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The following is a list of terms in the Kane Chronicles. Because the series is centered around Egyptian mythology and culture, there are a number of unfamiliar and foreign words and phrases in series. This page is a list of those terms and their definitions.


A[]

Ankh

The Egyptian symbol of life

  • Aaru: The Egyptian afterlife, paradise.[1]
  • Ankh: The Egyptian symbol of life.
  • Aten: The sun; not to be confused with Ra, the sun god.[1]

B[]

C[]

Tut-Cartouche

A hieroglyphic name, enclosed in a cartouche.

  • Cartouche: Symbolizing magic ropes, these lines encircled Ancient Egyptian names to protect the holder from evil magic. Sadie thought it sounded like a rude word.
  • Coptic: An Egyptian system of writing that uses the Greek alphabet.

D[]

Djed

A djed, symbol of Osiris.

  • Demon: Not to be confused with the modern-day term, a demon is not necessarily evil, although it is an agent of chaos. It comes from the Duat. Specifically the land of demons, which is near Apophis's Sheut, which is in the Sea of Chaos.
  • Demon Days: The last five days in the year; considered to be bad luck by the Egyptians. Nut gambled with Khonsu, the moon god, for five days worth of moonlight. She used this time, known as the Demon Days, to give birth to her five children, Set, Isis, Horus, Osiris, and Nephthys. It is the strongest time of year for evil magic.
  • Demotic: An Egyptian script that preceded Coptic, but occurred after hieroglyphs.
  • Divine Words: The Ancient Egyptian pronunciation of words. Using these words, magicians are able to draw upon power for spells directly from Ma'at.
  • Divination: a magical power to see events in the future. Ruby Kane possessed this.
  • Djed: The symbol of Osiris. It depicts the spine of Osiris.
  • Duat: The spirit world of gods and magic.
File:SAM 0809.jpg

Demons

E[]

Eye of Ra

A depiction of the Eye of Ra slaying her foe, Apophis.

Eye of Horus

The Eye of Horus

  • Eye of Horus: A symbol of protection and representative of Horus. Carter has an amulet of it.
  • Eye of Ra: The symbol is identical in design and meaning to the Eye of Horus. It may also refer to Ra's champion, Bast, or her predecessor, Sekhmet.

F[]

  • Fellahin: Egyptian peasants.

G[]

  • Godling: Also known as a host, a godling is a person that is possessed by a god.

H[]

  • Hieroglyph: A system of writing used by the Ancient Egyptians. It is based on pictographs.
  • Host: Also known as a godling, a host is a person that is possessed by a god.
  • House of Life: Also known as the Per Ankh. An organization of magicians that maintain the balance of Ma'at and Isfet.

I[]

Ib

Carter Kane explaining the Ib.

  • Ib: One of the five parts of the soul: The heart
  • Isfet: The balance of chaos, and opposite of Ma'at.

J[]

N/A

K[]

Ka

Carter Kane explaining the Ka.

  • Ka: One of the five parts of the soul: The life force
  • Khopesh: A type of "sickle-sword" found in Ancient Egypt. It was commonly used by guards of the pharaoh, works well with combat magic and used to disarm enemies. Also Carter's choice of weapon.
  • Kohl: A type of cosmetic that darkens the area around the eye, much like modern-day eyeliner or eyeshadow.

L[]

N/A

M[]

  • Ma'at: The order of the universe.[1]
  • magic: supernatural power to alter reality.
  • Magician: A human with magical power.
  • Menhed: A scribe's palette.[1]

N[]

Narmer Palette-Front

The front of the Narmer Palette

Narmer Palette-Back

The back of the Narmer Palette

  • Narmer Palette: A palette that depicts the first Pharaoh of Egpyt, Narmer, conquring his enemies and uniting Egypt. It also contains pictures of serpopards.
  • Netjeri blade: A knife made from meteoric iron for the opening of the mouth in a ceremony. Given to Sadie by Anubis.[1]
  • Nome: One of the three-hundred and sixty provinces of the world.

O[]

  • Obelisk: A tall, narrow monument. They work well as portals.

P[]

  • Per Ankh: Also known as the House of Life. An organization of magicians that maintain the balance of Ma'at and Isfet.
  • Pharaoh: The kings (and in some cases, such as Hatshepsut, queens) who ruled Dynastic Egypt for thousands of years. The first was Narmer and the last was Cleopatra VII. They were later replaced by Roman Governors.
  • Pyramid: A monument that serves as a tomb for the pharaoh during the Old Kingdom.

Q[]

N/A

R[]

  • Ren: One of the five parts of the soul: The secret name, the identity.[1]
  • Rosetta Stone: The Rosetta Stone is how the modern world first deciphered ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs. Julius Kane uses the Rosetta Stone as a magical anchor with which he summons Osiris. The process destroyed the stone, and further unleashed Set, Horus, Isis, and Nephthys; this ultimately causes a chain reaction, freeing more and more gods.

S[]

  • Sahlab: A hot drink that Nut describes as "hot vanilla" in contrast to hot chocolate.
  • Sau: A type of magician that specializes in making charms and amulets.
  • Scarab: A dung beetle. The scarab god is Khepri, the "divine dung beetle".
    Scarab

    A Scarab

  • Se-kebeb"Make cold".
  • Shabti: Living sculptures that do a magician's bidding.
  • Shen: "Eternal".[1]
  • Sheut: One of the five parts of the soul: The shadow; can also mean statue.
  • Souk: An open-air market.[1]
  • Sphinx: A symbol of Ma'at and a protector of Egypt. They are allies to the magicians.
  • Stele: A limestone grave marker.[1]

T[]

Tyet

The Knot of Isis

  • Tjesu heru: A snake with two heads, one of which is on its tail, and dragon legs.[1]
  • Tyet: Also known as the Knot of Isis. Like the ankh, it symbolizes life. It represents Isis and magic. Sadie has an amulet of the Tyet.

U[]

N/A

V[]

N/A

W[]

  • Was: Power[1]Was is the god's staff, and the symbol of power

X[]

N/A

Y[]

N/A

Z[]

Zia

References[]

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 The Throne of Fire list of terms, hardback, page 450
The Kane Chronicles
Core Series: The Red Pyramid | The Throne of Fire | The Serpent's Shadow
Crossovers: The Son of Sobek | The Staff of Serapis | The Crown of Ptolemy | Demigods & Magicians
Main Characters: Carter Kane | Sadie Kane | Ra | Anubis | Apophis | Bast | Bes | Horus | Isis | Zia Rashid | Set | Walt Stone | Setne
Secondary Characters: Julius Kane | Ruby Kane | Amos Kane | Vladimir Menshikov | Leonid | Sarah Jacobi | Kwai
Minor Characters: Michel Desjardins | Iskandar | Jasmine Anderson | Sean Ryan | Julian | Alyssa | Cleo | Felix Philip | Shelby | Khufu | Muffin | Mr. Faust | Mrs. Faust | Percy Jackson | Annabeth Chase
Egyptian Gods: Ra | Geb | Nut | Shu | Osiris | Horus | Set | Isis | Nephthys | Anubis | Sobek | Bast | Thoth | Serapis | Ptah | Nekhbet | Wadjet | Babi | Tefnut | Tawaret | Khepri | Khnum | Neith | Khonsu | Sekhmet | Hathor | Serqet | Shezmu | Hapi
Demons and Magical Creatures: Ammit the Devourer | Bau | Bloodstained Blade | Criosphinx | Carriers | Face of Horror | Griffin | Uraeus | Serpopard | Switchblade Demons | Tjesu heru | Petsuchos
Other: House of Life | Magic | Magician | Kane Family
Related Content: Rick Riordan | List of Terms | The Kane Chronicles: Survival Guide | Brooklyn House Magician's Manual | Film Series | Mythomagic, Inc | Netflix
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