𓈘
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Egyptian
Glyph origin
Representing a canal bordered by banks and dikes. In detailed Old Kingdom depictions the water area is covered with zigzagging ripples,
. Sometimes the canal is shown curved rather than straight,
, especially in the Old Kingdom. This glyph partly supplanted
(𓈆), its variants
(𓈅) and
(𓈄), and
(𓐚) as a determinative for cultivated land in the 8th Dynasty, but in this function eventually changed into the form
(𓈇) in the 11th Dynasty. The phonogrammatic value of mr is derived by the rebus principle from its use as a logogram for mr (“canal”).
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Symbol
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(mr, mj)
- Biliteral phonogram for mr.
- Biliteral phonogram for mj, as in mjzt (“liver”), mjꜥḥꜥt (“tomb”). [since the 18th Dynasty]
- Logogram for mr (“canal”).
- Determinative for bodies of water, interchanging with 𓈙 (
) in early times.
- Used in
or
, a composite determinative for bodies of water. [since the 18th Dynasty] - Determinative for irrigated land. [8th–11th Dynasty]
References
- Gardiner, Alan (1957) Egyptian Grammar: Being an Introduction to the Study of Hieroglyphs, third edition, Oxford: Griffith Institute, →ISBN, page 491
- Fischer, Henry (1988) Ancient Egyptian Calligraphy: A Beginner’s Guide to Writing Hieroglyphs, New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, →ISBN, page 35–36
- Betrò, Maria (1995) Geroglifici: 580 Segni per Capire l'Antico Egitto, Milan: Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A., →ISBN