Ankh wedja seneb

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

ankh wedja seneb
Life, prosperity, health
in hieroglyphs
S34
 
U28
 
S29

The Ancient Egyptian phrase ankh, wedja, seneb "life, prosperity, health" is a formula often suffixed to the names of ancient Egyptian kings–(the Pharaohs). It is frequently abbreviated in Egyptian–A.U.S. or a.u.s. with just three hieroglyphs (or with their equivalent forms in Demotic and Hieratic), making it possibly one of the oldest acronyms used in written language, although strictly speaking the first word ankh is not truly abbreviated.

English translations of Egyptian often use the abbreviation "L.P.H." for "Life, Prosperity, Health. "


ankh wedja seneb represents the following Egyptian words-(and their concepts):

  1. Ankh: "Life"
  2. wedja: "to be whole/–intact"/'Endurance' (= "Prosperity")
  3. seneb: "Health"

Contents

[edit] Ankh

Ankh
Life
in hieroglyphs
S34
 
or
 
S34 n
Aa1
Y1


Life:

"Ankh", "to live," "life,"[1] was associated with the gods of Egypt, and Egyptian kings–(pharaohs) aspired to achieve their responsibilities of governing and protecting life in Egypt.

[edit] Wedja

Wedja
"Prosperity"
in hieroglyphs
U28
 
or
 
G43 U28 A Aa29

Prosperity:

Wedja (written "utcha" in 19th century transcriptions) literally means "to be whole; to be intact,"[2] but also has the connotation of "prosperity" and "well-being."[3]
Dominion is a second term that is implied with prosperity. The raising of the Djed pillar was symbolic of the pharaoh creating, and maintaining his kingdom. It is the reason some pharaohs campaigned beyond the Egyptian border, leaving a legacy for the next pharaohs to deal with.

[edit] Seneb

Seneb
Health
in hieroglyphs
S29
 
or
 
S29 N35
D58
Aa29

Health:

Seneb has many translations: "to be well," "to be healthy," and "to have 'soundness' ": "to be sound."[4] Another word, also seneb has the determinative of a wall and means "to build," but with the connotation of "to build (soundly)."[5]

[edit] a.u.s. in the Rosetta Stone

"given by the gods:
victory, might, life, strength, health, and everything good--
in hieroglyphs
R9 R9 R9
 
X7 W24
Z9
D40
N35
M3
Aa1 X1
 
S34 U28 S29
 
F18
D21
Aa1 X1
V30
nfr D21
F40
O34
N35
Z2

For the actions by the pharaoh Ptolemy V of the Rosetta Stone (196 BC), the gods reward him by (line R5)[6]

"....As a reward (for his deeds of kingship) these are given Him (by) the Gods-(pictured with the Uraeus on the god–hieroglyphs-(Ntr, Ntr, Ntr)):
Victory,
Strength (= Greek god Nike),
Life, Power (strength=prosperity), Health, (A.U.S.) and 'Everything Good to the Fullest' ..."

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache 1, 193.8–198.10, 198.11–200.8
  2. ^ Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache 1, 399.14–401.2
  3. ^ Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache 1, 401.3–8
  4. ^ Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache 4, 158.2–159.5
  5. ^ Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache 4, 161.7
  6. ^ The Rosetta Stone

[edit] References

  • Erman, Johann Peter Adolf, and Hermann Grapow, eds. 1926–1953. Wörterbuch der aegyptischen Sprache im Auftrage der deutschen Akademien. 6 vols. Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs’schen Buchhandlungen. (Reprinted Berlin: Akademie-Verlag GmbH, 1971).
  • Budge, E. A. Wallis, The Rosetta Stone, 1929, 1989-(Dover Edition); Dover Pub, N.Y.