A Negative Word in Old Egyptian

8/10/2019 A Negative Word in Old Egyptian

1/5

Egypt Exploration Society

A Negative Word in Old EgyptianAuthor(s): Battiscombe GunnSource: The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, Vol. 34 (Dec., 1948), pp. 27-30Published by: Egypt Exploration SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3855349.

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2/5

(27)

A NEGATIVE WORD IN

OLD EGYPTIAN

By BATTISCOMBE GUNN

THE

word

L

,

which is

found before

sdm.f,sdminvf

nd

s'dmtf,

and

also

in

predi-

cative

use,

seems to be

peculiar

o Old

Egyptian.

I

know one

example

n

the

Coffin

Texts,

and

two others on

a

Middle

Kingdom

stela

in a

text which

is

probably

quite

old

(these

are

dealtwith

below),

otherwise

my

latest

example

s of the Sixth

Dynasty.

Philologists

have

in

general

taken the

view that it

is nominal

n

character,

o

be

translated

nto other

anguages

with

a

relative

xpression;

hus: Sethein

ZAS

L

(I912),

113,

'-

jj

J

(statt

iw-j)

"welcher

nicht"',

having

as

feminine

qj^

etc.,

'iw-t

"weldhe

nicht",

"was

nicht",

"daB

nicht"';

Wb.

I,

45,

7

(1926) 'iwjj

-

"welcher

nicht

....

ist", "welchernicht"; Gardinern Eg. Gramm.

1927), ?

202,

',x

iZWty

"which

not

.

......

,

derived

rom

the

feminineof

a

more

ancient

adjective

of

like

meaning l('l

i

(for

iwi),

fem.

q]a';

Erman n

Ag.

Gramm.,

th

edn.

(1928),

?

525,

'ein

relativisches

djektiv:

"welcher

nicht",

. .

im Masc.

fq

,

m

Fem.

-

,

and

?

552,

'das

negative

Seitensttick

u

ntj'

(similarly

n

3rd

edn.,

191i,

?

529).

I

gave,

however,

in

a

review in

1933 (JEA

xix,

io6), my opinion

that this

word

was

indistinguishable

in

meaning

and

function from

--;

I

thought

that in all

examples

where the

context was

intelligible

to me it

could be

replaced by

,-in

three

cases

(exx. 7,

I2,

I7

below)

it

actually

varies with

that

word.

My

view

that

q q

is

not

adjectivaln characterwasadoptedby G. Lefebvren his Gramm. el'e'g. lass.,p. 376,

n.

i,

where t is

describedas 'un

adverbe

e

negation'.

I

do not

now

consider

that -q-

Q

is a

mere

synonym,

or

variant

writing,

of

,

although

it

interchanges

with

it

occasionally.

Its

appearance

n

the

same

text with

a

numberof

times is

against

ts

being

a

mere

variantof

this;

and

it will no

doubt be

agreed

that as

a

general

principle

words

belonging

to

the

same

phase

of

Egyptian

should

not

be

regarded

s

synonyms

unless

all

efforts o find a

distinction

n

meaning

or

functionhave

failed-and

hardly

even then.

Now,

in

all

the

examplesgiven

below,

where

an

intelligible

context

remains,

(

may

be taken as

introducing

a

subordinate

sentence;

and I

suggest

that

instead

of

being

adjectival

relative)

n

meaning,

ike

,,,

or

merely

'not',

like

-,

it has

negative-circumstantial

orce.

At all events

passages

translated n

this

way

seem

to

give

a

good

sense in all

cases;

nowhere

is it

necessary

to take

()

as

beginning

a new

section.

I

have

rendered

throughout

a

sdm.f

following

-

as

past,

a

following

isdm

nf

as

present,

in

accordance

with

the

general

rule

covering

followed

by

these

forms.

The

following

are

examples

which

I

think

I

understand:

A.

With

sdm.f:

(i)

'The

King's

son

Nika'ewre, ... he

made

[testamentary

ispositions?]

rnh

hr

[I Lf[1

?

Cf. Sethe's n. and

op.

cit.

24,

15.

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3/5

BATTISCOMBE GUNN

rdwy.fy,

-a-t

mnf

iht

while

he was alive

upon

his

feet,

not

having

suffered

at all.'

Urk.

I,

i6,

I7.

(2)

Ndm'nf

r

iht

nb,

q--

q

mn.f

tht

nb

r'f

'he

became

perfectly

well,

not

having

suffered

anything

with

regard

to it

(?)'.

Urk.

I,

183,

7.

(3)

'My Majesty

has commanded that no hntiw-sv elonging to these two pyramid-

cities . .

.

shall be

taken

away

by any Egyptians

or

any

"pacific

Nubians" to those with

whom

they

have been

(i.e.

their

former

masters)

~

qq

Z

without their

(the

masters)

having

(i.e.

unless

they have)

had

written title to

them.' Urk.

1,

21

,

I

I. For

^

'to

have

written title to' see

Urk.

I,

7I,

2;

278, 4;

300,

5;

301,

6;

302,

I;

306,

5.6.7;

Selim

Hassan,

Excavations

at

Saqqara,

930o-93I,

pl.

facing p.

I90;

Ann. Serv.

xxxvI,

36.

(4)

Hm

W.,

-

j)

rh

W.

'W.

is

ignorant,

W. not

knowing'. Pyr.

244,

c.

The T.-text

has

hm.i

qq

rhf.

Sethe,

Ub.

Komm.

Pyr.,

translates 'indem

ich nicht

kannte

den,

der nicht zu kennen

ist',

preferring

the

T.-version,

and

compares

q

f

rhf

with Mid.

Egn. iwty hsff 'unwiderstehlich', n accordancewith his view that

-

q

+ verb is equi-

valent to

a

relative

clause.

But

T.

probably

has

hmi,

Old Perfective

3.

masc.

sg.

(5,

6)

'"

My

son P.

has come

in

peace", says

she,

namely

Nut,

-

q q

hr ndhchr

sif,

q(]

hr

iht

dwt

hr

rf

"without

any whipI having

fallen

upon

his

back,

without

anything

evil

having

fallen

upon

his hand".'

Pyr.

I02I,

b,

c.

(7)

'Thou shalt

fare to the

Great

City,

-

q

ndr

(t>w

;krw the

Aker-gods

not

having

taken hold on thee.'

Two

of the

five texts have

1 4

),

the other

three

,

followed

by

ndr.n

(var.

ndrt)

tw

(var.

tn)

;krw.

De

Buck,

Coffin

Texts,

I,

280,

e-f.

B.

With

sdm.n.f:

(8) '[As to] any [man] who shall take a stone away from this my tomb, rkty.fyr-f,

-

wrb.n.f

..,

(or)

who shall enter

into

it,

not

purifying

himself....' Urk.

I,

250,

6.

(9)

While

Reawer

was

beside

His

Majesty,

the

sceptre

which was

in

His

Majesty's

hand was

pushed (?)

against

Re'wer's

foot. 'And His

Majesty

said,

mril n hm.i

wd.f

wrt,

sr-nf,

sk

sw

[spss]

hr

hmf

r

rmt

nb

"My Majesty

desires

(lit.,

desired

is

to

My Majesty)

that

he

prosper

greatly",

he

(the

King)

not

striking (him),

for he

was

more

[precious]

to

His

Majesty

than

any

one.'

Urk.

I,

232,

i

i.

A

somewhat

difficult

example.

C.

With

sdmt.f:

(io,

i

)

Ms.n(k)

N

q

hprt

.

.

.,

-

(r)h

N

snd;

ms'n-k

N

-q

hprt2

gdb,

-

rh

N rdt 'didst beget N, . . not having yet come into being; N knows not fear:

thou

didst

beget

N,

frustration

(?)

not

having

yet

come

into

being;

N knows not

slaughter'.

Lange-Schafer,

Grab-u.

Denksteined. mittl.

Reiches

CCG), 20328,

a,

I

I-I2;

an

old,

incorrectly

written

religious

text.

D.

In

predicative

use:

(12)

'Nuu

has

begotten

M

(var.

N has been

begotten by Nuu) upon

his

left

hand,

nhn

--

q

0

M

(so

M-text);

N

nhn,

M

-

-

(so N-text). Pyr.

I701,

b.

M seems to

say

'he

(M) being

a

child,

M

not

having

intelligence' (lit., intelligence

of

M

being

non-existent),

and

N 'N is a

child,

he has not

intelligence',

nhn

being

Old

2

The t is

queried

in

the

publication

but

is

surely

correct.

28

I

On

ndhr

see

Sethe,

op.

cit.,

ad loc.



4/5

A

NEGATIVE

WORD

IN OLD

EGYPTIAN

Perfective

in both

cases.

Note

the

variation

of

9 4

with -.

My

interpretation

is

based on the

very

close

parallel

w.f

m

hwn,

nn

16`S

'

,

'he

being

a

youth,

without

intelligence','

Turin Statue of

Haremhab,

1.

3,

quoted

Gardiner,

Adm.,

95.

The followingareexampleswhich, mostlythroughdamageto the context,areobscure

to

me.

A.

With

sdm-f:

(I3)

. . .

mhn.f

ss,

r

8 m

.

.

.

hbn

htmt,

-

sp [ir.ti

mrtt

n

b;k]

nb

dr

put

t

'. ..

he

filled

eight

alabaster

vessels

with . .

.

ebony,

sealed,

[the

like]

never

having

[been

done

for]

any

[subject]

since

the

beginning

of

the

world.'

Urk.

I,

43,

5.

The

restoration

s

of

course

not

certain.2

(14)

.

..

m

sht,

-

rdi(.i)

hpr

iht

nb(t)

msddt.f

dt

.

.

.

in

the

field,

without

my

ever

having

caused

anything

that

he

disliked

to

come

about.'

Urk.

I,

88,

4.

(I5)

.

.

.

msddtf

nb(t)

dt, -,-

rdi(.i)

hpr

rp.f

nb hr ntr '. . .

anything

that

he dis-

liked, ever,

without

my

having

caused

any

.

.

.

of

his to

come

about

with

the

god'.

Urk.

I,

174,

6.

Before msddt

restore,

perhaps,

with

Sethe,

~

rdi(.i)

hpr.

B.

With

dm.n.f:

(i6)

. ..

smw,

9

gm-n(.i)

rmtw

nb(w)

sm.sn

m

w;wt n

dr'

.

.,

without

my

finding

any

men

who

could

walk

on

the

roads

because

of the

storm....'

Urk.

I,

I82,

15.

(17)

Bwt.f

d;t

-

~

ir.n.f

-

q

'His

abomination

is

crossing

without

making

isnwt'.

Pyr.

I

I57,

cP.

Isnwt

is not

known

elsewhere.

The

N-text

has

-

for

-~

q

:

'he

does

not make

isnwt'.

C.

With

sdmtf:

(i8)

...

rwi,

q

wnt

hp[r]

. .

....

hands,

without

. .

having

come

about'.

Urk.

I,

42,

i6. For n

wnt

before

sdm.f

cf.

Gard.,

Eg.

Gramm.,

?

I88,

2.

Sethe's

restoration

after

hpr

is

the

merest

guess,

and

the

only

value

of

the

example

is

the

presence

of

wnt.

D. With ?

(I9)

. ..

r

wnnmr

phr

swt m

s;

hrw,

-

-

. . ..

. .

.

to

be

like

the

shadow

turning

afterthe

day,

without....'

Urk.

I,

85,

4.

Forphrswt see

JEA

xxIi,

176,

to

line 23,

I .

Now that the material is before the reader I will turn back to the views quoted at

the

beginning

of

this

article,

namely,

that

--

q

is

nominal-adjectival

n

character,

usually

to be

rendered

by

a

relative

expression.

It

is,

of

course,

possible

so

to

interpret

the

word in

some

examples,

otherwise

this

point

of

view

would

not

have

persisted.

Thus,

we

can

render

(i)

as

'he

made

[testa-

mentary

dispositions

?]

while

he

was

alive

upon

his

feet,

one

who

has

not

suffered

at

all';

(2)

'he

became

perfectly

well,

one

who

had

not

suffered

anything

with

regard

to

it

(?)';

(3)

'-. .

those

with

whom

they

have

been,

those

who

have

had

no

written

title

to

them';

(4)

'W. is

ignorant,

one

who

does

not

know is

W.';

so

also

(5,

6),

and

(8)

I

St and sirt are obviously the same

word,

probably sflt.

2

It is

Sethe's

except

for

bik,

where

he

leaves

a

blank.

29



5/5

BATTISCOMBE GUNN

'[as

to]

any

[man]

. .

.

who shall enter

it

(my

tomb),

one who does not

purify

himself';

from

these

examples

we

can obtain

a

sense

with

this

interpretation

of

Q q

,

although

some of the

results

are,

as

specimens

of

Egyptian syntax,

abnormal.

But

I am

quite

unable to

apply

this

interpretation

to

ex.

(7),

where

--

is

followed

by

the second

person,

or

(14-I6),

where it is followed

by

the first

person,

or

(i0, ii)

with

sdmtif,

or

(9),

where

'one

who does

not strike' would be

meaningless.

In favour of the

view that

;-

is

dependent-circumstantial

n

character s the fact

(as

I

think

it)

that

although examples may

be

pointed

to where

the

word

may

introduce

a

principal

sentence,

there are

none in

which

it musthave done so.'

Also,

for

what

the observation

may

be

worth,

-'-

is

nowhere

followed

by

an

enclitic

particle,

such as

is,

swt,

gr.2

I

have no

suggestion

to offer

as to the

reading

of

the word.

There is no reason to

take

it as

being

more

closely

connected

with

the

particle

Z-

'

iwt

than with

the

particle

n, and the readings iwjj, ijj given confidently by Wb. and Erman, Ag. Gramm.,

? 525

respectively

rest on no evidence.

But if it contains no

n

it

may

well be

cognate

with Hebrew

and Phoenician

'I

(as suggested

by

Erman,

loc.

cit.)

Akkadian

ai and

Ethiopic

'i.

I

As

often

does;

cf.

Urk.

I,

23,

7.

15;

35,

3

,3

;

133, 4; 170, I3; 234,

4;

28I, 2;06,

6.

7.

2

Cf.

t

p

Urk.

i,

147,

3;

Letters

to

Dead,

pl.

3, 5;

(

)(

P.

Berl.

8869, 9;

a

Urk.

I,

264,

I3; 283,

8;

287,

6; 291, I7;

305,

I7;

306,

6.

30


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A Negative Word in Old Egyptian