A Hymn to Aten: Vocalization Using Modern

ciLuba-Bantu

By Asar Imhotep (December 4, 2013)

The MOCHA-Versity Institute of Philosophy and Research

luntu/lumtu/muntu

Introduction

In this essay, we will attempt to translate part of a ciKam-ciKulu (ancient Egyptian) document in a

modern African language (ciLuba-Bantu). The aim of this exercise is to attempt to understand the

probable vocalization of ancient Egyptian words. The ancient writing script, mdw nTr, did not employ

vowels. Therefore, all we have are the consonantal skeletons from which to go by. This poses a major

problem when trying to vocalize the ancient words. The later stage of the language, Coptic, employed

vowels in its renderings. However, by the time this stage of the language comes about, the r n km.t (words

of ciKam) have gone through significant changes due to natural evolution and language contact. So the

last stage of the language, from the historical period, is not representative of the classical stages of the

language. We attempt here to get some semblance of the ancient language by using modern variants that

more closely matched that found in the hieroglyphs.

Method

Although we stated that this will be a translation, it is better understood as a transliteration into a modern

African language. We will simply do a word for word exchange between the modern term and its cognate

in the ancient Egyptian text. An example, as applied to certain Egyptian phrases, can be seen below.

Table 1: hrw/hrt = heavens1 Egyptian ciLuba Meaning P3-nty-m-Hrt Pa-ndy mu DyUlu

-Pandi mu dya-Kulu -Pandi mmu KyUlu -Pende mMwena-KuUlu -Pandi mmu CiLunga

It is he who is in heaven

But Hrt may also be given in ciLuba as:

- Pandi mu diKolo - Pandi mu ciKulu - Pandi mu cyEla

Another example can be seen with the phrase rw nw pr.t m Hrw “The words for coming forth into day”

(so-called “Book of the dead”). We can see my word-for-word transliteration as follows.

ciKam : rw nw prt m hrw ciLuba: eela2 bwenu civwilu mu bukulu

1 Bilolo (2010:95)

2 See also diyi (speech) or Diyi (‘divine’ Law/command, i.e, mêyì àà Mvìdi Mukulu = the commandments of God).

Eela also means “to act” and is cognate with the Egyptian iri “to do.” We interpret rw nu prt m hrw as “the act of

becoming (transforming into) an Ancestor.”

As we can see from the examples above, there are slight differences between the ciKam and ciLuba word

renderings. In the case of the Egyptian word nw, for example, in ciLuba there is an added bw- prefix that

is not present in Egyptian. The same prefix is in the ciLuba word bukulu, but not in Hrw. We note that the

Egyptian suffix -t is prefixed in ciLuba as ci-. The sound rule in ciLuba for this morpheme is [t + i > ci].

There have been a lot of changes in the languages since the time of the pharaohs. Therefore, we will not

attempt to match the grammar at this time as we are solely concerned with vocalization. This will help us

in looking for patterns for which to systematically revitalize the Middle Egyptian language. The ideal

method is to reconstruct proto-Egyptian, and then compare it to another proto-reconstruction, say Proto-

Bantu or Proto-Western-Sudanic, for example. As Proto-Egyptian has not been reconstructed, we are left

to try other methods of analysis.

In this text we will examine the second and third rows of the New Kingdom Great Hymn to Aten, written

by the 18th Dynasty king Akhenaten (1372-1354 BCE), from the tomb of Aye.

Additional Notes

While small phrases are easier to transliterate between ciKam and ciLuba, whole texts are another story.

Keep in mind that we can literally translate the ancient Egyptian texts into any modern African language.

However, in many cases we would be replacing many ancient ciKam words with modern equivalents.

What we want to do is match cognate words that match both form (consonantal skeleton) and meaning in

the respective languages: e.g., Egyptian Ax “good” (l-k), ciLuba -lenga “good, be good” (l-g). If an

Egyptian text had the word Ax “good,” we wouldn’t put the ciLuba word impe “good” as a substitute,

because it doesn’t match the form given in the ancient Egyptian text. However, this word matches another

Egyptian word for “goodness, perfection”: nfr (ciLuba impila).

The comparative method of historical comparative linguistics allows us to note any sound changes in the

respective languages. This work has already been done for ciLuba. This is how we know that Egyptian /r/

and /A/ corresponds to ciLuba /l/. Egyptian /H/ corresponds to ciLuba /k/, and Egyptian /p/ often

corresponds to ciLuba /v/ (thus, Egyptian pr.t = ciLuba ci-vwilu). Therefore, noting common sound

changes will be critical in this comparative work.

As we have previously stated, languages change and we note that words fall in and out of use. New words

are invented and others are replaced due to borrowing. The current exercise demonstrates this fact as

modern ciLuba does not have all of the ancient Egyptian words in any one Egyptian text. As a result, for

those words that modern ciLuba may not have, I have substituted those words with words from other

African languages that more closely match the form and meaning of the lexeme given in the Egyptian

text. My first recourse is to go to Kalenjiin (Nilo-Saharan), and if it cannot be found there (through the

resources at my disposal), I will then search other languages. We are treating all African languages as

fundamentally related to each other, so we will find these words scattered in various languages across the

continent. Remember, our focus is vocalization, not demonstrating relatedness (the focus of the

comparative method).

We also have to keep in mind that Egyptian had many different dialects and languages spoken in the area.

So a written text may have employed vocabulary from one dialect that may have words used that other

dialects did not employ. We also may contend that many texts were written in other closely related

African languages, thus giving the impression that it was all written in the ancient Egyptian language.

That Egypt was a multilingual and multiethnic (African) society is also the opinion of the linguist from

Ghana, Dr. Nana Banchie Darkwah. In his book The Africans Who Wrote the Bible (2002: 149), as

concerns the limitations of modern Egyptology on the Egyptian language question, he states:

Unfortunately, Champollion's decipherment of the hieroglyphics was based upon the wrong

premise that Ancient Egypt was a monolingual nation just as most modern European nations are

today. However, that premise is false. Ancient Egypt was a multilingual nation as we see on the

African continent today. Ancient Egyptian writings were therefore not in one tribal language. As a

result, deciphering one language could not give western scholars the orthographic clues to the

numerous documents that were written in other tribal languages. This is the reason less than a

tenth of the supposed recovered papyri from Ancient Egypt have been successfully deciphered up

to date. The deciphering formula that Champollion left behind does not fit all the languages of all

the papyri Egyptologists and archaeologists have recovered from Ancient Egypt. What is worse,

most of these scholars do not even know that they are dealing with different African languages.

Another point to contend with is the fact that “loan” words are introduced into many languages as a result

of differing ethnic group’s trading, intermarrying, or the taking of concubines in wars. Dr. GJK

Campbell-Dunn, in his work Comparative Sumerian Grammar (2009a), discusses this phenomenon

among the Sumerians and the Austro-Melanesians.

Finally the fact that women spoke a separate dialect, EMESAL, is important. A similar situation

prevailed in parts of Africa. Marriage by abduction was once widespread. The wives spoke a

different language or dialect from their husbands, and taught this, with greater or lesser success to

their children. The result was continuous, systematic language mixture. This must have

implications for the tree theory model of language comparison. Can one really speak of loan-

words in this situation ? Yet presumably the language of the males was dominant. They always

enjoyed superior status.

See M. LEENHARDT, (1946 : xvi), Langues et dialectes de l’ Austro-Mélanésie, Paris, for a

discussion of the effects of mobile female speakers on native languages :

“Les indigènes”, he says, “ne mettent point la guerre en cause quand ils décrivent les changements

de langue en une région : ils accusent seulement l’action des femmes...Les femmes enseignent aux

enfants leur langue maternelle.”3 This they regard as the major cause of language change. As the

languages concerned were already related, this process inevitably lead to doublets and byforms,

even profound grammatical changes. This process was more fundamental than the well-known

phenomenon of linguistic taboo prohibiting the use of words of conquered tribes, of the names of

important chiefs etc.

Leenhardt emphasises that it was normal for speakers to speak several different languages. This

situation seems to have prevailed in Sumeria also. (Campbell-Dunn, 2009a: 157).

We contend that this was the case in ancient Egypt as well. Egypt was not a mono-lingual nation, and at

minimum, there were two distinct languages spoken in the area (I contend a lot more than this). This

explains the many variations of words in the historical records and the doublets, from obviously different

stages of language evolution from related languages.

3 My translation: "The natives," he says, "do not put the war issue in question as they describe the language changes

in a region: they blame this solely on the action of women...Women teach children their mother tongue."

Helmut Satzinger, in his book The Egyptian Connection: Egyptian and the Semitic Languages (2003:

231-232), although trying to make the case for a strong Semitic and Egyptian connection, provides these

comments that reaffirm much of what we’re saying here:

Egyptian has much in common with Semitic, as compared with most Cushitic (including Omotic;

cf. Lamberti 1999) and Chadic languages. But when evaluating similarities between individual

branches of Afroasiatic it is crucial to take into account (1) the factor of time, (2) the historico-

cultural factor, and (3) possible areal effects.

(The factor of time.) Egyptian and Akkadian are attested in the third millennium BC, other Semitic

languages somewhat later. The other branches of Afroasiatic are attested only recently (with the

exception of the rather meagre evidence of ancient Libyan), and often enough not to a satisfactory

extent. This means that comparisons must allow for a further development of several thousand

years on the side of the other branches.

(The historico-cultural factor.) The Afroasiatic relationship dates back to Mesolithic times. Many

important cultural achievements, such as agriculture and cattle-breeding, are later. The social

structure and the forms of rule have changed drastically. This is of particular importance for

lexical comparison. Many terms that appear basic to us cannot be expected to be part of the

inherited common vocabulary. (Characteristic examples are terms like Hsb “to reckon”4 and xtm

“to seal”: the meaning is the same, the transcription is identical for Egyptian and Arabic, there is

obviously a close relationship, but it must be other than genetic.)

(Areal effects.) The prehistory of the speakers of the individual branches of Afroasiatic is

controversial, as is the question of the original Afroasiatic homeland, and consequently the

reconstruction of the migrations from there to their present locations. It is usually very hard to say

who in the course of time used to be the neighbours of the individual groups. Historical Egypt is

constituted of two populations: that of the Delta, and that of the Nile Valley. Most probably, these

groups had different languages, and it is only one of them that is the ancestor of historical

Egyptian. At present, many assume that Proto-Egyptian is the language of the Southerners

(Naqâda culture; cf. Helck 1984; Helck, 1990). We know nothing at all about the other language.

The Valley population is not indigenous. It has immigrated either from the south or from the

south-west. The implications of this question concern the languages with which Egyptian may

have had contact before it entered the light of history. In the south, we may expect Cushitic

(including Omotic) languages, and apart from Afroasiatic, various Eastern Sudanic languages (of

the Nilo-Saharan macro-phylum), and Kordofanian languages (Niger-Kordofanian macro-

phylum). In the south-west, the presumable neighbours would probably have spoken either Chadic

languages, or Saharan languages (again, Nilo-Saharan). But these assumptions are, of course,

based on the present distribution.

4 I do not agree with his assessment as it pertains to this word. The word Hsb “reckon, calculate, accounting, count”

derives from a more basic root in Egyptian ip “to reckon, count, take a census”; Coptic wp (wp); ipw “inventory.” In

Central Chadic this root is actually *l-p “to reckon up”; Daba nif < *lif; Kola nof. The root is possible, with semantic

shift, ip < *lp “to examine, investigate (Wb I, 66); W.Chadic: Angas-sura *lap “to investigate, look for”; Mupun yāp

“to look for something that is missing,” yàp “to check.” These became loanwords in Caananite: ēpā “to measure”

(Capacity); Hebrew Aēfā; Greek oipi “measure of corn” (< Egyptian ip, ipy.t, iyp.t; Coptic eiope/oeme). In ciLuba

this term is -badika "count, enumerate, to do financial (statements)"; -bala "read, count, enumerate"; mbadilu "how

to read, how to count" (meta-thesis). @sb is an expanded form of sbA "school, teach, wise, to tend, learning, to

instruct, guide, direct, gate/portal." Education is learning how to “read” and “measure” (calculate). We have also in

Egyptian sb “measurment” (for stone). The H- is a prefix. The l-(r-) is an affix mean “to.” In Egyptian r > i in many

instances. Calculating, investigating, reading, thinking, etc., are very basic human activities and the lexemes has

survived in practically all major language families in Africa.

To comment on the later part of this citation, Satzinger is noting the various pools of cultures from which

derived pharaonic Egyptian culture. He is admitting to the fact that areal contacts shape language. He also

attests to at least one other language in the Delta region (I argue it was Berber). What was this language

and how did the interaction of this language, as a result of the unifying of the two lands, affect the

development of Egyptian? Did this language remain a separate language in ancient Egypt? What about

the other cultures and languages that surrounded the ‘Proto-Egyptian’ language speakers? Did they

consciously stay in the Sudan area while the ‘Proto-Egyptians’ moved down the Nile? If so, why would

they stay? What compelled this one group of ‘Proto-Egyptians’ to move down the river and dominate the

indigenous people? How many languages were spoken indigenously along the Nile before the colonists

from Ethiopia took over? These are the types of questions one must ask when discussing the development

of ancient Egyptian in a contact situation.

Notes on phonology

Below is a chart with the ancient Egyptian sound values, as well as their ciLuba-Bantu correspondents.

Table 2: Basic Egyptian Signs and their Phonemes5

Gardiner

Sign Coda

Symbol Description Proposed

Sound Value

ciLuba Other possible

vocalizations

G1

vulture A a r/l

M17

Reed leaf e/i/j i gi, bi, ci

Double reeds e/y y g>y

D36 Arm a a, e(n) ka, ba

G43,

Quail chick/

rope u/w u b, swa

D58

Lower leg/foot b b p, k

Q3 seat6 p p b

I9 Horned viper f f b

G17

Owl/carpenter’s

level m m b, p

N35,

Water/white

crown n n m, mb; ng, nk > ny

D21 mouth r l

O4

courtyard h h, k

V28

Twisted flax H ng, nk,

sh

s

Aa1 sieve x ng, sh

F32 Belly & udder X sh, nk,

h

x

O34 Bolt/lock s/z s, sh, z t, j, k

5 The Ciluba corresponding sound values come from Bilolo (2011: 236). The “other possible vocalizations” column

comes from Imhotep (2012).

6 Some argue that this is a sign for a mat. See p "mat" (as covering for furniture), (statue) base, throne" .

S29

Folded shawl s s, sh, z

N37 Pool of water S sh

N29 Hill slope q k, q

V31 basket k k, g t

W11

Jar stand or stool g g, ng,

nk

X1 Bread loaf t t d

V13 Tethering rope T tsh, ci t

D46 hand d d, t, ci

I10

cobra D dj, nd d, j, k

In this text we treat the /A/ sound as an /l/, and the /a/ sound as a /k/ (or /g/) value. A more detailed analysis

on why a = k is forthcoming. In the meantime you can review Imhotep (2012).

Color Key:

To distinguish which words were used from the different languages, we have employed a color system for

the words used in our transliterations. They are as follows:

Kalenjiin (Nilo-Saharan)

Kikongo (Niger-Congo)

Another African Language

Untransliterated Egyptian

The ciLuba-Bantu words will be in regular font and italicized. Only the words from languages other than

ciLuba will be color-coded.

The translations and transliterations will be presented in four lines for analysis. The row orders are as

follows:

1. Egyptian transliterated from the hieroglyphs

2. English transliteration of the Egyptian words (one-to-one correspondences)

3. ciLuba or other African language words transliterated

4. Translation into English. This line will be underlined

Below is the full hieroglyphic rendering of the Hymn to Aten.

I cross referenced my translations with Obenga (2004: 91-118). After reviewing the primary glyphs from

other sources, I have determined that there are a few mistakes in the Obenga transcription, which I

corrected in a line below Obenga’s, with the corrected text in brackets: […].

At the end of this text there will be a glossary of terms from both ciLuba and Kalenjiin that were used in

the transliteration.

Transliteration and Translation of the Hymn to Aten

ROW TWO

xai.k nfr m Axt nt pt pA appear.you beautiful on horizon of sky this

anguka ok-week,7 impila mu lukèndù ne peet

8 bù

You appear, beautiful, on the horizon of the sky

itn anx SAa anx iw.k sun disk living, origin life are.you citàngu

9 zingu, ngaashilu

10 zingu iw.ok-week

Living sun disk, you who brought life into being

wbn.ti m Axt iAbty rise.you on horizon east

banda.cyôci11

mu lukendu mubàndu12

when you rise on the eastern horizon

mH.n.k tA nb m nfrw.k

fill.you land every with beauty.your

7 The word for “you” in ciLuba is nu or nwênu. This matches Egyptian un “you.” However, ciLuba has the suffix -

kò(ù)/-ko(u) “he, she, the.” Thus, Egyptian xai.k could be rendered in ciLuba anguka - kò “He appears.” The Coptic

word for “you” is ek. This survives in Kalenjiin as ok-week, but the focus has shifted and it is now “you” in the

plural; iny-eendet is their word for “you” in the singular. Toweet (1979: 316) has inyee “you” for the singular and

ookweek for the plural. The usual forms -iik or -ik are the plural suffixes on nouns and adjectives in Kalenjiin. We

are using this variation for the ok- part of the term. 8 This is the Kalenjiin word for “day,” which has gone through a semantic shift from Egyptian pt “sky, heaven.”

CiLuba has pe-ulu > pe-udu (Bilolo, 2011: 67). The normal word for sky in ciLuba is di-ulu. I choose the Kalenjiin

variation because it is closer to the Egyptian spelling. 9 Egyptologists interpret jtn as “sun disk,” but I prefer simply “sun.” The Efik-Ibibio (Niger-Congo) word utin “sun”

or Tirma (Nilo-Saharan) atunu “sun” is a better fit. In Common-Bantu we have tango “sun.” 10

From the same root as cyashilu "beginning, commencement, foundation, achievement.” 11

The stative -ti “you” can also mean “she.” In ciLuba, when /t/ is followed by /i/, the /t/ becomes /c/: [t + i > ci].

Cyôci means “he, she, the.” The term cì- is also a prefix meaning “it, he, she, her, they, their.” 12

The Egyptian word jAbty (<jAbt) “east” is actually a variant of the word wbn “rise, shine, glitter, appear, overflow,

be excessive, run out of (fluid from body).” Here the A become n. We also have metathesis. The final -t suffix is a

grammatical feature that nominalizes verbs. Thus the “rise, shine” of the sun, with suffix -t, becomes the word for

“east” (the place of the sunrise). In ciLuba we have banda "up, rise" > mubàndu "mounted, mount, east"; bàla

"shine, glow."

jimà.nè.ok-week lèètâ13

mbombo mu bu-impe.ok-week

You fill all lands with your beauty

iw.k an.ti wr.ti THn.ti qAi.ti Hr-tp tA nb

are.you magnificent.you great.you shine.you high.you chief land all

iw.ok-week noonòke(a).cyôci waria14

.cyôci THn.cyôci kuulu.cyôci mukulu-tumba lèètâ mbombo

Beautiful you are, and great. You sparkle, high above the land entire.

stwt.k inq.sn tAw r r-a ir.t[i].n.k nb

rays.your embrace.they lands toward limit create.you all

stwt.ok-week aanya.sn tirri15

lwa mukàlu16

eela.nè.ok-weet mbombo

Your rays embrace the lands to the ends of all your creation.

ROW THREE

iw.k m ra in(i).n.k r r-a.sn

are.you as sun reached.you towards limits.their

iw.ok-week bu ilunga17

ya-ne18

.ok-weet lwa mukàlu.sn

Being the sun, you have reached all the way to their boundaries.

waf.k sn [n] sA.k mri.w.k19

bind.you them son.your belove.w.your

bùnya.ok-week sn sA.ok-week mulelà.ok-week

bonding them for your beloved son.

wA.ti stwt.k Hr tA far.you rays.your on earth

bale.cyôci stwt.ok-week pale20

tirri

Far though you are, your rays are here on earth.

tw.k m Hr.sn bw nw Smt21.k22

you in sight.their not see movements.your

13

The ciLuba word lèètâ means “state” and may be a derived termed. The Egyptian word tA “land, earth, ground” is

t-l or t-r. This consonant root may have been reversed by way of metathesis: t-l > l-t > lèètâ. In Western Chadic we

have: Dera turo, Karekare tarà “farm, fields” ||| Omotic: (S) Karo tore "earth” ||| Cushitic: (E) Yaaku tirri “earth” |||

Indo-European: French terre “land, earth.” 14

Kiswahili waria “a skilled person, an expert, a capable person, a champion, a master at his work, a blacksmith,

metalwork, smithing.” 15

(Cushitic) Yaaku tiiri “earth.” 16

Egyptian r a “limit” equals ciLuba mukàlu by way of metathesis of the liquid and velars. 17

Isizulu ilanga “sun.” 18

See Bilolo (2011: 126). 19

Digital Egypt has this sentence as /waf.k sn (n) sA-mr.k/. http://www.digitalegypt.ucl.ac.uk/amarna/belief.html 20

In ciLuba, the /p/ and /h/ sound interchange. See Imhotep (2013: 327) and Bilolo (2011: 11). 21

The Egyptian word Smt can mean “walking, gait, movements, actions, business, way, track.” Thus his

“movements” may be hidden, but also his “actions, business, ways” are hidden. In other words, how he operates is a

mystery. 22

Digital Egypt has this sentence as w.k m Hr.sn nw Smw.k without bw before nw.

tw.ok-week mu keer23

.sn bwalà mòna Smt.ok-week

You are on people’s faces, yet your motion is invisible.

Htp.k m Axt imnty rest.you in horizon west

ketepi.ok-week mu lukendu muntu24

When you retire to the western horizon,

tA m kkw m[i] sxr n mt land as dark as state of death

tiira mu bwikika bu cikadilu ne mufwe

earth grows dark as if in death

sDrw m Sspt tpw Hbs

sleepers in bedrooms, heads covered

kalu25

mu Sspt tobi26

kubuuy27

People sleep indoors, their heads covered

ptr.n irt sn-nwt [n ptr.n irt snwt.s] not see.their eye other.its

nǎnyì ptr.tù irt nnyààna28

lwàkù

their eyes invisible each to each.

si Taw xt.nb iw Hr tpw.sn [iTA.tw xt.sn nb iw.w Xr tpw.sn]

steals.one things.all [iw.w?] beneath heads.their

ongolola29

mu-ntu cintu.sn mbombo iw.w shààdìle tobi.sn

If all their goods were stolen from under their heads

nn am.sn

not know.they

nǎnyì manya.sn

they would not know it.

23

Kalenjiin keer “see, view, look at, stare at, watch” (Egyptian Hr “sight”). 24

The African languages inform us that Egyptian jmnty “west” should really be interpreted as “the end” as the word

is referring to the “end” of the day, the end of the sun’s journey. The word muntu in Kalenjiin means “tail, end.” We

also have in Kalenjiin imēn “sunset, become dark late in the evening.” This is reflected in ciLuba as mana

"complete, end, finish"; imana “stop”; manda “valley, south”; kumanda “downstream, south, at the foot.” Egyptian

also has mn-q “come to an end, finish, reward,” which becomes in ciLuba: ka-manya “means to an end, end, result,

finish.” 25

The Egyptian /D/ sound derives from /g/. We propose: k > g > D. Thus, Egyptian s-Drw is ciLuba kalu “nap”

without the s- causative prefix (> kalwisha). 26

Tangale (W. Chadic) tobi “begin” (< PAA* - (?) “begin”; Egyptian tp “begin”; tp “head”)/. TOB Database. 27

We suppose a loss of final -s. 28

We assume here an ancestral dropping of the s- morpheme in ciLuba. Egyptian snnw > ciLuba nnyààna “friend,

companion, comrade.” 29

The Egyptian /T/ sound was originally a /k/. Thus, jTA was jkA, which is reflected in ciLuba as dikula “remove”;

ongolola “steal, remove.” This is reflected in Egyptian awAy “to steal, to rob,” where a = k. See also dAr “steal, rob.”

</end row three>

ciLuba Glossary

a "from, to, for, towards"30

aanya "embrace, hug, bonding"

aasa "construct, based, undertake, initiate, to live, settle"

anguka "get up, arise, appear, emerge"

bàla "shine, glow" (<banda)

banda "up, rise"

bandila "stand against somebody, rise against somebody"

bàyika "tie, set by means of a pin, pin"

bù "the"

bu “as, as well as, along with”

bùnya "bend, fold, comply"

bwalà "not" (Kalenjiin buryo “not”)

bwâshi "not"

bwii "cover" > bwikila > jibikila "cover" (the voice of someone) > bwikidija "overlay, crush,

cover"

bwikika "cover, hide" (thus darkness)

bwîmpè(à) "beauty, goodness, agreement, elegance, excellence"

ciikadilu "state, status, custom, position"

ciina "sister" or "brother" (can be in-laws or step)

cisùna "vagina"

citàngu ≋ ntàngu "circle"

cyâna "young, child"

cyashilu "beginning, commencement, foundation, achievement"

cyôci / cyǒcì (pronoun) replacement ≋ cyôcyo / cyǒcyò "him, her, the"

diikala "existence, life, state"

eela "send away, remove or exit from self (a sound, an idea, word, object ...), issue, express,

make."

iikala "be, stay, remain"

ìmpè(à) "beauty, good, agreeable"

impila "be beautiful, good, agreeable"

jimà "whole, full

jinga "roll, surround"

Jìngakaja "link, surrounded in all directions"

juuka (A) get up, straighten ; (B) appear, arise.

kalu “nap”

kataatu "shine"

koma "finish, complete"

kule(a) "far, in the distance, long, long distance"

kuulu "above, in the air, standing, time, stand, above, God”

lukèndù "horizon, row, stacked rows"

30

-à/-a morphème connectif 1 ce morphème forme avec un préfixe pronominal le mot dit connectif (wa, bàà, wà, yà,

cyà, dyà, àà, byà, lwà, kàà, twà, bwà, kwà, pàà, kwà, mwà). Il porte un ton bas, sauf en classe 1 (wa). Souvent

équivalent aux prépositions "à", "de", "pour", il signifie aussi "relatif à" ou "relevant de"; 2 associé à un morphème

applicatif (il, in, el, een), il forme des structures signifiant "servant à", "utilisé pour"

lunga "bind, connect, make ends meet, plaiting, make chains"

lwa/lua/rwa (= a) "come, reach, be"

lwàkù (ò) “its, his, her”

mana "complete, end, finish"

manya “know, think, believe”

mbombo "a bundle, a pack, swarm, a set"

mòna "view, realize, perceive, feel, experience, experiment"

mpàla "visage, figure, face, front"

mu "in, to, from, between, on"

mubàndu "mounted, mount, east"

mukàlu "limit, border, bound, boundary line"

mukùlù "senior, old, grandfather, Chief, Director, Chairman

mukwènù "your next" (your child)

mulelà "member of a large family, parent"

mupàtukilu "east, orient, levant"

muSela "married girl/woman"

nǎnyì “not, no”

ne "of" (Genitive)

ne "to" (dative)

ngaashilu (<aasa) "so as to construct, architecture"

Nnyààna “friend, companion, comrade”

noonoka “ be pure, clean, polished, plain, beautiful; be free of need”

noonòke(a) "beautiful"

nu "you

nwênu "you"

ne(i) “I”

pale "long, large, top"

pàtuka "out, lead, result in, show, appear"

salu(ci-) "children of the street"

tamba "pass, exceed, surpass, take precedence over, excel"

temba "boast, to praise, glorify, magnify"

temba "remove the top, topping, pinching"

tumba "be famous, to be honored"

Twetu “us, we”

-umba > bumba, vumva; cibumbu, mabumbu, musumba "Sense as "bundle, package, set, group,

heap, lot, etc.." provide a better glimpse of the multipurpose Note that the repetition of "all

totality" of our "every, everyone."

dikula “remove, away”

ongoloja "remove, steal furtively"

ongolola "remove, steal"

shààdìle(a) "sub-, below"

Kalenjiin Glossary

kubuuy “cover a container”

ok-week “you” (plural)

buryo “not”

keer “look, view, stare, see, watch”

muntu “tail, end”

peet “day”

Selected Bibliography

Allen, James P. (2005). The Ancient Egyptian Pyramid Texts. Society of Biblical Literature.

______. (2010). Middle Egyptian: An Introduction into the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs, 2nd

Edition. Cambridge University Press.

Amen, Rkhty. (2010). The Writing System of Medu Neter: Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs. The Institute of

Kemetic Philology.

Anselin, Alain. “Some Notes about an Early African Pool of Cultures from which Emerged the Egyptian

Civilisation” in Egypt in its African Context : Proceedings of the conference held at The Manchester

Museum, University of Manchester, 2-4 October 2009. 2011. pp. 43-53.

Bengston, John D. (Ed.). (2008) In Hot Pursuit of Language in Prehistory: Essays in the four fields of

anthropology. John Benjamins Publishing Company.

Bilolo, Mubabinge. (2010). Invisibilite et Immanence du Createur Imn (Amon-Amun-Amen-Iman-Zimin):

Example de la Vi ali e de l’Ancien Egyp ien o CiKam dans le Cyena N . Publications

Universitaires Africaines. Munich-Kinshasa-Paris.

______ (2008). Meta-Ontologie Egyptienne du –IIIe millenaire Madwa Meta-Untu: Tum-Nunu ou Sha-

Ntu (APA. I.8). Munich-Kinshasa-Paris.

______ (2011). Vers Un Dictionnaire Cikam-Copte-Luba: Bantuite du vocabulaire egyptien-copte dans

les essays de Homburger et d’Obenga. Publications Universitaires Africaines. Munich-Kinshasa-Paris.

Campbell-Dunn, GJK. (2006). Who Were the Minoans: An African Answer. Author House.

______. (2009b). Sumerian Comparative Dictionary. Penny Farthing Press.

______. (2009a). Sumerian Grammar. Penny Farthing Press.

______. (2004). Comparative Linguistics: Indo-European and Niger-Congo. Penny Farthing Press.

Danesi, Marcel. (2004). A Basic Course in Anthropological Linguistics. Canadian Scholars' Press Inc.

Toronto, Ontario.

Erman, Adolph and Grapow, Hermann. (1971). WÖRTERBUCH DER AEGYPTISCHEN SPRACHE im

Auftrage der deutschen Akademien hrsg Bd. I-V. Unveränderter Nachdruck. Berlin

Faulkner, R.O. (1962). A Concise Dictionary of Middle Egyptian. Griffith Institute, Ashmolean Museum.

Imhotep, Asar (2012). “Egypt In Its African Context Note 3: Towards A Method For Vocalizing Mdw

Ntr Symbols.” www.asarimhotep.com.

______. (2013). Aaluja: Rescue, Reinterpretation & the Restoration of Major Ancient Egyptian Themes,

Vol.I. MOCHA-Versity Press. Houston, TX.

Lichtheim, M. (1975). Ancient Egyptian Literature -- Volume I: The Old and Middle Kingdoms.

University of California Press.

Loprieno, Antonio. (1995). Ancient Egyptian: A Linguistic Introduction. Cambridge University Press.

New York, NY.

Lord, Robert. (1966). Comparative Linguistics. David McKay Company. New York, NY.

Miller, Cynthia L. (Ed.). (2007). Studies in Semitic and Afro-Asiatic Linguistics Presented to Gene B.

Gragg. Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago.

Nsapo, Kalamba and Bilolo, Mubabinge (Eds.). (2010). Renaissance de la Theologie Negro-Aficaine:

Melanges en l’honne r d Prof. Bimwenyi-Kweshi. Publications Universitaires Africaines. Munich,

Kinshasa, Freising.

Obenga, Theophile. (1992). Ancien Egyp & Black Africa: A S den ’s Handbook for he S dy of Ancien

Egypt in Philosophy, Linguistics & Gender Relations. Karnak Books.

______. (1995). Readings in Precolonial Central Africa: Texts and Documents. Karnak House Publishing

______. (2004). African Philosophy: The Pharaonic Period: 2780-330 B.C. Popoguine, Senegal: Per

Ankh [First published 1990, Paris: L‟Harmattan]

Oduyoye, Modupe. (1996). Words and Meaning in Yorùbá Religion: Linguistic Connections in Yorùbá,

Ancient Egyptian & Semitic. Karnak House Publishing.

______. (2001). Yorùbá Names: Their Structure and their Meanings, 3rd

Edition. Daystar Press

______. (1984). The Sons of Gods and the Daughters of Men: An Afro-Asiatic Interpretation of Genesis

1-11. Orbis Books.

Ra, Ankh Mi. (1995). Let the Ancestors Speak: Removing the Veil of Mysticism from Medu Netcher Vol.

1. JOM International, Inc.

Thomason, Sarah Grey and Kaufman, Terrence. (Eds.). (1988). Language Contact, Creolization and

Genetic Linguistics. University of California Press. Berkley and Los Angeles, CA.

Vygus, Mark. (2012). Ancient Egyptian Dictionary.

Webb, Vic and Sure, Kembo (Eds.). (2000). African Voices: An Introduction to the Languages and

Linguistics of Africa. Oxford University Press. London.

Welmers, WM. E. (1973). African Language Structures, UCLA Press. Berkeley, CA.

______ (1971). “Niger-Congo, Mande” in Thomas Sebeok ed., Current Trends in Linguistics,

Subsaharan Africa, Mouton, The Hague.

Wilkinson, Toby H. (2001). Early Dynastic Egypt. Routledge. New York, NY.

Websites

CiLuba Dictionary

http://www.ciyem.ugent.be

The Beinlich Egyptian-German Wordlist

http://www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/er/beinlich/beinlich.html

Ancient Scripts

http://www.ancientscripts.com/

L’Egyptologie par Dou Kaya

http://doukaya.over-blog.com/article-introduction-au-seminaire-d-egyptologie-57165207.html

Radical Linguistics Alexander Aberfeldy, 2010

http://lochearnhead.wikidot.com/

Nostratic Online Database (Afro-Asiatic)

http://starling.rinet.ru/