English (United Kingdom) 
Russian (Russia) To define the concept of ‘festival’ in Ancient Egypt, they used the word «Hb», completed with the determinative 
(W4), included an open kiosk set on the alabaster vessel. The kiosk was a carcass construction of reed or cane, with a supporting column in the shape of an opened papyrus flower. Elements of the determinative W4 indicated the basic principles of any festival connected with the motifs of resurrection of the nature, renovation of power and might of gods and people.
Festivals have been held in Ancient Egypt since the Predynastic period. Information on festivals can be found in depictions and inscriptions on palettes, maces, stamps, calendar lists (since the epoch of the Old Kingdom), in notes about temple rituals, in religious texts (Pyramid Texts, Coffins Texts, Book of Dead), in kings annals, administrative documents, hymns and poetic texts, paintings and reliefs of temples, private tombs, and stelas. The most complete calendar lists came from the epoch of the New Kingdom (2 millennium BCE). They provide information that Egyptians celebrated at least 60 festivals during a year. Many of them were connected to the agrarian activity of Egyptians and their purpose was to stimulate the fertility, to provide good harvest in the land. Besides, festivals commemorated important events of astronomical type: rising the star Sirius (Sotis) in the east, rising and setting of the Sun, the new moon, the full moon, etc. Those phenomena were associated with various mythological tales about gods, as well as with certain ideas on the afterlife existence of human beings passing steps of resurrection in the afterworld. The ‘Rising Sirius’ Festival (prt %pdt), for instance, pointed the moment of starting of the Nile flood and the beginning of the new year; it was interpreted as the resurrection of goddess Sotis, who had passed 70 days before it in the underground world (the period when the star was invisible) and the resurrection of dead in the afterworld, the second one was associated with the goddess. The 70 days period was associated also with the myth on mummification of remnants of Osiris found and gathered by his sister-wife Isis (she was also associated with Sotis). That is why they use 70 days for the ritual of embalming a dead body associated with Osiris.
As a calendar list of festivals of the time of Ramesses III from Medinet Habe informs us, Egyptian festivals were classified into ‘annual/seasonal’ ones (tp trw) and ‘heavenly festivals’ (nw pt). The first ones, perhaps, were linked to the civil calendar, the second ones — to the lunar one. At the same time, some festivals called tp trw had dates calculated on the base of the lunar calendar (Wag Festival, Min Festival, Festival of the Valley, for example). In general, festivals of Egypt can be classified into three groups: festivals of gods, of king, and of dead. At that, noteworthy, each of these types of festivals contains some elements of other two groups. The first group included festivals for gods Amon, Osiris, Sokar, Horus, Thoth, Hathor, Khnum, Renenutet, Isis, Mut, Bastet. The second group includes Heb Sed, coronation ceremony, and festivals commemorating military victories. For the deceased ancestors, they organized such festivals as Wag, of the Valley, lunar ones. There is a special group of local festivals celebrated in a certain region of Egypt. There were Amon festivals in Thebes (Opet and of the Valley), festivals for gods Khnum, Anukis and Satis in Elephantine, for Horus in Edfu, for Hathor in Dendera.
The festival calendar of Ancient Egypt
Ahet (Axt): the season of inundation
I Axt: ‘Opening of the Year’ Festival: ‘Rising of Sirius’; Wag Festival; Thoth Festival; Inebriation Festival (Hathor Festival); ‘Rising of Osiris’ Festival (Abydos).
II Axt: Opet Festival (Thebes); Khnum, Satis and Anukis Festivals (Elephantine); Ptah Festival ‘South of his Wall’ (Memphis).
III Axt: Hathor Festival (Edfu and Dendera).
IV Axt: ‘Hathor Boating’ Festival; festivals of Khoiak (Osiris and Sokar Festivals); Sekhmet Festival.
Peret (prt): the sowing season
I prt: Nehebkau Festival; Udjat Festival; Min Festival; Coronation of sacred falcon Festival (Edfu); ‘Mut Boating’ Festival.
II prt: ‘Anubis Boating’ Festival; Great Flame Festival; Victory Festival (Edfu).
III prt: Small Flame Festival; Amenhotep I Festival.
IV prt: Bastet Festival; Renenutet Festival.
Shemu (Smw): the harvesting season
I Smw: Renenutet and Nepri Festival; ‘Min Coming’ Festival; Khonsu Festival.
II Smw: Festival of the Valley (Thebes).
III Smw: Opet (She-Hippo goddess) Festival; Hathor Festival (Thebes);Wonderful Meeting Festival (Edfu and Dendera).
IV Smw: Ra-Khorahty Festival; ‘Opening of the Year Festival.
Five epagomenal days
1st day: the birth of Osiris; 2nd day: the birth of Horus; 3rd day: the birth of Seth; 4th day: the birth of Isis; 5th day: the birth of Nephthys.
Bibliography
- Altenmüller Н. Feste // LÄ. 1977. Bd. II. S. 171–191.
- Bleeker C. J. Egyptian Festivals: Enactments of Religious Renewal. Leiden, 1967.
- Spalinger A. J. Festivals // The Oxford University encyclopedia of ancient Egypt / Ed. D.B. Redford. Oxford, 2001. Vol. I. P. 521–525.
- Mironova А.V. Kalendarnye spiski epokhi Tutmosa III i Ramsesa III: printsipy datirovki prazdnikov (Calendar Lists of the epoch of Thutmose III and Ramesses III: principles of dating festivals) // Voprosy epigrafiki: coll. of art. / edit. A.G. Avdeev. Iss. VII, Part 1. Moscow, 2013. P. 232–252.
Tags: Ancient Egypt, Alexandra V. Mironova, Articles, Festivals