mwt

Egyptian

Etymology 1

Likely a babble word in origin, like many of its Afroasiatic parallels. Militarev and Stolbova derive it from a supposed Proto-Afroasiatic form instead, but also note it may be a nursery word. If not, perhaps cognate with Proto-Semitic *ʔimm-.

Pronunciation

 

• (reconstructed) IPA^(key): /ˈmiʔwat/ → /ˈmiʔwaʔ/ → /ˈmeʔwə/ → /ˈmeʔw/

• (Old Egyptian, c. 2500 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈmiʔwat/
• (Middle Egyptian, c. 1700 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈmiʔwaʔ/
• (Amarna-period Late Egyptian, c. 1350 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈmeʔwə/
• (latest Late Egyptian, c. 800 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈmeʔw/

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /muːt/
  • Conventional anglicization: mut

Noun

 f

1. mother
   • c. 1900 BCE, The Instructions of Kagemni (pPrisse/pBN 183) lines 1.11–1.12:

     ḫr (tw)r n(j) ḥr r dfꜣ jb jmꜣ n.f kꜣhs r mwt.f

     One who is averted of face against feeding the heart (i.e. one who doesn’t indulge himself), the harsh man has to be more kindly to him than his (own) mother.

Inflection

Declension of mwt (feminine)

singular	mwt
dual	mwtj
plural	mwwt

Alternative forms

Alternative hieroglyphic writings of mwt  

mwt	mt	mjt	mjt

Derived terms

• jwn-mwt.f
• mwt-mwt
• sn-n-mwt
• dwꜣ-mwt.f

 

Descendants

• Demotic: mwt
  • Akhmimic Coptic: ⲙⲟ (mo), ⲙⲱ (mō)
  • Bohairic Coptic: ⲙⲁⲩ (mau)
  • Fayyumic Coptic: ⲙⲉⲉⲩ (meeu), ⲙⲉⲟⲩ (meou), ⲙⲏⲟⲩ (mēou)
  • Lycopolitan Coptic: ⲙⲉⲉⲩ (meeu)
  • Old Coptic: ⲙⲉⲟⲩ (meou)
  • Sahidic Coptic: ⲙⲁⲁⲩ (maau), ⲙⲁⲩ (mau)

Proper noun

Mwt, Luxor, c.1279-1213 BC

 f

1. (Egyptian mythology) the primordial waters [Old Kingdom]
2. Mut, the vulture goddess worshipped as part of the Theban Triad

Derived terms

• mwt-nfr.t

 

Descendants

• →? Meroitic: 𐦨𐦴 (mt /⁠mata⁠/)

Etymology 2

From Proto-Afroasiatic *mawVt- (“to die, to kill”). Cognate with Proto-Semitic *mawut-, Central Atlas Tamazight ⵎⵎⵜ (mmt) and Hausa mutù.

Pronunciation

 

• (reconstructed) IPA^(key): /ˈmaːwat/ → /ˈmaːjaʔ/ → /ˈmaːʔə/ → /ˈmoːʔ/

• (Old Egyptian, c. 2500 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈmaːwat/
• (Middle Egyptian, c. 1700 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈmaːjaʔ/
• (Amarna-period Late Egyptian, c. 1350 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈmaːʔə/
• (latest Late Egyptian, c. 800 BCE) IPA^(key): /ˈmoːʔ/

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /muːt/
  • Conventional anglicization: mut

Verb

 3-lit.

1. (intransitive) to die
   • c. 2000 BCE – 1900 BCE, Tale of the Shipwrecked Sailor (pHermitage/pPetersburg 1115) lines 122–123:

     šm.k ḥnꜥ.sn r ẖnw m(w)t.k m nwt.k

     You will go home with them, and you will die in your (own) town.

2. (intransitive, figuratively, of ships) to sink
   • c. 2000 BCE – 1900 BCE, Tale of the Shipwrecked Sailor (pHermitage/pPetersburg 1115) lines 37–39:

     ꜥḥꜥ.n dpt m(w)t(.tj) ntjw jm.s nj zp wꜥ jm

     Then the boat died, and of those in it, not one of them survived.

3. (intransitive, figuratively) to die inside, to despair
   • c. 2000 BCE – 1900 BCE, Tale of the Shipwrecked Sailor (pHermitage/pPetersburg 1115) lines 131–132:

     ꜥḥꜥ.n.j m(w)t.kw n.sn gm.n.j st m ẖꜣyt wꜥt

     Then I died for them, having found them as a single heap of corpses.

Inflection

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

infinitival forms			imperative
infinitive	negatival complement	complementary infinitive1	singular	plural
mwt	mwtw, mwt	mwtt	mwt	mwt

‘pseudoverbal’ forms
stative stem	periphrastic imperfective2		periphrastic prospective2
mwt	ḥr mwt	m mwt	r mwt

suffix conjugation
aspect / mood	active	contingent
		aspect / mood	active
perfect	mwt.n	consecutive	mwt.jn
terminative	mwtt
perfective3	mwt	obligative1	mwt.ḫr
imperfective	mwt
prospective3	mwt	potentialis1	mwt.kꜣ
subjunctive	mwt

verbal adjectives
aspect / mood	relative (incl. nominal / emphatic) forms	participles
	active	active	passive
perfect	mwt.n	—	—
perfective	mwt	mwt	mwt, mwtw5, mwty5
imperfective	mwt, mwty, mwtw5	mwt, mwtj6, mwty6	mwt, mwtw5
prospective	mwt, mwttj7	mwttj4, mwtt4
Used in Old Egyptian; archaic by Middle Egyptian. Used mostly since Middle Egyptian. 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. Declines using third-person suffix pronouns instead of adjectival endings: masculine .f/.fj, feminine .s/.sj, dual .sn/.snj, plural .sn. Only in the masculine singular. Only in the masculine. Only in the feminine.

Alternative forms

Alternative hieroglyphic writings of mwt  

mt	mt

Descendants

• Demotic: mwt
  • Akhmimic Coptic: ⲙⲟⲩ (mou), ⲙⲟⲩⲧ (mout)
  • Bohairic Coptic: ⲙⲟⲩ (mou), ⲙⲱⲟⲩⲧ (mōout)
  • Fayyumic Coptic: ⲙⲟⲩ (mou)
  • Lycopolitan Coptic: ⲙⲟⲩ (mou), ⲙⲟⲩⲟⲩⲧ (mouout)
  • Old Coptic: ⲙⲟⲩ (mou)
  • Sahidic Coptic: ⲙⲟⲩ (mou), ⲙⲟⲩⲟⲩⲧ (mouout)

Noun

 m

1. death

Alternative forms

Alternative hieroglyphic writings of mwt  

mt	mt

Descendants

• Demotic: mwt
  • Coptic: ⲙⲟⲩ (mou) (Akhmimic, Bohairic, Fayyumic, Lycopolitan, Old Coptic, Sahidic)

Etymology 3

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

Pronunciation

• (modern Egyptological) IPA^(key): /muːt/
  • Conventional anglicization: mut

Noun

 f

1. (physics) weight

Inflection

Declension of mwt (feminine)

singular	mwt
dual	mwtj
plural	mwwt

References

• Hoch, James (1997) Middle Egyptian Grammar, Mississauga: Benben Publications, →ISBN, page 97
• Faulkner, Raymond Oliver (1962) A Concise Dictionary of Middle Egyptian, Oxford: Griffith Institute, →ISBN