Changes

Vowels are only written in the Coptic script. All written forms of Egyptian only record the consonental skeleton of the word.   

Vowels are only written in the Coptic script. All written forms of Egyptian only record the consonental skeleton of the word.   

Egyptian, like many of its related languages, has single, dual, and plural forms of nouns, meaning a noun can be written three different ways signifying one thing, two things, and three or more things.  Like the [[Romance language]]s and [[Irish Gaelic]], Egyptian nouns are either masculine or feminine.  Egyptian’s basic word order is ‘Subject, Noun, Object.” ‘The man opens the door’ would be ‘Opens the man the door’.

Egyptian, like many of its related languages, has single, dual, and plural forms of nouns, meaning a noun can be written three different ways signifying one thing, two things, and three or more things.  Like the [[Romance language]]s and [[Irish Gaelic]], Egyptian nouns are either masculine or feminine.  Egyptian’s basic word order is VSO (verb, subject, object).  ‘The man opens the door’ would be ‘Opens the man the door’.

[[Image:Edwin_Smith_Papyrus.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Hieratic script from the Edwin Smith Papyrus]]

[[Image:Edwin_Smith_Papyrus.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Hieratic script from the Edwin Smith Papyrus]]

== Written Form ==

== Written Form ==

The Egyptian language was one of the earliest written languages, along with Sumerian, with the earliest occurrences on the Narmer Palette and Scorpion mace-head dating back prior to 3000BC, with many more examples known from the Early Dynastic Period (3000 - 2800BC).   

The Egyptian language was one of the earliest written languages, along with Sumerian, with the earliest occurrences on the Narmer Palette and Scorpion mace-head dating back prior to 3000BC, with many more examples known from the Early Dynastic Period (3000 - 2800BC).