Magyar László szerk.: Orvostörténeti Közlemények 170-173. (Budapest, 2000)
KÖZLEMÉNYEK — COMMUNICATIONS - Győry, Hedvig: "Providing protection to a new-born on the day of his birth ". Extra-and intrauterine complications and abnormalities in ancient Egypt. — „Az újszülött védelméről gondoskodni születése napján ". Méhen kívüli és belüli komplikációk és rendellenességek az ősi Egyiptomban
names which assimilate the child with ancestors, 34 as e.g. sn. t — jt. s "the sister of his father", Jt—sn. j "the father of my brother", sn.sn "their brother", though deceased or still-born sisters or brothers are not mentioned unless a singular name of the Old Kingdom Nn —mn —sn — "who did not stay among them " 35 does not hint at this case. The lack can be easily revealed: they did not want to talk of the devil either. In the judgement of deceased children, however, obviously many various local traditions and also private emotional views could be influential. The respect for the pre-natal foetus and the still-born baby and the fact that they were esteemed as equal to those who died at a more advanced age, — at least during the New Kingdom —, is shown e.g. by their independent cemetery on the hill-side at Deir el-Medineh 36 , or by the two mummified foeti found in the tomb of Tutankhamon. No names of these little ones survived. But the denominations 37 of other children, who was born alive and got their names immediately after birth, give many clues of the concepts about children. Sometimes the wish for a sound child was expressed there: the names composed with the help of the word snb — "health(y)" or c rüj, "life / to live " and its compositions respectively, as snb —n.j , snb —n.f, snb —n.sn ("who is healthy for me/ him/ them " cf. for the living member of the family), snb.sn ("who is healthy among them"). 3S These names could have also protective and preventive meaning even then and may be because then when their owner was born with some abnormality or its expectancy for life seemed to be weak (snb for a dwarf e.g. in the Old Kingdom 39 ). Based on denominations the child was considered as — the gift of the gods, 40 e.g. types of names as Rdj (w) —n.j —Pth — "who was given me by Ptah ", Rdj (w).n.f —n.j — "who was given me ", 41 — or by calling it a god's child 42 it was entrusted to the protection of the god. 43 But names can still speak about Hermann Ranke: Grundsatzliches zum Verständnis der ägyptischen Personennamen in Satzform, Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften. Sitzungsberichte. Ph-hist. Klasse, 1936/37, Abhandlung 3, p. 176; Hermann Ranke: Les nomes propres égyptiens, CdE 11/22, 1936, p. 295—6; Henry G. Fischer: sh^3sn (Florence 1774), RdElA, 1972, p. 66. Henry G. Fischer,: o.e., p. 66 = Hermann Ranke: o.e., p. 168,4. Bernard Bruyère: Rapport sur les fouilles de Deir el-Medineh, 1934-5, IL: La nécropole de 1 'Est, FIFAO 15, Le Caire, 1937, p. 11—15; a characteristic burial custom seems to be for children the use of big amphores see e.g. Heilmut Brunner: Alexandria, Menas Stadt. Kom el-Nugus. Kom Firin. Maadi. Gise. Saqqara. El Omari. Ezbet el-Walda (Heluan). Dahschur. Wadi Hammamat. Karnak. Theben-West. Tod. Edfu, 2. part. Archiv fúr Orientforschung, 16/2, 1953, p. 387: Naukratis; Achille Adriani: Nouvelles découvertes dans la nécropole de Hadra, Ann. du Musée Gr-R, 1940—50, p. 1—27, especially p. 2, pl. III. fig. 5; Jean Leclant: Fouilles et travaux en Egypte et au Soudan, 1962—63, Orientalia NS. 33, 1964, p. 339—340: Abukir; Erika Feucht: o.e., p. 124— 132. Hermann Ranke: Zur Namengebung der Ägypter, OLZ 29, 1926, p. 733—735; Herman de Meulenaere: Le surnom Égyptien à la Basse Époque, Istambul, 1966, p. 25; Erika Feucht: o.e., 1995, p. 107—113. Herman Ranke: o.e., p. 200, 202; Henry G. Fischer: o.e., (1972), p. 66. Nadine Cherpion: De quand date la tombe du nain Seneb? B1FAO 84, 1984, p. 35—54. E.g. Wessetzky Vilmos: Ptahhotep intelmei (Instructions of Ptahhotep), Valóság 88/1988, p. 82—94 = Lichtheim: o.e., p. 66, line 198; Papyrus Insinger, A. Volten: Koppenhagener Texte zum Demotischen Weisheitsbuch. Analecta Aegyptiaca, I. Copenhagen, 194079,19. Cf. Herman Ranke: o.e., p. 227. Henry G. Fischer: o.e., p. 66. no. 3. Hermann Ranke: o.e., p. 227.
