zXAw or sS transliteration for 'scribe' - J.P. Allen's take-gctid261282

[Ɔbenfo Ọbádélé]

From: "James P. Allen"
   To:
   Subject: AEL zXAw "Scribe"
   Date: Mon, 22 Nov 1999 18:14:38 -0500

Thank you for the nice review. I'm glad you find the book useful.
   The Egyptian word for "scribe" should be transcribed zXAw rather than
   sS. In Coptic the word "write" is sxai and the word "scribe" is sax,
   showing that the root was zXA: infinitive *zi-XiA' > sxai, noun of
   agent *ziX'-Au > sax (the * means a theoretical reconstruction; the
   stressed syllable is marked by ' at its end). The reading sS is based
   on two early examples with the phonetic complements z and S, but in
   early Egyptian S was used for X (4th h) as well as S, and Coptic
   shows that the consonant was X, not S.
   James P. Allen, Curator
   Department of Egyptian Art
   Metropolitan Museum of Art
   
   P.S. Gardiner was a "Sir" but I'm only a plain American "Mr." (or
   "Dr." professionally).
   https://archive.is/OOgR7#selection-9.8308-9.9208