The Egyptian Ankh Symbol Meaning is the most famous symbol of ancient Egypt is the Ankh. The general meaning of the symbol is “life.” In hieroglyphic writing, the Ankh symbolizes the idea of life that lasts forever. The Ankh, or “key to life,” is a symbol often appearing in Egyptian tomb paintings and other art. It is called the “key of the Nile” because it symbolizes the marriage of Osiris and Isis. The Ankh was part of the cult of Isis, and it also appeared as a “cross with a handle,” symbolizing eternal life.

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Ankh spiritual meaning

The Ankh is one of the most well-known and widely used symbols in ancient Egypt and the rest of the world.

The Egyptian Ankh Symbol Meaning shows the idea of divine protection and internal love. It’s a key-shaped cross with a looped top with no beginning or end, like the spirit of Ra.

It also stands for eternal life, the morning sun, purifying the life-giving power of water, clairvoyance, and the joining of opposites like earth and heaven and male and female (Isis and Osiris).

The ancient Egyptians thought death was just a way to get to the afterlife and live forever. So, this cross was also put on the lips of Egyptian rulers who had died.

During the Early Dynastic Period (3150–2613 BCE), the Ankh symbol first appeared. By the time of the Old Kingdom (2613–2181 BC),

the Ankh symbol had become a powerful sign of eternal life and was called Neb-Ankh.

The character is linked to “The Knot of the Goddess Isis” and her powerful cult (3150–2613 BCE) because it represents the tie that holds all life together.

In ancient Egypt, the Ankh was a vital sign. Its hieroglyphs, called “the key of life” in English, literally mean “eternal life,”

They have been linked for a long time to rituals that priests or royalty did to make sure they would live forever on Earth.

The general meaning of the hieroglyphs that make up this sign is that they mean words like “Khepera,” which means “to become.”

This means that thoughts from Earth’s material plane become real in the physical world. It can be seen in many paintings from the time of the dynasties.

They are often used to show funerals and Osiris, who believed that people could have children after they died for a long time.

It was once called the “key to life” because of its links to Osiris, which led people to believe they could come back for another birth or even live on through their children if they accidentally left any behind.

Egyptians took this very seriously since deliveries were often unpredictable before modern times.

The Ankh was sometimes called “the key to the Nile” in ancient Egyptian culture.

The key to the Nile was a sign that you could get to the river and that two different things could work together.

In this case, it was a picture of the wedding of Isis and Osiris.

Ancient Egyptians thought that the Nile’s annual flooding was caused by the river’s two largest tributaries coming together and fighting with each other.

In some traditions, the Tyet knot, which represents Isis, is also linked to the Ankh.

This sign’s shape is like the Ankh, also an infinity symbol. The most remarkable thing about the Tyet is how the arms of the cross curve down, a common theme in that religion.

The Isis knot probably meant something in Egyptian culture similar to the Ankh.

What does the Ankh symbolize?

The Ankh symbolizes life, protection, faith, energy, change, light, fertility, and rebirth.

Because it is linked to the goddess Isis, the Ankh can also stand for the ideas and symbols of sexual union between people of different sexes and fertility.

The Ankh is the most straightforward and uncomplicated way to see how the ancient Egyptians thought about immortality, life after death, reproduction, and the life cycle.

Pharaohs and ankhs

The Ankh often stands for a blessing or hope for long life when it is shown with a pharaoh, or Egyptian kings, in artwork or antiques.

In reality, the meaning of the ankh symbol was deduced from the fact that this hieroglyphic sign comprises the letters that make up the word “life.”

The term was often used in pharaohs’ names. King Tutankhamun, sometimes known as King Tut, is a well-known example of this approach.

Because of its significance, the Ankh is often depicted in art and architecture; it is one of the most widely used ornamental symbols.

The Ankh may be seen on various items, including fans and mirrors, as well as on architectural elements like temple walls and columns.

The Ankh, which is often shown in black or blue, has also been cast in gold for protection amulets. Additionally, ceramic objects with the sign have been discovered.

Check our article about Tutankhamun Tomb

Ankhs and Gods

In addition to this, the ankh is often represented as being held by key Egyptian deities like Osiris, Isis, and Ra inside temples across Egypt.

There is also the possibility that it has a more literal meaning: the ankh may be symbolic of water, air, and the sun,

which, in Ancient Egyptian society, were thought to be necessary for the maintenance and provision of life.

Hathor is often seen holding this cross since she is one of the most well-known deities to own it.

The goddess Hathor was significant in Egyptian mythology. The Egyptian god Hathor. Hathor was said to be the biological mother of the gods Horus and Ra.

She began to connect with Ra’s more feminine traits as a direct consequence of this. Her prominent roles often involved sexuality, dancing, pleasure, and musical expression.

Also, the Egyptian gods Atum and Sejmet were often pictured in art holding the Ankh. Atum was the first god, and he could make things appear out of nothing.

Ankhs were a sign that the goddess Sekhmet would protect the pharaohs when they went into battle. In ancient Egypt, Sekhmet was worshipped as the goddess of war.

Don’t miss to check our article about the Hathor temple

The history of the Ankh in Use

Starting at the top, a circle—a representation of that which has no beginning and no end—forms the Ankh.

This circle also acts as the key’s handle, from which the gods carry it—the spirit of Ra, the Sun God of ancient Egypt.

When it sets or rises, it rests on the Earth, similar to how the Sun does on the horizon.

Additionally, this key unlocks the gates to the afterlife and pierces the layers of eternity’s significance.

It is the key to the tomb doors during burial rites, held by the handle, and it is put between the eyes to signify a confidentiality commitment.

Within the Egyptian culture, the Ankh symbol was also used in all kinds of amulets. Amulets were associated with the attributes of the god or virtue they represented.

In this case, the Ankh amulet was used to represent life. The Egyptians used them in their daily life but also as an offering for the dead to accompany them in life after death.

Amulets in this shape were mostly black or blue in color. The materials used for its manufacture were gold, gold, and silver alloys, as well as ceramics.

It is possible that the material and color of these amulets also had particular importance among the Egyptians.

Use in writing

In ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic writing, the ankh was a triliteral sign, which meant it stood for a series of three consonant sounds.

The ankh stood for the sequence -n-, where n is pronounced like the letter n in English, is a voiced pharyngeal fricative, and is a voiceless or voiced velar fricative (sounds not found in English).

In the Egyptian language, these consonants were used in words like sn, which means “cause to live” or “feed,” and in the verb and noun that mean “live” and “life,” respectively.

One of the most common ways to use the phrase was to say that someone should live.

For example, a term that meant “may you be alive and healthy” was used in polite situations, like the English phrase “if you please.” Another phrase, n w snb, meaning “alive, sound, and healthy,” was used to refer to the Pharaoh in writing.

The words “mirror” and “flower bouquet” had the same consonants, so the same sign was used to write both words.

The three consonants also make up the word for a looped rope-like thing that can be seen on many Middle Kingdom coffins (c. 2050–1650 BC).

In the early 20th century, Egyptologists Battiscombe Gunn and Alan Gardiner thought these objects were sandal straps

because they were found in pairs at the foot of the coffin and because the texts that went with the things said that they were “on the ground under his feet.”

Modern uses of The Ankh

In modern Western culture, the Ankh has become a famous symbol, especially as a design for jewelry and tattoos.

It started to come back to life when the counterculture of the 1960s made people more interested in old religions.

In the 21st century, it is the most well-known sign of African origin in the West.

People of African descent in the U.S. and Europe sometimes use it to signify their cultural identity as Africans.

The Ankh is also a sign of Kemetism, a group of religions based on the religion of ancient Egypt.

The movement is also popular in the goth subculture, where it is associated with vampires because of the 1983 vampire movie The Hunger, in which an ankh pendant plays a significant role.

Summary 

Most Pharaohs, ancient Egyptian gods, and goddesses are shown holding the Ankh symbol. Coptic Christians also call it “crux ansata,” which means “cross of life and death.” This symbol is found in paintings, temple walls, and tombs because it was thought to be the key to life the ankh cross. It was also considered the key to the afterlife because it was supposed to provide divine protection.

The symbol of life Ankh can be seen as a sign of happiness and a balance between men and women. The ancient Egyptian symbol was the “key of the Nile River,” meaning heaven and earth would always be together. Often, the Ankh symbol was seen with the Djed and the Was.

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