January 15, 2007 11:03AM
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Registered: 19 years ago
Posts: 1,953
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Barry,
The glyphs themselves are very well understood, but there are a number of words (not glyphs
per se) where the classification of the word is known, but the exact meaning is not. IN fact we just had a thread on this very point.
The potential ambiguity is due to then nature of hieroglyphic writing, as well as to the limited corpus of surviving texts. Important, too, is the fact that etymological survivors do not exist for all Ancient Egyptians words in, for example, Coptic or Arabic, that would make arriving at the exact meaning of the AE words more testable. Add to that the fact that there are quite a number of hapax legomena,
i.e., words of which there is only a single known example, so that whatever meaning can be derived from them is purely contextual,* though we are often aided by determinatives. Finally, there are texts whose exact meaning cannot be determined because they are lamentably incomplete, torn at just the wrong point or threadbare to the point of illegibility.
I think Anthony's 97-98% understood is too high, but given the difficulties, I am amazed we understand as much as we do. This leaves quite aside the fact that we do not fully understand – and will never fully understand -- the culture that created these writings. In my first year of reading glyphs, I encountered a sentence I translated, very hesitantly as “then he will be anointed with oil of mouse.” My professor said, “right, mouse grease. Sometimes getting the right reading isn’t as difficult as
believing that what you’ve read can possibly be right.” For that proposition, the Pyramid Texts as a whole make an excellent example.
Lee
*This is not that unusual for “dead” languages by the way. There are hapax legomena known from Ancient Greek and Latin, for example. There, too, any assigned meaning is purely contextual, and there are no obviously no determinatives available to act as guides.
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Hans |
January 14, 2007 04:12AM |
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barry |
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Anthony |
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Rick Baudé |
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Anthony |
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Lee |
January 15, 2007 10:39AM |
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Anthony |
January 15, 2007 11:21AM |
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Tommi Huhtamaki |
January 15, 2007 01:36PM |
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Lee |
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Anthony |
January 15, 2007 03:52PM |
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barry |
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Anthony |
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barry |
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Katherine Reece |
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barry |
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Anthony |
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barry |
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Anthony |
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barry |
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Anthony |
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Doug Weller |
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Anthony |
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Doug Weller |
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Anthony |
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Doug Weller |
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Anthony |
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Doug Weller |
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Anthony |
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creigs1707 |
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creigs1707 |
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Katherine Reece |
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Anthony |
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Warwick L Nixon |
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Johnee |
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Katherine Reece |
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Johnee |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Katherine Reece |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Katherine Reece |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Warwick L Nixon |
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MJ Thomas |
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Anthony |
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MJ Thomas |
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Katherine Reece |
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Lee |
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Anthony |
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Anthony |
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MJ Thomas |
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Anthony |
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MJ Thomas |
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Anthony |
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Sue |
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Anthony |
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Rebby |
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barry |
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Rebby |
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Anthony |
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barry |
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bernard |
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barry |
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Martin Stower |
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barry |
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Anthony |
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Martin Stower |
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barry |
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Dave L |
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Pete Clarke |
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darkuser |
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Anthony |
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Lee |
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Tommi Huhtamaki |
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Doug Weller |
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Anthony |
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Doug Weller |
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Warwick L Nixon |
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Doug Weller |
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Anthony |
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Pete Clarke |
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Anthony |
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Pete Clarke |
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Anthony |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Lee |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Warwick L Nixon |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Anthony |
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Lee |
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Anthony |
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Lee |
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Anthony |
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MJ Thomas |
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MJ Thomas |
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Anthony |
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MJ Thomas |
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Warwick L Nixon |
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MJ Thomas |
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Anthony |
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MJ Thomas |
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Anthony |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Anthony |
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Katherine Reece |
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Lee |
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Katherine Reece |
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Anthony |
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Lee |
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Katherine Reece |
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Lee |
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Katherine Reece |
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MJ Thomas |
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MJ Thomas |
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MJ Thomas |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Anthony |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Anthony |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Doug Weller |
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Anthony |
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Anthony |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Anthony |
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Warwick L Nixon |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Anthony |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Ritva Kurittu |
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Doug Weller |
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Warwick L Nixon |
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Katherine Reece |
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Tommi Huhtamaki |
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Anthony |
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Tommi Huhtamaki |
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Anthony |
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barry |
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Anthony |
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barry |
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Anthony |
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barry |
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Anthony |
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Lee |
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barry |
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Anthony |
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Dave L |
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Rick Baudé |
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Roxana Cooper |
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barry |
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Katherine Reece |
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Roxana Cooper |
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Katherine Reece |
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Roxana Cooper |
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Salsassin |
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Katherine Reece |
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Warwick L Nixon |
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Rebby |
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Katherine Reece |
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Anthony |
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MJ Thomas |
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Rebby |
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Martin Stower |
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Hans |
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Katherine Reece |
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Rebby |
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Katherine Reece |
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Anthony |
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Joe Schiller |
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Anthony |
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Martin Stower |
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darkuser |
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Katherine Reece |
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Warwick L Nixon |
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Anthony |
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Katherine Reece |
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Anthony |
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Katherine Reece |
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Charlie Hatchett |
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Anthony |
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barry |
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Charlie Hatchett |
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Pete Clarke |
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Anthony |
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Martin Stower |
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Sue |
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Anthony |
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darkuser |
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Lee |
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Anthony |
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