You now know every one-consonant sign (The Alphabet V: t ṯ d ḏ). Transliteration is the way Egyptologists write Egyptian in letters, one letter for each consonant, so that words can be printed, compared and looked up.
Key idea
Dictionary order
Egyptian dictionaries begin with ꜣ, not with a. Then come j, y, ꜥ and w, the weak consonants, followed by the labials b p f m, then n and r, the four h sounds in the order h ḥ ḫ ẖ, the s sounds z s š, the k sounds q k g, and finally t ṯ d ḏ. Words are compared letter by letter in this order.
| Word | Meaning | Why it is here |
|---|---|---|
| ꜣḫ | akh, spirit | begins with ꜣ, the first letter |
| jb | heart | j comes after ꜣ |
| ꜥnḫ | life | ꜥ after j and y |
| nfr | good | n after the labials |
| hrw | day | plain h |
| ḥtp | offering | ḥ after h |
| ḫpr | become | ḫ after ḥ |
| ḏd | say | ḏ, the last letter |
The separators
- A dot separates a stem from an ending: nṯr.w “gods”, sḏm.n=f.
- An = sign comes before a suffix pronoun: pr=f “his house”.
- A hyphen joins parts of a compound: ḥtp-dj-nsw, pr-ꜥꜣ.
- Capitals are used only for names in running text (Jmn, Ptḥ), never to change a letter.
Answer boxes on this site ignore all these separators, so pr=f and prf are both accepted. They help you read, not the checker.
Why it works
Common mistake
Worked example: Which comes first?
- First letters: ḥ, h, ḫ.
- The order of the h letters is h, ḥ, ḫ, ẖ.
Answer: hrw, ḥqꜣ, ḫpr
Worked example: Before or after?
- ꜥ comes after j (and y) in the alphabet.
Answer: after