rbw

Egyptian

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /rɛbuː/
  • Conventional anglicization: libu

Proper noun

 m

1. Libu, a North African tribe [since the 19th Dynasty]
   • c. 1208 B.C.E., Merneptah Stele, Line 6:

     pꜣ wr ẖz ḫr(w) n(j) rbw wꜥr(.w) m nfrw grḥ n wꜥꜥw.f

     The wretched prince, the enemy belonging to the Libu, has fled in the emptiness of night alone.

2. the region west of Egypt; Libya [since the 19th Dynasty]

Usage notes

The tribal designation is sometimes conventionally translated as ‘Libyans’.

Alternative forms

Alternative hieroglyphic writings of rbw  

rbw	rbw	rb	rbw	rbw
	from the Merneptah Stele

Descendants

• Ancient Greek: Λιβύη (Libúē) (see there for further descendants)

References

• Erman, Adolf, Grapow, Hermann (1926–1961) Wörterbuch der ägyptischen Sprache, Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, →ISBN