Category: Reading Hieroglyphs

Let’s read some hieroglyphs 𓊹𓌃𓏪!

Today 𓏇𓇋𓈖𓇳 we are going to look at a very popular word that appears a lot in ancient Egyptian writing 𓏟𓏛𓏥! The word “𓄤𓆑𓂋/𓄤𓆑𓂋𓏏” translates to “beautiful,” “perfect,” or “good” and can be used not only in titles such as “𓊹𓄤 Perfect God” or names 𓂋𓈖𓏦 such as “Nefertiti 𓄤𓄤𓄤𓄤𓄤𓇋𓏏𓈖𓇳𓄤𓇍𓍘𓏻𓁗,” but also in various words or phrases too! 

In Middle Egyptian there are a couple of ways to write “beautiful,” “perfect,” or “good:” 

𓄤 – the hieroglyphic symbol “nfr” (nefer) can be used on its own to represent the word. 

𓄤𓆑𓂋 – this would also be pronounced as “nfr” (nefer) as the sounds by the uniliteral phonograms would not be repeated. 

𓄤𓆑𓂋𓏏 – this would be pronounced as “nfrt,” (neferet) as this is the female form of the word! This is the one that is in my picture! 

When determinatives are used, the meaning of this word can change so be careful! “𓄤𓆑𓂋𓏏𓁐” with the woman determinative means “beautiful woman” while “𓄤𓆑𓂋𓏏𓃒” with the cow determinative means cow! Determinatives can totally change the meaning of the word! 

Let’s break down the hieroglyphs 𓊹𓌃𓏪! Since the horned viper 𓆑 is pointing to the left, we will start reading from the left! 

The “heart and windpipe 𓄤” symbol is a triliteral phonogram that represents the sound “nfr” which in modern times we pronounce like “nefer.”

The “horned viper 𓆑” functions as a uniliteral phonogram and represents the sound “f.” In other words, it can function as a determinative. As a stand-alone symbol, it can also mean he/his. 

The “ mouth – 𓂋” is a uniliteral phonogram for the sound “r” and can be an ideogram for the word “mouth 𓂋𓏺.” 

The “flat loaf of bread 𓏏” is a uniliteral phonogram used to represent the sound “t.” It also functions as the ideogram for the word “bread 𓏏𓏺” and can be used to make words feminine! 

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost. 

@ancientegyptblog 

Let’s read some hieroglyphs 𓊹𓌃𓏪! Today 𓏇𓇋𓈖𓇳 we are going to look at the Middle Egyptian word for “To Be” and “To Exist.” This simple yet important phrase appears a lot in inscriptions 𓏟𓏛𓏥!

One of the most important phrases you will learn in any language is the verb “to be.” I remember when I first started learning Italian as a small kid, “essere” was one of the first verbs we learned!

The word “To Be,” and “To Exist” is written in Middle Egyptian as “𓃹𓈖𓈖,”  which is what is shown in the relief pictured. The word can also be commonly written as just “𓃹𓈖”  or “𓃹” if spacing becomes an issue! The word would be transliterated as “wnn 𓃹𓈖𓈖” or “wn 𓃹𓈖/𓃹.” It was most likely pronounced the same no matter how many “𓈖” appeared or didn’t appear at the end of the word (remember, pronunciation is just inferred). 

Let’s break down each of the symbols individually!

The “hare 𓃹” is normally used as a biliteral phonogram. The  𓃹 represents the sounds “wn.”

The “ripple of water 𓈖” is a uniliteral phonogram. The “𓈖” is associated with the sound of “n!” In this case, the 𓈖 is acting as the phonetic complement, meaning that the sounds are written twice but pronounced once! This is a very common occurrence in Middle Egyptian and is something that you need to just practice and get used to when you’re learning!  

This is my personal photograph and original text. DO NOT repost.