Alphabet characters were the basis for hieroglyphic writings. The basic hieroglyph characters are refered to as the ALPHABET. They 'spell out' names or anything which can't be represented by other characters. The alphabet characters are read as the sound of the object they represented.

Although vowels were used in the spoken language, they were not usually written unless a word begins with a vowel or where it might be confusing if left out…like with names.

EXAMPLE

In english, words are often abbreviated by leaving out vowels.

mtn = mountain

blvd = boulevard

When these abbreviations are read aloud, they are spoken using vowels.

The Hieroglyphic Alphabet

HIEROGLYPH REPRESENTS PRONOUNCED   HIEROGLYPH REPRESENTS PRONOUNCED

vulture ah

(father)reed

i(filled)

tworeeds

y(discovery)

 arm & hand

broad a(car)

quailchick

oo (too)or

w (wet)   foot

b(boot)

  mat

p(pedestal)

 hornedviper

f(feel)

owl m

(moon)   water

n(noon)

mouth r

(right)  

reed shelter

h(hat)

twisted flax

h!(ha!)

  placentakh

(like Scotch 'loch')

  animal's

belly

ch(like

German 'ich')

  folded cloths

(saw)

door bolt s

(saw)  pool

sh(show)

slope of hill

k(key)

 basket

with handlek

(basket)

jar stand g

(go)   loaf

t(tap)

tethering rope

tj(church)

handd

(dog)

snake dj

(adjust)  

You may notice that some hieroglyphs are vowel sounds, these are considered weak consonants

and are used when a word begins with a vowel or where it might be confusing without them, like in a

name.

+ gm

+ kha

+ wen

+ wep

  + djed

+ ges

+ hen

+ neb

+ adj

HIEROGLYPH REPRESENTS MEANING   HIEROGLYPH REPRESENTS MEANING

moisture from sky

rain, dew, storm

 papyrus

scroll

writing, teach,

to know

star star, to teach   sun sun, day,

time

scribes tools scribe, to write

  beer jug beer, be drunk,tribute

papyrus stem green,youth,

prosperity   cobra

goddess, queen

windpipe & heart

goodness,beauty

  sandal strap life

100,000 10,000 1,000 100 10 1

EXAMPLE

1/3 is written

To represent fractions with a numerator other than one, the Egyptians wrote several fractions which were added together to get the true fraction value.

EXAMPLE

3/4 is like saying 1/2 and 1/4

Eye of Horus Fractions

Horus, represented as the falcon-headed god, was an important god in Egyptian legend. The symbol representing

his eye, Eye of Horus, was a powerful symbol used to protect from evil. Pronounced "udjat" by the Egyptians, the Eye of Horus represents a human eye with the cheek markings of a falcon.

Eye of Horus

The 'Rx' symbol which is used by pharmacies and in medicine has its origins in the Eye of Horus.

The Eye of Horus fraction system was based on the Eye of Horus symbol. This system was used to record prescriptions, land and grain.

Fractions are created by combining sections of the Eye of Horus symbol. Each section has a different value. The complete Eye of Horus with all parts in place has a value of 1. In reality the complete Eye of Horus represents 63/64, which is rounded off to 1.

The system is based on halves. Half of 1 equals 1/2, half of 1/2 equals 1/4 and so on until the smallest value of 1/64. By adding together the values of different sections fractions are created.

EXAMPLE

to represent the fraction 5/8 we would need to combine 1/2 (4/8) and 1/8

5/8

Hieroglyphic signs are divided into four categories:

1. Alphabetic signs represent a single sound. Unfortunately the Egyptians took most vowels for granted and did not represent such as 'e' or 'v'. So we may

Separated sections with fraction values

never know how the words were formed.

2. Syllabic signs represent a combination of two or three consonants.

3. Word-signs are pictures of objects used as the words for those objects. they are followed by an upright stroke, to indicate that the word is complete in one sign.

4. A determinative is a picture of an object which helps the reader. For example; if a word expressed an abstract idea, a picture of a roll of papyrus tied up and sealed was included to show that the meaning of the word could be expressed in writing although not pictorially.

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