Khonsu
/ˈkɒn.suː/noun
Khonsu is an ancient Egyptian lunar god associated with time, travel, healing, and protection.
Did you know?Khonsu was invoked as a protector against dangerous spirits, and temple inscriptions at Karnak portray him as a youthful god with a sidelock of hair and a lunar crescent.
Etymological Timeline
Middle Kingdom or earlier
Egyptian
Ḫnsw
“The name of a lunar deity; its traditional interpretation connects it with travelling or passing across the sky.”
New Kingdom
Egyptian
Khonsu
“A major Theban god of the Moon, commonly shown as a youthful figure crowned with a lunar crescent and disk.”
New Kingdom
Egyptian
Khonsu pa-khered
““Khonsu the Child,” an aspect emphasizing youth, renewal, and lunar rebirth.”
Ptolemaic Period
Greek
Χονσῶν (Chonsōn)
“Greek rendering of the Egyptian god’s name in a period when Egyptian deities were recorded in Greek forms.”
Roman Period
Greek and Latin
Chonsus
“Classical transliterations of Khonsu’s name in Greco-Roman discussions of Egyptian religion.”
Modern English
English
Khonsu
“The standard scholarly English form for the ancient Egyptian lunar deity.”