Ankh wedja seneb

Ankh wedja seneb (𓋹𓍑𓋴 ꜥnḫ wḏꜢ snb) is an Egyptian phrase which often appears after the names of pharaohs, in references to their household, or at the ends of letters. The formula consists of three Egyptian hieroglyphs without clarification of pronunciation, making its exact grammatical form difficult to reconstruct. It may be expressed as "life, prosperity, and health", but Alan Gardiner proposed that they represented verbs in the stative form: "Be alive, strong, and healthy".

S34
 
U28
 
S29
ankh wedja seneb
ꜥnḫ wḏꜢ snb
in hieroglyphs

Components

Egyptian hieroglyphs did not record vowel values, making the exact pronunciation of most words unknowable. The conventional Egyptological pronunciations of the words ꜥnḫ, wḏꜢ, and snb are ankh, wedja and seneb respectively.

  • Ankh means "life" and "to have life", "to live",[1] particularly with regard to the longevity and resurrection of the ancient Egyptian deities and pharaohs
  • Wedja means "to be whole" or "intact",[2] with connotations of "prosperity" and "well-being"[3]
  • Seneb means "to be sound", "to be well", "to be healthy"[4]

Rosetta Stone

On the Rosetta Stone (196 BCE), the gods are said to reward the Ptolemaic pharaoh Ptolemy V Epiphanes:[5]

"...The gods and goddesses have given him victory, and power, and life, and strength, and health [A.U.S.], and every beautiful thing of every kind whatsoever..."[6]
R9R9R9
 
X7 W24
Z9
D40		 N35
M3
Aa1 X1
 
S34U28S29
 
F18
D21		 Aa1 X1
V30		 nfrD21
F40		 O34
N35
Z2
ΔΕΔΩΚΑΣΙΝ ΑΥΤΩΙ ΟΙ ΘΕΟΙ ΥΓΙΕΙΑΝ ΝΙΚΗΝ ΚΡΑΤΟΣ ΚΑΙ ΤΑ ΑΛΛ ΑΓΑΘ[Α…]

See also

References

Citations
  1. Erman & al. (1926–1953), Vol. I, 193.8–198.10, 198.11–200.8.
  2. Erman & al. (1926–1953), Vol. I, 399.14–401.2.
  3. Erman & al. (1926–1953), Vol. I, 401.3–8.
  4. Erman & al. (1926–1953), Vol. IV, 158.2–159.5.
  5. Line 35.
  6. Budge (1929), l. 2905.

Bibliography
  • Erman, Johann Peter Adolf; et al., eds. (1926–1953), Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache im Auftrage der deutschen Akademien, Leipzig: J.C. Hinrichsschen Buchhandlungen, reprinted at Berlin by Akademie-Verlag GmbH in 1971. (in German)
  • Budge, E.A. Wallis (1929), The Rosetta Stone.
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