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أبيدو | |
 Façade of the Temple of Seti I in Abydos, built c. 1300 BCE | |
  Abydos Shown within Northeast Africa  Abydos Abydos (Egypt) | |
| Alternative name | Ⲉⲃⲱⲧ; Abedju |
|---|---|
| Location | El-Balyana, Sohag Governorate, Egypt |
| Region | Upper Egypt |
| Coordinates | 26°11′06″N 31°55′08″E / 26.18500°N 31.91889°E |
| Type | Settlement |
| History | |
| Periods | First Dynasty to Thirtieth Dynasty |
Abydos /əˈbaɪdɒs/ (Arabic: أبيدوس, romanized: Abīdūs or Arabic: افود, romanized: Afūd;[1] Sahidic Coptic: Ⲉⲃⲱⲧ Ebōt) is one of the oldest cities of ancient Egypt, and also of the eighth nome in Upper Egypt. It is located about 11 kilometres (6.8 miles) west of the Nile at latitude 26° 10' N, near the modern Egyptian towns of El Araba El Madfuna and El Balyana. In the ancient Egyptian language, the city was called Abedju (ꜣbḏw or AbDw)(Arabic Abdu عبد-و).[2]
The English name Abydos comes from the Greek Ἄβυδος, a name borrowed by Greek geographers from the unrelated city of Abydos on the Hellespont. Abydos name in hieroglyphs _name_in_hietoglyphs.gif){kind=small}
Considered one of the most important archaeological sites in Egypt, the sacred city of Abydos was the site of many ancient temples, including Umm el-Qa'ab, a royal necropolis where early pharaohs were entombed.[3] These tombs began to be seen as extremely significant burials and in later times it became desirable to be buried in the area, leading to the growth of the town's importance as a cult site.
Today, Abydos is notable for the memorial temple of Seti I, which contains an inscription from the Nineteenth Dynasty known to the modern world as the Abydos King List. This is a chronological list showing cartouches of most dynastic pharaohs of Egypt from Menes until Seti I's father, Ramesses I.[4] It is also notable for the Abydos graffiti, ancient Phoenician and Aramaic graffiti found on the walls of the Temple of Seti I.
The Great Temple and most of the ancient town are buried under the modern buildings to the north of the Seti temple.[5] Many of the original structures and the artifacts within them are considered irretrievable and lost; many may have been destroyed by the new construction.
- ^ Peust, Carsten. "Die Toponyme vorarabischen Ursprungs im modernen Ägypten" (PDF). p. 11. Archived (PDF) from the original on 9 October 2022.
- ^ Hawas, Zahi (2002). مخطوط معجم اللغة المصرية القديمة احمد كمال كمال. الجزء االثاني عشر (in Arabic). Cairo: Al-maǧlis al-aʿlá li-l-aṯār, high council of antiquities. p. 496. ISBN 9773053474.
- ^ "Tombs of kings of the First and Second Dynasty". Digital Egypt. UCL. Archived from the original on 6 January 2008. Retrieved 15 January 2008.
- ^ Misty Cryer (2006). "Travellers in Egypt – William John Bankes". TravellersinEgypt.org. Archived from the original on 14 August 2016.
- ^ "Abydos town". Digital Egypt. UCL. Archived from the original on 4 January 2008. Retrieved 15 January 2008.