Plant representation by means of hieroglyphic writing in ancient Egypt

Abstract

Hieroglyphic writing is characterised by the use of pictographic signs. Such signs represent persons, animals, plants, any other aspects related with nature, objects or day life actions. Egyptians used to inspire from the landscape elements that surrounded them to create the signs used in their writing language. Signs are used to write down sounds, words or to indicate the semantic field of the following word. The latter, are called determinatives. Given the iconographic character of hieroglyphics, the word that provides information about the semantic field of the following word, in this case botanical, the type of plant and what part of the plant is it referred to.

Keywords: Botanics, semantic field, determinative, landscape, pictographic, iconographic.