What Ancient Egyptian Sounded Like - and how we know

NativLang2 minutes read

Egyptian scribes wrote hieroglyphs for 3,500 years until they ceased, with the last known inscription in a temple before Rome's fall. The rediscovery of Ancient Egyptian involved the Rosetta Stone, deciphered by Champollion and Young, leading to the restoration of the language.

Insights

  • The decipherment of Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs was achieved through the work of Champollion and Young, who utilized Coptic language elements for understanding, marking a significant milestone in linguistics and historical preservation.
  • Comparative linguistic analysis, including interactions with other languages in the Afroasiatic family, aided in tracing Egyptian's roots to Proto-Afroasiatic, showcasing the intricate evolution of the language's sounds and pronunciations over millennia.

Get key ideas from YouTube videos. It’s free

Recent questions

  • How long did Egyptian scribes write hieroglyphs?

    3,500 years

Related videos

Summary

00:00

Deciphering Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs: A Linguistic Journey

  • Egyptian scribes wrote hieroglyphs for 3,500 years until they ceased, with the last known inscription in a temple before Rome's fall.
  • The rediscovery of Ancient Egyptian involved the Rosetta Stone, deciphered by Champollion and Young, leading to the restoration of the language.
  • Champollion believed Coptic was the Egyptian language, learning from Abuna Yuẖanna, and used Coptic sounds and grammar for decipherment.
  • Internal reconstruction using Coptic helped decipher hieroglyphs, revealing a language where roots were filled with vowels to form words.
  • Linguistic clues from Egyptian interactions and comparisons with languages like Omotic and Arabic in the Afroasiatic family aided in understanding Egyptian's evolution.
  • Egyptian's position within the Afroasiatic family was traced back to Proto-Afroasiatic, allowing for sound comparisons between Coptic and Ancient Egyptian.
  • Scrutinizing sound changes revealed shifts in pronunciation over time, such as Aten's name being /jaːtin/ and Egypt's name evolving from /kuːmat/ to /keːmə/.
Channel avatarChannel avatarChannel avatarChannel avatarChannel avatar

Try it yourself — It’s free.