Customer Reviews

Egyptian Grammar

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I actually learned hieroglyphs beginning with a different text, but then the course quickly graduated to Gardiner's text for those pursing historical studies in earnest, at the University of London in the 1980s. I have assembled a collection of more accessible books on how to learn hieroglyphs as refreshers (four such other texts, each of which has merits) but 'Egyptian Grammar' by Gardiner remains the standard bearer of hieroglyph study.

If you are truly interested in learning Egyptian hieroglyphs for an upcoming trip to Egypt or to visit a museum with a collection (I amazed a friend once by being able to read an inscription at the museum; I confessed that of the hundreds of 'paragraphs' of hieroglyphs in the collection, that that was one of only two I could decipher without my notebook), this text might not be the first choice. However, if you are serious about studying hieroglyphs and think it might become a lifelong avocation or even professional study, this is the text to get.

Now in its third edition, the Gardiner text has been continually updated since its first publication in 1927 (the printing I have is from 1978). It consists of 33 lessons, each of which covers a particular facet of grammar, followed by a section on vocabulary and exercises. There are also several additional pieces, Excursus A, B and C, which cover historical information such as calendrical studies, funerary rites, and royal speech and address. The appendices cover vocalisation (Middle Egyptian), proper names, extensive lists of hieroglyph symbols and meanings (nearly 100 pages of such), and vocabulary arranged in both Egyptian/English and English/Egyptian formats.

All that is needed for the language is covered in this text. The vocabulary follows interesting patterns, as does grammar and sentence structure, whichh can vary in ways similar to the direction of the writing. The pattern of hieroglyphs is variable. Generally, you always want to 'read into the face', i.e., the picto-glyphs will be facing the direction from which to start -- more often right to left than left to right, and columns go top to bottom. There are no punctuation marks and no word breaks -- this can make meanings hard to decipher.

Consider the example:

IAMNOWHERE
which could be broken into
I AM NOW HERE
or
I AM NOWHERE
and in this case, context might not help provide which meaning is the true one. Or perhaps the author is poetical and sees the trouble of distinction and means that trouble to be present.

No wonder hieroglyphs are hard!

This is a heavy, academic text. It is not always user-friendly. The book assumes a high level of comfort with grammar and linguistic construction not only of English but of other languages as well. The student is introduced to transliteration early in the text, but the lessons continue using both picto-characters and transliterations throughout the entire volume.

Of course, the Gardiner text is by far the best academic and research tome (600+ pages), but hardly meant for the popular press. Look for this when beginning a doctorate or M.Phil. in Egyptology or Linguistics of the ancient world.

Like everyone says, this is the book to have to study hiero. Sure some parts of it could have been updated over the last while but the basics are there- and lots of them! There's a dictionary in the back that I don't know what I would have done without. I don't know if taking this on on your own is such a good idea, but if you have a strong grammatical background then you will do well. I will never part with this book unless they pry it from my clammy hands. :)
sorry about the visual.

I actually learned hieroglyphs beginning with a different text, but then the course quickly graduated to Gardiner's text for those pursing historical studies in earnest, at the University of London in the 1980s. I have assembled a collection of more accessible books on how to learn hieroglyphs as refreshers (four such other texts, each of which has merits) but 'Egyptian Grammar' by Gardiner remains the standard bearer of hieroglyph study.

If you are truly interested in learning Egyptian hieroglyphs for an upcoming trip to Egypt or to visit a museum with a collection (I amazed a friend once by being able to read an inscription at the museum; I confessed that of the hundreds of 'paragraphs' of hieroglyphs in the collection, that that was one of only two I could decipher without my notebook), this text might not be the first choice. However, if you are serious about studying hieroglyphs and think it might become a lifelong avocation or even professional study, this is the text to get.

Now in its third edition, the Gardiner text has been continually updated since its first publication in 1927 (the printing I have is from 1978). It consists of 33 lessons, each of which covers a particular facet of grammar, followed by a section on vocabulary and exercises. There are also several additional pieces, Excursus A, B and C, which cover historical information such as calendrical studies, funerary rites, and royal speech and address. The appendices cover vocalisation (Middle Egyptian), proper names, extensive lists of hieroglyph symbols and meanings (nearly 100 pages of such), and vocabulary arranged in both Egyptian/English and English/Egyptian formats.

All that is needed for the language is covered in this text. The vocabulary follows interesting patterns, as does grammar and sentence structure, whichh can vary in ways similar to the direction of the writing. The pattern of hieroglyphs is variable. Generally, you always want to 'read into the face', i.e., the picto-glyphs will be facing the direction from which to start -- more often right to left than left to right, and columns go top to bottom. There are no punctuation marks and no word breaks -- this can make meanings hard to decipher.

Consider the example:

IAMNOWHERE
which could be broken into
I AM NOW HERE
or
I AM NOWHERE
and in this case, context might not help provide which meaning is the true one. Or perhaps the author is poetical and sees the trouble of distinction and means that trouble to be present.

No wonder hieroglyphs are hard!

This is a heavy, academic text. It is not always user-friendly. The book assumes a high level of comfort with grammar and linguistic construction not only of English but of other languages as well. The student is introduced to transliteration early in the text, but the lessons continue using both picto-characters and transliterations throughout the entire volume.

Of course, the Gardiner (3rd edition) text is by far the best academic and research tome (600+ pages), but hardly meant for the popular press. Look for this when beginning a doctorate or M.Phil. in Egyptology or Linguistics of the ancient world.

This book (which I cut my teeth on over 30 years ago), remains the standard text for students of Early-Middle Kingdom Hieroglyphics. Certainly not for the faint-of-heart-- but Gardiner makes a rather complicated subject _much_ easier to deal with. This, with Faulkner's Dictionary, should be in any Egyptologist's Library.

Alan Gardiner's Egyptian Grammar is THE book for the serious student of Egyptian hieroglyphs. Definately not for the non serious layperson, Gardiner goes into indepth detail on the decipherment and transliteration of Middle Egyptian hieroglyphs. An expensive book, but well worth it.

As the student (or aspiring sesh-per-ankh) may have judged by the price, this is meant to be a college textbook. On the bright side, don't worry about backorders-- a fourth edition is on its way for next semester to provide the necessary kickbacks for the professors.
Where was I? Ah-- I own quite a few books on hieroglyphics, but this is truely the only one I would recommend to a fellow aspiring scholar. Other books are either impossible to understand or treat the student like a complete idiot while providing little useful information. This covers everything from sentence structure, to developing a proper handwriting style (they are sacred symbols, afterall), to (most importantly) exercises which emerse the student into the language gradually. And, thankfully, this book has the most complete sign lists, glossaries, and indexes I have seen.
Learning to read hieroglyphics is, of course, no easy task (I myself have just scratched the surface). With variations in the language starting from near-antedeluvian times, I would imagine it is much like a foreigner trying to learn all the idiosyncrasies of English merely by reading a book-- only with an alphabet consisting of more than 6,000 characters!
This is the book that the serious student should purchase. It is also the only one you will need.

When I was a little girl I wanted to learn Egyptian hieroglyphics in the worst way. In 1970 I had that opportunity, and I've always treasured the experience. Gardiner's grammar was the book we used, and it's still one of the most seminal texts on the subject. It includes gradually more complex grammar and exercises that train the student to transliterate and translate from the Egyptian to English and from English into Egyptian. For the professional, or the amateur enthusiast, sidebars give additional information on unusual word forms and make textual references to epigraphic data/research to be found in journal sources, most particularly the Journal of Egyptian Archaeology. The appendicies include extensive sign lists in catagorical form that are easy to use. They also include a fairly extensive vocabulary which, along with Faulkner's Dictionary, makes a useful resource for translating the more common texts. This is no small amount of work, however, the volume is several hundred pages long and gets into some very arcane phrases and usages. The person more intrigued than enthused by heiroglyps should probably look for a book called Egyptian Hieroglyphics by Patrick F. O'Mara. For the person who really gets into it, I'd suggest the book Middle Egyptian Stories by Aylward M. Blackman, a truely delightful book of short stories in hieroglyphic form.

Sir Alan's work is "the book" for any interestedperson. It's a milestone not only in the study of Egyptian language,but in modern philology. Maybe the style is old looking, but good language is understandable, no matter when it was written. Its "antiquate style", makes it even more interesting to be read. To me, it was easy to read even when, as a hi school student, I've seen a copy in Venice's State library. Thanks to Gardiner's book I've started my egyptological studies. It was in 1974 and I was 16 years old. It's an expensive book, but each page is worth its price. A necessary complement to the Grammar is "Egypt of the Pharaohs - an introduction", where Sir Alan guides us through ancient egyptian history, always under some linguistical and philological point of view. I don't exaggerate if I say that who owns this book owns a little bibliographical and cultural monument.

Gardiner's grammar is the best available combination of a didactic and reference grammar of Hieroglyphics. We don't need new grammars; we need students prepared to work hard to master a difficult language. There are no easy roads to the mastery of Egyptian.

Gardiner's book was a true ground-breaker in this field. It is now badly in need of revision and updates, and its antiquated style makes it extremely hard to follow, with or without a teacher. It's high time some brave soul wrote a new Egyptian grammar that was up to date, clear, easy to read, and based on more modern pedagogical theories.