530 THE HORITiiig. 



Tlie I'egion in wliicli tlie Ilorite family in tlie line of Aliitmai or 

 Ahmes took refuge, and in which it exercised regal dominion, was 

 that of Coptos. This word has been generally and rightly supposed 

 to be the root of the name ^gypt, the Egyptians themselves being 

 known as Copts. We learn, however, that the ancient name of 

 Coptos was Chemmis, and this Chemmis, the abode of the god Khem 

 or Ahom, gives us as its eponym Kames or Ahmes, othervfise 

 Ahnmai. The ancient name of Egypt, as a whole, was Chemi, the 

 land of this same founder of Chemmis. The word Chemi, in ancient 

 and modern Coptic, conveys the two ideas of heat and blackness, 

 Similar roots with the same doiible meaning are found in Arabic, 

 Syriac, and Hebrew. The Hebrew word Chum is proposed by 

 Fuerst as the root of Achumai, the initial Aleph being prosthetic. 

 It is interesting to note that the symbol of Ahom is the vulture or 

 eagle, and C-yps, the black vulture, has often been supposed a part 

 of the name Aegypt, while the word Ahom represents it. It is also 

 worthy of remark that another name for the Cheops of Herodotus is 

 Chembes or Chemmis.^® For a similar transformation, I may instance 

 the Latin Cupid as the homonym of the Sanscrit Cama. We have 

 thns five pairs of words serving to illustrate the identity of Ahumai 

 and ^gyptus : 



Coptos. ^gypt. Cheops. Gypt. Cupid. 



Chemmis. Chemi. Chemmis. Ahom. Cama. 



In proceeding to identify these two names, I need hardly apologize 

 for introducing Persian connections. I have already pointed out 

 what Herodotus, Diodorus, and other Greek writers so plainly state, 

 that from Chemmis came -5ijgyptus, Danaus and Perseus, their 

 descendant, the head of the Persian line.^" Hor are confirmations 

 of these statements wanting. A simple method of proof, allowing 

 the possibility of a Persian connection, lies in an enquiry into the 

 Bible relations of the name Achumai. The nearest word to Achumai 

 is Achmetha, the name of a city mentioned in Ezra vi. 2. The 

 final tha, which distinguishes this word from Achumai, is a particle 

 denoting place in many languages. In Hebrew we find Helek, 

 Atarah, Maarah becoming Helkath, Ataroth, Maarath, while Aiath, 

 Kehelatha, Zeredatha, and similar words testify to the same. We 



29 Diod. Sic, i. 63. 



*f The Pharaoh of the Exodus. Canadian Journal, Vol. xiii., No. 1. 



