Early Egyptian language
| Early Egyptian (own name has not survived) |
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|---|---|---|
| Period | approx. 3300-2700 BC Chr. | |
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Formerly spoken in |
Old Egypt | |
| Linguistic classification |
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| Language codes | ||
| ISO 639 -1 |
- |
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| ISO 639 -2 |
egy (Egyptian language) |
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| ISO 639-3 |
egy (Egyptian language) |
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The early Egyptian is the language of hieroglyphs from the Prädynastik until the end of the third dynasty (ca. 3300-2700 v. Chr.) And thus forms the oldest surviving stage of the Egyptian language and possibly the oldest surviving language in general.
classification
The classification of early Egyptian as early ancient Egyptian , which has been common for a long time , may be based on insufficient research. Since differences to ancient Egyptian have appeared in vocabulary and grammar, a delimitation has been better justified, although the independence of early Egyptian is not yet absolutely certain. In the area of grammar, for example, it was observed that the word nb "everyone" can stand independently in early Egyptian, but only as an attribute in ancient Egyptian .
Text corpus
Early Egyptian inscriptions are known from all parts of Egypt. Most of the texts come from the royal necropolis at Abydos and from the graves of the elite in Saqqara . The longest texts are on small ivory or bone tablets. These are labels for goods with the goods description and quantities. In addition, there are dates here, of the type In the year under King AB, when XY happened . The latter texts in particular are historically valuable, but often difficult to understand. Further texts can be found on seals and their unrolling. It is mostly about names, titles and institutions that are mentioned. There are also numerous pot labels, but these are usually short and provide administrative information. Grave steles come from Abydos, Sakkara, Abu Roasch and Helwan. In the first dynasty they usually only mention the name and title of the deceased. In the second dynasty, lists of offerings were also added. Other short inscriptions have come down to us on various objects. There are a few longer grave inscriptions from the third dynasty, mostly only the title and name of the grave owner.
exploration
However, research into early Egyptian is not very advanced, not least because of the difficult orthography and the brevity of the inscriptions. So it happens that, for example, the word jpw.t in an inscription from the time of Djer is only written p and only the context allows the interpretation. Reliable text editions and a comprehensive treatment of the early Egyptian vocabulary exist, but the grammar of early Egyptian has so far only been incomplete due to the shortness of the inscriptions.
literature
- Jochem Kahl , Nicole Kloth, Ursula Zimmermann: The inscriptions of the 3rd dynasty. An inventory (= Egyptological treatises. Vol. 56). Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 1995, ISBN 3-447-03733-4 .
- Jochem Kahl: Early Egyptian Dictionary. Delivery 1–3: 3 to ḥ. Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 2002-2004, ISBN 3-447-04594-9 (Lfg. 1); ISBN 3-447-04595-7 (sequ. 2); ISBN 3-447-04596-5 (Lfg. 3), (so far unfinished; the only dictionary contains the vocabulary of the pre- and early dynastic period).
- Peter Kaplony : The inscriptions of the early Egyptian period. (= Egyptological treatises. Vol. 8, 1-3, ISSN 1614-6379 ). 3 volumes. Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 1963.
- Peter Kaplony, Small Contributions to the Inscriptions of the Early Egyptian Period (= Ägyptologische Abhandlungen. Vol. 15). Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 1966.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b The ISO and SIL codes refer to all ancient Egyptian languages, not just to early Egyptian.
- ↑ Jochem Kahl: neb ("everyone") as a quantity noun in the early Egyptian language. In: Göttinger Miscellen . (GM). No. 175, ISSN 0344-385X , pp. 5-7.
- ^ Walter Bryan Emery : Egypt. Early history and culture, 3200–2800 BC Chr. Goldmann, Munich 1964, pp. 197-208.
- ^ Peter Kaplony: Small contributions. 1966, plate 10.1112.