ꜣb

Egyptian

Pronunciation

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /ɑb/
  • Conventional anglicization: ab

Etymology 1

Related to ꜣbb (“to separate from”).

Verb

 2-lit.

1. (intransitive) to stop, to take a break [since Middle Kingdom literature]
2. (transitive) to cease or stop [with infinitive or (in the Greco-Roman Period) r or m or n (+ infinitive) ‘doing something’]
3. (transitive) to avoid
4. (intransitive) to tarry or stay for a while [with ḥr ‘with someone’]
5. (intransitive) to part with, to separate from [Late Period to Greco-Roman Period] [with r]

Inflection

Conjugation of ꜣb (biliteral / 2-lit. / 2rad.) — base stem: ꜣb, geminated stem: ꜣbb

infinitival forms imperative infinitive negatival complement complementary infinitive1 singular plural ꜣb ꜣbw, ꜣb ꜣbt ꜣb, j.ꜣb ꜣb, j.ꜣb ‘pseudoverbal’ forms stative stem periphrastic imperfective2 periphrastic prospective2 ꜣb ḥr ꜣb m ꜣb r ꜣb suffix conjugation aspect / mood active passive contingent aspect / mood active passive perfect ꜣb.n ꜣbw, ꜣb consecutive ꜣb.jn active + .tj1, .tw2 active + .tj1, .tw2 terminative ꜣbt perfective3 ꜣb active + .tj1, .tw2 obligative1 ꜣb.ḫr active + .tj1, .tw2 imperfective ꜣb, j.ꜣb1 active + .tj1, .tw2 prospective3 ꜣb ꜣbb potentialis1 ꜣb.kꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 active + .tj1, .tw2 subjunctive ꜣb, j.ꜣb1 active + .tj1, .tw2 verbal adjectives aspect / mood relative (incl. nominal / emphatic) forms participles active passive active passive perfect ꜣb.n active + .tj1, .tw2 — — perfective ꜣb active + .tj1, .tw2 ꜣb ꜣbb, ꜣbbj6, ꜣb2, ꜣbw2 5, ꜣby2 5 imperfective j.ꜣb1, ꜣb, ꜣby, ꜣbw5 active + .tj1, .tw2 j.ꜣb1, j.ꜣbw1 5, ꜣb, ꜣbj6, ꜣby6 ꜣb, ꜣbw5 prospective ꜣb, ꜣbtj7 — ꜣbtj4, ꜣbt4 1 Used in Old Egyptian; archaic by Middle Egyptian. 2 Used mostly since Middle Egyptian. 3 Archaic or greatly restricted in usage by Middle Egyptian. The perfect has mostly taken over the functions of the perfective, and the subjunctive and periphrastic prospective have mostly replaced the prospective. 4 Declines using third-person suffix pronouns instead of adjectival endings: masculine .f/.fj, feminine .s/.sj, dual .sn/.snj, plural .sn. 5 Only in the masculine singular. 6 Only in the masculine. 7 Only in the feminine.

Alternative forms

Alternative hieroglyphic writings of ꜣb  

ꜣb	ꜣbj	ꜣb
[New Kingdom]	[New Kingdom]	[Greco-Roman Period]

Derived terms

• ꜣbw
• jrj ꜣbw

Etymology 2

Likely related to ꜣbw (“elephant, ivory, tusk”).

Noun

 m

1. fingernail [Late Period]

Inflection

Declension of ꜣb (masculine)

singular	ꜣb
dual	ꜣbwj
plural	ꜣbw

Descendants

• Demotic: yb
  • Akhmimic Coptic: ⲉⲓⲃ (eib), ⲓⲉⲓⲃ (ieib)
  • Bohairic Coptic: ⲓⲉⲃ (ieb), ⲓⲏⲃ (iēb)
  • Fayyumic Coptic: ⲓϥ (if)
  • Sahidic Coptic: ⲉⲓⲃ (eib), ⲉⲓⲉⲓⲃ (eieib), ⲉⲓⲉⲃ (eieb)

References

• Faulkner, Raymond Oliver (1962) A Concise Dictionary of Middle Egyptian, Oxford: Griffith Institute, →ISBN, page 2
• Erman, Adolf, Grapow, Hermann (1926) Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache‎^[1], volume 1, Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, →ISBN, pages 6.2–6.8, 7.21
• Wilson, Penelope (1991) A Lexicographical Study of the Ptolemaic Texts in the Temple of Edfu, Liverpool: University of Liverpool, pages 7–9
• James P[eter] Allen (2010) Middle Egyptian: An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs, 2nd edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 272.
• Crum, Walter E. (1939) A Coptic Dictionary‎^[2], Oxford: Clarendon Press, →ISBN, page 76