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To: Spirited
Since the full official name of the Pyramind, the Great Pyramid of Giza, means, in English, the Great Pyramid of the Border

I'd appreciate a reference to that. My sources say the Pyramid of Cheops was called akhet khufu, which means, unsurprisingly, "pyramid of cheops". The Egyptian word for pyramid is derived from their word for "horizon", not "border". It's a religious metaphor but the explanation is a bit long.

57 posted on 01/12/2003 11:22:40 PM PST by John Locke
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To: John Locke
"The Egyptian word for pyramid is derived from their word for "horizon", not "border"."

The author quoted, E. Raymond Capt, a member of the Archeological Institute of America, acknowledges the pioneers of Pyramidology such as Greaves, Menzies, Smyth, Flinders, the Rutherfords, etc.

I suspect that when he used what many of these others said (that Gizeh means border in the language) it is likely to be so. You are, of course, entitled to quarrel with all of them.

His very reasonably priced book, The Great Pyramid Decoded", would particularly appeal to those mathematically inclined. He, by the way, is among those who believe it was built in the reign of Khufu. (These days that belief is a prerequisite to obtain Egyptian government permission to permit a scientist to investigate the edifice.) So much for "scientific proof" or truth.

You will notice that the major books written in the 1800's did not use the more recently employed "Pyramid of Cheops" appellation. The controversial Vyse "discovery" so eagerly adopted by the government of Egypt has been a windfall for them but they have been singularly loathe to allow much modern technology to be used to determine anything about the Great Pyramid or the Sphinx.

Herodotus' writings on the subject were penned at a date farther removed from the building of the Pyramid than we are from the dates of the life and writings of Herodotus.

Every cult in the world and the Egyptian government in particular has a vested interest in the Great Pyramid.
You can even take tours online.

I imagine one can find a website to substantiate almost anything one wants to believe about the Great Pyramid. I doubt that some of us can find even one with which we agree without reservation. In the spirit of that statement these are a few which bear in some way on the discussion here:

http://www.ecclesia.org/truth/pyramid.html
http://philologos.org/bpr/files/Misc_Studies/ms003.htm
http://www.greatpyramid.org/aip/gr-pyr1.htm


67 posted on 01/13/2003 6:55:31 AM PST by Spirited
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To: John Locke
"My sources say the Pyramid of Cheops was called akhet khufu, which means, unsurprisingly, "pyramid of cheops". The Egyptian word for pyramid is derived from their word for "horizon", not 'border'."

Since you do not accept the title "Great Pyramid of Giza" and that title was the one commonly used by the early Pyramidologists I named (who were not listed as Egyptologists to my knowledge) I am certain that you can use what you think is the ancient name and I can feel free not to do so.

As for the word Gizeh, we at least agree that it is "border" in Arabic. The words Great and Pyramid are neither Arabic nor Egyptian, yet we use those as names of the edifice while at or of Giza denotes location.

If the early explorers who became Pyramidologists spoke either Egyptian or Arabic in any degree of mastery it would be amazing. It did not hamper their work or bring it into question (even though many times their conclusions have proven fanciful).

W.M.F.Petrie the "father of modern archaeology' who is also considered an Egyptologist named his book 'The Pyramids and Temples of Gizeh'. He is highly regarded even today by Dr.Z Hawass the Egyptian who was and I believe may still be in charge of the Pyramids on the plain of Giza on behalf of the Egyptian government. I do not find any evidence that Petrie had any command of the language of Egypt although he had the rudimentary grammar of French,Greek and Latin as was usual bare minimum in that day.
http://home.uleth.ca/geo/vitae.htm

I suspect that you need to use the Egyptian name which you have learned and I feel just as comfortable using the English name which also appends the word Giza as the British Petrie did.

When talking about this Pyramid none of us is likely to agree with any of the rest of us as to almost anything said about it. Here most any of us may stand accused of "straining at gnats and swallowing camels".

Sorry Capt's gnat was a choke point for you as the Egyptian name must be for me since I do not speak or comprehend the Egyptian language and when I was taught the listed seven wonders of the world in school the phrase taught to me was The Great Pyramid at(or of) Giza.

Blessings!
79 posted on 01/13/2003 10:34:00 PM PST by Spirited
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