Doug Weller Wrote:
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> Which is the more common spelling (and how do you
> figure that out?)?

For what is "common", it depends upon how one pronounces the name. If one says "Ram-sees" without the short 'e' in between, then the "common" spelling is "Ramses." If one says "Ram-ehs-sees", then "Ramesses" is the "common" spelling.

The problem is that neither term is the "correct" Egyptian name. The name in Egyptian is /ra msi sw/"Ra-mesy-su" or "Ra-mes-su." Originally, Ramses' grandfather was referred to as /pA-ra-msi-sw/, but altered it to /ra msi sw/ when he became king, giving name to the new dynastic line.

To be closer to the original Egyptian, I normally opt for "Ramses," and as an adjective, the "Ramessid" period of history.

As for what is 'common' in the English speaking world, here's an interesting factoid: in the Ten Commandments (1956), the name was continuously voiced as "Ramses" without the short 'e' in the middle, by those actors playing the Egyptians, but, interestingly, Heston, as Moses, and most of the "Hebrews" in the film call the king "Ramesses," with the short 'e' within. So, no help there as to what was the "common" name for the king, is it?

As De Mille had basically hired the entire Egyptian antiquities staff of the Metropolitan Museum of Art for that film, I can only assume that they probably advised him as to the pronunciation, but as De Mille himself was born of a Jewish mother, perhaps he felt the need to distinguish the name when the Hebrews said it. Whatever the case, there are two different pronunciations in the film, if you listen closely.

So, take your pick: it probably will not matter as long as you make it clear that in reality, the king's name was never pronounced in ancient times as "Ramses" or "Ramesses," but as "Ra-mes(y)-su."

HTH.

Katherine Griffis-Greenberg

Doctoral Candidate
Oriental Institute
Doctoral Programme in Oriental Studies [Egyptology]
Oxford University
Oxford, United Kingdom