InScribeX Web 3.4 available

The InScribeX Web software is now updated to preview version 3.4, replacing the previous version 3.3. This uses the latest version of my word list/database for the dictionary feature. 3.4 contains over 30,000 references, representing an increase of about 2000 new entries since 3.3. There are also about 1500 corrections and clarifications to references present in the previous version. In short the database is getting close to my objectives for the first draft.

References in the dictionaries are as follows:

• AEM refers to Ancient Egyptian Medicine by J F Nunn (1996).


• DME refers to Concise Dictionary of Middle Egyptian by R O Faulkner (1961).


• EG refers to Egyptian Grammar by A Gardiner (Third edition, 1957).


• GHAD refers to Großes Handwörterbuch Ägyptisch-Deutsch by Rainer Hannig (2006).


• ME refers to Middle Egyptian by J P Allen (2000).


• Wb refers to Wörterbuch der Aegyptischen Sprach by A Erman and H Grapow (1926, 1971).

The largest single sub-collection of references is that from Wörterbuch which accounts for about 46% of the total number of references. Here my selection has been strongly guided by the ‘Beinlich word list’ although the German-English translations and transliterations into MdC machine coded hieroglyphs are my own.

The second largest sub-collection is from the Concise Dictionary, 38% of the total. The organisation of this Faulkner material largely follows the ‘Vygus word list’ though I’ve made a fairly large number of changes and MdC transliterations were done from scratch.

The smallest sub-collection currently is that from GHAD. This is only being used to add references relating to use of some of the rarer hieroglyphs.

I’d like to repeat and emphasise that InScribeX Web dictionaries are not intended to substitute for use of the various publications referenced. The user will want to refer directly to the Faulkner, Gardiner and other books to understand the context in which my dictionary entries are given. For instance Wörterbuch gives many alternative ‘spellings’ beyond those included in IXW at present. Egyptian Grammar has many instances of words not referenced in the current list, along with far more about the language and words beyond that of a simple list. Faulkner gives many references to the sources of his material.

To complete the first draft of the word list/database, I still have a parcel of work to tidy up references using rarer hieroglyphs so as to have a solid footing from which to tackle some practical issues of what to do with signs that are not in the Basic Egyptian Hieroglyphs set standardized in Unicode 5.2 (2009).

There is also a batch of references that needs re-checking and/or revised German-English translations.

I am therefore expecting several hundred more references and a bunch of corrections to the current set before drawing a line under this phase.

My current plan is still to incorporate these changes in a version 3.5 this winter to complete the IXW preview 3 developments. It also remains my intention to defer software changes (beyond anything of a minor technical nature) until this work is completed.