Cleopatra VII c. 51–30 BC
The last active ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt, the first of her family to learn Egyptian. Allied with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, she died after Rome's victory at Actium, and Egypt became a Roman province.
Birth name: Kleopatra
qlwpdrꜣt
Sign by sign
- Sandy hill N29q The sound q.
- Recumbent lion E23rw The sounds rw; spells L in names like Cleopatra and Ptolemy.
- Flowering reed M17i The sound i.
- Quail chick G43w The sound w; also a plural ending.
- Stool Q3p The sound p.
- Egyptian vulture G1ꜣ The sound ꜣ; often read as 'a' in names.
- Hand D46d The sound d.
- Mouth D21r The sound r; also means 'mouth'.
- Egyptian vulture G1ꜣ The sound ꜣ; often read as 'a' in names.
- Bread loaf X1t The sound t; also the feminine ending.
- Egg H8 Egg; ends the names of goddesses and queens.
Names of gods (Ra, Amun, Ptah) are written first out of respect, even when they are read later. Dates are approximate; we follow Ian Shaw (ed.), The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000).