Quail Chick (hieroglyph)

The Ancient Egyptian Quail chick hieroglyph is Gardiner sign listed no. G 43 for the quail chick.

TThe quail chick hieroglyph is used in the Ancient Egyptian language hieroglyphs for the alphabetic vowel letter w, (or the u). The vocalization is between the "oo", for 'u'; the "woo", for 'w'.

Plural usage

Besides the alphabetic usage, (of 'oo', or 'woo'), the plural usage of the quail chick, and coil hieroglyphs may have driven the extensive use of the two hieroglyphs. They often are used as a determinative, for making a plural at word endings, or at important sections of word phrases. Just as in cuneiform, both scripts had two versions of plurals – cuneiform used: MEŠ, and HI.A, Sumerogram forms.

The Sanskrit word for above hieroglyph G-43 'w,o,u' , is w-r oj , which means 'a quail, sparrow (chiriya) and homonyms best, excellent, most beautiful, finest, better than, preferable to, selection, act of choosing, blessing, favour, reward, gift, husband, bridegroom, suitor, wooer, wish, desire, solicitation, libertine, a dissolute man, a present, the act of choosing'.

To use of two (double) hieroglyphs G-44 is not to make a plural at word ending. But it was the practice of repeating the complete word based on Sanskrit w-r-w-r or b-r-b-r ccZj, ooZj , which means ' one not an Aryan, a Barbarian, Berbers, low fellow, a fool, block-head, curled, the clash of weapons, stammering, a mode of dancing'. The meanings 'curled, clash of weapons, stammering, a mode of dancing' were used for "lightning".