Hapi (Nile god): Difference between revisions
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| image = File:Hapy tying.svg | | image = File:Hapy tying.svg | ||
| alt = | | alt = | ||
| caption = Hapi, shown as an iconographic pair of [[genius (mythology)|genii]] symbolically tying together [[Upper Egypt| | | caption = Hapi, shown as an iconographic pair of [[genius (mythology)|genii]] symbolically tying together [[Upper Egypt|Upper]] and [[Lower Egypt]] | ||
| hiero = <hiero>H-a:p*y-!-N36</hiero> | | hiero = <hiero>H-a:p*y-!-N36</hiero> | ||
| cult_center = [[Elephantine]] | | cult_center = [[Elephantine]] | ||
| symbol = Lotus plant | | symbol = [[Nymphaea nouchali var. caerulea|Lotus plant]] | ||
| parents = | | parents = | ||
| siblings = | | siblings = | ||
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| offspring = | | offspring = | ||
| god_of = | | god_of = | ||
}}'''Hapi''' ([[Ancient Egyptian]]: ''ḥꜥpj'') | }}'''Hapi''' ([[Ancient Egyptian]]: ''ḥꜥpj'') (also spelled '''Hapy''') was the god of the annual [[flooding of the Nile]] in [[ancient Egyptian religion]]. The flood deposited rich [[silt]] on the river's banks, fertilizing the soil and enabling the Egyptians to grow crops.<ref name="Wilkinson 106">Wilkinson, p.106</ref> Hapi was greatly celebrated among the Egyptians. Some of the titles of Hapi were "Lord of the Fish and Birds of the Marshes" and "Lord of the River Bringing Vegetation". Hapi is typically depicted as an [[androgyny|androgynous figure]] with a prominent belly and large drooping breasts, wearing a [[loincloth]] and ceremonial false beard.<ref name="Wilkinson 107">Wilkinson, p.107</ref> | ||
==Mythology== | ==Mythology== | ||
{{Ancient Egyptian religion}} | {{Ancient Egyptian religion}} | ||
The annual [[flooding of the Nile]] occasionally was said to be the ''Arrival of Hapi''.<ref name="Wilkinson 106"/> Since this flooding provided [[fertility|fertile]] soil in an area that was otherwise desert, Hapi symbolised fertility. He had large female breasts because he was said to bring a rich and nourishing harvest. Due to his fertile nature he was sometimes considered the "father of the gods",<ref name="Wilkinson 106"/> and was considered to be a caring father who helped to maintain the balance of the cosmos, the world or universe regarded as an orderly, harmonious system.<ref name="Wilkinson 106"/> He was thought to live within a cavern at the supposed source of the Nile near [[Aswan]].<ref name="Wilkinson 108">Wilkinson, p.108</ref> The cult of Hapi was mainly located at the First Cataract named [[Elephantine]]. His priests were involved in rituals to ensure the steady levels of flow required from the annual flood. At Elephantine the official [[nilometer]], a measuring device, was carefully monitored to predict the level of the flood, and his priests must have been intimately concerned with its monitoring. | The annual [[flooding of the Nile]] occasionally was said to be the ''Arrival of Hapi''.<ref name="Wilkinson 106"/> Since this flooding provided [[fertility|fertile]] soil in an area that was otherwise desert, Hapi symbolised fertility. He had large female breasts because he was said to bring a rich and nourishing harvest. Due to his fertile nature he was sometimes considered the "father of the gods",<ref name="Wilkinson 106"/> and was considered to be a caring father who helped to maintain the balance of the cosmos, the world or universe regarded as an orderly, harmonious system.<ref name="Wilkinson 106"/> He was thought to live within a cavern at the supposed source of the Nile near [[Aswan]].<ref name="Wilkinson 108">Wilkinson, p.108</ref> The cult of Hapi was mainly located at the [[Cataracts of the Nile|First Cataract]] named [[Elephantine]]. His priests were involved in rituals to ensure the steady levels of flow required from the annual flood. At Elephantine the official [[nilometer]], a measuring device, was carefully monitored to predict the level of the flood, and his priests must have been intimately concerned with its monitoring. | ||
Hapi was not regarded as the god of the Nile itself but of the inundation event.<ref name="Wilkinson 106"/> He was also considered a "friend of [[Geb]]", the Egyptian god of the [[soil|earth]],<ref name="Wilkinson 105">Wilkinson, p.105</ref> and the "lord of [[Neper (mythology)|Neper]]", the god of [[grain]].<ref name="Wilkinson 117">Wilkinson, p.117</ref> | Hapi was not regarded as the god of the Nile itself but of the inundation event.<ref name="Wilkinson 106"/> He was also considered a "friend of [[Geb]]", the Egyptian god of the [[soil|earth]],<ref name="Wilkinson 105">Wilkinson, p.105</ref> and the "lord of [[Neper (mythology)|Neper]]", the god of [[grain]].<ref name="Wilkinson 117">Wilkinson, p.117</ref> | ||
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==Iconography== | ==Iconography== | ||
[[File:Hapi with offerings.svg|thumb|Hapi, bearing offerings]] | [[File:Hapi with offerings.svg|thumb|Hapi, bearing offerings]] | ||
Although [[male]] and wearing the false [[beard]], Hapi was pictured with pendulous breasts and a large stomach, as representations of the [[fertility]] of the Nile. He was usually given blue<ref name="Wilkinson 107"/> or green skin, representing water. Other attributes varied, depending upon the region of Egypt in which the depictions exist. In Lower Egypt, he was adorned with [[papyrus]] plants and attended by [[frog]]s, present in the region, and symbols of it. | Although [[male]] and wearing the false [[beard]], Hapi was pictured with pendulous breasts and a large stomach, as representations of the [[fertility]] of the Nile. He was usually given blue<ref name="Wilkinson 107"/> or green skin, representing water. Other attributes varied, depending upon the region of Egypt in which the depictions exist. In [[Lower Egypt]], he was adorned with [[papyrus]] plants and attended by [[frog]]s, present in the region, and symbols of it. In [[Upper Egypt]], it was the [[Blue Egyptian lotus|lotus]] and [[Nile crocodile|crocodile]]s which were more present in the Nile, thus these were the symbols of the region, and those associated with Hapi there. Hapi often was pictured carrying offerings of food or pouring water from an [[amphora]], but also, very rarely, was depicted as a [[hippopotamus]]. During the [[Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt|Nineteenth Dynasty]] Hapi is often depicted as a pair of figures, each holding and tying together the long stem of two plants representing Upper and Lower Egypt, symbolically binding the two halves of the country around a [[hieroglyph]] meaning "union".<ref name="Wilkinson 107"/> This symbolic representation was often carved at the base of seated statues of the pharaoh.<ref name="Wilkinson 107"/> | ||
Egyptian historian Al Maqrizi (1364–1442) | Egyptian historian [[Al-Maqrizi]] (1364–1442) claimed in his "''El Khutat El Maqrizia''" ("The Maqrizian Plans") that virgins were sacrificed annually as "brides of the Nile" ("''Arous El Nil''"). This claim was historically accepted until the 1970s,<ref>Desmond Stewart, Wonders of Man The Pyramids and the Sphinx pg.99</ref> when Egyptologists such as [[Bassam el-Shammaa]] began to dispute it.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.masress.com/en/dailynews/107916|title=The Nile Bride sacrifice is a big myth, says Egyptologist|website=Masress}}</ref> | ||
==Gallery== | ==Gallery== | ||
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File:Hapi Dios egipcio.webp|An engraving of Hapi | File:Hapi Dios egipcio.webp|An engraving of Hapi | ||
File:Luxor Museum Statuen Haremhab Atum 08.jpg|Statues of King [[Horemheb]] depicting Hapi, [[Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt|18th Dynasty]] | File:Luxor Museum Statuen Haremhab Atum 08.jpg|Statues of King [[Horemheb]] depicting Hapi, [[Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt|18th Dynasty]] | ||
File:Upper part of a statue of the Nile God Hapi, granite. From Faiyum, Egypt, 12th Dynasty, c. 1800 BCE. Neues Museum.jpg|Upper part of a statue of the Nile God Hapi. From Faiyum, Egypt, 12th Dynasty, c. 1800 BCE. Neues Museum, Berlin | File:Upper part of a statue of the Nile God Hapi, granite. From Faiyum, Egypt, 12th Dynasty, c. 1800 BCE. Neues Museum.jpg|Upper part of a statue of the Nile God Hapi. From [[Faiyum]], Egypt, [[Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt|12th Dynasty]], c. 1800 BCE. Neues Museum, Berlin | ||
File:Limestone slab showing the Nile flood god Hapy. 12th Dynasty. From the foundations of the temple of Thutmose III, Koptos, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London.jpg|Limestone slab showing the Nile God Hapi. 12th Dynasty. From the foundations of the temple of Thutmose III at Koptos, Egypt. Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London | File:Limestone slab showing the Nile flood god Hapy. 12th Dynasty. From the foundations of the temple of Thutmose III, Koptos, Egypt. The Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London.jpg|Limestone slab showing the Nile God Hapi. 12th Dynasty. From the foundations of the [[temple of Thutmose III]] at [[Qift|Koptos]], Egypt. Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London | ||
File:5EGP(2).png|Hapi is featured on the [[Egyptian pound|£E5 note]]. | File:5EGP(2).png|Hapi is featured on the [[Egyptian pound|£E5 note]]. | ||
</gallery> | </gallery> | ||
Latest revision as of 05:13, 23 October 2025
Template:Short description Script error: No such module "about".Script error: No such module "Infobox".Template:Template otherScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".Template:Wikidata imageTemplate:Compare image with WikidataHapi (Ancient Egyptian: ḥꜥpj) (also spelled Hapy) was the god of the annual flooding of the Nile in ancient Egyptian religion. The flood deposited rich silt on the river's banks, fertilizing the soil and enabling the Egyptians to grow crops.[1] Hapi was greatly celebrated among the Egyptians. Some of the titles of Hapi were "Lord of the Fish and Birds of the Marshes" and "Lord of the River Bringing Vegetation". Hapi is typically depicted as an androgynous figure with a prominent belly and large drooping breasts, wearing a loincloth and ceremonial false beard.[2]
Mythology
Template:Ancient Egyptian religion The annual flooding of the Nile occasionally was said to be the Arrival of Hapi.[1] Since this flooding provided fertile soil in an area that was otherwise desert, Hapi symbolised fertility. He had large female breasts because he was said to bring a rich and nourishing harvest. Due to his fertile nature he was sometimes considered the "father of the gods",[1] and was considered to be a caring father who helped to maintain the balance of the cosmos, the world or universe regarded as an orderly, harmonious system.[1] He was thought to live within a cavern at the supposed source of the Nile near Aswan.[3] The cult of Hapi was mainly located at the First Cataract named Elephantine. His priests were involved in rituals to ensure the steady levels of flow required from the annual flood. At Elephantine the official nilometer, a measuring device, was carefully monitored to predict the level of the flood, and his priests must have been intimately concerned with its monitoring.
Hapi was not regarded as the god of the Nile itself but of the inundation event.[1] He was also considered a "friend of Geb", the Egyptian god of the earth,[4] and the "lord of Neper", the god of grain.[5]
Iconography
Although male and wearing the false beard, Hapi was pictured with pendulous breasts and a large stomach, as representations of the fertility of the Nile. He was usually given blue[2] or green skin, representing water. Other attributes varied, depending upon the region of Egypt in which the depictions exist. In Lower Egypt, he was adorned with papyrus plants and attended by frogs, present in the region, and symbols of it. In Upper Egypt, it was the lotus and crocodiles which were more present in the Nile, thus these were the symbols of the region, and those associated with Hapi there. Hapi often was pictured carrying offerings of food or pouring water from an amphora, but also, very rarely, was depicted as a hippopotamus. During the Nineteenth Dynasty Hapi is often depicted as a pair of figures, each holding and tying together the long stem of two plants representing Upper and Lower Egypt, symbolically binding the two halves of the country around a hieroglyph meaning "union".[2] This symbolic representation was often carved at the base of seated statues of the pharaoh.[2] Egyptian historian Al-Maqrizi (1364–1442) claimed in his "El Khutat El Maqrizia" ("The Maqrizian Plans") that virgins were sacrificed annually as "brides of the Nile" ("Arous El Nil"). This claim was historically accepted until the 1970s,[6] when Egyptologists such as Bassam el-Shammaa began to dispute it.[7]
Gallery
-
An engraving of Hapi
-
Statues of King Horemheb depicting Hapi, 18th Dynasty
-
Upper part of a statue of the Nile God Hapi. From Faiyum, Egypt, 12th Dynasty, c. 1800 BCE. Neues Museum, Berlin
-
Limestone slab showing the Nile God Hapi. 12th Dynasty. From the foundations of the temple of Thutmose III at Koptos, Egypt. Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, London
-
Hapi is featured on the £E5 note.
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References
Works cited
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Further reading
- Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
External links
- Hapi, God of the Nile, Fertility, the North and South
- Egyptian God - Hapi: Father of the gods
- Ancient Egypt: The Mythology - Hapi