List of pharaohs

Pharaoh of Egypt
The pschent combined the Red Crown of Lower Egypt and the White Crown of Upper Egypt.
A typical depiction of a pharaoh
Details
StyleFive-name titulary
First monarchNarmer (a.k.a. Menes)
Last monarch
[2]
Formationc. 3100 BC
Abolition
  • 343 BC
    (last native pharaoh)[1]
  • 30 BC
    (last Greek pharaohs)
  • 313 AD
    (last Roman Emperor to be called pharaoh)[2]
ResidenceVaries by era
AppointerDivine right

The title "pharaoh" is used for those rulers of Ancient Egypt who ruled after the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt by Narmer during the Early Dynastic Period, approximately 3100 BC. However, the specific title was not used to address the kings of Egypt by their contemporaries until the New Kingdom's 18th Dynasty, c. 1400 BC. Along with the title pharaoh for later rulers, there was an Ancient Egyptian royal titulary used by Egyptian kings which remained relatively constant during the course of Ancient Egyptian history, initially featuring a Horus name, a Sedge and Bee (nswt-bjtj) name and a Two Ladies (nbtj) name, with the additional Golden Horus, nomen and prenomen titles being added successively during later dynasties.

Egypt was continually governed, at least in part, by native pharaohs for approximately 2500 years, until it was conquered by the Kingdom of Kush in the late 8th century BC, whose rulers adopted the traditional pharaonic titulature for themselves. Following the Kushite conquest, Egypt experienced another period of independent native rule before being conquered by the Achaemenid Empire, whose rulers also adopted the title of pharaoh. The last native pharaoh of Egypt was Nectanebo II, who was pharaoh before the Achaemenids conquered Egypt for a second time.

Achaemenid rule over Egypt came to an end through the conquests of Alexander the Great in 332 BC, after which it was ruled by Hellenic Pharaohs of the Ptolemaic Dynasty. Their rule, and the independence of Egypt, came to an end when Egypt became a province of Rome in 30 BC. Augustus and subsequent Roman emperors were styled as Pharaoh when in Egypt until the reign of Maximinus Daza in 314 AD.

The dates given in this list of pharaohs are approximate. They are based primarily on the conventional chronology of Ancient Egypt, mostly based on the Digital Egypt for Universities[3] database developed by the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, but alternative dates taken from other authorities may be indicated separately.

  1. ^ a b Clayton 1995, p. 217. "Although paying lip-service to the old ideas and religion, in varying degrees, pharaonic Egypt had in effect died with the last native pharaoh, Nectanebo II in 343 BC"
  2. ^ a b von Beckerath, Jürgen (1999). Handbuch der ägyptischen Königsnamen. Verlag Philipp von Zabern. pp. 266–267. ISBN 978-3-422-00832-8.
  3. ^ "Digital Egypt for Universities". www.ucl.ac.uk. Retrieved 2019-02-12.