A nome (/nm/,[1] from Ancient Greek: νομός, nomós, "district") was a territorial division in ancient Egypt.[2]

Each nome was ruled by a nomarch (Ancient Egyptian: ḥrj tp ꜥꜣ, "Great Chief").[3] The number of nomes changed through the various periods of the history of ancient Egypt.[4]

Etymology

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The term nome comes from Ancient Greek νομός, nomós, meaning "district"; the Ancient Egyptian term was sepat or spAt.[5] Today's use of the Ancient Greek rather than the Ancient Egyptian term came about during the Ptolemaic period, when the use of Greek was widespread in Egypt.[6] The availability of Greek records on Egypt influenced the adoption of Greek terms by later historians.

History

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Dynastic Egypt

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The nomes & towns of Egypt in hieroglyphics

The division of ancient Egypt into nomes can be traced back to prehistoric Egypt (before 3100 BC). These nomes originally existed as autonomous city-states[citation needed], but later began to unify. According to ancient tradition, the ruler Menes completed the final unification.[7]

Not only did the division into nomes remain in place for more than three millennia, the areas of the individual nomes and their ordering remained remarkably stable. Some, like Xois in the Nile Delta or Khent in Upper Egypt, were first mentioned on the Palermo Stone, which was inscribed in the Fifth Dynasty. The names of a few, like the nome of Bubastis, appeared no earlier than the New Kingdom. Under the system that prevailed for most of pharaonic Egypt's history, the country was divided into 42 nomes.

Lower Egypt nomes

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Lower Egypt nomes

Lower Egypt (Egyptian: "Ā-meḥty"), from the Old Kingdom capital Memphis to the Mediterranean Sea, comprised 20 nomes. The first was based around Memphis, Saqqara, and Giza, in the area occupied by modern-day Cairo. The nomes were numbered in a more or less orderly fashion south to north through the Nile Delta, first covering the territory on the west before continuing with the higher numbers to the east. Thus, Alexandria was in the Third Nome; Bubastis was in the Eighteenth.

  1. White Walls Nome
  2. Travellers land
  3. Cattle land
  4. Southern shield land
  5. Northern shield land
  6. Mountain bull land
  7. West harpoon land
  8. East harpoon land
  9. Andjety god land
  10. Black bull land
  11. Heseb bull land
  12. Calf and Cow land
  13. Prospering Sceptre land
  14. Eastmost land
  15. Ibis-Tehut land
  16. Fish land
  17. The throne land
  18. Prince of the South land
  19. Prince of the North land
  20. Sopdu-Plumed Falcon land

Upper Egypt nomes

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Upper Egypt nomes
 
Middle Egypt nomes

Upper Egypt was divided into 22 nomes. The first of these was centered on Elephantine close to Egypt's border with Nubia at the First Cataract – the area of modern-day Aswan. From there the numbering progressed downriver in an orderly fashion along the narrow fertile strip of land that was the Nile valley. Waset (ancient Thebes or contemporary Luxor) was in the Fourth Nome, Amarna in the Fourteenth, and Meidum in the Twenty-first.

  1. Bows land
  2. Throne of Horus land
  3. Shrine land
  4. Sceptre land
  5. The two falcons land
  6. The crocodile land
  7. Sistrum land
  8. The Great land
  9. Min-God land
  10. Cobra land
  11. Sha-Set animal land
  12. Viper mountain land
  13. Upper Sycamore and Viper land
  14. Lower Sycamore and Viper land
  15. Hares land
  16. Oryx Nome
  17. Anubis land
  18. Set land
  19. Two Sceptres land
  20. Southern Sycamore land
  21. Northern Sycamore land
  22. Knife land

Ptolemaic Egypt

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Some nomes were added or renamed during the Graeco-Roman occupation of Egypt.[8] For example, the Ptolemies renamed the Crocodilopolitan nome to Arsinoe. Hadrian created a new nome, Antinoopolites, for which Antinoöpolis was the capital.

Roman Egypt

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The nomes survived into Roman times. Under Roman rule, individual nomes minted their own coinage, the so-called "nome coins", which still reflect individual local associations and traditions. The nomes of Egypt retained their primary importance as administrative units until the fundamental rearrangement of the bureaucracy during the reigns of Diocletian and Constantine the Great.

From AD 307/8, their place was taken by smaller units called pagi. Eventually powerful local officials arose who were called pagarchs, through whom all patronage flowed. The pagarch's essential role was as an organizer of tax-collection. Later the pagarch assumed some military functions as well. The pagarchs were often wealthy landowners who reigned over the pagi from which they originated.

Nomarch

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For most of the history, each nome was headed by a nomarch. The position of the nomarch was at times hereditary, while at others they were appointed by the pharaoh. Generally, when the national government was stronger, nomarchs were the king's appointed governors. When the central government was weaker, however—such as during foreign invasions or civil wars—individual nomes would assert themselves and establish hereditary lines of succession.[4] Conflicts among these different hereditary nomarchies were common, most notably during the First Intermediate Period, a time that saw a breakdown in central authority lasting from the 7th–11th Dynasties which ended when one of the local rulers became strong enough to again assert control over the entire country as pharaoh.

List of nomes

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The nomes (Ancient Egyptian: spꜣt, Coptic: ⲡⲑⲱϣ) are listed in separate tables for "Isti" - "the two Egypts" (Upper and Lower Egypt).

Note:

  1. older or other variants of the name in square brackets '[ ]';
  2. names vary from different time or era, or even titles, most epithets, honorific titles with a slash '/';
  3. Greek-Egypto derived names from the original Egyptian in parentheses '()'

Lower Egypt

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Number Nome Standard (Symbol on top of head of man or woman) Ancient Egyptian

Nome Name

Ancient Greek and Coptic Nome Name Capital Modern name of capital site God
Image Unicode Transliteration Translation Greek Coptic
1
 
𓈠 jnb-ḥḏ

Inebu-hedj

White Walls Μεμφίτης

Memphites

ⲙⲛⲫⲉ/ ⲉⲕⲉⲡϯⲁ jnb-ḥḏ Ineb-Ḥedj ( 𓏠𓈖𓄤𓆑𓂋𓉴𓊖 mn-nfr Mennefer) (Memphis) Mit Rahina Ptah
2
 
Khensu
𓈡 ḫpš

Khepesh

Cow's thigh Λητοπολίτης

Letopolites

ⲃⲟⲩϣⲏⲙ 𓐍𓋉𓅓𓊖 ḫm Khem [Sekhem/ Iry] (Letopolis) Ausim Horus
3
 
Iment (Ament)
𓈢 jmntt

Imentet/Amentet

West Γυναικοπολίτης

Gynaikopolites

I-am/ Imu (Apis) Kom El Hisn Hathor
4 𓈣 nt-rsj/nt-rsw

Nit Resy/Nit Resu

Southern Neith Προσωπίτης

Prosopites

ⲡϣⲁϯ Niciu Zawyet el-Razin
4 (21)
 
Sapi-Res
𓈣 nt-rsj/rsw

Nit Resy/Resu

Southern Neith Φθεμφουθ

Phthemphouth

Ptkheka Tanta Sobek, Isis, Amun
5
 
 
Sap-Meh
Sap-Meh
 
Sap-Meh
𓈤/𓈥 nt-mḥtt

Nit Meḥtet

Northern Neith Σαίτης

Saites

ⲥⲁⲓ 𓊃𓅭𓄿𓅱𓊖 zꜣw Sau/ Zau (Sais) Sa El Hagar Neith
6
 
Khaset
𓈦 ḫꜣsww

Khasuu

Mountain bull Ξοίτης

Xoites

ⲥϧⲱⲟⲩ 𓆼𓋴𓅱𓅱𓏏𓊖 ḫꜣsww Khasu (Xois) Sakha Amun-Ra
7
 
A-ment
𓈧 ḥww-(gs)-jmnty

Huu-(ges)-Imenti

West harpoon Μενελαίτης

Menelaites

𓂧𓏇𓇌𓊖𓏌𓅃𓏤 (Hermopolis Parva, Metelis) Damanhur Hu
8
 
Nefer-Iabti
𓈨 ḥww-(gs)-jꜣbty

Huu-(ges)-Iabty

East harpoon Ἡροοπολίτης

Heroopolites

Thek/ Tjeku / Iset-Tem 𓉐𓏤𓏏𓍃𓅓𓏏𓊖 pr-jtmw Per-Atum/ Ān (Heroonpolis, Pithom) Tell al-Maskhuta Atum
9
 
Ati
𓈩 ꜥnḏty

Andjety

Andjety Βουσιρίτης

Bousirites

ⲡⲁⲛⲁⲩ 𓉐𓏤𓊨𓁹𓎟𓊽𓂧𓅱𓊖 ḏdw Djedu (Busiris) Abu Sir Bara Osiris
10
 
Ka-Khem
𓈪 km-wr/kꜣ-km

Kem-Wer/Ka-kem

Black bull Ἀθριβίτης

Athribites

ⲁⲑⲣⲏⲃⲓ 𓉗𓏏𓉐𓇾𓁷𓄣𓊖 Hut-hery-ib (Athribis) Banha (Tell Atrib) Horus
11
 
Ka-Heseb
𓈫 (kꜣ)-ḥsb

(Ka)-Heseb

Heseb bull Λεοντοπολίτης

Leontopolites

ⲛⲁⲑⲱ Taremu/ Ikhenu (Leontopolis) Tell el-Muqdam Isis
12
 
Tjeb-Ka
𓈬 ṯb-kꜣ/ṯb-nṯr

Tjeb-Ka/Tjeb-Netjer

Calf and Cow Σεβεννύτης

Sebennytes

ϫⲉⲙⲛⲟⲩϯ 𓊹𓍿𓃀𓊖 ṯb-nṯr (Tjeb netjer) (Sebennytos) Samanud Anhur
13
 
Heq-At
𓈭 ḥqꜣ-ꜥḏ

Heka-Adj

Prospering Sceptre Ἡλιοπολίτης

Heliopolites

ⲱⲛ jwnw (Iunu)/ In-meḥ/ Iset-Tem/ Igert, Igertet, Iqert, Iugertet (Heliopolis) Materiya (suburb of Cairo) Ra
14
 
Khent-Abt
𓈮 ḫnty-jꜣbty

Khenti-Iabti

Foremost of the East Σεθρωίτης

Sethroites

Tjaru/ Dj‘anet (Sile, Tanis) Tell Abu Sefa Horus
15
 
Djehuti
𓈯 ḏḥwty

Djeḥuti

Thoth Μενδήσιος

Mendesios

ⲛⲓⲙⲉϣϣⲱⲧ Ba'h / Weprehwy (Hermopolis Parva) Baqliya Thoth
16
 
Kha
𓈰 ḥꜣt-mḥyt

Hatmehyt

Fish/ Foremost of the Fish Μενδήσιος

Mendesios

ⲛⲓⲙⲉϣϣⲱⲧ Djedet/ Ā'atjaba (Mendes) Tell El Rubˁ Banebdjedet and Hatmehyt
17
 
Sema-Beḥut
 
Sema-Beḥut
𓈱/𓈲 bḥdt/smꜣ-bḥdt

Behdet/Sema-Behdet

Throne/ Uniting the throne? Διοπολίτης Κάτω

Diospolites Kato

ⲡⲟⲩⲛⲉⲙⲟⲩ Sema-behdet (Diospolis Inferior) Tel El Balamun Amun-Ra
18
 
Im-Khent
𓈳 jmty-ḫnty

Imty Khenti

Southern Prince Βουβαστίτης

Boubastites

ⲡⲟⲩⲃⲁⲥϯ Per-Bastet (Bubastis) Tell Bastah (near Zagazig) Bastet
19
 
Im-Peḥ
𓈴 jmty-pḥw

Imty Pehu

Northern Prince Τανίτης

Tanites

ϫⲁⲛⲏ Dja'net (Leontopolis Tanis) Tell Nebesha or San El Hagar Wadjet
20
 
Sep-d
𓈵 spdw

Sopdu

Sopdu Ἀραβία

Arabia

ϯⲁⲣⲁⲃⲓⲁ Per-Sopdu Saft El Hinna Sopdet

Upper Egypt

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Number Nome Standard (Symbol on top of head of man or woman) Ancient Egyptian

Nome Name

Capital Modern Capital God
Image Unicode Transliteration Translation
1
 
Ta-Seti
𓈶 tꜣ-sty

Ta-Seti

Land of the bow 𓍋𓃀𓃰𓅱𓎶𓈊 Abu / Yeb [Yb] (Elephantine) Sunnu/ Irp-Ḥesp (Aswan) Khnum
2
 
Wetjes-Her
𓈷 wṯs-ḥrw

Wetjes-Hor

Throne of Horus 𓌥𓃀𓊖 Djeba (Apollonopolis Magna) Behdet/Wetjes-Hor (Edfu) Horus-Behdety
3
 
Nekhen
𓈸 nḫn

Nekhen

Shrine Nekhen (Hierakonpolis) Elkab Nekhebet
4
 
Uas (Uaset/ Waset)
𓈹 wꜣst

Waset

Waset (Thebes) Luxor Sceptre Amun-Ra
5
 
Herui
𓈺 bjkwy/nṯrwy/ḥrwy

Bikuy/Netjerui/Herui

Two falcons/Two gods/Two Horuses 𓎤𓃀𓅂𓊖 Gebtu/ Iter-Shemā (Coptos) Qift Min
6
 
Iqer
 
Iqer
𓈻 jqr/msḥ

Iqer/Meseh

The crocodile Iunet (Tantere/ Tentyra/ Dendera) Tantere/ Tentyra/ Dendera Hathor
7
 
Seshesh
𓈼 bꜣt/sšš

Bat/Seshesh

Bat/Sistrum Seshesh/ Pa-Khen-Iment/ Uas-Meḥ (Diospolis Parva) Hu Hathor
8
 
Ta-wer
𓈽 tꜣ-wr

Ta-wer

Great land Thinis Anhur
9
 
Min
𓈾 mnw

Min

Min Ip/ Ipi/ Ipu/ Apu/ [later: Khen-Min, perhaps another name for "Khemenu"]/ Ārty-Ḥeru (Panopolis) Akhmim Min
10
 
Uadj (Wadjet)
 
Uadj (Wadjet)
𓈿/𓉀 wꜣḏyt

Wadjet

Wadjet Djew-qa / Tjebu (Antaeopolis) Qaw El Kebir Hathor
11
 
Set
 
Set
𓉁/𓉂 šꜣ

Sha

Set-animal Shashotep (Hypselis) Shutb Khnum
12
 
Ta-wer
𓉃 ḏw-ft

Dju-fet

Viper mountain Pr nmty (Hieracon) al Atawla Horus
13
 
Ta-wer
𓉄 ꜣtf ḫntt/nḏft-ḫntt

Atef Khentet/ Nedjefet Khentet

Southern ꜣtf/nḏft-Tree Zawty (z3wj-tj, Lycopolis) Asyut Apuat
14
 
Ta-wer
𓉅 ꜣtf-pḥt/nḏft-pḥt

Atef Peht/Nedjfet Peht

Northern ꜣtf/nḏft-Tree Qesy (Cusae) El Qusiya Hathor
15
 
Ta-wer
𓉆 wnt

Wenet

Hare Khemenu (Hermopolis Magna) El Ashmounein Thoth
16
 
Ta-wer
𓉇 mꜣ-ḥḏ

Ma-Ḥedj

Oryx Herwer? Hur? Horus
17
 
Ta-wer
𓉈 jnpw(t)

Anpu/Anput

Anubis/Anput Saka (Cynopolis) El Qais Anubis
18
 
Ta-wer
𓉉/𓉊 nmty

Nemty

Nemty Teudjoi / Hutnesut (Alabastronopolis) El Hiba Anubis
19
 
Ta-wer
𓉋 wꜣbwy

Wabwi/Wabui

Two scepters? Per-Medjed/ Per-Mādjet/ Uabu-t (Oxyrhynchus) El Bahnasa Set
20
 
Ta-wer
𓉌 nꜥrt-ḫntt

Nart Khentet

Southern nꜥrt-tree Henen-nesut (Herakleopolis Magna) Ihnasiya Heryshaf
21
 
Ta-wer
𓉍 nꜥrt-pḥt

Nart Peht

Northern nꜥrt-tree Shenakhen / Semenuhor/ Ium'ā (Crocodilopolis, Arsinoe) Faiyum Khnemu
22
 
Ta-wer
𓉎/𓉏 mdnjt

Mednit/Medenit

Knife 𓁶𓏤𓃒𓏪𓊖 Tepihu (Aphroditopolis) Atfih Hathor

References

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Citations

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  1. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition. Merriam-Webster, 2007. p. 841
  2. ^ "Nome | ancient Egyptian government". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2020-09-14.
  3. ^ Bunson, Margaret (2014). Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt. Infobase Publishing. p. 280. ISBN 978-1-4381-0997-8.
  4. ^ a b "Nomes". Ancient Egypt Online. Retrieved 2020-09-14.
  5. ^ "Provinces of Egypt". www.ucl.ac.uk. Retrieved 2017-05-21.
  6. ^ "Ptolemaic Dynasty". World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2020-09-14.
  7. ^ Herodotus, Euterpe, 2.4.1 and 2.99.1ff.
  8. ^ Bagnall, Roger S. (1996). Egypt in Late Antiquity (Fourth printing ed.). Princeton: Princeton University Press. p. 333. ISBN 0691069867. Retrieved 2 February 2015.

BIbliography

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  • Bagnall, Roger S. (1996), Egypt in Late Antiquity, Princeton: Princeton University Press.
  • Bowman, Alan K. (1990), Egypt after the Pharaohs, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
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