Rosetta Stone
A decree of Ptolemy V Epiphanes in Greek, hieroglyphic Egyptian, and demotic Egyptian on the Rosetta Stone, which was used to decode the Egyptian writing systems, basalt slab from Fort Saint-Julien, Rosetta (Rashīd), Egypt, 196 bce; in the British Museum, London.
Egyptian language
extinct language
Egyptian language, extinct language of the Nile valley that constitutes a branch of the Afro-Asiatic language phylum. The Semitic, Cushitic, Chadic, Omotic, and Amazigh (Berber) language groups constitute the remaining members of the phylum. On the basis of ancient texts, scholars generally divide the history of Egyptian language into five periods: Old Egyptian (from before 3000 to about 2200 bce), Middle Egyptian (c. 2200–c. 1600 bce), Late Egyptian (c. 1550–c. 700 bce), Demotic (c. 700...
Discover the world with Britannica
Subscribe to Continue Reading
Free Trial
|
No Ads
|
Exclusive Content
Explore Subscriptions
