Mummy's Wrap

Hieroglyphs are often a complicated combination of symbols representing sounds. As seen in the previous post, there are three different categories dealing with sound symbols, or phonograms. Looking at the English language, it is imperative to understand the sounds of the words or else the words themselves make no sense whatsoever. Hieroglyphs can be the same way in certain cases. However, there are a set of hieroglyphs that follow the series of symbols representing sounds that provide the meaning of the word without dealing with the pronunciation. These symbols are known as determinatives.

Very simply, determinatives give meaning to the preceding word. For example, the word for “bird” is followed by the image of a bird. More complex ideas are also added to simple words by using the correct determinative. An example of this can be found in Janice Kamrin’s book Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs: A Practical Guide. She uses the symbol for “house.” Without a determinative, as seen below, the house symbol means just that; a house. With the determinative of two walking legs, a symbol for motion, the word has an entirely different meaning: “to go forth” (Kamrin; Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs: A Practical Guide; pg. 14).

Hieroglyph for "House"

Hieroglyph for "To go forth"

Determinatives are also used as punctuation. While determinatives are not always used, when used they are helpful in establishing when a word ends and the next begins. The spaces between words that are so often used in the English language, and many other languages, are non-existent in hieroglyphs. Seeing a determinative alerts the reader that the word has ended (Kamrin; Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs: A Practical Guide; pg. 29).

Hieroglyph for "Man"

Gender-centric words are also resolved using determinatives. A woman’s name, even the word “woman,” is followed by the image of a seated woman. While this is indicative of the gender of what is being described, it does not account for the gender of a word. In romance languages such as Spanish and French, words have gender, much like people have gender. The same holds true in hieroglyphs.
The word for “man” is spelled as followed:

There are three symbols, the “s” symbol at the top, the vertical bar beneath that and the man seated to the right. The vertical bar will be discussed further in a later article. It signifies the single symbol for “s” is all there is to the word.

Hieroglyph for "Woman"

The word for “woman” is similar:

Take note that the vertical bar from the word for “man” has changed. The changed hieroglyph in the word for “woman” preceding the determinative is the phonogram for “t.” Many words, though not all, are shown to be feminine with the ending of the “t” hieroglyph (Kamrin; Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs: A Practical Guide; pg. 32).

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Tags: determinative, hieroglyph, hieroglyphic, hieroglyphics, Hieroglyphs

This entry was posted by Page Strong on Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010 at 10:24 and is filed under Hieroglyphs. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.