The second kind of sentence without a verb says what or who someone is: “I am your son”, “you are my lord”. It uses the independent pronouns of Independent Pronouns.
Key idea
| Egyptian | Meaning |
|---|---|
| jnk sš | I am a scribe. |
| jnk zꜣ=k | I am your son. |
| ntk nb=j | You are my lord. |
| ntf jt=j | He is my father. |
| ntk ḥm-nṯr | You are a priest. |
| jnk bꜣk=k | I am your servant. |
The pronoun often carries emphasis: jnk zꜣ=k can be “I am your son” or “it is I who am your son”, depending on the context. Such sentences are common in speeches, in letters and in the self-presentations of tomb owners.
Two nouns side by side
Egyptian can also make a nominal sentence of two nouns with nothing between them, “A is B”, but in Middle Egyptian this bare pattern is rare and limited to certain expressions. Most sentences of the type “A is B” use either an independent pronoun (this lesson) or the little word pw, which is the next lesson, Sentences with pw.
Why it works
Common mistake
Notice that the noun after the pronoun can be anything a noun phrase can be: a bare noun (sš “a scribe”), a noun with a suffix (zꜣ=k “your son”), a direct genitive (jnk zꜣ nsw “I am a king’s son”), or a noun with an adjective (jnk sš nfr “I am a good scribe”). The pronoun stays first, and the whole rest of the sentence is its predicate. Egyptian has no articles, so “a scribe” and “the scribe” look the same: choose whichever suits the context.
Worked example: Translate
- ntf “he”, at the head.
- jt=j “my father”.
Answer: “He is my father.”
Worked example: Write it
- Independent pronoun: jnk.
- Noun: sš.
Answer: jnk sš