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{{short description|Ancient Egyptian personification of the primordial watery abyss}}
{{redirect-distinguish|Naunet|Nanuet, New York}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2022}}
{{Infobox deity
| type = Egyptian
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| caption = An aspect of [[Heh (god)|Heh]] which personifies the endless waters of chaos. Based on the papyrus of Ani and New Kingdom tomb paintings.
| hiero = <hiero>W24*W24*W24:N1-N35A-A40</hiero>
| consort =
| symbol = [[Water]]
}}
}}'''Nu''' ("Watery One") or '''Nun''' ("The Inert One") ([[Egyptian language|Ancient Egyptian]]: {{transl|egy|nnw}} {{transl|egy|Nānaw}}; [[Coptic language|Coptic]]: {{lang|cop|{{script|Copt|Ⲛⲟⲩⲛ}}}} {{transl|cop|Noun}}), is the personification of the [[Cosmic ocean|primordial water]]y [[abyssal zone|abyss]] which existed at the time of creation and from which the creator sun god [[Ra]] arose,<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |url=http://archive.org/details/TheCompleteGodsAndGoddessesOfAncientEgypt |title=The Complete Gods And Goddesses Of Ancient Egypt |language=English}}</ref> in [[ancient Egyptian religion]]. Nu is one of the eight deities of the [[Ogdoad (Egyptian)|Ogdoad]] representing [[Isfet (Egyptian mythology)|ancient Egyptian primordial Chaos]] from which the [[Benben|primordial mound]] arose. Nun can be seen as the first of all the gods and the creator of reality and personification of the cosmos. Nun is also considered the god that will destroy existence and return everything to the Nun from whence it came. No cult was addressed to Nun.{{Infobox deity▼
{{Infobox deity
| type = Egyptian
| name =
| image = Nun and Naunet.jpg
| caption =
| hiero = <hiero>W24*W24*W24:N1-N35A X1:H8-B1</hiero>
| consort = [[Nu (mythology)|Nu]]
}}
'''Nu''' ("Watery One") or '''Nun''' ("The Inert One") ([[Egyptian language|Ancient Egyptian]]: {{transl|egy|nnw}} {{transl|egy|Nānaw}}; [[Coptic language|Coptic]]: {{lang|cop|{{script|Copt|Ⲛⲟⲩⲛ}}}} {{transl|cop|Noun}}), in [[ancient Egyptian religion]], is the personification of the [[Cosmic ocean|primordial water]]y [[abyssal zone|abyss]] which existed at the time of creation and from which the creator sun god [[Ra]] arose.<ref name="Wilkinson-2003"/>
▲
Nun's consort (or his female aspect) was the goddess '''Nunut'''<ref>{{cite book |last=Budge |first=E. A. Wallis |author-link=E. A. Wallis Budge |year=1920 |title=An Egyptian Hieroglyphic Dictionary |publisher=J. Murray |page=[https://archive.org/details/egyptianhierogly01budguoft/page/350 350]}}</ref> or '''Naunet''' ([[Egyptian language|Ancient Egyptian]]: {{transl|egy|nnwt}}).
==Name==
The name on Nu is paralleled with {{transl|egy|nen}} "inactivity" in a play of words in, "I raised them up from out of the watery mass [{{transl|egy|nu}}], out of inactivity [{{transl|egy|nen}}]". The name has also been compared to the Coptic ''noun'' "abyss; deep".<ref>{{cite book |last=Budge
==Origin myth==
The ancient Egyptians envisaged the oceanic abyss of the Nun as surrounding a bubble in which the sphere of life is encapsulated, representing the deepest mystery of their cosmogony.<ref name="oxford">Daniel R. McBride, 2003, ''The Oxford Essential Guide to Egyptian Mythology'', Berkley, {{ISBN|0-425-19096-X}}</ref> In ancient Egyptian creation accounts, the original mound of land comes forth from the waters of the Nun.<ref>[[David P. Silverman]], 2003, ''Ancient Egypt'', Oxford University Press US, {{ISBN|0-19-521952-X}}, p. 120</ref> The Nun is the source of all that appears in a differentiated world, encompassing all aspects of divine and earthly existence. In the [[Ennead]] cosmogony, Nun is perceived as transcendent at the point of creation alongside [[Atum]] the creator god.<ref name="oxford"/>▼
▲The ancient Egyptians envisaged the oceanic abyss of the Nun as surrounding a bubble in which the sphere of life is encapsulated, representing the deepest mystery of their cosmogony.<ref name="oxford">{{cite book |first=Daniel R. |last=McBride
=== Creation myth ===
{{Main page|Ancient Egyptian creation myths}}
In the beginning the universe only consisted of a great chaotic cosmic ocean, and the ocean itself was referred to as Nu. In some versions of this myth, at the beginning of time [[Mehet-Weret]], portrayed as a cow with a sun disk between her horns, gives birth to the sun, said to have risen from the waters of creation and to have given birth to the sun god [[Ra]] in some myths.<ref name="Wilkinson-2003"/> The universe was enrapt by a vast mass of primordial waters, and the Benben, a pyramid mound, emerged amid this primal chaos. There was a [[Nymphaea nouchali var. caerulea|lotus flower]] with Benben,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-07-13 |title=Ancient Egyptian Creation Myths: From Watery Chaos to Cosmic Egg |url=https://www.glencairnmuseum.org/newsletter/2021/7/13/ancient-egyptian-creation-myths-from-watery-chaos-to-cosmic-egg |access-date=2023-05-21 |website=Glencairn Museum |language=en-US}}</ref> and from this when it blossomed emerged Ra.{{cn|date=June 2024}} There were many versions of the sun's emergence, and it was said to have emerged directly from the mound or from a lotus flower that grew from the mound, in the form of a heron, falcon, scarab beetle, or human child.<ref name="Allen 144">{{cite book |last=Allen |first=James P. |year=2010 |title=Middle Egyptian: An Introduction to the Language and Culture of Hieroglyphs |publisher= Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1139486354 |page=144}}</ref><ref name="Wilkinson-2003">{{cite book |last=Wilkinson |first=Richard H. |url=https://archive.org/details/completegodsgodd00wilk_0/page/206 |title=The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt |publisher=Thames & Hudson |year=2003 |isbn=0-500-05120-8 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/completegodsgodd00wilk_0/page/206 206–207]}}</ref> In [[Heliopolis (Ancient Egypt)|Heliopolis]], the creation was attributed to [[Atum]], a deity closely associated with Ra, who was said to have existed in the waters of Nu as an inert potential being.
==History==
Beginning with the [[Middle Kingdom of Egypt|Middle Kingdom]], Nun is described as "the father of the gods" and he is depicted on temple walls throughout the rest of ancient Egyptian religious history.<ref name="oxford"
The [[Ogdoad (Egyptian)|Ogdoad]] includes along with Naunet and Nun, [[Amaunet]] and [[Amun]]; [[Hauhet]] and [[Huh (god)|Heh]]; and [[Kauket]] and [[Kek (mythology)|Kek]]. Like the other Ogdoad deities,
== Iconography ==
[[File:Nun Raises the Sun.jpg|left|thumb|Nun lifts the [[solar barque]] with the new-born sun from the waters of creation.]]{{CSS image crop|Image=Bookofthedeadspell17.jpg|bSize=700|cWidth=280|cHeight=120|oTop=|oLeft=0|Description=The mystical Spell 17, from the [[Papyrus of Ani]]. The vignette illustrates (left) Nu.}}Nun was depicted as an anthropomorphic large figure and a personification of the primordial waters,<ref name="Wilkinson-2003"/> with water ripples filling the body, holding a notched palm branch. Nun was also depicted in anthropomorphic form but with the head of a frog, and he was typically depicted in ancient Egyptian art holding aloft the [[Solar Barque|solar barque]] or the sun disc. He may appear greeting the rising sun in the guise of a baboon. Nun is otherwise symbolized by the presence of a sacred cistern or lake as in the sanctuaries of [[Karnak]] and [[Dendera|Dendara]].{{fact|date=September 2022}}
Nu was shown usually as male but also had aspects that could be represented as female or male. Naunet (also spelt Nunet) is the female aspect, which is the name ''Nu'' with a female gender ending. The male aspect, Nun, is written with a male gender ending. As with the primordial concepts of the Ogdoad, Nu's male aspect was depicted as a frog, or a frog-headed man. In Ancient Egyptian art, Nun also appears as a bearded man, with blue-green skin, representing water. Naunet is represented as a snake or snake-headed woman.{{fact|date=September 2022}}
In the 12th Hour of the [[Book of Gates]], Nu is depicted with upraised arms holding a [[solar deity|solar bark]] (or barque, a [[boat]]). The boat is occupied by eight deities with
During the [[Late Period of ancient Egypt|Late Period]] when Egypt was occupied by foreign powers, the negative aspect of
==See also==
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* {{annotated link|Sea of Suf}}
* {{annotated link|Tehom}}
* {{annotated link|Vishnu}}
* {{annotated link|Wadj-wer}}
* {{annotated link|Wuji (philosophy)|''Wuji''}}
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==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Ancient Egyptian religion footer|collapsed}}{{Kushite religion footer}}{{Authority control}}
▲{{Ancient Egyptian religion footer|collapsed}}
[[Category:Chaos (cosmogony)]]
[[Category:Egyptian gods]]
[[Category:Personifications]]
[[Category:Nubian gods]]
[[Category:Sea and river gods]]
[[Category:Water gods]]
[[Category:Solar gods]]
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