as in vwt-anx(w)-Imn Tutankhamun.

h marked by smooth breathing: kr Acwri Achoris H marked by rough breathing: (falcon = H+r) r Wro Horus x marked by Greek khi: cwfw Cevoy Cheops X marked by Greek khi: (vase = X+n+m) Cnmw Cnou`bi Khnum

[Ex. 3]

C. Phonetic signs or phonograms 23

e. Sibilants


O34 m door bolt z voiced s (houses, size) S29 folded cloth z / s unvoiced s (sign) N37 F pool S shin sh (shut)

f. Velars or palatals


N29 = hill q / qof q V31 basket with handle k kaf k W11 jar stand g g (go)

g. Dentals


X1 small loaf of bread t V13 hobble T tj (tune) variant h ti D46 hand d I10 cobra D dj (budge, joke)

2. Multiliterals [Ex. 4 and 5]

[30] Multiliteral signs represent more than one sound. The majority are biliteral or triliteral, but there are also some quadriliterals. The phonetic value of a given sign can of course be found by consulting the list of signs. Nevertheless, it is essential to learn approximately one hundred of the most common pluriliterals.

a. Examples

[31] A few commonly found biliterals:

mn mz Hn

wr xt in

[32] A few commonly found triliterals:

nfr aHa wzr

anx Htp zbA


b. Phonetic complements

[33] Pluriliteral signs are often accompanied by one or more uniliterals, giving a redundant indication of one of the phonetic values to which they correspond. Placed before or after the pluriliteral, or above or below it, they perform the role of phonetic complement. Biliterals with their usual phonetic complements:

mn mz Hn

wr xt in Triliterals with their usual phonetic complements:

nfr aHa wzr

anx Htp zbA

[34] When a pluriliteral may be read in several ways, the phonetic complement(s) indicate the correct reading. Thus, for example, sign U 23:

Ab in Abw Elephantine

mr in mr the pyramid Or sign V 29:

zk in zkzk to destroy

wAH in wAH to lay down

c. The main pluriliterals to be memorised

[35] The hieroglyphs are given according to the order of the list, but certain signs that are similar in form or in transliteration have been grouped together in order to highlight the possibility of confusion.

Series I: parts of the human body n signs transliterations n signs transliterations

D4 u human eye ir N42 K or J well full of water? Hm D2 s human face (full-face) Hr D28 arms raised upward kA

D52 phallus mt F13 - bovine horns wp [Ex. 6]


Series II: mammals n signs transliterations n signs transliterations

E34 hare wn F18 2 elephant tusk bH, Hw E9 bubalis fawn iw F26 : goatskin Xn

E23 reclining lion rw, l D33 arms holding an oar Xn E22 F4 $ F31 ? three fox skins mz

F22 6 lion hindquarterspH [Ex. 7] Series III: parts of mammals

n signs transliterations n signs transliterations

F30 > waterskin Sd F12 canine head with neck wzr V22 whip mH F25 9 bovine foreleg and hoof wHm F29 = cowhide with arrow zt F35 C heart and windpipe nfr F40 H ribs and spinal cord Aw F36 D lungs and windpipe zmA

F39 G imAx [Ex. 8] Some basic grammatical structures (combining words already introduced): 1. Noun + attributive adjective: hrw nfr a happy day (with -t in fem.) [Ex. 9.1-9] 2. Predicative adjective + Subject: Nfr txn The obelisk is perfect (invar. pred.) [Ex. 9.10-12] 3. Verb + Subject: BhA xfty The enemy flees [Ex. 9.13-15] 4. Vocabulary exercises: verb + various complements [Ex. 9.16-24]

Series IV: birds n signs transliterations n signs transliterations

G36 { swallow wr G54 trussed duck znD G37 | sparrow G35 z cormorant aq

G4 X buzzard tyw G21 k guinea fowl nH G1 U A H6 ostrich feather Sw

G14 d vulture m(w)t, nr M17 i S29 z Series V: birds, fish and scarab beetle

[Ex. 10]


G28 s black ibis gm G41 pintail duck alighting xn G25 o crested ibis Ax G47 duckling TA G29 t jabiru bA K1 Nile tilapia (bulti) in G39 ~ pintail duck zA L1 scarab beetle xpr G40 pintail duck in flight pA [Ex. 11]


Series VI: plants of Upper and Lower Egypt n signs transliterations n signs transliterations

M8

thicket with lotuses SA M15 mHw M12 lotus plant xA M23 sedge zw M13 papyrus stem wAD M26 flowering sedge Sma M16 papyrus clump HA I6 crocodile skin or bank? km

Series VII: plants and natural phenomena [Ex. 12]


M3 branch, stick xt N26 : two hilltops Dw M2 plant Hn N29 = q N25 9

M42 flower wn N35a D three ripples of water mw M36 flax bundle Dr N14 . five-pointed star zbA, dwA M40 bundle of reeds iz [Ex. 13]

Series VIII: parts of structures, boats, sceptres n signs transliterations n signs transliterations

O1 L building outline pr S34 Ankh amulet anx O4 O h S38 shepherds crook HqA

O29 h or tent peg aA S42 sceptre of authority zxm, abA P6 boat mastaHa S40 animal-headed sceptre wAz P8 oarxrw S41 same sceptre twisted Dam

Series IX: instruments and tools [Ex. 14]


U1 H sickle mA U23 ^ chisel or pin Ab, mr Aa11 base of statue mAa U28 c firelighter DA

U6 M hoe mr U21 \ adze and wood ztp U13 T plough hb, Sna U19 Z adze alone nw U15 V sledge tm [Ex. 15]


Series X: various ropes n signs transliterations n signs transliterations

V4 v lasso wA T3 # round headed mace HD V29 broom wAH, zk T12 0 bowstring Ar V7 y rope with loop up Sn S24 knot Tz V6 x rope with loop down Sz T22 : arrowhead zn

V24 cord wound on stick wD [Ex. 16] Series XI: vases and pestles


U30 e potters kiln tA W17 ou W18 water jars xnt W9 jug with handle Xnm W14 single water jar Hz

W24 round vase or pot nw, in U36 m fullers club Hm W19 milk jug with handle mi U33 h pestle ti

Series XII: miscellaneous signs [Ex. 17]


S43 walking stick (medu staff) md V30 basket without handle nb T21 9 harpoon with thrower wa V31 k W3 Hb

Aa17 Aa18 lid zA Y5 game board with pieces mn S32 fringed cloth ziA R4 mat with bread Htp T34 F butchers knife nm Y1

papyrus scroll T28 @ butchers block Xr [Ex. 18]

d. Table of biliterals

[36] Memorising the phonetic values of biliterals is made easier by arranging them in a table (to be drawn). Signs with identical first values are found on the same line; signs with identical second values are found in the same column.

A i a w b A Aw H Ab ^ i iw ib a aA h ab 0

w wA v wa 9


D. Determinatives

[37] Normally placed at the end of a word, determinatives are not pronounced, but give a more or less precise indication of the words meaning. It is useful to know the most common determinatives, i.e., approximately seventy of them.

Series I: men, women, kings, gods n signs semantic value n signs semantic value

A1 ! human occupation, man A21 7 prominent person, dignitary A2 " action of the mouth or mind A50 U venerable person B1 [ woman, female occupation A40 K god

people A41 L king (living or dead) Z2 or Z3 plural, collective var. (A42-46) : M N O P Q

A17 2 child, youth, orphan G7 [ god, king A19 5 old, great age I12 uraeus, goddess

Series II: human attitudes [Ex. 19]

n signs semantic value n signs semantic value

A4 $ or A30Apray, adore, respect A13 - enemy, rebel, foreigner A28 ? height, joy, mourning A14 . die, dead enemy A9 ) action of carrying, work A53 X mummy, likeness, form

A24 : force, effort, violence A55 Z or A54 Ylie down, death D40 force, effort, violence D3 t hair, mourning, skin A7 ' weakness, tiredness D4 u action of the eyes, sight

D35 ignorance D19 or D20 nose, smell, kindness Series III: animals and miscellaneous signs

[Ex. 20]


D54 movement E1 cattle D55 retreat, backwards movement E3 calf, short-horned livestock P1 boat, movement G38

} or G39 ~ bird, poultry P2 movement towards the south G37 | small, bad, deficient Z9 cut, division, crossing F27 ; mammal, skin K1 or K5 fish, stench F51 S flesh, meat

[Ex. 21]

E. Ideograms 29

Series IV: sky, earth, water, materials n signs semantic value n signs semantic value

N1 ! sky, distant N37 E or N39 F body of water N2 " darkness, night N31 ? voyage, limit, position N5 % sun, light, day, time N21 5 piece of land

N33 A (svt AAA) materials, minerals N23 7 irrigated land S12 precious metals N25 9 desert, foreign country N34 Bobjects made of copper / bronze T14 2 foreign people O39 r stone, brick O49 | inhabited place, town (in Egypt)

N35a D water, liquid Aa2 tumour, scent, illness Series V: plants, cords and miscellaneous signs

[Ex. 22]


M1 tree V12 ~ tie M2 plant, flower T30 B cut, carve M3 wood, wooden objects X4 food, food offerings O1 L enclosed area, building W3 or W4 alabaster, festival S28 clothing, (un)covered Y1

writing, abstract notions V1 s ropes and their uses V10 | name, perimeter

[Ex. 23]

E. Ideograms

[38] An ideogram is a sign that, in theory, is sufficient for writing the word designating the object, being or concept that it represents graphically. In practice, it is rare for an ideogram to be written alone.

Series I: masculine ideograms

[39] They are often accompanied by a vertical stroke called the ideogram stroke. n Written form Transliteration Translation

D1 tp head (or DADA); on (rare) D2 Hr face, expression; on, above F34 ib heart, thought, will, desire

HAty heart D21 r(A) mouth, word, spell; entrance


F21 or mzDr ear zDm hear, listen, judge

N5 or ra the sun, Re or hrw day, daytime

N14 or zbA star or wnwt hour, time, moment N11 iaH moon

Abd month A12 or mSa army, troops A21 or zr official U36 Hm servant

Hm Hm.i my Majesty, Hm.f his Majesty R8 or nTr god

nTrt goddess R11 Dd Djed pillar

Dd stability, duration; to be stable, enduring S40 wAz Was sceptre

wAz authority, power Series II: geographical ideograms, feminine ideograms

[40] Ideograms used for geographical terms quite often appear with a determinative. Feminine ideograms are followed by a -t, the grammatical marker of the femi-nine. n Written form Transliteration Translation

N36 or mr canal, channel N37 or S pool, lake, basin, garden N18 or iw island N16 or or tA earth, land, country, plain D4 irt eye V30 nbt basket

E. Ideograms 31

F32 Xt belly, body D46 Drt hand N24 or zpAt nome, province N31 or wAt road, path, way N25 or xAzt hill region, desert, foreign country N26 or Dw hill, mountain N27 or Axt horizon M4 rnpt year O49 niwt town L2 bit bee, honey [bit(y) King of Lower Egypt]

M23 zwt sedge [n(y)-zwt King of Upper Egypt] F4 HAt front, forefront, bow (of a boat) Y1 or mDAt papyrus scroll, book, letter

Series III: ideograms accompanied by phonetic signs

[41] Certain ideograms are regularly accompanied by complementary phonetic signs, which repeat the reading in part or in full. n Written form Transliteration Translation

M3 xt (masculine) wood, stick, tree, mast A1 z man, person

W22 or Hnqt beer A1B1 or rmT people O44 or iAt office, role N1 or pt sky, heaven

A35 qd to build, to construct A15 or xr to fall D34 aHA to fight, to struggle P6 aHa to stand, to be there, to get up

F29 zti to pierce, to shoot A25 Hwi to strike, to beat


D43 xwi to protect N28 xai to appear, to rise X8 or D37 rdi to give, to put; to cause, to permit

N27 zS to write, to register, to paint D54 iwi to come, to come back Q1 or Q2 zt throne, seat, place

Azt Isis or Q2 zir Osiris

F. Comments on spelling

[42] It is not uncommon for an Egyptian word to be written in several different ways, depending on the space available, the custom of the scribe or the period of time when he worked, etc. Nevertheless, the choice of certain signs in preference to others can prove meaningful.

1. Phonetic signs

[43] a. Milk irtt can be written with the eye or the mouth, while wine irp is written exclusively with the mouth.

or irtt milk irp wine [44] b. The eye on its own is used to write the verb iri to do, which, as a verb, is

often found at the beginning of a clause.

[45] c. When appears at the beginning of a clause, it is not the verb iri to do, but the particle ir as for, if.

2. Determinatives

[46] When words are written using the same phonetic signs, the determinative usually allows us to determine which word we are dealing with.

a. Three nouns prt:

prt the Peret season (one of the seasons of the solar year)

prt exit, procession (legs and alabaster basin)

prt fruit, seed (plough used for sowing)

b. Two nouns dpt:

dpt boat (determined by the sign of the boat)

dpt taste (determined by the tongue and sign A 2)

G. Characteristics of the writing system 33

c. Three verbs Sdi:

Sdi to read, to recite (action of the mouth)

Sdi to take away, to save (action requiring energy)

Sdi to feed, to educate (determined by the breast of a woman) 3. Selection of words

[47] Here is a selection of words whose transliteration includes the sequence m + r. a. Two words in which mr is written with the chisel U 23:

mr to be sick (with the sparrow indicating a deficiency)

mr pyramid (ideogram, also written ) b. Three written forms for the verb mri to like, to love:

The written form (Old Kingdom) evolved into the classical form , while E is attested from the reign of Senusret III.

c. Two terms written with the section of a watercourse N 26: E mri to like, to love (one written form amongst others)

mr canal (masculine ideogram) d. Two feminine nouns in which mr can be written with the hoe U 6 (or U 7):

mrwt love (variant: mr(w)t)

mrrt street (the second sign of the mouth makes two r's necessary)

G. Characteristics of the writing system

1. The ideogram stroke

[48] The vertical stroke Z 1 generally accompanies an ideogram. Certain terms displaying this vertical stroke need to be examined more closely.

a. hrw day (written form common at the beginning of the XIIth Dyn). The ideogram preceded by phonetic signs retains the stroke, as opposed to what we find in the more common written form .

b. uAzt Thebes (written form common at the beginning of the XIIth Dyn). The determinative of the city is written as if it were the ideogram of the city

niwt. Should the written form then be understood as Thebes-city?

c. Hr face, but also, by extension, the preposition Hr on.

d. zA son is a commonly used noun, but the link between the sign of the duck and son remains unclear to say the least.


e. r(A)-pr temple is composed of two ideograms: literally, it may mean entrance to the estate.

f. The vertical stroke Z 1 placed after a word can also be the number one.

is to be read as either rnpt year, or rnpt 1 one year.

g. The three strokes marking the plural or the collective are also used to repre-sent the number three.

is to be read as either rnpwt years, or rnpt 3 three years.

2. The oblique stroke

[49] The oblique stroke Z 5 can replace a sign that is complicated, taboo, or dangerous to draw.

a. mzi to give birth, as a variant of , when it is preferable to avoid depicting a woman giving birth in blood (sign B 3).

b. At moment, as a variant of , when it is preferable to avoid depicting the dangerous animal that is the hippopotamus of sign F 3.

c. HDt the white crown, as a variant of , when the crown in ques-tion (sign S 1) cannot be drawn.

3. Aesthetic concerns

[50] In certain cases, signs are arranged according to aesthetic criteria.

a. twt image is arranged with small signs under the stomach and above the back of the chick, allowing the available space to be best used.

b. mAA to see includes the determinative of the eye, which is placed at the beginning of the word, occupying the space available under the sign U 1. This practice gave rise to the sign (U 3).

c. wD to order is most often written with the chick w behind the biliteral wD, as it would be less aesthetically pleasing placed in front of it.

d. wDA to proceed can occasionally be written as , although here the chick is not a phonetic complement. Influence from the usual written form of wD to order is plausible.

e. nHH eternity has an alternative written form , which is com-posed of the essential signs of the word, arranged in a specific way: a vertical sign at either end and a central element providing symmetry.

G. Characteristics of the writing system 35

f. Xr(y)-Hb(t) lector-priest or ritualist, literally the one who is under the festival scroll, has an alternative written form , similar in composition to . The term has another written form consisting of a com-posite or monogram sign: .

4. Honorific inversion

[51] Honorific inversion is a regular characteristic of names referring to deities. The word order required by the syntax is modified in the written form, so that the divine name is placed in front of the noun that it should normally follow.

a. Hm-nTr servant of the god or priest.

b. H(w)t-nTr domain of the god or temple.

c. mry Imn loved one of Amun. d. pr-kA-Ra Kheper-ka-Re (throne name of Senusret I). e. anx.(w) mi Ra Dt ! (may he be) alive like Re eternally!

[52] Honorific inversion occasionally occurs in names referring to kings. This is particularly seen in the titles of officials or members of the royal family.

f. zA-(n)zw the king's son, royal son.

g. xtm(ty)-bit(y) chancellor of the king, royal chancellor.

5. Monograms

Monograms are composite signs.

[53] Some result from the simple combination of two signs.

a. wAD green and HD white, but xzf to drive away, to punish. b. aHa to be standing, aH palace, Umaw Upper Egypt. c. Rzw south wind, A-mri Ta Meri (Egypt).

[54] Other monograms result from the combination, when writing verbs of move-ment, of a phonetic sign and legs D 54.

d. or Sm to walk; iii to come.

e. or zSm to lead; iTi to seize.

f. or zbi to send; ini to bring. [55] Finally, others result from the abbreviation of more than one word, generally two,

with only the most significant signs retained.

g. or wt-r Hathor (the domain of Horus).

h. or Nbt-H(w)t Nephthys (the Mistress of the Estate).


i. or wpt-rnpt New Year (the opening of the year).

j. or then Xr(yt)-nTr necropolis (what is under the god).

6. Historic spelling

[56] The spelling of words evolved, but sometimes retained elements of the past. Signs continued to be written although they were no longer pronounced. This is particularly true of verbs ending in an r that became i. a. zwr to drink evolved into zwi, but the verb was written by

simply adding the reed-leaf and retaining the signs allowing the sound r to be written.

b. dAr to control evolved into dAi, written as .

7. The arm behind the owl

[57] Additionally, note that the sequence or is most often read as m. In all probability, the sign is equivalent to the sign , which is also read as m.

mTn path, road, variant

8. The word father

[58] The usual written form of the word it father is , eiwt in Coptic. In this word, the horned viper (I 9) is probably a determinative conveying the idea of successive generations. The sloughing of the snakes skin is possibly the origin of this.

[59] In order to express possession, a suffix pronoun is added after the noun, which, in the third person masculine singular, is also the sign I 9.

Thus, his father is said it.f and written (Middle Kingdom).

[60] There are also several variants of the word father without a human determina-tive, which can be difficult to recognise in a phrase or text.

The first is sometimes ambiguous, since the viper is either a determinative or a personal pronoun: with this written form we therefore hesitate between it fa-ther and it.f his father. The two final written forms do not include the initial reed-leaf.

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