“High Priest” in Hieroglyphs

Let’s read some hieroglyphs 𓊹𓌃𓏪! 

Today 𓏇𓇋𓈖𓇳 we are going to look at a common word that is seen on many funerary objects 𓈎𓂋𓋴𓏏𓏏𓊭 such as stelae 𓎗𓅱𓆓𓉸𓏦! These hieroglyphs 𓊹𓌃𓏪 pictured translate to “Priest 𓊹𓍛,” “Prophet 𓊹𓍛, “High Priest 𓊹𓍛” or even “High Priestess 𓊹𓍛” in English, but if you were to breakdown the hieroglyphs 𓊹𓌃𓏪, it translates to “God’s Servant 𓊹𓍛” in Middle Egyptian! 

𓊹 – God 

𓍛 – Servant

The word for “Servant” on its own is usually written with the determinative and looks like this: 𓍛𓀀 (for males) and 𓍛𓏏𓁐 (for females). For a phrase such as “God’s Servant 𓊹𓍛,” the determinative is left out! 

Usually, the name 𓂋𓈖 of a god 𓊹 or goddess 𓊹𓏏 would come before the phrase “God’s Servant 𓊹𓍛.” For example, 𓉡𓊹𓍛 would translate to “High Priest of Hathor” and 𓊪𓏏𓎛𓊹𓍛 would translate to “High Priest of Ptah.” 

Let’s take a closer look at each of these symbols! 

The “cloth on a pole 𓊹“ symbol is an ideogram for the word god. 𓊹 is also a triliteral phonogram, and represents the letters “ntr” which may have been pronounced like “neter.” 𓊹 Is also a determinative for “god.” So the “cloth on a pole 𓊹“ symbol can function as all three types of hieroglyphs 𓊹𓌃𓏪. If you see this symbol, you are most likely looking at a word that has to do with the gods 𓊹𓊹𓊹!

The “launderer’s club 𓍛” is a biliteral phonogram which means it represents the sounds of two consonants. “𓍛” represents the sound “ḥm.”

There are so many different ways to write priest in Middle Egyptian because there were so many different types of priests! Here are some of the other popular ones: 

𓋴𓅓 – Sem Priests (responsible for the Opening of the Mouth Ceremony 𓄋𓏏𓂋𓏺)

𓃂 / 𓃂𓈗 – Wab Priest

𓀆 – To Be a Priest

𓂖 / 𓂗𓀀 – Ka Priest/Soul Priest/Priest of the Dead

𓂝𓈎𓂭𓂭𓀀 – Priest