ETYMOLOGY
One of the ancient Egyptian names of the country, km.t, or "black land," is derived from the fertile black soils deposited by the Nile floods, distinct from the 'red land' (dSr.t) of the desert. The name is realized as kimi and kima in the Coptic stage of the Egyptian language, and appeared in early Greek as Kymeia.
Misr, the Arabic and official name for modern Egypt (Egyptian Arabic: Masr), is of Semitic origin directly cognate with the Hebrew (Mitzrayim), meaning "the two straits" (a reference to the dynastic separation of upper and lower Egypt), and possibly means "a country" or "a state". Misr in Arabic also means "a country" or "a state" or "frontier-land".
The English name "Egypt" came via the Latin word Aegyptus derived from the ancient Greek word (Aigyptos). According to Strabo, (Aigyptos), in ancient Greek meant "below the Aegean" "Aegaeou uptios"), and was formed by the combination of the two words. It has also been suggested that the word is a corruption of the ancient Egyptian phrase hwt-k3-pth meaning "home of the Ka (Soul) of Ptah", the name of a temple of the god Ptah at Memphis.
Sun God
A solar deity is a god or goddess who represents the sun, or anaspect of it. People have worshipped the sun and solar deities for all of recorded history; sun worship is also known as heliolatry. Hence, many beliefs and legends have been formed around this worship, most notably the various myths containing the "missing sun" motif from around the world. Although many sources contend that solar deities are generally male, and the brother, father, husband and/or enemy of the lunar deity (usually female), this is not cross-culturally upheld, as sun goddesses are found on every continent. Some mythologists, such as Brian Branston, therefore contend that sun goddesses are more common worldwide than their male counterparts. They also claim that the belief that solar deities are primarily male is linked to the fact that a few better known mythologies (such as those of ancient Greece and Egypt) sometimes break from this rule. The dualism of sun/male/light and moon/female/darkness is found in many (but not all) European traditions that derive from Orphic and Gnostic philosophies, with a notable exception being Germanic mythology, where the Sun is female and the Moon is male.
Sun worship is a possible origin of henotheism and ultimately monotheism. In ancient Egypt's Eighteenth Dynasty, Akhenaten's heretical Atenism used the old Aten solar deity as a symbol of a single god. The neolithic concept of a solar barge, the sun as traversing the sky in a boat, is found in ancient Egypt, with Ra and Horus. Proto-Indo-European religion has a solar chariot, the sun as traversing the sky in a chariot. At Roman Empire, a festival of the birth of the Unconquered Sun (or Dies Natalis Solis Invicti) was celebrated when the duration of daylight first begins to increase after the winter solstice, — the "rebirth" of the sun. In Germanic mythology this is Sol, in Vedic Surya and in Greek Helios and (sometimes) Apollo. Mesopotamian Shamash plays an important role during the Bronze Age, and "my Sun" is eventually used as an address to royalty. Similarly, South American cultures have emphatic Sun worship.
Amaterasu finally emerges from the cave.The "missing sun" motif is a theme in the myths of various cultures. It may have served to explain any of several natural phenomena, including the disappearance of the sun at night (the Egyptian version of the motif described below is an example), the shorter days during the winter (for example, the Japanese one mentioned below), or even solar eclipses. Most myths following the motif involve the disappearance of a solar deity, throughimprisonment, exile or death.
Some other tales are similar, such as the Sumerian story of Inanna's descent into the underworld. These may have parallel themes but do not fit in this motif unless they concern a solar deity.
In Egyptian mythology, Ra passes through Duat (the underworld) every night. Apep has to be defeated in the darkness hours for Ra and his solar barge to emerge in the east each morning.
In Japanese mythology, the sun goddess Amaterasu is angered by the behavior of her brother, Susanoo, and hides herself in a cave, plunging the world into darkness.
In Norse mythology, both the gods Odin and Tyr have attributes of a sky father, and they are doomed to be devoured by wolves (Fenrir and Garm, respectively) at Ragnarok. Sol, the Norse sun goddess, will be devoured by the wolf Skoll.
Numbers in Egyptian Mythology
Certain numbers were considered sacred, holy, or magical by the ancient Egyptians, particularly 2, 3, 4, 7, and their multiples and sums.
Three: symbol of plurality
The basic symbol for plurality among the ancient Egyptians was the number three: even the way they wrote the word for "plurality" in hieroglyphics consisted of three vertical marks ( | | | ). Triads of deities were also used in Egyptian religion to signify a complete system. Examples include references to the god Atum "when he was one and became three" when he gave birth to Shu and Tefnut, and the triad of Horus, Osiris, and Isis.
Examples of the use of three in Egyptian mythology
The beer used to trick Sekhmet soaked three hands into the ground.
The second god, Re, named three times to define the sun: dawn, noon, and evening.
Thoth is described as the “thrice-great god of wisdom”.
A doomed prince was doomed to three fates: to die by a crocodile, a serpent, or a dog.
Three groups of three attempts each (nine attempts) were required for a legendary peasant to recover his stolen goods.
A boasting mage claimed to be able to cast a great darkness to last three days.
After asking Thoth for help, a King of Ethiopia was brought to Thebes and publicly beaten three further times.
An Ethiopian mage tried—and failed—three times to defeat the greatest mage of Egypt.
An Egyptian mage, in an attempt to enter the land of the dead, threw a certain powder on a fire three times.
There are twelve (three times four) sections of the Egyptian land of the dead. The dead disembark at the third.
The Knot of Isis, representing life, has three loops.
Source: Wikipedia
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