Ancient Egyptian literature

Ancient Egyptian literature was written in the Egyptian language from the time of ancient Egypt's pharaonic period until the end of Roman domination. It is the oldest corpus of Egyptian literature in the world, along with Sumerian literature.

Writing in ancient Egypt, using both hieroglyphic and hieratic scripts, began in the late 4th millennium BC during predynastic Egypt. By the Old Kingdom, people wrote funerary texts, epistles, hymns, and autobiographical stories. A big change happened in the early Middle Kingdom when narrative stories were first created. This was called a "media revolution" by Richard B. Parkinson, because of new educated scribes, more people learning to read, and more books being available.

During the New Kingdom, writers used Middle Egyptian as a special language for important texts. Popular stories from this time include the Story of Sinuhe and The Eloquent Peasant. Ancient Egyptian books were written on many different things, like papyrus scrolls, pieces of limestone or ceramic called ostraca, wooden boards, big stone buildings, and even coffins.

Scripts, media, and languages

Hieroglyphs, hieratic, and Demotic

Main article: Writing in ancient Egypt

Ancient Egyptians used three ways to write: Hieroglyphs, Hieratic, and later Demotic. Hieroglyphs were used for big stone carvings and for special writings about life after death. Hieratic was a quicker way to write on paper made from plants. It was used for everyday things like letters and records. Later, Demotic became the common way to write for daily use, while hieratic was mostly used by priests. By the time of the Greeks, all three ways of writing were used together: Demotic for everyday things, hieratic for religious writings, and hieroglyphs for temples and important carvings.

By around 3100 BC, Egyptian hieroglyphs and hieratic were already being used. Hieroglyphs were pictures of things in nature, like animals and objects. For example, the picture for a door-bolt made the sound "s". These pictures could be mixed together to make words for ideas like "happiness" or "beauty". The Egyptians called hieroglyphs "words of god" and used them for important things, like talking to gods and spirits in writings about life after death.

Writing implements and materials

People in ancient Egypt wrote on different things. They used a special pen made from reeds to write with black or red paint. They wrote on pieces of paper made from a plant called papyrus, as well as on small pieces of ceramic or limestone called ostraca. Papyrus paper was not always easy to get because the plants only grew in one time of year, so people also used ostraca and limestone for shorter writings. Later, during the time of the Romans, they started using a thicker reed pen and different kinds of ink.

Preservation of written material

Tombs underground in the desert were great places to keep papyrus papers safe. Many papers about life after death found in tombs are still in good shape. Most towns in Egypt were near the Nile River, where it was too wet to keep papers for long. But in dry desert towns, more papers have been found. Writings on stone and ceramic could be lost if the stone was reused for buildings or if the ceramic was not kept in a dry place.

Classical, Middle, Late, and Demotic Egyptian language

Writing began in Egypt around 2600 BC. At first, it was only used for short names. Later, it grew into a way to write full sentences. The language changed over time. First came Old Egyptian, then Middle Egyptian, and later Late Egyptian, which was quite different. Late Egyptian turned into Demotic by around 700 BC. Demotic was used until it slowly changed into Coptic, the language used when Christianity spread in Egypt. Hieratic was used alongside hieroglyphs for writing in Old and Middle Egyptian and became the main way to write Late Egyptian. Middle Egyptian became a special, classic way of writing used for important literature, even though people spoke other forms of the language in everyday life.

Literary functions: social, religious and educational

Reading and writing were important skills for people who wanted to work in government jobs in ancient Egypt. Scribes, who could read and write, helped with many tasks, like planning big projects and keeping records. They were respected and seen as important in society.

Literature also had religious uses. Special texts were written to help people in the afterlife, with spells and hymns to offer protection and comfort. Some stories and teachings were meant to be read aloud to others, sharing knowledge and wisdom with the community.

Dating, setting, and authorship

Ancient Egyptian literature, which is called "belles-lettres" or "beautiful writing", began to be written down during the Middle Kingdom, around the early Twelfth dynasty. Before this, texts were mostly used for religious purposes or daily life records. It was during the Middle Kingdom that stories were written for fun and to make people think. Some of these written stories might have come from stories told aloud in earlier times.

It is hard to know exactly when a text was written because the way the writing looked changed over time, and authors sometimes copied the style of older writings. Stories were often set in the past, either in a "golden age" or in troubled times, which makes it tricky to guess when they were really written. The way a story was told often mattered more than the actual time it was set.

Most of these stories were not really written by famous people from the past, even though they often claimed to be. Only a few types of writings, like teachings and speeches, were sometimes attributed to real authors. Private letters, however, were often recognized as coming from the person who actually wrote them, especially if they were used as proof in court. Special letters from the pharaoh were sometimes carved into stone to show the importance of the king.

Literary genres and subjects

Modern Egyptologists organize Egyptian texts into genres, such as "laments" and narrative tales. The ancient Egyptians themselves mainly recognized the "teaching" genre. These teachings often included moral guidance and stories meant to instruct and entertain.

Teaching texts featured important words like "to know" and "to teach." They followed a specific format, often starting with "the instruction of X made for Y," where X was a wise or royal figure giving advice to a son. These texts sometimes mixed storytelling with lessons.

Narrative tales are stories that include fictional adventures and characters. Some famous tales include The Eloquent Peasant and Story of Sinuhe. These stories often blended different types of writing, such as poetry and everyday speech.

Prophetic texts and laments described changes in society and the world, often using a "then-now" style to show contrasts between past and present. These writings sometimes offered hope for a better future.

Poems and hymns celebrated kings, gods, and important places like the Nile. Funerary poems helped protect the souls of kings in the afterlife. Songs and hymns were also written for festivals and special occasions.

Letters and messages were used for communication over distances. Schoolboys practiced writing by copying model letters, which included greetings and polite phrases. Private letters from everyday people have also survived, showing how families and friends stayed in touch.

Biographical texts told the stories of important people, often focusing on their achievements and roles in society. These writings appeared on tomb walls and monuments, celebrating the lives of officials and leaders.

Legacy, translation and interpretation

Further information: Decipherment of ancient Egyptian scripts

See also: Transliteration of Ancient Egyptian

After the Copts turned to Christianity, their Coptic literature separated from the older Egyptian and Hellenistic traditions. Some experts think that ancient Egyptian stories might have influenced Greek and Arabic literature. One Egyptian story, The Taking of Joppa, tells of soldiers hiding in baskets to capture a city. This is similar to how the Mycenaean Greeks entered Troy in the Trojan Horse. The Egyptian tale also shares ideas with the Arabic story of Ali Baba in One Thousand and One Nights. Some believe the story of Sinbad the Sailor may have been inspired by an Egyptian story called Tale of the Shipwrecked Sailor.

The last known hieroglyphic inscription was carved in a temple of Philae in 394 AD. In the 4th century AD, an Egyptian writer named Horapollo wrote about many Egyptian symbols, though he did not fully understand their sounds. His work was lost until the 15th century. In the 17th century, a European scholar named Athanasius Kircher tried to understand hieroglyphs using symbols.

In 1799, French soldiers found the Rosetta Stone, which had the same message in three languages. This helped scholars finally learn to read hieroglyphs. Jean-François Champollion and Thomas Young made big discoveries in the 1820s. By 1832, people could understand most Egyptian texts. The first full translations were done by Emmanuel de Rougé in 1856.

Before the 1970s, many experts thought Egyptian literature was shaped by the society of the time. Since then, more scholars have looked at these stories in new ways, studying not just the words but also the culture and history behind them. This helps us learn more about ancient Egyptian writing.