Medu Neter ~ Core phrases.

Ancient Egyptian – The Divine Words.

Mdw Ntr

𓌃𓊵𓇳

Divine speech, referring to hieroglyphs, used for sacred texts, decrees, and inscriptions, a gift from Thoth.

Sesh Medew Netcher

𓋴𓈙 𓌃𓊵𓇳

Writing the words of the gods

Sesh Per Em Heru

𓋴𓈙 𓉐𓇳 𓅱𓇳 𓅃

Writing in the manner of Horus

Sesh Per Ankh

𓋴𓈙 𓉐𓇳 𓋹

Writing for life

Mryt N Km.t

𓌻𓇳 𓈖 𓎤𓏏

Beloved of the Black Land

Sesh

𓋴𓈙

Writing, a skill of scribes in temples and courts.

Per Ankh

𓉐𓇳 𓋹

House of Life, where scribes studied knowledge.

Sample Dialogue

Person 1:

𓇋𓇳𓇳𓏏 𓍯𓇳𓇋 𓈖𓇳𓇋𓍯𓇳 𓈖𓇳𓍯𓇳 𓅃 𓍯𓇳

Iryt tawy nesut-bity netjeru her wer?

Do you speak the language of the pharaohs and the gods?

Person 2:

𓇋𓇳𓇳𓏏 𓍯𓇳𓇋 𓈖𓇳𓇋𓍯𓇳 𓈖𓇳𓍯𓇳 𓅃 𓍯𓇳

Iryt tawy nesut-bity netjeru her wer.

I speak the language of the pharaohs and the gods.

Person 1:

𓎛𓈖𓇳𓐍 𓇋𓇳𓇳 𓈖𓇳𓇋𓍯𓇳

Henek iry nesu-tawy?

Where did you learn it?

Person 2:

𓇋𓇳𓇳𓏏 𓇋𓇳𓇳 𓈖𓇳𓇋𓍯𓇳 𓍯𓇳𓇋

Iryt iry nesu-tawy tawy.

I learned it in the school.

Person 1:

𓇋𓇳𓇳𓏏𓇳𓄿 𓌳𓄿𓇳 𓈙𓄿𓇋

Iryt-ef maa-ef shai?

Do you understand me?

Person 2:

𓇋𓇳𓇳𓏏𓇳𓄿 𓌳𓄿𓇳 𓈙𓄿𓇋

Iryt-ef maa-ef shai.

I understand you.

Person 1:

𓎛𓈖𓎡𓏏 𓄤

Henket nefer!

That's good!

Person 2:

𓈖𓐍𓏏𓏏

Nekhtet!

Thank you!

What is Medu Neter

Overview

Medu Neter ("Divine Words") is Ancient Egypt’s hieroglyphic writing system, used from ~3100 BCE to 400 CE. Seen as a gift from Thoth, it held sacred power and was used for religious texts, decrees, and inscriptions.

Usage and Users

Medu Neter was used by scribes and priests, trained in the "House of Life" (Per Ankh). They inscribed temples, tombs, and papyrus for rituals, laws, and records, reflecting Egypt’s divine order.

Examples: 𓌃𓊵𓇳 (Mdw Ntr), 𓉐𓇳𓋹 (Per Ankh)

Structure: Logograms, Syllabograms, Determinatives

Medu Neter combines logograms (whole words), syllabograms (phonetic sounds), and determinatives (clarifying meaning). Texts were read right-to-left or left-to-right based on sign direction.

Examples: 𓇳 (sun, logogram), 𓈖 (n, syllabogram), 𓏏 (feminine, determinative)

Egyptian Alphabet

The Egyptian "alphabet" includes ~24 uniliteral signs for single consonants. Scholars use these to transliterate words (e.g., "nfr" for "good") for educational purposes, despite lacking vowels.

Examples: 𓄿 (a), 𓋴 (s), 𓈖𓆑𓂧 (nfr, good)

Gardiner’s Sign List

Gardiner’s Sign List Sir Alan Gardiner’s Egyptian Grammar (1927) cataloged over 700 hieroglyphs, coded by category. It classifies signs as logograms, phonograms, or determinatives, aiding modern decoding.

Example: G5 for 𓅃 (falcon)