nṯr-ꜥꜣ

Egyptian

Etymology

nṯr (“god”) +‎ ꜥꜣ (“great, elder”), thus (conventionally) ‘the great god’ or (more accurately) ‘the elder god’.

Pronunciation

 

• (reconstructed) IPA^(key): /nacaɾˈʕaʀ/ → /nataʔˈʕaʀ/ → /nətəˈʕaʔ/ → /nətəˈʕaʔ/

• (Old Egyptian, c. 2500 BCE) IPA^(key): /nacaɾˈʕaʀ/
• (Middle Egyptian, c. 1700 BCE) IPA^(key): /nataʔˈʕaʀ/
• (Amarna-period Late Egyptian, c. 1350 BCE) IPA^(key): /nətəˈʕaʔ/
• (latest Late Egyptian, c. 800 BCE) IPA^(key): /nətəˈʕaʔ/

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /nɛt͡ʃɛr ɑːʔɑ/
  • Conventional anglicization: netjer-aa

Proper noun

 m

1. epithet for the dead former king, in contrast to nṯr-nfr for the currently living king
2. epithet for the senior king in a coregency, in contrast to nṯr-nfr for the junior king
3. a very common epithet of various gods, especially Osiris and Ra
   • 12th Dynasty, Coffin of Nakht (PM 5999):

     ḥtp ḏj nswt wsjr nb-ḏdw nṯr-ꜥꜣ nb-ꜣbḏw […]

     An offering given by the king and Osiris, the Lord of Djedu, the Elder God, the Lord of Abydos […]

Derived terms

• jmꜣḫw-ḫr-nṯr-ꜥꜣ

Descendants

• Old Coptic: ⲛⲉⲧⲱ (netō)
• Coptic: ⲛⲉⲧⲟ (neto), ⲛⲉⲧⲁ (neta) (Dialect K)

References

• Allen, James Peter (2015) Middle Egyptian Literature: Eight Literary Works of the Middle Kingdom, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 62
• James P[eter] Allen (2010) Middle Egyptian: An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs, 2nd edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 365.
• Loprieno, Antonio (1995) Ancient Egyptian: A Linguistic Introduction, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, pages 13, 35, 53, 56, 57