Lesson 7 MEDU NETER Alphabet M owl m Medu Sign Sound (moon) Writing Neter water n The Kemites created one of the N Vulture ah (noon) People didn’t always have a way to write A (father) rope oo their words. About 10,000 years ago the O (too) fi rst writing systems in the world. foot b ancient KEMITES began to draw pictures to B (boot) mat p represent different objects, such as a house P (pedestal) or a table. Later they began to use symbols basket c/k C slope k to represent ideas, such as life or beauty. (basket) Q of hill (key) The language was called MEDU NETER, which D hand d means divine speech. This was one of the (dog) R mouth r fi rst languages ever produced. i reed i/e (right) (filled) S folded s The MEDU NETER was written on different horned f cloth (saw) material, including papyrus, stone, and F viper (feel) bread t wood. Papyrus is the fi rst paper, and was T jar g loaf (tap) made by using reed leaves which were G stand (go) quail oo weaved together, and dried. U reed h chick (too) In English there are 26 letters in the H shelter (hat) horned f V viper (feel) alphabet, but in the MEDU NETER there I reed i/e are over 2,000 symbols. Some symbols (filled) W quail w represents a single letter, while others may snake dj chick (wet) Before represent a word or an idea. There are also J (adjust) animal ch fi nding the X “Rosetta Stone” no symbols for numbers - including fractions. basket c/k belly (??) one knew how to read K two reed y carved in 196 BC. It (basket) the EDUM NETER. It was In the MEDU NETER there is no punctuation, Y leafs (mary) is written in three lan- such as a period or question mark. They lion l L door z guages, including M generally didn’t write vowels, unless it was (love) N Z bolt (scissors) EDU necessary to read the words. It might sound ETER and Greek. Since confusing to read, but could you read the people still speak Greek The "MEDU NETER Alphabet" also spelled as "Cathy". So in paragraph below without any punctuation table above attempts to show the translation, these have the today, they could trans- and very few vowels? late the words to discov- the MEDU NETER letter for each same MEDU NETER symbol. The English letter. Some sounds are same is true for "f" and "v". They er the meaning of the CN YU RD THS PRGRPH IT HS NO PUNCTATN BT EVN nearly identical. For example, sound different to us, but their M tookEDU N30ETER years, although after itsit WTHOT TH PUNCTATN YU CN PRBBLY STLL UNDRSTND "c" and "k" are nearly the same sound is very close. Try saying discovery in 1799. IT. sound. The name "Kathy" is the two letters aloud, and you'll page 28 Ile Omode School Kemet - the World’s First Civilization page 29 hear their similarity. Some sounds, such READING as the symbol for "x" are not used in the Symbol Sign & QUESTIONS English language. The MEDU NETER "x" is not Meaning 1. Describe how the MEDU NETR pronounced "ch" as in cherry, but more as began? if you're clearing your throat. top of a sandle 2. What was MEDU NETER written (life) on? How many symbols are The Kemites didn't simply write out each ANKH there in the MEDU NETER? Writing letter when writing. Their writing system ancestor table 3. Do you think it would be was much more complex. They developed diffi cult to read English with Fractions HETEP (peace) One symbol that symbols which represented words or many no punctuation, and only a looks like a fancy letters. (peace) few vowels? Explain your It had both religious IR eyeand is calledmathemati-UDJAT . answer. The symbol of a guitar represented NEFER, 4. In KEMET the word for bread cal meanings. If hands stretched meaning pretty or beautiful, because of the began with a “T” so they a doctor in K to the sky sound the instrument makes. If you've ever used the symbol for bread KA (spirit) EMET noticed a person in church who is praying to represent “T”. What wanted to tell a or very thankful to God, they'll often raise scarab bettle would you use for the letter patient to take 1/4 their hands in the air. This must have also (to become) “T”. Think of something that of some medicine happened in KEMET, because the symbol for KHEPER begins with the letter “T”, that would write spirit, which is KA in the MEDU NETER, looks senet and draw a picture of your like someone raising their hands. symbol. just the eyeball. Or game board MEN 5. Using the symbols to the if a baba was going (stable) A very common name in KEMET was RA-MES, left, how would you write the to leave 1/8 of his which means "born" (MES) from "God" (RA). tail phrase, “All life is beautiful”? land to a son, theThis shows how most parents feel when Don’t worry about “is”, and scribe would write (born) their children are born. They feel that God MES think of a word in the table 1/8 using only the has given them this child. It was common bowl which could be used for eyebrow. in Kemet to greet someone by saying HETEP, beautiful. NEB (all) which is saying "peace". 6. Write your name using the sitting man or MEDU NETER alphabet. Be sure woman Some symbols didn't represent any letters, to end it with the correct How do you think (symbol for a but helped to explain what the word meant. symbol for man or woman. they would write person) the fractionFor for example,3/8? the symbol for a man, would sun Since 3/8 beis usedequal at the end of a man's name. RA-MES PROJECTS (God or sun) to 1/4 + would1/8 they be written: RA 1. Write a letter to your parents in the MEDU NETER. would write the guitar Give them the alphabet eyeball and the eye- table to decipher. See the DVD for MEDU NETER written on (pretty) brow. NEFER stones. page 30 Ile Omode School Kemet - the World’s First Civilization page 31