The Reporter (or often translated as Herald) ( egy, wḥm. w) was an Ancient Egyptian title. The literal meaning of ''wḥmw'' translates to 'one who repeats'. This is generally rendered as 'reporter', 'herald', 'intermediary' or similar. The title first appeared in the

Old Kingdom In ancient Egyptian history, the Old Kingdom is the period spanning c. 2700–2200 BC. It is also known as the "Age of the Pyramids" or the "Age of the Pyramid Builders", as it encompasses the reigns of the great pyramid-builders of the Fourth ...

as an honorific of a high official, and later became an administrative function during the Middle Kingdom. In the

New Kingdom New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

the role developed an

oracular An oracle is a person or agency considered to provide wise and insightful counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. As such, it is a form of divination. Description The word ''or ...

aspect.

Usage

The title ''wḥmw'' or 'the Reporter' is attested in royal, bureaucratic and religious settings.

Administrative title

The title first appeared in the Old Kingdom as an honourific of an appointed official in the royal court.

Faulkner William Cuthbert Faulkner (; September 25, 1897 – July 6, 1962) was an American writer known for his novels and short stories set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, based on Lafayette County, Mississippi, where Faulkner spent most of ...

and

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translates ''wḥmw'' as 'herald, reporter', suggesting that officials bearing this title in the Middle Kingdom were involved in the dissemination of information within the governmental administration. The title has been attributed to household officials, officials assigned to specific missions, as well as ordinary high-ranking local officials of the Middle Kingdom, and bearers of the title are often mentioned in expedition inscriptions. Occasionally the title "scribe of the reporter" (''sš n wḥmw'') is attested, suggesting that some had their own staff. The administrative function diminished in importance by the Ramesside period.

Religious title

Luxor Museum Statue Amenophis Sohn des Hapu 04

The usage of the title within the religious framework relates to the belief of an intermediary between deities and man. Egyptologists Ausec, Otto, Teeter and Harrington translate ''wḥmw'' in the religious context as the 'Intermediary'. Galan notes that the operational structure of the title ''wḥmw'' and its function within the administrative framework operates in a bidirectional manner, either descending from the king to the people through the herald, or ascending from the people to the king or

vizier A vizier (; ar, وزير, wazīr; fa, وزیر, vazīr), or wazir, is a high-ranking political advisor or minister in the near east. The Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was a ...

via the herald. Conversely, within the religious context, the operational structure of the title ''wḥmw'' functions unidirectional, solely ascending from the people to the gods through a divine, royal or individual intermediary. During the New Kingdom, statues were erected in the forecourts of temples in order to intercede for the public who were prohibited from entering the temple proper. These 'intermediary statues' were meant to report requests and petitions to the local gods. A known statue of Amenhotep, son of Hapu (who was posthumously deified), dates back to the reign of

Amenhotep III Amenhotep III ( egy, jmn-ḥtp(.w), ''Amānəḥūtpū'' , "Amun is Satisfied"; Hellenized as Amenophis III), also known as Amenhotep the Magnificent or Amenhotep the Great, was the ninth pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty. According to different ...

, and reads:On another statue, Amenhotep calls himself the 'herald of the god

Amun Amun (; also ''Amon'', ''Ammon'', ''Amen''; egy, jmn, reconstructed as (Old Egyptian and early Middle Egyptian) → (later Middle Egyptian) → (Late Egyptian), cop, Ⲁⲙⲟⲩⲛ, Amoun) romanized: ʾmn) was a major ancient Egyptian ...

'. According to the

Ancient Egyptian religion Ancient Egyptian religion was a complex system of polytheistic beliefs and rituals that formed an integral part of ancient Egyptian culture. It centered on the Egyptians' interactions with many deities believed to be present in, and in control ...

, some ancient Egyptian gods acted as intermediaries between humans and the main deity. One such was the

Apis bull In ancient Egyptian religion, Apis or Hapis ( egy, ḥjpw, reconstructed as Old Egyptian with unknown final vowel > Medio-Late Egyptian , cop, ϩⲁⲡⲉ ''ḥapə''), alternatively spelled Hapi-ankh, was a sacred bull worshiped in the Mem ...

, a sacred bull worshiped as the herald (''wḥmw'') of the gods Ptah,

Osiris Osiris (, from Egyptian ''wsjr'', cop, ⲟⲩⲥⲓⲣⲉ , ; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎𐤓, romanized: ʾsr) is the god of fertility, agriculture, the afterlife, the dead, resurrection, life, and vegetation in ancient Egyptian religion. He was ...

and

Atum Atum (, Egyptian: ''jtm(w)'' or ''tm(w)'', ''reconstructed'' ; Coptic ''Atoum''), sometimes rendered as Atem or Tem, is an important deity in Egyptian mythology. Name Atum's name is thought to be derived from the verb ''tm'' which means 'to com ...

References

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