psý

Hapax in a graffito in Abu Simbel, c. 593/592 (Adiego 2007a:31 with ref.).

[Zs.S.]

nom./acc. pl. c.

psýš

E.AS 7

The attestation follows Adiego 2007a:404, checked against the photograph of O. Masson 1979a:Pl.IV.3. The reading and segmentation follows that of Schürr 1996a:65, 68, Schürr 2001d:108, what Adiego 2007a:404 called “very doubtful”, although he accepted it in Adiego 2007a:118 and 451 (here with typo “psýś”) without any doubt. The inscription consistently uses word dividers, which seems to be missing after psýš, but this is a badly preserved passage and thus, the restoration of a word divider proposed by Schürr (also followed by Adiego 2007a:118, 404, 451 with question mark) is plausible and further supported by the regular nominal ending.

[Zs.S.]

Based on the reading psýšainiqom Ray 1994a:203f. saw the Egyptian name P3-sb3-ḫ^cj-m-njw.t / Ψουσεννης in it, admitting that the final three letters °qom cannot be explained in this case (listed by Vittmann 2001a:58 with question mark). This problem, combined with the reading problem mentioned under Form as well as the possible presence of a nominal ending rather argues for a segmentation psýš.

Without any explanation Schürr 1996a:70 translated psýš as ‘die Männer’, however, later (Schürr 2001d:108, Schürr 2010c:194) he cautiously translated it as “die Felsigen”, comparing with Hittite “pissu- ‘Felsen’” referring to the statues of Ramses into which the Carian graffiti in Abu Simbel were carved (Adiego 2007a did not mention Schürr’s proposal). The correct form of the Hittite word is paššu- and it means ‘an elevated structure (e.g. a step, podium, or pedestal) or elevated locality (e.g., a terrace)’ (CHD P s.v.). More problematic is that the derivation from paššu- does not explain the ‹ý›, which implies a following syllable with palatal vowel (Adiego 2007a:257; Schürr’s reconstruction, *pissuyV- [Schürr 2001d:108] does not solve this problem). The main problem is, of course, that there is no hint for the meaning of the word, except that standing isolated it seems to be a substantive, and accordingly, it remains unknown.

[Zs.S.]