Hieratic ( / haɪəˈrætɪk /; Ancient Greek: ἱερατικά, romanized : hieratiká, lit. 'priestly') is the name given to a cursive writing system used for Ancient Egyptian and the principal script used to write that language from its development in the third millennium BC until the rise of Demotic in the mid-first millennium BC.
Full Answer
What is the meaning of hieratic writing?
Definition of hieratic. 1 : constituting or belonging to a cursive form of ancient Egyptian writing simpler than the hieroglyphic. 2 : sacerdotal. 3 : highly stylized or formal hieratic poses.
What is the meaning of hieratic priests?
hieratic / ( ˌhaɪəˈrætɪk) / adjective Also: hieratical of or relating to priests of or relating to a cursive form of hieroglyphics used by priests in ancient Egypt of or relating to styles in art …
What is the origin of the hieratic script?
Noun. 1. hieratic - a cursive form of Egyptian hieroglyphics; used especially by the priests. Synonyms: hieratic script. Adj. 1. hieratic - associated with the priesthood or priests; " priestly ( or sacerdotal) vestments "; " hieratic gestures ". Synonyms: hieratical, priestly, sacerdotal.
What does hierarchical mean?
What does the term hieratic mean?
Definition of hieratic 1 : constituting or belonging to a cursive form of ancient Egyptian writing simpler than the hieroglyphic. 2 : sacerdotal. 3 : highly stylized or formal hieratic poses.
What is the difference between hieratic and demotic?
Two of the newer forms were called hieratic and demotic. Hieratic was a simplified form of hieroglyphics used for administrative and business purposes, as well as for literary, scientific and religious texts. Demotic, a Greek word meaning "popular script", was in general use for the daily requirements of the society.
What does hieratic mean in art?
noting or pertaining to certain styles in art in which the representations or methods are fixed by or as if by religious tradition. highly restrained or severe in emotional import: Some of the more hieratic sculptures leave the viewer curiously unmoved.
Is hieratic still used?
It was originally written vertically and later horizontally from right to left. After about 660 bce demotic script replaced hieratic in most secular writings, but hieratic continued to be used by priests in the transcription of religious texts for several more centuries.
Why did Egyptians measure land?
Surveying the fields was very important to the Ancient Egyptians. Ownership of property was common, though most of the land was owned by the pharaoh or the temples. This, of course, made the surveying even more important, because rents and taxes on property were based on the area being farmed.21-Apr-2005
What language do Copts speak?
Coptic was supplanted by Egyptian Arabic as the primary spoken language of Egypt following the Muslim conquest of Egypt....Coptic language.CopticLanguage familyAfro-Asiatic Egyptian CopticEarly formsArchaic Egyptian Old Egyptian Middle Egyptian Late Egyptian DemoticWriting systemCoptic alphabet9 more rows
What are Egypt mummies?
To make sure their souls were safe, rich Egyptians arranged for their bodies to be preserved after death. These preserved bodies are called mummies, and some are still intact to this day. The mummies of the pharaohs were buried in rich coffins, often surrounded by gold and jewels.
What was the Egyptian Sphinx at Giza?
The Great Sphinx, near Giza, Egypt. The Great Sphinx is among the world's largest sculptures, measuring some 240 feet (73 metres) long and 66 feet (20 metres) high. It features a lion's body and a human head adorned with a royal headdress.
What does hieratic refer to in Egyptian scripts?
Hieratic (/haɪəˈrætɪk/; Ancient Greek: ἱερατικά, romanized: hieratiká, lit. 'priestly') is the name given to a cursive writing system used for Ancient Egyptian and the principal script used to write that language from its development in the third millennium BC until the rise of Demotic in the mid-first millennium BC.
What is the meaning of the Old Kingdom?
noun. the period in the history of ancient Egypt, 2780–2280 b.c., comprising the 3rd to 6th dynasties, characterized by the predominance of Memphis.
Who is Pharaoh?
Definition. The Pharaoh in ancient Egypt was the political and religious leader of the people and held the titles 'Lord of the Two Lands' and 'High Priest of Every Temple'. The word 'pharaoh' is the Greek form of the Egyptian pero or per-a-a, which was the designation for the royal residence and means `Great House'.
What does the Old Kingdom mean in ancient Egypt?
The "Old Kingdom" is a period of time during the history of Ancient Egypt. It lasted from 2575 BC to 2150 BC. Over these 400 years, Egypt had a strong central government and a prosperous economy. The Old Kingdom is most famous as a time when many pyramids were built.
What is hieratic art?
hieratic. 1. (Ecclesiastical Terms) of or relating to priests. 2. (Printing, Lithography & Bookbinding) of or relating to a cursive form of hieroglyphics used by priests in ancient Egypt. 3. (Art Terms) of or relating to styles in art that adhere to certain fixed types or methods, as in ancient Egypt.
What does "sacred" mean?
Of or associated with sacred persons or offices; sacerdotal. 2. Constituting or relating to a simplified cursive style of Egyptian hieroglyphics, used in both sacred and secular writings. 3. Extremely formal or stylized, as in a work of art.
What does "priestly" mean?
adj. 1. Also, hi`er•at′i•cal. of or pertaining to priests or a priesthood; sacerdotal; priestly. 2. of or designating a form of ancient Egyptian writing consisting of abridged forms of hieroglyphics, used by the priests in their records.
What does "hieroglyphics" mean?
of or relating to a cursive form of hieroglyphics used by priests in ancient Egypt. of or relating to styles in art that adhere to certain fixed types or methods, as in ancient Egypt. noun. the hieratic script of ancient Egypt.
What does "priestly" mean?
adjective. Also hi·er·at·i·cal. of or relating to priests or the priesthood; sacerdotal; priestly. noting or pertaining to a form of ancient Egyptian writing consisting of abridged forms of hieroglyphics, used by the priests in their records.
What is hieratic writing?
Through most of its long history, hieratic was used for writing administrative documents, accounts, legal texts, and letters, as well as mathematical, medical, literary, and religious texts. During the Græco-Roman period, when Demotic (and later, Greek) had become the chief administrative script, hieratic was limited primarily to religious texts. In general, hieratic was much more important than hieroglyphs throughout Egypt's history, being the script used in daily life. It was also the writing system first taught to students, knowledge of hieroglyphs being limited to a small minority who were given additional training. In fact, it is often possible to detect errors in hieroglyphic texts that came about due to a misunderstanding of an original hieratic text.
Who was the first to use the term "hieratic"?
In the second century, the term hieratic was used for the first time to describe this Ancient Egyptian writing system by the Greek scholar Clement of Alexandria. The term derives from the Greek for "priestly writing" ( Koinē Greek: γράμματα ἱερατικά) because at that time, for more than eight and a half centuries, hieratic had been used traditionally only for religious texts and literature.
When was the hieratic script invented?
Hieratic developed as a cursive form of hieroglyphic script in the Naqada III period of Ancient Egypt, roughly 3200–3000 BC. Although handwritten printed hieroglyphs continued to be used in some formal situations, such as manuscripts of the Egyptian Book of the Dead, noncursive hieroglyphic script became largely restricted to monumental inscriptions.
What is the instruction of Amenemhat?
1514–1493 BC) reads: "Be on your guard against all who are subordinate to you... Trust no brother, know no friend, make no intimates."
When did the Demotic script start?
Around 660 BC, the even more-cursive Demotic script arose in northern Egypt and replaced hieratic and the southern shorthand known as abnormal hieratic for most mundane writing, such as personal letters and mercantile documents.
Overview
Notes
1. ^ McGregor, William B. (2015). Linguistics: An Introduction. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 306. ISBN 978-0-567-48339-3.
2. ^ Goedicke 1988:vii; Wente 2001:2006. The reference is made in Clement's Stromata 5:4.
3. ^ Definition of hieratic, Free Online Dictionary. Retrieved 2011-10-23.
Etymology
In the second century, the term hieratic was used for the first time to describe this Ancient Egyptian writing system by the Greek scholar Clement of Alexandria. The term derives from the Greek for "priestly writing" (Koinē Greek: γράμματα ἱερατικά) because at that time, for more than eight and a half centuries, hieratic had been used traditionally only for religious texts and literature.
Development
Hieratic developed as a cursive form of hieroglyphic script in the Naqada III period of Ancient Egypt, roughly 3200–3000 BC. Although handwritten printed hieroglyphs continued to be used in some formal situations, such as manuscripts of the Egyptian Book of the Dead, noncursive hieroglyphic script became largely restricted to monumental inscriptions.
Hieratic was used in the Hellenistic period. Around 660 BC, the even more-cursive Demotic scriptarose …
Uses and materials
Through most of its long history, hieratic was used for writing administrative documents, accounts, legal texts, and letters, as well as mathematical, medical, literary, and religious texts. During the Græco-Roman period, when Demotic (and later, Greek) had become the chief administrative script, hieratic was limited primarily to religious texts. In general, hieratic was much more important than …
Characteristics
Hieratic script, unlike inscriptional and manuscript hieroglyphs, reads from right to left. Initially, hieratic could be written in either columns or horizontal lines, but after the twelfth dynasty (specifically during the reign of Amenemhat III), horizontal writing became the standard.
Hieratic is noted for its cursive nature and use of ligaturesfor a number of char…
Influence
Hieratic has had influence on a number of other writing systems. The most obvious is that on Demotic, its direct descendant. Related to this are the Demotic signs of the Meroitic script and the borrowed Demotic characters used in the Coptic alphabet and Old Nubian.
Outside of the Nile Valley, many of the signs used in the Byblos syllabary apparently were borrowed from Old Kingdom hieratic signs. It is also known that early Hebrew used hieratic numerals.
Unicode
The Unicode standard considers hieratic characters to be font variants of the Egyptian hieroglyphs, and the two scripts have been unified. Hieroglyphs were added to the Unicode Standard in October 2009 with the release of version 5.2.