Phonology & Phonetics
a pronunciation guide
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Example Key
𓂝 [The Hieroglyph in Unicode]
Forearm [What the glyph is]
(Ayin) [Name of the Letter]
Code: D36 [Gardner code]
MDC : a [Manuel de Codage]
Budge : ā [How Scholars write the Glyphs]
Alt: â, á [Alternative way to write it]
Transliteration: a , ā , ꜥ [Example]
IPA: ʕ [International phonetic Alphabet]
Phonological : ʕ as in Arabic ka'ba (Schneider) [suggested pronunciation]
Pronounced: ɑː, ā [scholarly agreement on Pronunciation]
Listen ʕ [mp3 of the Pronunciation]
(Voiced pharyngeal fricative, gutteral: ā abstain, āñ, uñg; Other claim: it's more of an 'o' like in not, d OK ?, Allen suggested MK d or ḍ, or even more of a German word ach) [More info on the Pronunciation]
Similar letters : Arabic ﻉ 'ʕ/au' or 'Ꜥ' Ayn, Hebrew ע 'ī' or 'ʕ' Ayin, Phoenician 𐤏 Ayin 'eye', 𓁹 ?, Semitic ꜥ, ḥ, ġ [Languages with similar letters]
Ptolemaic disappeared and normally isn't carried over into Coptic [other notes]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OK: Old Kingdom MK: Middle Kingdom NK: New Kingdom
a pronunciation guide
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Example Key
𓂝 [The Hieroglyph in Unicode]
Forearm [What the glyph is]
(Ayin) [Name of the Letter]
Code: D36 [Gardner code]
MDC : a [Manuel de Codage]
Budge : ā [How Scholars write the Glyphs]
Alt: â, á [Alternative way to write it]
Transliteration: a , ā , ꜥ [Example]
IPA: ʕ [International phonetic Alphabet]
Phonological : ʕ as in Arabic ka'ba (Schneider) [suggested pronunciation]
Pronounced: ɑː, ā [scholarly agreement on Pronunciation]
Listen ʕ [mp3 of the Pronunciation]
(Voiced pharyngeal fricative, gutteral: ā abstain, āñ, uñg; Other claim: it's more of an 'o' like in not, d OK ?, Allen suggested MK d or ḍ, or even more of a German word ach) [More info on the Pronunciation]
Similar letters : Arabic ﻉ 'ʕ/au' or 'Ꜥ' Ayn, Hebrew ע 'ī' or 'ʕ' Ayin, Phoenician 𐤏 Ayin 'eye', 𓁹 ?, Semitic ꜥ, ḥ, ġ [Languages with similar letters]
Ptolemaic disappeared and normally isn't carried over into Coptic [other notes]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OK: Old Kingdom MK: Middle Kingdom NK: New Kingdom
Basic Alphabet
Uniliterals
Uniliterals
𓂝
Forearm
(Ayin, Alt: Ne, Ꜥnene , Ꜥny)
Gardiner code: D36
MDC : a
Budge: ā
Gardiner : Ꜥ, ˤ
Hoch : ꜥ
Hannig : ˁ
JPA : ʕ/ like in Arabic ﻉ ayin
Schneider : ɗ
Loprieno : ʕ (as in Arabic ka'ba)
Alt: â, á
Transliteration: a , ā
[ex. ankh 'life' 𓋹𓈖𓐍 /anx/ (MDC), correctly pronouced "ōnhah" or "awnkh']
[Fricative , voiced , Pharyngeal consonant ]
IPA: ʕ [OK+], ɑː (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: ɑː ā deep in throat, r modern French and German, like Ayin Hebrew and Arabic ; ʕ Voiced pharyngeal fricative ɑ̯ between 'Ah' and 'oh' but more open like o- bottle and pressured , gutteral ā a-abstain, āñ, uñg; Other claim: it's been proposed that originally it was pronouced d - deed maybe in some dialects (MK) d or ḍ (Allen) (O. Rössler), or even more of a German word ach, by
the Ptolemaic period it has msotly disappeared and normally isn't carried over into Coptic.
Listen ʕ (Voiced pharyngeal fricative)
Listen ɑː
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: Ꜥ , ġ , l , r , ˀ
Phoenician: 𐤏 Ayin 'eye', 𓁹 ?
Hebrew: ע 'ī' or 'ʕ' Ayin
Coptic Equivalent : ā/Ⲉ ?
Arabic equivalent: ع (ʿAyin), 'ʕ/au' or 'Ꜥ' Ayn
Forearm
(Ayin, Alt: Ne, Ꜥnene , Ꜥny)
Gardiner code: D36
MDC : a
Budge: ā
Gardiner : Ꜥ, ˤ
Hoch : ꜥ
Hannig : ˁ
JPA : ʕ/ like in Arabic ﻉ ayin
Schneider : ɗ
Loprieno : ʕ (as in Arabic ka'ba)
Alt: â, á
Transliteration: a , ā
[ex. ankh 'life' 𓋹𓈖𓐍 /anx/ (MDC), correctly pronouced "ōnhah" or "awnkh']
[Fricative , voiced , Pharyngeal consonant ]
IPA: ʕ [OK+], ɑː (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: ɑː ā deep in throat, r modern French and German, like Ayin Hebrew and Arabic ; ʕ Voiced pharyngeal fricative ɑ̯ between 'Ah' and 'oh' but more open like o- bottle and pressured , gutteral ā a-abstain, āñ, uñg; Other claim: it's been proposed that originally it was pronouced d - deed maybe in some dialects (MK) d or ḍ (Allen) (O. Rössler), or even more of a German word ach, by
the Ptolemaic period it has msotly disappeared and normally isn't carried over into Coptic.
Listen ʕ (Voiced pharyngeal fricative)
Listen ɑː
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: Ꜥ , ġ , l , r , ˀ
Phoenician: 𐤏 Ayin 'eye', 𓁹 ?
Hebrew: ע 'ī' or 'ʕ' Ayin
Coptic Equivalent : ā/Ⲉ ?
Arabic equivalent: ع (ʿAyin), 'ʕ/au' or 'Ꜥ' Ayn
𓄿
Vulture
(Alef or Hamza)
Gardiner code: G1
MDC: A
Budge: a
Gardiner & Hoch : Ꜣ
Hannig : ɜ
JPA : Ꜣ ; l , ɾ (Old Egyptian) ; Ꜥ glottal stop /ʔ/ (LE)
Schneider: ɹ, ʁ
Loprieno : ʀ (earlier) , ʔ (later)
Alt: à
Transliteration: a , ɜ
[Voiced uvular fricative , Glottal stop]
IPA: ʀ (ʁ) [OK-MK]; ʔ , j , ∅ , ɾ , l [LK] (ref Loprieno, Allen); ɑ (Egyptological pronunciation),
Pronounced: ah (common) ; ahr [possibly OK]; ʀ (Rajah) [OK-MK], l (alah) [began to disappear MK]; ʔ (ah-ⁱaH) , j (yah, īYah), ɾ (ahrah) , ∅ (not pronounced) [LK]; replaced by y or 'glottal stop' like uh-oh (Allen)
(Glottal stop: ah author, au in Aussie /ʔ/ , some claim it's silent /∅/ or /j/ [MK], /l/ or /r/ [OK] in a cockney accent 'bottle' (boutl), or even the pause in ah' ha) It should be noted some scholars have stated that the /A/ was not pronounced by late kingdom and that /A/ was sometimes used for the Semitic 'l' ( ł) and 'r' ;
Listen ʔ (Glottal stop)
Listen ʀ (Uvular trill)
Listen l
Listen ɜ
Listen ɾ
Listen j
Listen ɑ
diffarent Egyptian spelling /ptwAlmys/, /pdAlmys/, /pdwlmys/ [wA, A, w]-o in (Ptolemaios)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ˀ , r , l ; w, Ꜥ (rare)
Phoenician: 𐤀 Aleph 'ox'
Hebrew: א 'ah' Alef
Coptic Equivalent: a/Ⲁ
Arabic equivalent: أ (Aleph), 'ʾa' or 'ʾu 'Alif or ء 'ʔ' Hamza
Vulture
(Alef or Hamza)
Gardiner code: G1
MDC: A
Budge: a
Gardiner & Hoch : Ꜣ
Hannig : ɜ
JPA : Ꜣ ; l , ɾ (Old Egyptian) ; Ꜥ glottal stop /ʔ/ (LE)
Schneider: ɹ, ʁ
Loprieno : ʀ (earlier) , ʔ (later)
Alt: à
Transliteration: a , ɜ
[Voiced uvular fricative , Glottal stop]
IPA: ʀ (ʁ) [OK-MK]; ʔ , j , ∅ , ɾ , l [LK] (ref Loprieno, Allen); ɑ (Egyptological pronunciation),
Pronounced: ah (common) ; ahr [possibly OK]; ʀ (Rajah) [OK-MK], l (alah) [began to disappear MK]; ʔ (ah-ⁱaH) , j (yah, īYah), ɾ (ahrah) , ∅ (not pronounced) [LK]; replaced by y or 'glottal stop' like uh-oh (Allen)
(Glottal stop: ah author, au in Aussie /ʔ/ , some claim it's silent /∅/ or /j/ [MK], /l/ or /r/ [OK] in a cockney accent 'bottle' (boutl), or even the pause in ah' ha) It should be noted some scholars have stated that the /A/ was not pronounced by late kingdom and that /A/ was sometimes used for the Semitic 'l' ( ł) and 'r' ;
Listen ʔ (Glottal stop)
Listen ʀ (Uvular trill)
Listen l
Listen ɜ
Listen ɾ
Listen j
Listen ɑ
diffarent Egyptian spelling /ptwAlmys/, /pdAlmys/, /pdwlmys/ [wA, A, w]-o in (Ptolemaios)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ˀ , r , l ; w, Ꜥ (rare)
Phoenician: 𐤀 Aleph 'ox'
Hebrew: א 'ah' Alef
Coptic Equivalent: a/Ⲁ
Arabic equivalent: أ (Aleph), 'ʾa' or 'ʾu 'Alif or ء 'ʔ' Hamza
𓃀
b
Lower leg & foot
(Beta)
Gardiner code: D58
MDC: b
Budge: b
Gardiner: b
Hannig : b
JPA : p > b (ME-LE)
Schneider: b
Transliteration: b
[Plosive & voiced Labial consonant]
IPA: b [OK-MK]; β , p [LK] (ref Loprieno); b (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced : voiced b, b in book; b - bet , or softer like in Spanish cabo (Allen)
Egyptian words in Coptic p and b were interchangeable LK. Like in Anoup Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲡ, Anoub Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲃ.
Coptic final letter p = ⲡ, ⲟⲩ, ϥ, ⲙ Allen
Listen b
Listen β
Listen p
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: b, m ,p, w
Phoenician 𐤁 Beth 'house'
Hebrew בּ Bet 'b' or ב Bet 'v'
Coptic : b/Ⲃ, m/ⲙ (B)
Arabic: ب 'b' bā’
b
Lower leg & foot
(Beta)
Gardiner code: D58
MDC: b
Budge: b
Gardiner: b
Hannig : b
JPA : p > b (ME-LE)
Schneider: b
Transliteration: b
[Plosive & voiced Labial consonant]
IPA: b [OK-MK]; β , p [LK] (ref Loprieno); b (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced : voiced b, b in book; b - bet , or softer like in Spanish cabo (Allen)
Egyptian words in Coptic p and b were interchangeable LK. Like in Anoup Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲡ, Anoub Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲃ.
Coptic final letter p = ⲡ, ⲟⲩ, ϥ, ⲙ Allen
Listen b
Listen β
Listen p
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: b, m ,p, w
Phoenician 𐤁 Beth 'house'
Hebrew בּ Bet 'b' or ב Bet 'v'
Coptic : b/Ⲃ, m/ⲙ (B)
Arabic: ب 'b' bā’
𓂧
d
hand
(Delta)
Gardiner code: I10
MDC: d
Budge: ṭ, d
Gardiner: d
Hannig: d
JPA : t
Schenkel: ṭ
Schneider: ḍ
Transliteration: d
[Stop, voiced , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: tʼ [OK-LK], tʼ, t͡ʃʼ [MK-LK] (ref Loprieno), d (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced : tʼ (tah) , voiced or a unvoiced ejective d or dh in (done) [MK], t (Cleopatrat) [LK], d (sadder) [LK]; t with 'emphasis' (Allen)
MK the D𓆓 and d𓂧 are interchangeable
d, or t, t in some dialects, NK and later in some words ø when it's in the final position Allen
Coptic d > t /ⲧ, word-final ʔ or ø in some words by LK Allen
Listen tʼ (Alveolar ejective plosive)
Listen t͡ʃʼ (Palato-alveolar ejective affricate )
Listen d̪ (Voiced dental and alveolar stops)
Diffarent Egyptian spelling /ptwAlmys/, /pdAlmys/, /pdwlmys/ [t, d]-t in (Ptolemaios)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: d, ḍ, ṭ , Ɖ (Barred d)
Phoenician 𐤃 Daleth 'door'
Hebrew דּ 'd̪' dāl or ט 't' tet
Coptic d/Ⲇ
Arabic د 'd' dāl
d
hand
(Delta)
Gardiner code: I10
MDC: d
Budge: ṭ, d
Gardiner: d
Hannig: d
JPA : t
Schenkel: ṭ
Schneider: ḍ
Transliteration: d
[Stop, voiced , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: tʼ [OK-LK], tʼ, t͡ʃʼ [MK-LK] (ref Loprieno), d (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced : tʼ (tah) , voiced or a unvoiced ejective d or dh in (done) [MK], t (Cleopatrat) [LK], d (sadder) [LK]; t with 'emphasis' (Allen)
MK the D𓆓 and d𓂧 are interchangeable
d, or t, t in some dialects, NK and later in some words ø when it's in the final position Allen
Coptic d > t /ⲧ, word-final ʔ or ø in some words by LK Allen
Listen tʼ (Alveolar ejective plosive)
Listen t͡ʃʼ (Palato-alveolar ejective affricate )
Listen d̪ (Voiced dental and alveolar stops)
Diffarent Egyptian spelling /ptwAlmys/, /pdAlmys/, /pdwlmys/ [t, d]-t in (Ptolemaios)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: d, ḍ, ṭ , Ɖ (Barred d)
Phoenician 𐤃 Daleth 'door'
Hebrew דּ 'd̪' dāl or ט 't' tet
Coptic d/Ⲇ
Arabic د 'd' dāl
𓆓
D
cobra
(Djanja , Zeuta)
Gardiner code: I10
MDC: D
Budge: ť, tch, dj
Gardiner: ḏ
Hannig: ḏ
Schenkel: č̣
Schneider: c̣
JPA : tʲ
Loprieno: ɟ
Emile Maher Ishak: ǧ
Paul D. LeBlanc : dz /dʒ , ts /tʃ
Transliteration: dj
Coptic Equivalent: dj/ Ϫ
[Voiced palatal stop, Stop , Palatal consonant ]
IPA: dʒ , tʲʼ ; cʼ (OK), t͡ʃʼ, tʼ (MK-LK) (ref Loprieno), d͡ʒ (Egyptological pronunciation), ɡʲ (ref Loprieno)
pronounced: dj (dge-fudge) ; je - (June) or d - (dune) (Allen); je - (Jesus) (LK) ; ɟ ghyah , ᴵᵈʲghya (ref Loprieno)
(voiced, dg in badge MK, some say j in jam, t or d LK)
Budge says sometimes tch based off late kingdom
Some claim when a word ends in D𓆓 change it to d 𓂧
Allen claims ḏ and ṯ might change depending on dialects
MK the D𓆓 and d𓂧 are interchangeable
Late Kingdom became d 𓂧
Coptic ḏ/ ϫ, becomes d/ⲇ in some words, MK d > ⲧ Allen
Listen cʼ
Listen dʒ
Listen t͡ʃʼ
Listen [ɟ]
Equivalent in other Languages
Proto-Sinaitic tsade
Semitic: ǧ, ṣ, ṭ, t (rare), ḏ̣ , ḏ , Đ (Barred d)
Greek: Ζ, ζ Zeta
Hebrew: ג׳ 'dʒ' 'ǧ ' Gimel w/geresh or צ 't͡s' Tsadi or ץ 't͡s' Tsadi sofit
Coptic: ϫ 'dj' 'dʒ' Gangia
Arabic: ج d͡ʒ (Dhāl), ݘ (Tcheh, Hah w/3dots) , ۼ ŋ (Ghain), ض 'dˤ' 'ḍ' (ḍād),
DA>TA> Ϫ
D
cobra
(Djanja , Zeuta)
Gardiner code: I10
MDC: D
Budge: ť, tch, dj
Gardiner: ḏ
Hannig: ḏ
Schenkel: č̣
Schneider: c̣
JPA : tʲ
Loprieno: ɟ
Emile Maher Ishak: ǧ
Paul D. LeBlanc : dz /dʒ , ts /tʃ
Transliteration: dj
Coptic Equivalent: dj/ Ϫ
[Voiced palatal stop, Stop , Palatal consonant ]
IPA: dʒ , tʲʼ ; cʼ (OK), t͡ʃʼ, tʼ (MK-LK) (ref Loprieno), d͡ʒ (Egyptological pronunciation), ɡʲ (ref Loprieno)
pronounced: dj (dge-fudge) ; je - (June) or d - (dune) (Allen); je - (Jesus) (LK) ; ɟ ghyah , ᴵᵈʲghya (ref Loprieno)
(voiced, dg in badge MK, some say j in jam, t or d LK)
Budge says sometimes tch based off late kingdom
Some claim when a word ends in D𓆓 change it to d 𓂧
Allen claims ḏ and ṯ might change depending on dialects
MK the D𓆓 and d𓂧 are interchangeable
Late Kingdom became d 𓂧
Coptic ḏ/ ϫ, becomes d/ⲇ in some words, MK d > ⲧ Allen
Listen cʼ
Listen dʒ
Listen t͡ʃʼ
Listen [ɟ]
Equivalent in other Languages
Proto-Sinaitic tsade
Semitic: ǧ, ṣ, ṭ, t (rare), ḏ̣ , ḏ , Đ (Barred d)
Greek: Ζ, ζ Zeta
Hebrew: ג׳ 'dʒ' 'ǧ ' Gimel w/geresh or צ 't͡s' Tsadi or ץ 't͡s' Tsadi sofit
Coptic: ϫ 'dj' 'dʒ' Gangia
Arabic: ج d͡ʒ (Dhāl), ݘ (Tcheh, Hah w/3dots) , ۼ ŋ (Ghain), ض 'dˤ' 'ḍ' (ḍād),
DA>TA> Ϫ
𓆑
f
horned viper
(Fai)
Gardiner code: I9
MDC: f
Budge: f
Gardiner: f
Hannig: f
JPA: ᵖf
Schneider: f
Transliteration: f
[Factive , voiceless , Labial consonant]
IPA: f
Prnoucned: f - fat ; fp sound like German Pferd (Allen)
(voiceless pronounced : f )
( f in food)
Listen f
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: f, p
Hebrew: פ/ף Pe
Coptic: f/ ϥ (Fei), b/ⲃ Vida
Arabic: ف fā’ 'f'
f
horned viper
(Fai)
Gardiner code: I9
MDC: f
Budge: f
Gardiner: f
Hannig: f
JPA: ᵖf
Schneider: f
Transliteration: f
[Factive , voiceless , Labial consonant]
IPA: f
Prnoucned: f - fat ; fp sound like German Pferd (Allen)
(voiceless pronounced : f )
( f in food)
Listen f
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: f, p
Hebrew: פ/ף Pe
Coptic: f/ ϥ (Fei), b/ⲃ Vida
Arabic: ف fā’ 'f'
𓎼
g
Jar or Jug
(Gamma)
Gardiner code: W11
MDC: g
Budge: ḳ
Gardiner: g
Hannig: g
JPA: kʲ qu- queue
Schneider: g
Transliteration: g
[Stop , voiced , Velar consonant]
IPA: kʼ [OK-LK] , ɡ (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: j- (juice) , g -(go), sometimes k, kg ; k sound kind of like (dagger), g - (argue )(Allen)
(ejective kʼ, g in (go) prob more accurate g in (gym), k in (ka) [LK], c in (Berenice?) )
g and ḡ Allen
Coptic ḡ > ϭ (A, F, L, M, S), ϫ first seen NK (B), g> ⲕ not often Allen
Listen kʼ (Velar ejective)
Listen ɡ (Voiced velar stop)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ǧ, ḳ, k (rare), g, ģ
Phoenician: 𐤂 Gimel 'camel',
Hebrew: גּ 'dʒ' 'ɡ' jīm or ג 'ɡ' 'ɣ' ghayn or ק 'k' Q
Coptic: g/Ⲅ
Arabic: ج jīm 'j' 'ǧ' 'g'
Alternative letters
𓎤
g
Jar or Jug
(Gamma)
Gardiner code: W11
MDC: g
Budge: ḳ
Gardiner: g
Hannig: g
JPA: kʲ qu- queue
Schneider: g
Transliteration: g
[Stop , voiced , Velar consonant]
IPA: kʼ [OK-LK] , ɡ (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: j- (juice) , g -(go), sometimes k, kg ; k sound kind of like (dagger), g - (argue )(Allen)
(ejective kʼ, g in (go) prob more accurate g in (gym), k in (ka) [LK], c in (Berenice?) )
g and ḡ Allen
Coptic ḡ > ϭ (A, F, L, M, S), ϫ first seen NK (B), g> ⲕ not often Allen
Listen kʼ (Velar ejective)
Listen ɡ (Voiced velar stop)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ǧ, ḳ, k (rare), g, ģ
Phoenician: 𐤂 Gimel 'camel',
Hebrew: גּ 'dʒ' 'ɡ' jīm or ג 'ɡ' 'ɣ' ghayn or ק 'k' Q
Coptic: g/Ⲅ
Arabic: ج jīm 'j' 'ǧ' 'g'
Alternative letters
𓎤
𓉔
h
Courtyard
(Hori)
Gardiner code: O4
MDC: h
Budge: h
Gardiner: h
Hannig: h
Allen: h
Schneider: h
Transliteration: h
[Fricative , voiceless , Glottal consonant , Voiceless glottal fricative]
IPA: h
Pronounced: h , [h- hat]
Listen h
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: h , ˀ, ḥ (rare)
Phoenician: 𐤄 (He) 'window'
Hebrew: ﬣ 'h' (He)
Coptic: h, ḥ /Ϩ (Hori)
Arabic: ه 'h' (Hā'), ھﺎ 'ha'
h
Courtyard
(Hori)
Gardiner code: O4
MDC: h
Budge: h
Gardiner: h
Hannig: h
Allen: h
Schneider: h
Transliteration: h
[Fricative , voiceless , Glottal consonant , Voiceless glottal fricative]
IPA: h
Pronounced: h , [h- hat]
Listen h
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: h , ˀ, ḥ (rare)
Phoenician: 𐤄 (He) 'window'
Hebrew: ﬣ 'h' (He)
Coptic: h, ḥ /Ϩ (Hori)
Arabic: ه 'h' (Hā'), ھﺎ 'ha'
𓎛
H
Twisted wick, Flax bundle
(Hori)
Gardiner code: V28
MDC: H
Budge: h
Gardiner: ḥ
Hannig: ḥ
Allen: ḥ
Schneider: ḥ
Transliteration: h or ḥ
[Fricative , voiceless , Voiceless pharyngeal fricative]
IPA: ħ
Pronounced: ḥ (harder throaty h) in aḥmad, [h-hard only harder and throaty, like a breath on glass]
(Emphatic: (back of the throat hard h), over exaggerated throaty h in vehicle)
Coptic merged with h in some words NK, h/ϩ, ʕ, early Coptic ʔ , h/Ϩ, ʔ/y, d> ⲧ (occasionally) Allen
𓄑𓏛 used in formal names ex. maHw
Listen ħ
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ẖ, ḫ, ḥ, ˀ, ꜥ
Phoenician: 𐤇 Heth 'fence'
Hebrew: ח 'h' or 'kh' Het,
Coptic Equivalent: ϩ 'h' or 'ħ' Hori, Ⳉ/kha (A)
Arabic: ح (Ḥāʾ) , 'ħ' (Hah)
H
Twisted wick, Flax bundle
(Hori)
Gardiner code: V28
MDC: H
Budge: h
Gardiner: ḥ
Hannig: ḥ
Allen: ḥ
Schneider: ḥ
Transliteration: h or ḥ
[Fricative , voiceless , Voiceless pharyngeal fricative]
IPA: ħ
Pronounced: ḥ (harder throaty h) in aḥmad, [h-hard only harder and throaty, like a breath on glass]
(Emphatic: (back of the throat hard h), over exaggerated throaty h in vehicle)
Coptic merged with h in some words NK, h/ϩ, ʕ, early Coptic ʔ , h/Ϩ, ʔ/y, d> ⲧ (occasionally) Allen
𓄑𓏛 used in formal names ex. maHw
Listen ħ
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ẖ, ḫ, ḥ, ˀ, ꜥ
Phoenician: 𐤇 Heth 'fence'
Hebrew: ח 'h' or 'kh' Het,
Coptic Equivalent: ϩ 'h' or 'ħ' Hori, Ⳉ/kha (A)
Arabic: ح (Ḥāʾ) , 'ħ' (Hah)
𓇋
i
Reed
(Yod , Iota)
Gardiner code: M17
MDC: i
Budge: ȧ, e, or i
Gardiner: ỉ (claims y sound at being and sometimes A)
Erman & Grapow: ỉ, j
Loprieno: j
JPA: j > a, i ,u (ah - initial , medial)
Hannig: j
Schneider: ỉ
Late Kingdom: ʾ
Transliteration: i or ȧ/a
[Approximant , Palatal approximant , Palatal consonant]
IPA: ɑː, i: , ij ; j [OK-MK], /ʔ/, /j/, ∅ [LK], i (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: ɑː, iː iː , ɑː , [a similar a-author only with a slight i sound first, (suggested at the middle or end of words) e-(meet) ; y or 'glottal stop' (Allen); j [Yah , īyah] (Loprieno); ey (needs ref)
(based off Budge ȧ 'iah' at the beginning of words everywhere else ē, other claim ē in teeth all the time)
I think the ē assumption all the time is unfair because if you look into Coptic it is sometimes translated as an 'ah' Ⲁ sound, an i Ⲓ sound or even an e Ⲉ sound.
This letter is a bit controversial as you will find some are in Egyptian even among historical and scholars. It should be noted that some argue 𓇋 is pronounced 'yi' this mostly comes from the Kemetic crowd who like to render inpw/Anpu 𓇋𓈖𓊪𓅱𓁢 as "Yinepu" which is academically wrong. No Egyptology school, or Etymologist renders /inpw/ as Yinepu. They either render his name as Anpu or Inpu. If we used the 'Kemetic' philosophy we would have to pronounce the god imn/Amun 𓇋𓈖 𓏠 as "Yimun" as his name starts with the same glyph. There is no historical etymological evidence that 𓇋 is pronounced 'yi' especially where names are concerned. As /inpw/ is rendered
Ἄνουβις/Anoubis in Greek and Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲡ/Anoup (S) or Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲃ/Anoub (B) in Coptic. Even the Akkadians rendered his name with an A sound 'Anapa'. The god Amun /imn/ is rendered Ἄμμω/Ámmōn in Greek and Ⲁⲙⲙⲱⲛ/Ammōn in Coptic. I think it is pretty safe to say it is more of an 'a' sound at least at the beginning of words or even possibly names. The Greek culture was alive and well during Egypt's reign and the Coptic language has preserved Late Kingdom Egyptian in it. It is more likely 𓇋 was more of a 'iah' sound rendered ȧ as Budge suggested. Either this occurs all the time or only in the beginning of a word and a long ē everywhere else.
Listen ʝ̞ (Palatal approximation)
Listen j
Listen ʔ
Listen i
Other Suggestions
Listen ɑ , Listen ä , Listen ə, (aɪ, ie:, à, ai, ay , î, ŷ)
Semitic Aleph is rendered as a 𓇋
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ˀ, i , Ꜥ, r , l
Phoenician: 𐤉 Yodh 'hand' ?
Hebrew: י 'j' or 'é' or 'i' yōd or אִ , אֵ
Coptic: i/Ⲓ, a/Ⲁ , ā/ⲉ , ē/ⲏ
Arabic: ى 'aː' (ʾalif ) , إي 'yʔ' or 'īʔ' (yāʾ&Alif w/ hamzah) , إ 'ʔ' (Alif w/ hamzah) , ي 'y' or 'īʾ (Yāʾ) , 'ʾi' (yod)
Alternative letters
Gardiner code : A1
𓀀
i
Reed
(Yod , Iota)
Gardiner code: M17
MDC: i
Budge: ȧ, e, or i
Gardiner: ỉ (claims y sound at being and sometimes A)
Erman & Grapow: ỉ, j
Loprieno: j
JPA: j > a, i ,u (ah - initial , medial)
Hannig: j
Schneider: ỉ
Late Kingdom: ʾ
Transliteration: i or ȧ/a
[Approximant , Palatal approximant , Palatal consonant]
IPA: ɑː, i: , ij ; j [OK-MK], /ʔ/, /j/, ∅ [LK], i (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: ɑː, iː iː , ɑː , [a similar a-author only with a slight i sound first, (suggested at the middle or end of words) e-(meet) ; y or 'glottal stop' (Allen); j [Yah , īyah] (Loprieno); ey (needs ref)
(based off Budge ȧ 'iah' at the beginning of words everywhere else ē, other claim ē in teeth all the time)
I think the ē assumption all the time is unfair because if you look into Coptic it is sometimes translated as an 'ah' Ⲁ sound, an i Ⲓ sound or even an e Ⲉ sound.
This letter is a bit controversial as you will find some are in Egyptian even among historical and scholars. It should be noted that some argue 𓇋 is pronounced 'yi' this mostly comes from the Kemetic crowd who like to render inpw/Anpu 𓇋𓈖𓊪𓅱𓁢 as "Yinepu" which is academically wrong. No Egyptology school, or Etymologist renders /inpw/ as Yinepu. They either render his name as Anpu or Inpu. If we used the 'Kemetic' philosophy we would have to pronounce the god imn/Amun 𓇋𓈖 𓏠 as "Yimun" as his name starts with the same glyph. There is no historical etymological evidence that 𓇋 is pronounced 'yi' especially where names are concerned. As /inpw/ is rendered
Ἄνουβις/Anoubis in Greek and Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲡ/Anoup (S) or Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲃ/Anoub (B) in Coptic. Even the Akkadians rendered his name with an A sound 'Anapa'. The god Amun /imn/ is rendered Ἄμμω/Ámmōn in Greek and Ⲁⲙⲙⲱⲛ/Ammōn in Coptic. I think it is pretty safe to say it is more of an 'a' sound at least at the beginning of words or even possibly names. The Greek culture was alive and well during Egypt's reign and the Coptic language has preserved Late Kingdom Egyptian in it. It is more likely 𓇋 was more of a 'iah' sound rendered ȧ as Budge suggested. Either this occurs all the time or only in the beginning of a word and a long ē everywhere else.
Listen ʝ̞ (Palatal approximation)
Listen j
Listen ʔ
Listen i
Other Suggestions
Listen ɑ , Listen ä , Listen ə, (aɪ, ie:, à, ai, ay , î, ŷ)
Semitic Aleph is rendered as a 𓇋
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ˀ, i , Ꜥ, r , l
Phoenician: 𐤉 Yodh 'hand' ?
Hebrew: י 'j' or 'é' or 'i' yōd or אִ , אֵ
Coptic: i/Ⲓ, a/Ⲁ , ā/ⲉ , ē/ⲏ
Arabic: ى 'aː' (ʾalif ) , إي 'yʔ' or 'īʔ' (yāʾ&Alif w/ hamzah) , إ 'ʔ' (Alif w/ hamzah) , ي 'y' or 'īʾ (Yāʾ) , 'ʾi' (yod)
Alternative letters
Gardiner code : A1
𓀀
𓎡
k
Basket with handle
(Cheema/Cima)
Gardiner code: V31
MDC: k
Budge: k
Gardiner: k
Hannig: k
JPA: kʰ
Schneider: k
Transliteration: k
[Stop , voiceless , Velar consonant]
IPA: kʰ, kʲ
Pronounced: k [k-king] , k fallowed by y Kew or cue (Allen)
(Aspirated hard kh: k like in Kill, some claim 'kyah' like in chianti)
Late Kingdom became T 𓍿
Coptic k> ⲕ (A, F, L, M, S, B), ⲭ (B), ḵ > ϭ (A, F, L, M, S, B) not often Allen, ϫ (B)
Listen k (Voiceless velar plosive)
Listen kʲ (palatalized)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: k, ḳ, ǧ, g, q
Phoenician: 𐤊 Kaph 'palm of hand'
Hebrew: כּ 'k' Kaf or כ 'x' Xaf
Coptic: k/Ⲕ , kⁱ/ϭ
Arabic: ك 'k' (Kāf)
k
Basket with handle
(Cheema/Cima)
Gardiner code: V31
MDC: k
Budge: k
Gardiner: k
Hannig: k
JPA: kʰ
Schneider: k
Transliteration: k
[Stop , voiceless , Velar consonant]
IPA: kʰ, kʲ
Pronounced: k [k-king] , k fallowed by y Kew or cue (Allen)
(Aspirated hard kh: k like in Kill, some claim 'kyah' like in chianti)
Late Kingdom became T 𓍿
Coptic k> ⲕ (A, F, L, M, S, B), ⲭ (B), ḵ > ϭ (A, F, L, M, S, B) not often Allen, ϫ (B)
Listen k (Voiceless velar plosive)
Listen kʲ (palatalized)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: k, ḳ, ǧ, g, q
Phoenician: 𐤊 Kaph 'palm of hand'
Hebrew: כּ 'k' Kaf or כ 'x' Xaf
Coptic: k/Ⲕ , kⁱ/ϭ
Arabic: ك 'k' (Kāf)
𓃭
l, rw
Lion
(Lambda)
Loprieno: n + r
Gardiner code: E23
MDC: rw
Late Kingdom: l
Transliteration: l or r, ru
[Approximant , Alveolar, dental consonant]
Coptic Equivalent: l/Ⲗ
Pronounced: ru , l in Love only (LK), everywhere else r, rw in Rule
Late Kingdom Egyptians needed to render the letter 'l' for names such as Ptolemy and Cleopatra they used the biliteral /rw/ for 'l'
Coptic rarely r/ⲣ Allen
Listen l̠
Equivalent in other Languages
Phoenician: 𐤋 Lamedh 'ox-goad'
Greek: λ Lamda
Arabic: ل 'l' 'Lām' , ك 'k' (Kāf)
l, rw
Lion
(Lambda)
Loprieno: n + r
Gardiner code: E23
MDC: rw
Late Kingdom: l
Transliteration: l or r, ru
[Approximant , Alveolar, dental consonant]
Coptic Equivalent: l/Ⲗ
Pronounced: ru , l in Love only (LK), everywhere else r, rw in Rule
Late Kingdom Egyptians needed to render the letter 'l' for names such as Ptolemy and Cleopatra they used the biliteral /rw/ for 'l'
Coptic rarely r/ⲣ Allen
Listen l̠
Equivalent in other Languages
Phoenician: 𐤋 Lamedh 'ox-goad'
Greek: λ Lamda
Arabic: ل 'l' 'Lām' , ك 'k' (Kāf)
𓅓
m
Owl
(Mu)
Gardiner code: G17
MDC: m
Budge: m
Gardiner: m
Hannig : m
Allen: m
Schneider: m
Transliteration: m
[Nasal , Labial consonant]
IPA: m (OK-MK), m, n (NK) , n (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: m in moon
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: m, b
Phoenician: 𐤌 Mem 'water'
Hebrew: ם 'm' Mem
Coptic: m/Ⲙ
Arabic: م 'm' (mīm)
Alternative letters
𓐝 im originally
m
Owl
(Mu)
Gardiner code: G17
MDC: m
Budge: m
Gardiner: m
Hannig : m
Allen: m
Schneider: m
Transliteration: m
[Nasal , Labial consonant]
IPA: m (OK-MK), m, n (NK) , n (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: m in moon
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: m, b
Phoenician: 𐤌 Mem 'water'
Hebrew: ם 'm' Mem
Coptic: m/Ⲙ
Arabic: م 'm' (mīm)
Alternative letters
𓐝 im originally
𓈖
n
Water
(Nu)
Gardiner code: N35
MDC: n
Budge: n
Gardiner: n
Hannig: n
Allen: n
Schneider: n
Transliteration: n
[Nasal , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: n (OK-MK), n, l (LK), n (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: n - net, sometimes l - let (Allen)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: n, l, r
Phoenician: 𐤍 Nun 'fish',
Hebrew: נ Nun 'n'
Coptic: n/Ⲛ
Arabic: ن 'n' (nūn)
Alternative letters
𓋔nt originally, 𓋋
n
Water
(Nu)
Gardiner code: N35
MDC: n
Budge: n
Gardiner: n
Hannig: n
Allen: n
Schneider: n
Transliteration: n
[Nasal , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: n (OK-MK), n, l (LK), n (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: n - net, sometimes l - let (Allen)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: n, l, r
Phoenician: 𐤍 Nun 'fish',
Hebrew: נ Nun 'n'
Coptic: n/Ⲛ
Arabic: ن 'n' (nūn)
Alternative letters
𓋔nt originally, 𓋋
𓍯
o
Cord , Noose
(?)
Gardiner code: V4
MDC: wA
Late kingdom: o
Transliteration: wa, o
Pronounced: o in Cleopatra only LK, the rest of the time Biliteral wA
Late Kingdom Egyptians needed to render the letter 'o' for names such as the Greek name Cleopatra so they took the biliteral wA and converted it to make more of the o sound in her name.
Diffarent Egyptian spelling /ptwAlmys/, /pdAlmys/, /pdwlmys/ [wA, A, w]-o in (Ptolemaios)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic:
Coptic: o/Ⲟ , ō/ Ⲱ
Greek: ο (Omicron)
𓊪
p
Reed mat or base/support
(Pi)
Gardiner code: Q3
MDC: p
Budge: p
Gardiner: p
Hannig: p
JPA : pʰ
Schneider: p
Transliteration: p
[Stop & voiceless, Labial consonant]
IPA: pʰ
Pronounced: [p-pet], [b-ball] (LK); Aspirated or hard p+h: p like in pie MK, OK; p LK ?
Egyptian words in Coptic p and b were interchangeable LK. Like in Anoup Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲡ, Anoub Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲃ
Coptic p /ⲡ (A, F, L, M, S), b/ⲡ , ph/ⲫ , b/ⲃ before t/ⲧ
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: p, f (Arabic), b
Phoenician: 𐤐 Peh 'mouth'
Hebrew: פּ 'p' Pe
Coptic: p/ Ⲡ
Arabic: پ 'p' (pā’ , bā’)
p
Reed mat or base/support
(Pi)
Gardiner code: Q3
MDC: p
Budge: p
Gardiner: p
Hannig: p
JPA : pʰ
Schneider: p
Transliteration: p
[Stop & voiceless, Labial consonant]
IPA: pʰ
Pronounced: [p-pet], [b-ball] (LK); Aspirated or hard p+h: p like in pie MK, OK; p LK ?
Egyptian words in Coptic p and b were interchangeable LK. Like in Anoup Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲡ, Anoub Ⲁⲛⲟⲩⲃ
Coptic p /ⲡ (A, F, L, M, S), b/ⲡ , ph/ⲫ , b/ⲃ before t/ⲧ
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: p, f (Arabic), b
Phoenician: 𐤐 Peh 'mouth'
Hebrew: פּ 'p' Pe
Coptic: p/ Ⲡ
Arabic: پ 'p' (pā’ , bā’)
𓈎
q
Wedge hill
(?)
Gardiner code: N29
MDC: q
Budge: ḳ, q
Gardiner: ḳ
Hannig: q
JPA: g
Schneider: ḳ
Transliteration: q or k
[Stop , voiceless , Uvular consonant]
IPA: qʼ , k (Egyptological pronunciation)
pronounced: q or k , [q-qual]; voiceless uvular plosive, que in queen, back of the throat emphatic k in kind; like Arabic or Hebrew q (deep in throat), like q in Ethiopic languages (Allen)
Listen q (Voiceless uvular stop)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ḳ, k , q, g, ģ
Phoenician: 𐤒 Qoph 'Monkey'
Hebrew: ק 'k' Qoph
Coptic: kⁱ, q/Ϭ , k/Ⲕ , kh/ Ⲭ
Arabic: ق 'q' (ḳāf)
q
Wedge hill
(?)
Gardiner code: N29
MDC: q
Budge: ḳ, q
Gardiner: ḳ
Hannig: q
JPA: g
Schneider: ḳ
Transliteration: q or k
[Stop , voiceless , Uvular consonant]
IPA: qʼ , k (Egyptological pronunciation)
pronounced: q or k , [q-qual]; voiceless uvular plosive, que in queen, back of the throat emphatic k in kind; like Arabic or Hebrew q (deep in throat), like q in Ethiopic languages (Allen)
Listen q (Voiceless uvular stop)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ḳ, k , q, g, ģ
Phoenician: 𐤒 Qoph 'Monkey'
Hebrew: ק 'k' Qoph
Coptic: kⁱ, q/Ϭ , k/Ⲕ , kh/ Ⲭ
Arabic: ق 'q' (ḳāf)
𓂋
r
Mouth
(Rho)
Gardiner code: D21
MDC: r
Budge: r, l
Gardiner: r
Hannig: r
Allen: r
Schneider: l
Transliteration: r
[ Trill , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: r , some dialects l ; ɾ, l [OK], ɾ, l, ʔ, j [MK], ɾ, l, ʔ, j, ∅ [LK] , r (Egyptological pronunciation)
pronounced: [ r in room] ; 'flapped' r Spanish pero, l - let (F), later Coptic) (Allen); l in lion LK and foreign dialects
Late Kingdom Egyptians needed to render the letter 'l' for names such as Ptolemy and Cleopatra they used the biliteral /rw/ for 'l'
Coptic r/ⲣ in some words l/ ⲗ (A, B, L, S, M), ʔ syllable-final already in OK, > ʔ, ø Allen
Listen ɾ (postalveolar flaps)
Listen r (Alveolar trill)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: r, l, d, n
Phoenician: 𐤓 Resh 'head'
Hebrew: ר 'r' Resh, ל 'l' Lamed
Coptic: r/ Ⲣ, l/ⲗ (F)
Arabic: ر 'r ' (rāʾ)
r
Mouth
(Rho)
Gardiner code: D21
MDC: r
Budge: r, l
Gardiner: r
Hannig: r
Allen: r
Schneider: l
Transliteration: r
[ Trill , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: r , some dialects l ; ɾ, l [OK], ɾ, l, ʔ, j [MK], ɾ, l, ʔ, j, ∅ [LK] , r (Egyptological pronunciation)
pronounced: [ r in room] ; 'flapped' r Spanish pero, l - let (F), later Coptic) (Allen); l in lion LK and foreign dialects
Late Kingdom Egyptians needed to render the letter 'l' for names such as Ptolemy and Cleopatra they used the biliteral /rw/ for 'l'
Coptic r/ⲣ in some words l/ ⲗ (A, B, L, S, M), ʔ syllable-final already in OK, > ʔ, ø Allen
Listen ɾ (postalveolar flaps)
Listen r (Alveolar trill)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: r, l, d, n
Phoenician: 𐤓 Resh 'head'
Hebrew: ר 'r' Resh, ל 'l' Lamed
Coptic: r/ Ⲣ, l/ⲗ (F)
Arabic: ر 'r ' (rāʾ)
𓊃
s, z
Door bolt
(?)
Gardiner code: O34
MDC: s
Budge: s
Gardiner: s (sounds like z)
Hannig: z, s
JPA: θ > s (ME)
Schneider: s
Transliteration: s or z
[Fricative, voiced , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: z (OK), s (MK-LK), z (Egyptological pronunciation)
pronounced: s-suddenly, z-zebra; t+h ; th in think (OK), s and z same sound s (MK) (Allen)
Listen z
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: z, s, ṣ , š, Đ (barred d)
Phoenician: 𐤎 Samekh 'support'
Hebrew: ס 's' Samekh or צ 'ts' Tsadi
Coptic: s/ Ⲥ
Arabic: ز (Zāy), or ص (ṣād) 'sˤ'
s, z
Door bolt
(?)
Gardiner code: O34
MDC: s
Budge: s
Gardiner: s (sounds like z)
Hannig: z, s
JPA: θ > s (ME)
Schneider: s
Transliteration: s or z
[Fricative, voiced , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: z (OK), s (MK-LK), z (Egyptological pronunciation)
pronounced: s-suddenly, z-zebra; t+h ; th in think (OK), s and z same sound s (MK) (Allen)
Listen z
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: z, s, ṣ , š, Đ (barred d)
Phoenician: 𐤎 Samekh 'support'
Hebrew: ס 's' Samekh or צ 'ts' Tsadi
Coptic: s/ Ⲥ
Arabic: ز (Zāy), or ص (ṣād) 'sˤ'
𓋴
s
Folded cloth
(Sigma)
Gardiner code: S29
MDC: s
Budge: s
Gardiner: s or ś (claims unvoiced s)
Hannig: s
Allen: s
Schneider: ś
Transliteration: s
[Fricative , voiceless , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: s
Pronounced: s , [s-sad], , s and z same sound s (MK) (Allen)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: s, z, ṣ, ṯ, š
Phoenician: 𐤑 Sadhe 'fishhook'
Hebrew: שׂ 'ʃ/sh' Shin, שׁ 's' Sin
Arabic: s س (Sīn), ṣ/sˤ ص Sad
Coptic: s/ⲥ
s
Folded cloth
(Sigma)
Gardiner code: S29
MDC: s
Budge: s
Gardiner: s or ś (claims unvoiced s)
Hannig: s
Allen: s
Schneider: ś
Transliteration: s
[Fricative , voiceless , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: s
Pronounced: s , [s-sad], , s and z same sound s (MK) (Allen)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: s, z, ṣ, ṯ, š
Phoenician: 𐤑 Sadhe 'fishhook'
Hebrew: שׂ 'ʃ/sh' Shin, שׁ 's' Sin
Arabic: s س (Sīn), ṣ/sˤ ص Sad
Coptic: s/ⲥ
𓈙
S
Pool, body of water
(Shai)
Gardiner code: N37
MDC: S
Budge: ś
Gardiner: š
Hannig: š
Allen: š
Schneider: š
Transliteration: sh
[Fricative , voiceless, Postalveolar consonant]
IPA: ʃ
Pronounced: sh, [sh-shadow]
Coptic derived from ẖ in OE does not change till MK when it becomes š/ ϣ Allen
Listen
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: š, ṯ, ś , z ; ǧ, ḥ (rare)
Phoenician: 𐤔 Shin 'tooth
Hebrew: שׁ 'ʃ/sh' Shin
Coptic: š, sh/ Ϣ < 𓆷 sha
Arabic: ش 'sh' (Shīn)
S
Pool, body of water
(Shai)
Gardiner code: N37
MDC: S
Budge: ś
Gardiner: š
Hannig: š
Allen: š
Schneider: š
Transliteration: sh
[Fricative , voiceless, Postalveolar consonant]
IPA: ʃ
Pronounced: sh, [sh-shadow]
Coptic derived from ẖ in OE does not change till MK when it becomes š/ ϣ Allen
Listen
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: š, ṯ, ś , z ; ǧ, ḥ (rare)
Phoenician: 𐤔 Shin 'tooth
Hebrew: שׁ 'ʃ/sh' Shin
Coptic: š, sh/ Ϣ < 𓆷 sha
Arabic: ش 'sh' (Shīn)
𓏏
t
Loaf of Bread
(Tau)
Gardiner code: X1
MDC: t
Budge: t
Hannig : t
Allen: t
Schneider: t
Gardiner: t
Transliteration: t
[Nasal , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: tʰ ;t (OK), t, t͡ʃ, ʔ (MK), t, t͡ʃ, ʔ, ∅ (LK) , t (Egyptological pronunciation)
pronounced: t-toe
(aspirated hard t+h: t in two, d OK?, d Hadrian NK?)
Some claim when a word ends in T𓍿 change it to t 𓏏
some claim the feminine ending of t is not spoken *
MK the T𓍿 and t𓏏 are interchangeable
Coptic t/ⲧ , (A, F, L,M,S), ⲧ/t, ⲑ/ th (B),word final ʔ, ø feminine ending, *OK forward feminine ending ø, in some words ʔ Allen
Listen t (Voiceless alveolar plosive)
Diffarent Egyptian spelling /ptwAlmys/, /pdAlmys/, /pdwlmys/ [t, d]-t in (Ptolemaios)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: t, d (rare), ṭ
Phoenician: T Taw 'mark', 𐤈 Teth
Hebrew: תּ 't' Tav
Coptic: š, sh/ Ϣ
Arabic: ت 't' tā’
Alternative letters
𓍘 ti originally
t
Loaf of Bread
(Tau)
Gardiner code: X1
MDC: t
Budge: t
Hannig : t
Allen: t
Schneider: t
Gardiner: t
Transliteration: t
[Nasal , Alveolar, dental consonant]
IPA: tʰ ;t (OK), t, t͡ʃ, ʔ (MK), t, t͡ʃ, ʔ, ∅ (LK) , t (Egyptological pronunciation)
pronounced: t-toe
(aspirated hard t+h: t in two, d OK?, d Hadrian NK?)
Some claim when a word ends in T𓍿 change it to t 𓏏
some claim the feminine ending of t is not spoken *
MK the T𓍿 and t𓏏 are interchangeable
Coptic t/ⲧ , (A, F, L,M,S), ⲧ/t, ⲑ/ th (B),word final ʔ, ø feminine ending, *OK forward feminine ending ø, in some words ʔ Allen
Listen t (Voiceless alveolar plosive)
Diffarent Egyptian spelling /ptwAlmys/, /pdAlmys/, /pdwlmys/ [t, d]-t in (Ptolemaios)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: t, d (rare), ṭ
Phoenician: T Taw 'mark', 𐤈 Teth
Hebrew: תּ 't' Tav
Coptic: š, sh/ Ϣ
Arabic: ت 't' tā’
Alternative letters
𓍘 ti originally
𓍿
T
Tether rope
(Samekh)
Gardiner code: V13
MDC: T
Budge: θ, th
Gardiner: ṯ
Hannig: ṯ
Allen: ṯ
Loprieno: c
Schneider: c
Schenkel: č
Emile Maher Ishak: č (German tsch)
Transliteration: tj, tch
[Voiceless palatal stop , Stop , voiceless, Palatal consonant]
IPA: tʲ, tʃ ; c (OK), t͡ʃ, t, ʔ (MK) t͡ʃ, t, ʔ, ∅ , t͡ʃ (Egyptological pronunciation); kʲ [khyyah] (Loprieno)
pronounced: tj , tch , tsh, ch , tu (LK)
('tch' in thatch or 'ch' in church, 't' in top , T𓍿 and t𓏏 are interchangeable esp MK on)
*Some claim when a word ends in T𓍿 change it to t 𓏏*
OK originally tsh (č or tj) Gardiner
MK ṯ , ṯʰ in top in some words OK forward t 𓏏 , t fallowed by y in tune (British pronunciation) or ch - chew, say 'chew' with tip of tongue not flat part (Allen)
NK on ward in some words ø when it's in the final possision Allen
Coptic ṯ derived from k early Egyptian > ṯ > (A, F, L, M, S, ) ϫ and b ϫ/ϭ merges with t in some words, OK > t/ⲧ (A, F, L, M, S),
b/ⲃ, t/ⲧ, th/ⲑ Allen, ϭ (B), ϫ (F, M, S, L)
Listen tʲ
Listen c
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: k
Hebrew: ט 't' Tet, צ׳ 'tʃ', ϫ 'ʤ/j' Djandja
Coptic: tsh , ch/ϭ (B)
Arabic: ث 'θ' (thāʾ) , ط ṭā’ 'ðˤ/tha' , ظ 'ẓ' ẓā’ , فش (Tāʾ-Shīn), ﺗﺷﺎ
T
Tether rope
(Samekh)
Gardiner code: V13
MDC: T
Budge: θ, th
Gardiner: ṯ
Hannig: ṯ
Allen: ṯ
Loprieno: c
Schneider: c
Schenkel: č
Emile Maher Ishak: č (German tsch)
Transliteration: tj, tch
[Voiceless palatal stop , Stop , voiceless, Palatal consonant]
IPA: tʲ, tʃ ; c (OK), t͡ʃ, t, ʔ (MK) t͡ʃ, t, ʔ, ∅ , t͡ʃ (Egyptological pronunciation); kʲ [khyyah] (Loprieno)
pronounced: tj , tch , tsh, ch , tu (LK)
('tch' in thatch or 'ch' in church, 't' in top , T𓍿 and t𓏏 are interchangeable esp MK on)
*Some claim when a word ends in T𓍿 change it to t 𓏏*
OK originally tsh (č or tj) Gardiner
MK ṯ , ṯʰ in top in some words OK forward t 𓏏 , t fallowed by y in tune (British pronunciation) or ch - chew, say 'chew' with tip of tongue not flat part (Allen)
NK on ward in some words ø when it's in the final possision Allen
Coptic ṯ derived from k early Egyptian > ṯ > (A, F, L, M, S, ) ϫ and b ϫ/ϭ merges with t in some words, OK > t/ⲧ (A, F, L, M, S),
b/ⲃ, t/ⲧ, th/ⲑ Allen, ϭ (B), ϫ (F, M, S, L)
Listen tʲ
Listen c
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: k
Hebrew: ט 't' Tet, צ׳ 'tʃ', ϫ 'ʤ/j' Djandja
Coptic: tsh , ch/ϭ (B)
Arabic: ث 'θ' (thāʾ) , ط ṭā’ 'ðˤ/tha' , ظ 'ẓ' ẓā’ , فش (Tāʾ-Shīn), ﺗﺷﺎ
𓅱
w
Quail chick
(Waw)
Gardiner code: G43
MDC: w
Budge: u
Hannig: w
Allen: w
Schneider: ɗw
Gardiner: w
Transliteration: u or w
[Approximant, Labial consonant]
IPA: w, uː, ü ; w (OK-MK) , w, ʔ, ∅ (LK) uː , w (Egyptological pronunciation)
pronounced: u , ü, w ; w - wet, u - glue, a - father (Allen)
(u you, oo in book, w word)
Some suggest the 𓅱 is w at the beginning of words like in 'word' and u like the 'oo' in 'book' everywhere else.
Coptic w> ⲟⲩ/ou Allen
Listen u̯
diffarent Egyptian spelling /ptwAlmys/, /pdAlmys/, /pdwlmys/ [wA, A, w]-o in (Ptolemaios)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: w
Phoenician: 𐤅 Waw 'hook'
Hebrew: ו 'w' or 'v' Vav, וּ 'oo' Shuruk
Coptic: ou/ⲟⲩ , ō/Ⲱ
Arabic: و 'w' or 'ū' (wāw)
Alternative letters
𓏲
w
Quail chick
(Waw)
Gardiner code: G43
MDC: w
Budge: u
Hannig: w
Allen: w
Schneider: ɗw
Gardiner: w
Transliteration: u or w
[Approximant, Labial consonant]
IPA: w, uː, ü ; w (OK-MK) , w, ʔ, ∅ (LK) uː , w (Egyptological pronunciation)
pronounced: u , ü, w ; w - wet, u - glue, a - father (Allen)
(u you, oo in book, w word)
Some suggest the 𓅱 is w at the beginning of words like in 'word' and u like the 'oo' in 'book' everywhere else.
Coptic w> ⲟⲩ/ou Allen
Listen u̯
diffarent Egyptian spelling /ptwAlmys/, /pdAlmys/, /pdwlmys/ [wA, A, w]-o in (Ptolemaios)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: w
Phoenician: 𐤅 Waw 'hook'
Hebrew: ו 'w' or 'v' Vav, וּ 'oo' Shuruk
Coptic: ou/ⲟⲩ , ō/Ⲱ
Arabic: و 'w' or 'ū' (wāw)
Alternative letters
𓏲
𓐍
x
Placenta or sieve
(Chi)
Gardiner code: Aa1
MDC: x
Budge: x
Hannig: ḫ
Allen: ḫ
Schneider: ḫ
Gardiner: ḫ
Transliteration: kh
[Fricative, voiceless , Uvular consonant , Voiceless uvular fricative]
IPA: χ (OK-LK) , x (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: kh (LE) , [kh-Khan but harder], x̣ [Ḥah] (UE) (possibly MK+) , /ɣ/gh (possibly)
Allen : Ghayin Hebrew & Arabic ; ch German ach or Scottish loch
Herman : ḫ (Voiceless velar fricative, Originally voiced velar fricative?)
(kh in black, like German ach, Scotch lock)
LK and Demotic h̭ ẖ< ḫ Allen
Coptic ẖ in some words in OK later > ẖ > kh/ⳉ (A), š/ϣ (B, F, L, M, S) Allen, ϧ (B), ϩ (A)
Listen χ
Listen x (Voiceless uvular fricative)
Listen x (Voiceless velar fricative)
Listen hā (same claim)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ẖ, š; Ꜥ , h, ḥ (rare)
Hebrew: ה 'h' He or כ Kaf 'x'
Coptic: ϧ 'x' Khay, ϩ 'h' Hōri , ⲭ 'kh' Khe , ⲕ 'k' Kabba, ϣ 'sh' Shay (B,F,M,S,L), kha/Ⳉ (A)
Arabic: خ 'kh' Khah, Semitic ḫ
x
Placenta or sieve
(Chi)
Gardiner code: Aa1
MDC: x
Budge: x
Hannig: ḫ
Allen: ḫ
Schneider: ḫ
Gardiner: ḫ
Transliteration: kh
[Fricative, voiceless , Uvular consonant , Voiceless uvular fricative]
IPA: χ (OK-LK) , x (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: kh (LE) , [kh-Khan but harder], x̣ [Ḥah] (UE) (possibly MK+) , /ɣ/gh (possibly)
Allen : Ghayin Hebrew & Arabic ; ch German ach or Scottish loch
Herman : ḫ (Voiceless velar fricative, Originally voiced velar fricative?)
(kh in black, like German ach, Scotch lock)
LK and Demotic h̭ ẖ< ḫ Allen
Coptic ẖ in some words in OK later > ẖ > kh/ⳉ (A), š/ϣ (B, F, L, M, S) Allen, ϧ (B), ϩ (A)
Listen χ
Listen x (Voiceless uvular fricative)
Listen x (Voiceless velar fricative)
Listen hā (same claim)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ẖ, š; Ꜥ , h, ḥ (rare)
Hebrew: ה 'h' He or כ Kaf 'x'
Coptic: ϧ 'x' Khay, ϩ 'h' Hōri , ⲭ 'kh' Khe , ⲕ 'k' Kabba, ϣ 'sh' Shay (B,F,M,S,L), kha/Ⳉ (A)
Arabic: خ 'kh' Khah, Semitic ḫ
𓄡
X
animal belly w/ tail, or teats
(?)
Gardiner code: F32
MDC: X
Budge: x, kh
Hannig: ẖ
Allen: ẖ
Schneider: ẖ
Loprieno: ç
Gardiner: ẖ (interchanging sh and kh)
Transliteration: kh
[ Fricative , voiceless, Voiceless palatal fricative , Palatal consonant ]
IPA: ç , xʲ (OK-LK), x (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: kh (soft) , Voiceless palatal fricative tsh , sha in shadow, German ich (ēsh), kh in Khenmu MK, kh or h LK?), 'ghayin' like ch in ach (German), or lock (Scottish) (some Egyptologists)
(Perhaps even a soft almost understated h rendered ʰ , some have suggested ch or even th)
the sound fallowing y, like cue (w/out closing throat) or hue (very strong h) (Allen)
This is another controversial letter. Sometimes it is transliterated as kh similar to x 𓐍 as in Xnmw/ Khenmu, but softer and other times it is translated to a tsh, sha, or ēsh sound. It is difficult for English speakers to get the inflection for this one. So I have provided examples. In Coptic words it seems to be translate to ϩ rendering it a soft h sound. The sound seems to very form word to word and is best to look to an older spelling in identifying it's exact sound.
originally šẖ, Semitic š (Allen)
LK and Coptic š
Coptic ϩ (F, M, S, L), ϣ (B, F, L, M, S) > ḫ in many words in MK and later > ḫ/ẖ > ⳉ/ϧ (A, B), ϩ, ⳉ (A), Allen, ϧ (B)
LK and Demotic h̭ ẖ< ḫ Allen
Listen ç (Voiceless palatal fricative) [ᵗʲSHah , ªʰᵗʲSHah]
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ẖ , ḥ, c (rare)
Pashto: ښ x̌īn x̌ 'k'h'
Coptic: kh/Ⲭ, ḥ/ϩ, kh/Ϧ , ch/Ϧ (B)
Arabic: خ 'kh' (Khāʾ) , غ 'gh ' (ghayn)
X
animal belly w/ tail, or teats
(?)
Gardiner code: F32
MDC: X
Budge: x, kh
Hannig: ẖ
Allen: ẖ
Schneider: ẖ
Loprieno: ç
Gardiner: ẖ (interchanging sh and kh)
Transliteration: kh
[ Fricative , voiceless, Voiceless palatal fricative , Palatal consonant ]
IPA: ç , xʲ (OK-LK), x (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: kh (soft) , Voiceless palatal fricative tsh , sha in shadow, German ich (ēsh), kh in Khenmu MK, kh or h LK?), 'ghayin' like ch in ach (German), or lock (Scottish) (some Egyptologists)
(Perhaps even a soft almost understated h rendered ʰ , some have suggested ch or even th)
the sound fallowing y, like cue (w/out closing throat) or hue (very strong h) (Allen)
This is another controversial letter. Sometimes it is transliterated as kh similar to x 𓐍 as in Xnmw/ Khenmu, but softer and other times it is translated to a tsh, sha, or ēsh sound. It is difficult for English speakers to get the inflection for this one. So I have provided examples. In Coptic words it seems to be translate to ϩ rendering it a soft h sound. The sound seems to very form word to word and is best to look to an older spelling in identifying it's exact sound.
originally šẖ, Semitic š (Allen)
LK and Coptic š
Coptic ϩ (F, M, S, L), ϣ (B, F, L, M, S) > ḫ in many words in MK and later > ḫ/ẖ > ⳉ/ϧ (A, B), ϩ, ⳉ (A), Allen, ϧ (B)
LK and Demotic h̭ ẖ< ḫ Allen
Listen ç (Voiceless palatal fricative) [ᵗʲSHah , ªʰᵗʲSHah]
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: ẖ , ḥ, c (rare)
Pashto: ښ x̌īn x̌ 'k'h'
Coptic: kh/Ⲭ, ḥ/ϩ, kh/Ϧ , ch/Ϧ (B)
Arabic: خ 'kh' (Khāʾ) , غ 'gh ' (ghayn)
𓇋𓇋
y
Pair of reeds
(?)
Gardiner code: M17-M17
MDC: y
Budge: ī , i, y
Hannig: y
Allen: y
Schneider: y
Gardiner: y
Loprieno: jj , y
WikiHiero: i-i
Erman & Grapow: ỉj
Alt: ii, ỉỉ
Transliteration: y, ii
IPA: jj (OK) , j (MK-LK) , i (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: ē in bee , y in yoke (Loprieno), ya or y (Hoch), y- yet (Allen_
Coptic not consistently phonetic until (ME) y > ⲉⲓ, ⲓ, ï, ø Allen , yeh (needs ref)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: y
Cuneiform ya/ja
Phoenician 𐤉 Yodh 'hand' ?
Akkadian a
Hebrew י 'y' Yod,
Arabic: ي 'y' or 'ī' (yāʾ)
Coptic: i/Ⲓ , ï/ⲉⲓ
Alternative letters
𓏭
MDC: y
Budge: i
Hannig : j
Allen : y
Schneider : i
Gardiner & Hoch: y
Erman & Grapow: j
Loprieno : jj , y
Transliteration: y
Gardiner code: Z4
Pronounced: y in yoke (Loprieno)
y
Pair of reeds
(?)
Gardiner code: M17-M17
MDC: y
Budge: ī , i, y
Hannig: y
Allen: y
Schneider: y
Gardiner: y
Loprieno: jj , y
WikiHiero: i-i
Erman & Grapow: ỉj
Alt: ii, ỉỉ
Transliteration: y, ii
IPA: jj (OK) , j (MK-LK) , i (Egyptological pronunciation)
Pronounced: ē in bee , y in yoke (Loprieno), ya or y (Hoch), y- yet (Allen_
Coptic not consistently phonetic until (ME) y > ⲉⲓ, ⲓ, ï, ø Allen , yeh (needs ref)
Equivalent in other Languages
Semitic: y
Cuneiform ya/ja
Phoenician 𐤉 Yodh 'hand' ?
Akkadian a
Hebrew י 'y' Yod,
Arabic: ي 'y' or 'ī' (yāʾ)
Coptic: i/Ⲓ , ï/ⲉⲓ
Alternative letters
𓏭
MDC: y
Budge: i
Hannig : j
Allen : y
Schneider : i
Gardiner & Hoch: y
Erman & Grapow: j
Loprieno : jj , y
Transliteration: y
Gardiner code: Z4
Pronounced: y in yoke (Loprieno)
Biliterals
𓇍
ii
Walking Reeds
Gardiner code: M18
MDC: ii
Budge: ī , i, y
Hannig: y
Allen: y
Schneider: y
Gardiner: y
WikiHiero: i-i
Erman & Grapow: ỉj
Alt: ii, ỉỉ
Transliteration: ii
Coptic Equivalent: ?
IPA: jj
Pronounced: ē in bee
Some pronounce /y/ 𓇋𓇋 as ē then another ē , others say it together as in bee.
Similar letters: āi/ⲉⲓ (come go) < ii ( come, return) (Coptic)
𓂞
di
Arm holding Conical Loaf
(Tee)
Gardiner code: D37
MDC: di
Transliteration: di
Coptic Equivalent: ti/ ϯ < 𓂞𓏏
IPA: tʼi:
Pronounced: dee in deep
𓆷
sha
Pool with Lotus
(Shai)
Gardiner code: M8
MDC: SA
Budge: śa
Gardiner: šꜣ
Transliteration: sha
Coptic Equivalent: sh/ϣ
IPA: ʃʔ
Pronounced: shah in Shah of Persia
𓍑
dja
Fire Drill
(Gangai)
Gardiner code: U28
MDC: DA
Budge: ťa
Gardiner: ḏꜣ
Transliteration: dja
Coptic Equivalent: ϫ
IPA: dʒ, t͡ʃ
Pronounced: djah
ref https://copticsounds.wordpress.com/2012/10/21/online-emile-maher-ishaks-the-phonetics-and-phonology-of-the-bohairic-dialect-of-coptic/ , Quack 2003, pp. 167 and 170, and Altenmüller 2010, pp. 95–96