THE 
MONTHLY MAGAZINE. 
No.409.] 
“MAY 1, 1825. 
[Price 2s. 
Resrancues in Ecyet—Universat 
CHARACTER. 
[Continued from No. 406, p. 12-] 
if hae representation of names, hiero- 
glyphically, in Egypt, was not a 
matter of much difficulty : because each 
name expressing an object or quality, 
or deity, or combination of these, the 
characters, whether single or combined, 
for picturally representing it, existed in 
the language. Nothing, on the same 
rinciple, is easier, in modern heraldry 
fa fragment, doubtless, of the hierogly- 
phical language), than to represent, pic- 
turally, such names as Lion, For, Lamb, 
Swan, &c. ; : 
But the case would be different with 
regard to foreign names: because these 
latter only expressing a sound, and not 
an idea capable of pictural or conven- 
tional representation, some new pro- 
cess, for characterizing the person bear- 
ing it, in the hieroglyphical language, 
was requisite. The most obvious way 
was to represent by portrait; and this, 
we have no doubt, was done in some 
cases, or where it was possible to pun 
upon the name,—and to attach another 
idea, and consequently another picture, 
to the sound, than. what appertained to 
it in the original language: and this is 
frequently done by Moses, and is looked 
upon as a species of cabala by the Rab- 
bins; i.e., he translates the syllabic 
sound, or combined syllabic sounds, of 
a foreigner into Hebrew,—just as a 
Frenchman might do, who, being told 
that an Englishman’s name was Brown, 
should call him Le Brun; or, if Green, 
should call him Vert. . 
But, neither of these processes were 
possible, except in very few cases: how, 
consequently, was the unideal sound 
attached to a foreigner’s name_espe- 
cially, when foreigners came to rule in 
Egypt, to be described in writing ? We 
have no doubt whatever, that this 
dilemma was solved preciscly in the 
same way as it was done time immemo- 
rial in China; that it produced the ear- 
liest step from the hieroglyphical to 
the alphabetical character; and that it 
caused the invention, in whatever nation 
it presented itself, of what M.Champol- 
lion cotrectly calls phonetic characters. 
Montury Macazinr, No. 409, 
But, guiding our dissent by the Chi- 
nese analogy in question, we differ, both 
with Dr. Young, who interprets the 
Egyptian characters for names syllabi- 
cally, and with M. Champollion, who 
interprets them phonetically. We ap- 
prehend that each alphabetic consonant 
is expressed by two hieroglyphics, as in 
China,—on a model after which the 
Sanscrit alphabet was afterwards framed. 
One of these hieroglyphics represents 
an initial, the other a final sound,—as, 
Phong and Kon make Phon; Tsing and 
Kan, Tsan: and thus the Chinese have 
created an alphabet which consists 
(leaving out the repeated consonants) 
of twenty-four letters, like most of the 
Europeans. This alphabet has a disad- 
vantage which resembles that which M. 
Champollion has collected from the 
hieroglyphics, in one respect, namely, 
that there are several characters (in 
some instances not.less than sixteen) 
for one sound; and this is in fayour of 
his system. But then the double sym- 
bol has only the power of a monosylla- 
ble; whereas, he imparts to ae of 
two syllables the power of a single con- 
sonant, and represents it by a single 
symbol, In this, we infer .that he is 
incorrect. For instance, it is unreason- 
able to imagine that the word Roman, 
expressed hieroglyphically by a single 
image, viz, a pomegranate, which it 
means should represent. only R, when 
there is the initial consonant M, as well 
as R, employed. And the multitude of 
characters which are oftentimes crowded 
into what Dr. Young calls a ring, but 
which we apprehend to be a shield, and 
the manner in which they are generally 
coupled therein, bears us out in our 
conjecture. 
The combination of the two forms of 
writing names, hicroglyphical (where 
the single or combined syllables would 
admit of it), and alphabetical (where 
they would not), we agree with Dr. 
Young, must throw great impediments 
in the way of elucidation. This plan 
the Chinese indiscriminately adopt; and 
so, it appears by the names published 
in the enchorial character in Dr, Young’s 
work, did the Egyptian. " For example, 
were the Chinese to represent George, 
2 Q and 
