fnḫw

Egyptian

Etymology

Probably from the plural of fnḫ (“carpenter, woodcutter”), in connection with the Egyptian trade in lumber in Canaan.

Pronunciation

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /fɛnɛxuː/
  • Conventional anglicization: fenekhu

Noun

 m pl

1. (plural only) a people in Canaan or Syria, perhaps originally the forest-dwellers of Lebanon; Phoenicians^?
   • 15th century BCE, "Massacre of the Enemies", obelisk relief of the conquests of Thutmose III at Karnak, southern face (verso) of the seventh pylon [Cfeetk 57176/KIU 2105], caption:

     sqr wrw n(j)w rtnw ḫꜣswt nb(w)t štꜣ(w)t tꜣw nbw fnḫw

     The smiting of the great ones of Retjenu and every hidden foreign land and every land of the Phoenicians.

Descendants

(Possibly:)

• → Ancient Greek: Φοῖνιξ (Phoînix)
  • → Latin: pūnicus
    • → English: Punic
• → Ancient Greek: Φοινίκη (Phoiníkē)
  • → Latin: Phoenīcē, Phoenīcia
    • → English: Phoenicia
• → Mycenaean Greek: 𐀡𐀛𐀑𐀍 (po-ni-ki-jo)

References

• James P[eter] Allen (2010) Middle Egyptian: An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs, 2nd edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 345.
• Tale of Sanehat in "Digital Egypt for Universities" site, UCL (appears as "fnxw")