nḥm

See also: nhm

Egyptian

FWOTD – 2 October 2021

Pronunciation

 

• (reconstructed) IPA^(key): /ˈnaːħam/ → /ˈnaːħam/ → /ˈnaːħəm/ → /ˈnoːħəm/

• (Old Egyptian, c. 2500 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈnaːħam/
• (Middle Egyptian, c. 1700 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈnaːħam/
• (Amarna-period Late Egyptian, c. 1350 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈnaːħəm/
• (latest Late Egyptian, c. 800 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈnoːħəm/

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /nɛhɛm/
  • Conventional anglicization: nehem

Verb

 3-lit.

1. (transitive) to take away
   • c. 2353 BCE – 2323 BCE, Pyramid Texts of Unas — gable of the east wall of the antechamber, spell 273–274.58:

     nj nḥmm sꜥḥw wnjs m-ꜥ.f

     • Translation by Allen

       The dignities of Unas will not be taken away from him.

2. (transitive) to save, to rescue
   • c. 2000 BCE – 1900 BCE, Tale of the Shipwrecked Sailor (pHermitage/pPetersburg 1115) lines 17–19:

     jw r(ꜣ) n z nḥm.f sw jw mdw.f ḏj.f ṯꜣm n.f ḥr

     The mouth of a man saves him; his speech gains him leniency (literally, “gives cloaking of the face for him”).

   • c. 1552 BCE, Kamose, Carnarvon Tablet I (Cairo JE 41790):

     jb.j r nḥm kmt ḥ(w)t ꜥꜣmw

     I intend to save Egypt and smite the Asiatics.

Inflection

Conjugation of nḥm (triliteral / 3-lit. / 3rad.) — base stem: nḥm, geminated stem: nḥmm

infinitival forms imperative infinitive negatival complement complementary infinitive1 singular plural nḥm nḥmw, nḥm nḥmt nḥm nḥm ‘pseudoverbal’ forms stative stem periphrastic imperfective2 periphrastic prospective2 nḥm ḥr nḥm m nḥm r nḥm suffix conjugation aspect / mood active passive contingent aspect / mood active passive perfect nḥm.n nḥmw, nḥm consecutive nḥm.jn active + .tj1, .tw2 active + .tj1, .tw2 terminative nḥmt perfective3 nḥm active + .tj1, .tw2 obligative1 nḥm.ḫr active + .tj1, .tw2 imperfective nḥm active + .tj1, .tw2 prospective3 nḥm nḥmm potentialis1 nḥm.kꜣ active + .tj1, .tw2 active + .tj1, .tw2 subjunctive nḥm active + .tj1, .tw2 verbal adjectives aspect / mood relative (incl. nominal / emphatic) forms participles active passive active passive perfect nḥm.n active + .tj1, .tw2 — — perfective nḥm active + .tj1, .tw2 nḥm nḥm, nḥmw5, nḥmy5 imperfective nḥm, nḥmy, nḥmw5 active + .tj1, .tw2 nḥm, nḥmj6, nḥmy6 nḥm, nḥmw5 prospective nḥm, nḥmtj7 — nḥmtj4, nḥmt4 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 nḥm  

nḥm

Descendants

• Akhmimic Coptic: ⲛⲟⲩϩⲙⲉ (nouhme)
• Bohairic Coptic: ⲛⲟϩⲉⲙ (nohem)
• Fayyumic Coptic: ⲛⲟⲩϩⲉⲙ (nouhem)
• Sahidic Coptic: ⲛⲟⲩϩⲙ (nouhm)

References

• James P[eter] Allen (2010) Middle Egyptian: An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs, 2nd edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, pages 164, 180, 228, 251, 253, 298–299, 311, 313.