Ray
The Ray names
In my studies to uncover the ancient roots of our most enduring words, I started to notice some patterns in the names of our zodiac symbols. I am in the habit of looking for Ra and Is, and now I start to see them immediately.
These names and words can be seen as linguistic fossils. The ancient Egyptian god Ray was both the holy child of the mother goddess, Aset/Ishtar/Isis. Her son/sun was reborn every day and year, and the PhaROah was seen as this sun god incarnate (male or female, king or queen, REx or REgina). This is why we have so many ROyal names that are synonymous with royalty AND sun in its latin (and many other) forms. I have found words associated with this r- sound and every vowel that gives us meanings related to this Sun King: Ray.
The R- sound with all the vowels
…in perfect alignment with an incREdible ball of fire in the sky associated with a holy child of the gods:
A:
RAY, sunRAY, gRAnd, RAdiant, tyRAnt, tiaRA, RAbbi, pRAy, paRAdise, dRAma, RAin, pyRAmid, fRAgRAnce, gRAce, celebRAtions, tRAditions, RAtify
lulLAby (L<>R)
RAdius (of a circle)
RHApsody (music)
gRAvy (meaning book, wRIting, Holy Book in Egyptian)
E:
REx, REign, REgina, gREat, REd, TyRAnasouRUs REx, pREist, REligion, eREct, cREdible, incREdible, thREat, sacREd, REveal, foREver, pREsence, REst, REad, tREe, dREss, addREss, headREss, REmedy, soveREignty
dealing with children: pREgnant, mistREss, paREnt, RElative, temptREss, incREase
RE-joice, RE-turn, RE-surREct, and anything RE- (meaning coming back, perpetual, like the cyclical sun)
(ROyal) decREes & tREaties
REishi (King Mushroom in China)
RHEdmonath (German month dedicated to goddess RHEda)
fREya (Germanic goddess of love, wealth, and fertility)
fühREr (German "leader" or "guide")
I:
RIca, RIch, RIghteous, RIse, hubRIs, spiRIt, LAbyRInth, oRIgin, wRIting, pRInce, pRIncESS, bRIde, fRIEnd, notoRIous, sacRIfice, flouRISH
tRIo (as in the holy tRInity of the mother, father, and child)
chRIst, kRIstos (both also retain “IST” of east and the goddess, the -t is distinctly feminine)
RIng (circular like the sun)
LIght, LIfe, LIndo (pREtty), thumbeLIna
(L<>R often synonymous)
LIon (King of the jungle)
O:
ROund, ROyal, ROjo, cROwn, cROan, phaROah, stROng, gROw, gROve, ROck, pROclaim, ROtunda, pROsper, empeROr
ROse (Queen of the flowers)
RHOdium
RHOmbus (considered a sacREd geometry, which can represent inner balance, self-honesty, and the need to reveal one's unconscious self)
mushRO0m
U:
RUler, RUby, instRUct, constRUct, destRUct, cRUcible,
instRUments: sISstRUm, dRUm (daRAbuka in Egyptian), tRUmpet, papyRUs
LUxuRY, LUck, LUna (L<>R often synonymous)
RUndamala (a garland in Hindu/Buddhist iconography, characteristic of the Divine Mother)
Y:
gloRY, countRY
juRY (the gods would be the judges of the dead)
carRY (as in carrying a child, Egyptian phrase for being pREgnant)
Greek Words
kronos (the god's name) and chronos ("time").
21 The explanation perhaps depends on a connection with the Greek verb teirô, "to distress or weaken"; or the Latin tero, "to wear down/away." (tear, military term)
For in their ancestral language, the Romans call the hair "caesaries" — and he says that it was on account of the beauty [he derived] from it that he was named "Caesar." But his proper name was "Gaius"; "Julius" [was] indicative of nobility — from Iulus the [son] of Aeneas [the son] of Aphrodite; and "Caesar" [was indicative] of excellence.7
7 Gk. aretê: alternatively, "virtue" or "courage.”
The Nile formerly had the name Ilas, then Aegyptus (from [king] Aegyptus), then Chrysorrhoas,14 and thereafter, Nile (from the king so called).
14 Epiphanius, Panarion 66.1, and some later chroniclers, likewise give Chrysorrhoas as an alternate name for the Nile. Cf. also Athenaeus 5.36 [203C], where the Nile is described as "truly 'gold-streaming' [chRYsorRHOas] or gold-flowing." "Ilas," by contrast, appears to be unattested elsewhere.
from Lydus
All these r- names, knowing that anything popular could be easily copied for the prestige later.
The pyramid at the top was originally covered in electrum – a silver and gold alloy; it reflected the sun.
Egyptian Words
A list of words that stood out to me with “R-” words in Coptic Egyptian with very spiritual meanings:
RAko: aLExandRIa
RAn: Name
RAc: Tomorrow
RAsi: To rejoice
kuaRA (lyre in Egyptian)
wRA: district, countRY
sahkhRAH: ROck
eRE: gREeting
nahREn (“in the pREsence of” in Egyptian)
paREnia (“virginity” in Egyptian)
pREpi: proper, befitting
pREcbia: intercession
pREcbuteroc: pRIest, elder
REecha: fRAgrance in Egyptain
Incense was a daily practice in ancient Egypt, and was used in rituals, worship, and to drive away demons. The Egyptians considered incense to be the "fRAgRAnce of the Gods".
timbREl (a small hand dRUm or tambouRIne)
RI: ROOm, cell (homes were seen as holy)
seRI: daughter, girl
syRI: son
sveRI: fRIEnd
aRIcma: gRAce, gift
menRIt (beloved in Egyptian)
muctyRIon (mystery in Egyptian)
keeROs: candle (also in GREek as keROs)
pROceu: pRAyer
pROvytikon: pROphetic
aROn (RUler in Egyptian)
RO: door, gate, mouth
ROUhi: evening
metouRO (kingdom in Egyptian)
OuRO/OuRW (king/queen in Egyptian)
RY: Likeness, manner
RWmi: human
yISHfi: to heal
Animals
I found them in names of African animals as I read to my son at night:
scaRAb beetle
cROcodile
LIon (L <>R)
RHInoceROs
goRILLa
oRAngutan
RAm (associated with Amun-RA)
cobRA
also note:
ASp, the overall word for snake
preserving the goddESS “IS” sound found even “hISS”). This is particularly inteREsting knowing the Egyptian word for cat was “meow”.
Egyptian Royal Purple - While ancient Egyptian royalty used various colors to signify authority, purple was particularly associated with royalty and high status. Archaeological evidence shows that Egyptian pharaohs and nobility used purple dyes derived from muREX shells and other sources for royal garments from at least the New Kingdom period (c.1550-1070 BCE).
Birds
Birds were considered sacREd in Egypt, and considered to be gods reincarnated:
ostRIch
cROw
RAven
wREn
SUNbird
passeROidea and nectaRIniidae in Latin
tayIR ASHshams literally means "bird of the sun" in Arabic
aqoRI, the vulture
The name for vulture stood out to me as not having any of these sound bites (of “is” or “r-”), while its symbol was used to draw out the hieROglyph of “mother”, named after a goddess. In Coptic, however, the word for vulture is aqoRI.
also note:
ibIS
the most sacred bird in Egypt
“Is” is often used as a shorthand for another name for god, often female, as Ra’s mother ISis. Her name (spelled ist, but pronounced “eest”) is found many places also: genesIS, ISland, ISthmus, ESTuary, EAST, EASTer
Notice the “is” in sISter vs the “r-” in bROther).
SacREd foods:
gRApes
bREad
fRUit
euchaRIst (also shaped like the sun)
cRAcker
Important places:
afRIca
sahaRA
aRAbia
LAodicea, Turkey (L<>R)
LUxor, Egypt (L<>R)
and many many more on maps (in an almost completed article…)
The name for Egypt was Khemet, which gives us the root of our word “chemistry” which the Greeks attRIbuted the Egyptians
Colors, in various languages:
REd, ROjo, (translated to adom in hebrew)
oRAnge, anaRAnjado
yeLLOw (R<>L), amaRILLo
gREen, verde
black, negRO
claRO, clear, beaRUr (in hebrew)
blue, AZul (ass/oss/iss being another word for god)
pURple, moRAdo (ur significant as a holy word)
bROwn, marROn, yaROk (in hebrew)
We do know that textiles, the making of fabRIcs, and dying them was a very REligious aspect in Egyptian culture. Sewing shops were attached to temples and divine garments were made by temple pRIestesses with long, complicated dying processes. Each color held its own story and significance.
Names of the Zodiac
aRIes (RAm), associated with the sun god
tauRUs (bull)
Gemini (twins), (no r- sound, but the names of its twins are…)
LUgalgirRA and MesLAmta-ea, (L<>R easily replaced)
Cancer (crab), (RE? yes, the french/latin term is cancRE)
LEo (lion), (L<>R easily replaced
King/REx of the jungle, LEo marked the summer solstice in ancient times, with the red heat of the summer
vIRgo (virgin), IR is another goddess name, like arco IRis, the goddess of the rainbow
virgo is one of the 3 female constellations among many men, made up by being the second largest constellation and the oldest of deities: the Earth Mother.
LibRA (scales of justice), named by Julius Caesar himself
ScORpio (scorpion), OR/IR connected to goddesses (including IRis and associated vowels)
Many goddesses have been associated with scorpions, including ones from Egypt, Mesopotamia and Aztec cultures, including ISHaRA and NingiRIma
SagittaRIus (archer)
CapRIcorn (sea goat)
AquaRIus (water bearer)
pISces (fISH), IS, the goddess ISIS that gives us the origin for the word EASt: She of the RIsing sun.
The Rose, Queen of the Flowers
In ancient Egypt, roses were symbols of love, death, and offerings to the gods. They were often found in tombs and written on shopping lists in abundance for weddings.
In Egyptian, “flower” is ϩⲣⲏⲣⲉ [hRE:RE], hrRY, hRRt, hrēRE, hLēLI, ehRēRI.
The Coptic word for “rose” is ⲟⲩⲣⲧ [uRt], ourt, ouērt, ouēlt, bert, which gives us lots of variations of this royal r- sound.
The word "rose" comes downstream from the Latin word rosa, which may have been borrowed from Oscan, an extinct Italic language of southern Italy, related to UmbRIan and surviving in inscriptions mainly from 400 BC to 0 BC/AD. The other extinct language family of the EtRUscans from Italy that gave Latin their alphabet is also extinct, but is known to have had Egyptian influence most likely from the Phonecian (ancient Jewish trade) into its port towns. Etruscan has also yet to be deciphered and could hold some more secrets to the Italian/Jewish/African connections.
The transition can also be seein in parallel path through the Greek RHódon, and connected to the Old Persian word wRD-. Red, rose, and royalty are all connected with the more ancient African root of r- dealing with the red blazing sun of the son god. Similarly, the Greek word rhódon can mean both "rose" or "red".
The greek word for Rose is τριαντάφυλλο (tRIantáfyllo).
Even the word tRIo, retains the Egyptian royal root, while implying the holy trinity is holy and sacred: that of the mother, father, and child.
vrda: the ancient Persian word for Rose (wardah)
inscriptions found in Iran show earliest writing around 522 BC by the Persian tribe known as ParswASH.
similarly,
várdha in Sanskrit वर्ध “increasing”
vṛ́dh, Sanskrit वृध् “growth”
This matches both with having to do with a creator god, and the sun rising and bringing growth to plants.
The SanskRIt language is dated to about 1700 BC, but its oral heritage has been preserved through incredible vedic hymns, which won awards for its longevity and beauty of sound and tactics for preservation, with repetition and rhyming.
in 2003, UNESCO recognized the tradition of Vedic chanting as a Masterpiece of the Oral Heritage of Humanity.
3500 BC: Definite proof of writing being available comes the EuphRAtes-TigRIs regions
Wardah in Arabic means “rose”.
It's a name that's been given to girls in Arab-speaking countries for a long time, and it symbolizes femininity and beauty.
The ARAbic language began to form in the Arabian Peninsula (neighbor of Egypt) around the 1500 BC (fairly late in the game). The oldest written Arabic manuscripts were found to be dated around 328 AD, including an inscRIption called the NammaRA.
Arabic spread along the Silk Roads and during the Islamic conquests of the 600’s AD.
Arabic is a Semitic language, which also includes Hebrew and Aramaic. The word "Arabic" comes from an ancient Arabic word that means "nomadic"
Alchemy
Gold, chemical symbol Au
the Latin word auRUm, which means "gold"
Egypt is a land rich in gold. Ancient miners had their own traditional methods of extraction. Egypt also had access to the riches of Nubia, which is reflected in its ancient name, nbw (the Egyptian word for gold).
RHOdium is a chemical element, symbol Rh
It is a precious, silver-white, and highly reflective metal. It's known for its durability, resistance to corrosion. It is often used to plate other metals, rhodium represents purity and protection, (like that of a king), enhancing the spiritual significance of religious pieces.
Biblical References
In the Bible, "RA" refers to the Hebrew word "ra" which translates to "evil" or "bad" in English, essentially meaning something harmful, wicked, or morally wrong; it signifies a negative quality or action.
Considering our understanding of the bible as a manipulative piece of history used to sway people away from past ancient wisdom (ie… making the old seem outdated, irrelevant, and even supersticious and evil), and the NEW testament as one of progress, we can see anything evil in the bible as something to pay attention to as once being significant in more gloRIious traditions that thREAtened ROme somehow. This means we are on the right track.
In Rabbinic sources, Amen is one of the names for God. This title, or name, would not be lost on the large Jewish community living in the area.
During Hannukah, Jewish families celebrate a silly tRAdition with children, hiding a cRAcker known as the afikomen. It represents the hidden nature of god, and preserves the final -omen/-amen ”mn” root of the Hidden God of Egypt Amun.
Google Gives us some other interesting tidbits on the sound Rey as used in other languages:
English
Re- is from the Old English words rge meaning "counsel or advice" and raegn meaning "protection", Ray signifies a protective advisor or guardian. In medieval England, people with the name Ray often held positions of counsel and protection within royal courts.
Ray is a gender-neutral name, but it is more commonly used for boys.
German
A short form of the name Raymond, which means "wise protector" or "counsel hand" in Old German.
French
A topographic name for someone who lived by a spring or rushing stream, or a habitational name from a place called Ray. (springs and water have always been considered holy, like holy water of baptism and birth).
Middle English
A nickname from the Old French word rei meaning "king"
China
REishi is known as the King Mushroom
Amun-Re
The God Ray in Egypt was often connected with Amun, combined as Amun-RE. This gets us dangerously close to that biblical word, Amen, which has a great story in itself.
During the New Kingdom (1500 to 1100 BC), Amen was often combined with the sun god Ra, creating Amun-Ra, a powerful deity representing both the creative power of the unseen and the life-giving energy of the sun.
Etymology and cultural significance of the word "Amen," traces its oldest origins from the Egyptian god Amun to Hebrew and Christian traditions.
Modern scholars are adamant there IS NOT a connection, which I think is silly because nobody can ever prove a NO, we can only say there could be a link in the ways humans spoke in the past.
I find stuff like:
“Amun is one of the most important gods of ancient Egypt, but is not related to the word ‘amen’.”
“The similarity of the sound of “Amun” and “amen” is a coincidence.”
“There is no connection with the personal name Amun or Amen, originally the name of a local Theban deity who later becomes identified with the sun god Ra.”
“Amen entered Western languages from Church Latin, which took it from Greek, which in turn derived it from Hebrew. In Hebrew, it is a noun that means certainty or verity, related to a verb meaning to confirm.”
Why do we stop this rolling of the past at Hebrew? Why this artificial cut off, when so many Hebrew words are of African influence?
This is literally something that pops up as relevant: A religion professor at The George Washington University said via email that he was “extremely skeptical” of the claim and that he had “never heard anything about (amen) being connected to Amun Ra.”
Since when did someone never hearing about something seem relevant to anyone? If he is ignorant, that means he does not have enough knowledge on the subject. We are talking about ancient lost connections, in a world that is very racist and biased against Africa, due to Roman conquest of it, stealing her gold, glory and grain, and trying to remove all associate to it. Racists from 2,000 years ago may never have written that they flat and admitting they stole a word and changed it slightly to remain close enough to retain its power, yet separate enough to be eventually forgotten.
The same post above also claimed that the Amun Ra was the predecessor of Baphomet.
In the early 1300’s, the Knight Templars were accused of worshiping Baphomet, and were prosecuted for devil worship. (and though this deity was depicted with an animal head, it was not necessarily an African animal head, yet deities with animal heads are actually very common in Egyptian depictions)
“There is a lot of esoteric ideology/iconography that is derived from ancient Egypt, generally re-interpreted and misunderstood,” -Professor and head of the Egyptology Unit at a Cairo University
“The word ‘amen’ used in Christian and Jewish prayer is of Hebrew origin, not Egyptian.”
Except, all of Judea is of “Egyptian” origin, as Jews, per definition, are those that emerged on their exit/exodus FROM Egypt. It is literally impossible to say what did or did not influence them as they left such a magnanimous place.
The scholarly narrative goes like this: The word Amen is found in the Hebrew Bible to mark the end of prayers or professions of faith. It is a sort of confirmation, a sign of respect, like, “oh yes. TRUTH.” It implies trustworthiness. But this ancient god Amun WAS the god of truth, wisdom, respect itself. This is not so far off.
Linguistically, vowels are very fluid. Consonants transfer regularly, and vowels intermingle constantly. Think about how any word, from one speaker to another, can change with accents. It is the vowels that shift. Hebrew and Egyptian languages did not even record vowels in writing, making the _M_N (aMuN, and aMeN) connection even stronger.
Timing Matches up
One source says it's believed that the word Amen originated in the 300’s BC, 300 years before Christ. This is about 30 years after Alexander the Great was made into an Egyptian god, and the Ptolemaic (Greek) Empire is centered in Egypt. This makes perfect route for transmission of a Greek God into Greek language. All of the bibles, both Old and New, were written by Africans, or IN Africa. The Septuagent, the Jewish bible, was written by 70 Jewish scholars in Alexandria, Egypt. And many of the scholars writing the New Testament were from Egypt also. Many of the early christians who founded monastacism started practicing IN EGYPTIAN deserts. Many early christians who refined christian doctrine for the next 300 years wrote FROM EGYPT. Get the picture?
Other sources say the word Amen dates back pretty much as far as written history, appearing in the earliest Jewish texts. The Hebrew and Greek words for Amen appear hundreds of times in the Bible and have several meanings.
Meaning of Amun/Amen
The word MN/Amun/Amen was being used in Egypt for thousands of years prior to Greeks entering Egypt, in the very first pantheon. It was a very well revered name that was associated with a god that was hidden, yet in everything. This word carried weight. The word Amen is one of the few words that has remained essentially the same across different groups and cultures for thousands of years, before and after the Greeks entered Egypt. The word Amen is one of the few examples where the same word has endured for thousands of years and became implemented into hundreds of languages. This implies it meant much more than a Jewish word for “mhmm”.
Amen in Hebrew
Translations in Mark, with the same statement in Luke, have an untranslated word used as αμην ameen, “Amen”), that was translated in Luke with αληθος alethos, "Truly". (Mark 9:1, Luke 9:27).
And we do see a very realistic route of transmission. Those who deny it say it is a pronoun, vs a regular noun or adjective, HOWEVER, there is an instance of AMEN being used as a direct pronoun in a letter in Revelations 3:14, where Jesus compares himself directly to “The Amen”, in context of being the creator.
“These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation.” -Rev 3:14. Some continue with the translation of the Amen in this verse as: “the First of God's creation”, or even “the source of creation”, or “He rules over what God has created”.
Jesus identifies himself as "the Amen, the faithful and true witness, and the beginning of God's creation”, indicating that He is God's perfect and final revelation, just as the Egyptian god, the Amen, was known as to this audience in modern day Turkey. There was a church here in the times of the Apostle Paul; by whom it was founded is not known.
It may have been used here to connect with the known use of the Egyptian term in the city of now-Turkey where it was a title that represent the highest deity in Ancient Egypt.
The Egyptian deity has been seen in a variety of spellings: Atum, Atun, Amun, Amon, Ameen, and of course: Amen. He represented the setting sun, the hidden invisible one the dwells in darkness.
This breaks all possible attempts at denial or argument for the transmission of the word Amen from Egypt. In fact, the letter where this came from was in Laodicea, ancient Turkey, which had significant Egyptian influence, and it makes sense writer of the letter wanted to address a population they could not assimilate.
We also find another reference in Isaiah 65:16 where the word "Amen" is the name of a divine Person with the Jews. They say that the word "Amen", by gematry (or numerically) answers to the two names "Jehovah, Adonai". Christ may be so called, because he is the God of truth, and truth itself.
So basically, since the Egyptian Amen is the God of Truth, and so is Christ, by association, Christ is also the Egyptian Amen. He says “I am the faithful and true witness and the source of God's creation.”
The letter to the LAodiceans tries to make very clear that God was made manifest in human flesh. The pagan Laodiceans would have to realize it was Jesus who was God, and not the empeROr. Just 30 years before, Laodiceans minted a coin with the head of Emperor NeRO with an inscription saying, “Nero, Sabastos, Theos (God)”. (RPC I:480; coin 2923). This is one of the rare coins that attributed deity to the emperor, a claim he never made for himself. At the time this letter was circulating, however, the present emperor, Domition, claimed to be a god. Alexander, Ptolemy, Caesar and Marc Antony were all treated as living gods in Egypt, while still having a Greek/Roman presence to explain it all to. At least five later emperors (once Egypt fully subjugated, not just revered), Augustus, Claudius, Vespasian and Titus were also deified (made into a god).
Egyptian Use of Amon
Amun is one of the most important deities in ancient Egyptian religion. He was originally a local god of Thebes (modern-day Luxor) in the first reign of pharoahs around 3,000 BC, but rose to prominence during the New Kingdom (around 1550–1070 BC).
In Ancient Egypt, "Amon” was originally the name of a prominent god associated with air and the breath of life, the God of wind, and creator of the Universe. Over time, his significance expanded, and he became part of the Theban Triad, a trio of deities including a father, son and mother (like the father, son and holy spirit, knowing “spiRIt” was a feminine term turned neutral).
The term "Amen" itself is believed to mean "hidden" or "concealed" in reference to the hidden aspect of the god. As a deity, Amun was often invoked in prayers and hymns for protection, guidance, and blessings. The use of "Amen" at the end of prayers, as seen in various ancient writings, signified a solemn affirmation or agreement with the spoken words, just as it became used in Hebrew. This practice later extended into other cultures and religions.
In Egyptian mythology, Amen (also spelled Amun) is often considered the "perfect" God in that He represents the concept of the hidden, unseen creator, encompassing aspects of creation and life without being confined to a single specific attribute like other deities; his name itself translates to "the hidden one," allowing Him to be seen as a universal and powerful force beyond human comprehension.
Arabic use of Ameen
“Amen” or “Ameen” in Arabic is not to be found in any religious text before Abraham. Abraham is reported to have travelled to the Egyptian court and stayed for some years, possibly acquiring cultural habits like prostration before a king (lying stretched out on the ground with one's face down) and ending all important conversations with “Amun-Ra”, a bit like “Hail Ceasar”.
The Egypt/Hebrew Connection
The historical and religious connections between ancient Egypt and the Hebrews is undeniable, and the spillover of religious concepts and rituals from one to the other is certain in many other important respects.
Sun/Son
Historical and linguistic links between the terms for "sun" and "son" can be found across various languages, highlighting the intertwining of solar symbolism and concepts of birth and creation.
Ray in Turkey
The lands that are now known as Turkey remain significant due to their proximity and relationship with Egypt. They retain many cultural assimilations, and the two created the first known peace treaty. Their empires were brought together with various royal marriages before either lost their footing.
Egyptians had to accept the loss of KadESH and AmurRU, hostility between Egypt and the Hittites would come to an end with the tREaty (and marRIage of Hittite princess and Egyptian Pharoah).
Timeline in Turkey
6500 BC: Inscribed monuments in the region were reported by travelers, but royal Hittite archives discovered in 1907 proved there was literary evidence in Anatolia before the PhRYgians. The oldest religious evidence is found in Catal Huyuk, with major alignments to the stars. Shrines date back to 6500 BC. Huge figures of goddesses in the posture of giving birth are found in the shRInes, along with LIons and RAms.
The main deity of these Neolithic people was evidently a goddess, a mistress of animals, and she had both a son and a lover. Her character is vividly shown by rock plaque carved in two scenes, a sacREd marRIage and a mother with child.
2400 BC Alaca Huyuk and HoROztepe people in northern Anatolia
ROyal tombs with bROnze and pREcious metals.
Female figuRInes lay beside the heads of skeletons; one such statuette in a gRAve at HoRAztepe represents a mother nursing her child. In another, a bROnze sIStRUm, or rattle, was found.
The item standing out the most at the graves at both sites are bronze icons, which may have been carried on poles. They are often circular or occasionally RHOmboid and are adorned with animals: cats, birds, bulls, and swastikas (one seen as a balance of light and dark).
The divine family here was seen as central: a mother at the center of the family, with her lover and child. We often see a goddess sitting on a throne and surrounded by animals, sometimes nude.
There is a bewildering number of divine names and symbols to represent those names, often attRIbuted to the weather, the sun or the moon.
The treaty with Egypt is said to be “for the purpose of making eternal the relations between the sun-god [of Egypt] and the weather-god [of Hatti].” Here, we see the sun god, Ra, of the most ancient Turkish descent attributed to Egypt, not India or Middle East.
The weather god of the Hatti’s was known as LUwian, TaRU, and tESHub. Tarhun’s spouse, the great goddess of the city of ARInna was revered as patROness of the state. (The city of Arinna has not been located, but it was situated somewhere in the heartland of the Hittite kingdom, within a day’s journey of the capital.) Her name in Hattian was WuRUsemu, but the Hittites worshiped her under the epithet ARInnitti. She is always called a sun goddess, and sun disks appear as emblems in all kinds of iconography. She was known as the “sun goddess of the earth” and might be identified with LElwani, the ruler of the underworld. The king and queen were her high pRIest and pRIestess.
The weather god of another city, NeRIk, was regarded as the son of this supREme pair.
There was also a male sun god of the Hitites known as the “sun god in the water,” probably the sun as reflected in the waters of a lake. His name in Hittite was ISTanu, similar to the Hattian name ESTan. The sun god was represented in the robes of the king, whose title was “My Sun”. The moon god was shown as a winged figure with a cREscent on his helmet, sometimes standing on a LIon.
A god on Kültepe seals has names read as: kuRUnda, then later RUwata, RUnda.
Another male god known as the “King of the land” has a logogram of Zababa, with various names like WuRUnkatti, hESui.
The goddess of love was the winged ISHtar, revered as the proctectrESS of HattusilIS III.
There was a Hittite mother goddess, HannahANNA “the grandmother,” closely associated with birth, creation, and destiny. This name becomes important with other nanna words like NANNy, grANdmother, INANNA, sun goddess ArINNA, high priestess EnheduANNA, and the word: ANNual.
1530 BC: Hyksos period ends in Egypt
Hyksos were semetic (pre/ancient warrior sect of Jews) who took over power in Egypt for 100 years.
The Hebrew bible starts with Jews leaving Egypt, which is the start of the definition of a Jewish identity, and the difference from Canaanites that never left their hometown. The Jews are the ones that left Canaan, and after a few hundred years, then left Egypt, and followed Moses where he received his words from god while sitting under a burning psychedelic acacia plant. These are the Jews as we know them.
After this, Egyptians take over many lands of the Jews, encroaching very close to the lands in Turkey (modern day Lebanon).
1400 BC: A Dynastic marriage between kIZZuwatna and the Hittites shows the material reception had lasting effects, and the education of princes aligning this marriage was attributed to the HurRIan queens.
The King of kIZZuwatna signed a treaty with the Mitanni Empire, King IdRImi.
The same time period saw cuneiform inscRIptions in uRArtu near Lake Van.
1279 BC: Queen MaathorneferuRE was the daughter of a Hittite King who married Egyptian King RAmessES, and lived in the palace of GuROb.
The Hittites were known to be somewhat flexible in their religious practices, often incorporating elements from other cultures they interacted with. Some scholars point to potential evidence of Egyptian deities appearing in Hittite texts around this time.
Hittites are repeatedly mentioned throughout the Hebrew bible (Old Testament) as the adversaries of the Israelites and their god. According to Genesis 10, they were the descendants of Heth, son of Canaan/Noah. (Israelites were VERY sensitive about their own people worshipping goddesses like the AStoRAth or ASHeRA.
1190 BC: The capital of Hattusa was burned and abandoned
900 BC: Shiwini, a sun goddess worshipped by the HurRIan nation, depicted holding a winged sun disk above her head.
204 BC: PhRYgians
Little would be known of the religion of the Phrygians but for the fact that in 204 bc the Roman Senate, on the instructions of the priests, who had consulted the Sibylline books, had the sacred black stone of the Phrygian Mother goddess, Cybele, or Cybebe, transported from Pessinus, together with her priests, and installed in a temple on the Palatine Hill.
The “Phrygian rites” introduced into Rome by Claudius included the ceremonious felling of a pine tree to represent the dead youth and its transport in procession to the temple.
The sacRIfice of a bull and the belief in the resurrection of Attis were added to the religion.
The high pRIestESS of Cybele was given the name of AttIS, and—at least in later times—she was attended by a band of fanatical devotees called Galli, whose orgiastic dancing, at the climax of which they castRAted themselves in their ecstasy, was notoRIous. (could this be the oRIgins of circumcision? A small sacRIfice to the goddess?? Nobody seems to have a better answer…).
AD 40: It is possible that Peter sought out “those of the circumcision” as they traveled through the LYcus Valley in modern day Turkey
Herodotus mentions a sage attending the celebRAtions, but only says they were done in a gROve, carrying a timbREl (small hand dRUm or tamboRIne).
Ray Placenames in Turkey
Ancient Anatolia has a complex interplay and influences from surrounding civilizations, especially Egypt.
A 5,000-year-old trade route between Egypt and Anatolia has been confirmed.
A metal vessel found in an Egyptian tomb was made of a material also used in Anatolia.
Obsidian from the Göllü Dağ volcanic complex in Anatolia was used in Egyptian amulets.
Egypt and Anatolians (Hittites, pre-Turks) signed the first peace treaty known in history in 1258 BC to end a long war between the two empires.
Anatolia was known as the “second holy land”.
Ancient Turkey has some great city names connected to Egyptian gods:
AmurRA, est 2k BC, north Lebanon (north of Israel)
EphesUS, (-Isis)
KamiROs, a city within RHOdes
HISarlik (TROy)
IStanbul
LAodicea (L<>R)
LYcia (L<>R), means “Land of LIght”
RHOdes
Just a handful of these cities in more detail:
AmurRA, est 2k BC, north Lebanon (north of Israel)
similar to Amarna in Egypt
Cultural revolution culminated in Akhenaten’s decision to move Egypt’s capital from Thebes to a previously unoccupied site he named Akhetaten (present-day Tell el Amarna). In just under two decades on the throne, Akhenaten imposed new aspects of Egyptian religion, overhauled its royal artistic style, used new form of architecture and attempted to obliterate the names and images of some of Egypt’s traditional gods. He was pharaoh in 1351 BC and reigned for roughly 17 years. In Akhenaten’s new religion, this figure generally came to be represented as a sun disk and is best understood as the light produced by the sun itself. As soon as he died, Aten worship quickly went back to Amunism.
Atenism came with persecution of some traditional gods, most notably Amun – Egypt’s state deity for much of the previous (and most affluent 18th dynasty). Sometime around his fourth year in power, Akhenaten dispatched agents to erase the names and images of certain gods from existing texts and monuments.
The most striking changes in art are seen in the appearance of the royal family. Heads became larger than in the traditional style and were supported by elongated and slender necks. The royal family took on a more androgynous appearance that sometimes even obscured the difference between Akhenaten and Queen Nefertiti.
Detailed documentation about the Kingdom of Amurru mainly comes from sources from Egypt and UgaRIt (of SyRIa, LAtakia)
The first documented leader of AmurRU was Abdi-Ashirta in the 1300’s BC, who united the HabiRU (possiby the founders of Israel) through conquest. This prompted Rib-Hadda, the king of Gubla (Byblos), to send a series of letters to Amenhotep III in Egypt asking for intervention.
Abdi-Ashirta' successor, AziRU, continued to stylize himself as the governor of Amurru for Egypt. During his reign Akhenaten repeatedly asked for his personal presence in Egypt, which he repeatedly delayed, citing Hittite presence in Nuhasse. soon Aziru himself, finally departing to Egypt, was detained as well, with rumors circulating that he was never going to get out of Egypt.
Egyptian Seti aimed to restore Egyptian authoRIty over the Levant, launched a military campaign and brought Kadesh and Amurru back under Egypt's sphere of influence.
EphesUS, (-Isis)
One of the most important ports of Anatolia in ancient times, around 900 BC, known for its goddess worship. Where Mary chose to live her last days and be buried.
There is evidence of Egyptian gods like Isis being worshipped in regions of Turkey, particularly in areas like Ephesus, due to the influence of Ptolemeic (Alexander’s general) culture and trade with Egypt, where Isis was a prominent deity
HISarlik (TROy)
Also known as ILIos, WilUSA or tRUwISA
these names were held to originate from the names of the kingdom's founders, TROs and his son ILUs
Alexander the Great visited, and planned to rebuild the temple of Athena Ilias on a scale that would have surpassed every other temple in the known world.
IStanbul
The ObeLIsk of Egyptian Pharaoh Thutmosis III in Istanbul's Sultanahmet Square was originally erected in year 33 in his reign (1400’s BC) at the temple of Karnak, for his second anniversary party. The obelisk was brought from Karnak to Constantinople by emperor Theodosius I in 390 AD. On the each side there is a scene of Thutmosis III making offerings to the god Amon-Ra. It is full of inscriptions, including:
One side that celebrates Thutmosis III's victory crossing of the EuphRAtes RIver in SyRIa in 1450 BC, described as "Crossing the GREat Circle of NahaRIna in valor and victoRY at the head of his army. He is the Lord of Victory who subdues all lands, establishing his frontier at the Beginning of the Earth [the extreme south] up to the Swampy Lands of Naharina…”
The ancient Egyptians called the land between the two rivers (TigRIS and EuphRAtes) NahaRIn. The Euphrates is a river that starts in Turkey and flows through Syria and Iraq. The inscriptions in stone are like an “I was here” stamp that Egyptian pharaohs show they once visited this area.
Egyptians referred to the NahaRIn also as Mitanni. The same area was known as ḪurRI to the Hittites, and Ḫanigalbat or Ḫani-RAbbat to the AssyRIans. These names seem to have referred to the same kingdom and were often used interchangeably. The Mitanni dynasty ruled over the northern Euphrates-Tigris region between 1600 and 1350 BC, before losing out to the Hittites.
Some say this land of the NihaRIn held magical portals to other REalms. The Elaqitan people were said to have been tasked to keep this secREt, but its stories could not be erased and its memory survives in many myths.
KamiROs, a city within RHOdes
Sometimes referred to as the RHOdian Pompeii, a vacation spot for the RIchest ROman overlords. The ancient city was built on three levels, with the top level boasting its temple to the Goddess. Built by the sea, it held a covered fresh water resevoir to support over 400 families. DoRIc temples on the lowest terRAce most likely dedicated to the sun god.
The same man, Smythes, who has artifacts in the RHOdian museum, made an offering at the sanctuary of AtabyRIous on the summit of the highest mountain on Rhodes. From this mountaintop, the ISland of CREte can be seen.
LAodicea (L<>R)
Significant to early Christianity, specifically mentioned in a letter to the church in REvelation. The city is RIch in cultural heRItage influenced by Egyptian, GREEk, and other ancient cultures.
Laodicea is mentioned four times in the New Testament. The letter to the Colossians provides three references, including notice of a house-church run by a woman named Nympha. (i.e. their church was run by a woman!!)
By Pliny’s day around 70 AD, the city was a major center for the worship of Zeus. (this would have been an easy transfer of the previous main god Amun-Re, as suggested with all the La/Ra names in Anatolia, from Rhoas TO Diospolis, meaning just “city of God”).
The city had a shrine to the god Men. Egypt had its own god with the consonants MN, often spelled as Min (Ancient Egyptian: mnw), also called Menas, who is an ancient God whose religion started in the predynastic period (in the 3,000’s BC). This word root “MN” has many other African connections with God and Creation (“semen” is one of them, and it is connected to the baptismal rights of “meandering” river water in birth/rebirth, both things that bring life).
The city received a lot of criticism from Jesus. (Showing we should pay attention!)
Now a rebellious Roman province, on the crossroads of two major trade route, built on the river Lycus. An older name was “City of the Gods” Diospolis, then RHOas, then LAodicea (after a King’s wife) in 261 BC.
Di-OS, meaning “with God” (oss/ass/iss/uss seen many times in this divine conversation)
deywós/dyew: meaning "sky" or "heaven", and is related to many familiar English words, including "demon", "diva", “dew” and "Tuesday".
BTW, the morning dew on plants is believed to make especially potent medicine. RAin in AfRIca was considered an equivalent of god’s pREsence.
The city was prosperous, and that was a problem for ROme.
Jesus starts his letter by talking about himself. Each of his letters to the churches begin with a description of His character. He emphasizes certain aspects of himself which are especially important for that specific church to pay attention to. He offers zero words of encouragement or pRAise to the city.
In AD 60 an earthquake shattered the city. Rome offered to send funds for rebuilding. But Laodicea was so rich and self-sufficient they declined outside help and rebuilt from their its own wealth. They had their own church and basically said, “We don’t need your religion. We are doing fine ourselves.”
Nearby were some hot springs, known for healing properties and a Roman favorite place to visit. The Marsyas river emerges then buries itself again, something cherished in ancient times. Pliny mentions lists of people in the area, often saying “15 tribes/people of no note”, etc, revealing how much was not recorded. In this time around 600 BC through 300 BC, when it was named Roas, there is a good chance the people would have still worshipped Ra, and named their city after it. Ra is the Egyptian/African god, which could have transferred to Amun-Re as it did in many other places.
Greeks had been in Egypt since around 625 BC, given a city called NaukratIS for trade.
The temple of Aphrodite existed since the beginning of Naukratis, and was situated at the original landing site of ships coming to the city. Next to her traditional role of goddess of sexuality, she was also connected with the sea.
There are finds with Phoenician, Cypriote, Egyptian and East-Grecian influences all dedicated by Greeks. It is shown by sphinxes appearing on pottery and statuettes of Isis (and Horus).
There is no uniformity at all, except for the basic trends of Chian pottery in the beginning and after about 550 BC. AphROdite had a few epithets, but a common one was pandemos, usually translated as 'belonging to everyone'. She was the goddess of NaukRAtIS as HeRA was for Samos.
They worshipped the same gods, they weren't so different after all. Trust could be build and trust meant trade. religion and Aphrodite in particular were the brokers between different networks. They connected all the networks of the different poleis. It isn't a long stretch to think religion could do the same for the Egyptians and Phoenicians and more.
LYcia (L<>R), means “Land of LIght”
RHOdes
The island of Rhodes is at a crossroads between Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
Rhodes has an Egyptian-style statuette, from 600 BC
The Egyptian influence on Rhodes went back earlier than the Greeks and Alexander of 300 BC. Smyrthes made his dedication in the 600’s BC.
Ancient Egyptian amulets were found in buRIals all over the island of Rhodes, dating from around 550 BC.
The same ceramic hedgehogs can be found on display in the both Egypt and Rhodes, dating from the 550 BC time period. The Egyptians associated the hedgehog with rebirth because they retreat into underground dens for long periods, then emerged in times of abundance.
The city of RHOdes was formed in 408 BC when the city-states of IaLYSsOS, LIndOS, and KamiROs united to create a single capital.
Rhodes prospered for three centuries during its Golden Age, when sea trade, skilled shipbuilders, and open-minded politicians of the city kept it pROsperous until Roman times.
Etymology online says the name of Rhodes came from Rose, since Rhodes was full of them. But the phonetics of “ROse” is not close enough to “RHOdes” to suggest transfer, and more importantly: the word for rose did not yet exist. (In contrast, the transfer of Amun to Amen is pretty much perfect, especially considering the variations of spelling of each). The ancient connection to the Ro- root, however is valid, it just does not imply one came from the other, but they had a shared root syllable connected to the “supreme” Re. More on the roots for Rose above.
Rhodes also has the base of a statuette of a seated goddess.
The curator of a museum of Egypt in Cairo asked the writer of this article to take a photo of an Egyptian statuette with a Greek inscription in a museum in Rhodes Old Town. Finding it, the seated Egyptian statuette fragment from around 600 BC is inscribed with letters from the Greek alphabet, which in translation read: ‘….thes dedicated me’. A similar piece in the museum’s displays has the same inscription but this time giving the full name of the the person making the dedication: [S]myrthes.
This statuette was dedicated in the sanctuary of Athena on the acropolis of Kamiros. Campbell suggests that the figure above may originally have represented the Egyptian goddess Isis, but was “re-purposed” as a votive to Athena.
The Colossus of Rhodes was built in 304 BC, a statue of the sun god Helios (Greek version of Ra), that was built after defending from one of Alexander’s other generals. The city was defended with the help of Egypt, ruled by the Ptolemies, ALEXander’s favorite general. The statue was made of bROnze to shine like the sun, and stood a massive 105 feet tall. It was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was the inspiRAtion for the Statue of LIberty that bears the inscription “The New Colossus”.
And a long list of others places within Anatolia/Turkey to explore that stand out to me:
AeolIS
AlASHiya (ISland)
ApASAmASA
ASSur
AZi HayASA
CappadOCIA
CaRIa
CiLIcia, ancient city of AphROdISiAS
IKSunuwa
ISTanuwa
ISuwa
kUSsuRA
LUkka (L<>R)
MiletUS
MiRA
SarRISA
NuhASSA
URArtu, related to the biblical name AraRAt
Maybe one day I can get through all of the place names that stand out above for more ancient stories that tell us more about this age when empires were all about Ray and his mother, Ishtar/Isis. As you look through the map, this becomes increasingly more abundant across Europe into China. I’ll just need a lot more time! ;) Feel like supporting this effort? Feel free to find a way to contribute by messaging me at twasthenightstory@gmail.com.
God’s Wife, Armani
Amun is said to be a male conversion of the matRIarch Armani (iUSaASET). She is later known only known as Amun’s wife. It was said Armani created the universe through masturbation… a rite which was later given to Amun. It is believed that the very ancient Egyptians, and all Africans, were first matriarchal. The only known story of the Hidden One story was used to reference how She came down to put AUSet (Isis) and Sutty (Set) back into the womb of Nut.
She was known as “the Hidden one” and no one ever had a image of her. She was mostly represented by the Great Cow and/or Moon. Amun strikingly shares all of her titles, however, their are images of him, which shouldn’t be, as he was also always a Hidden Deity. Maybe the fact she remained hidden means she was really the one more pREciously guarded.
