Egyptian Hieroglyph N35: Water ripple
KEMET VAULT / HIEROGLYPH REFERENCE / SOURCE-REVIEWED SIGN
The wavy line called the water ripple is Gardiner N35. In encoded Egyptian hieroglyphic text it is U+13216. Unicode records its common phonographic value as n. The distinction between depicting water and writing a sound makes this sign an especially useful introduction to the relationship between picture, language and grammar.
At-a-glance sign record
| Gardiner catalogue | N35 |
|---|---|
| Unicode | U+13216 |
| Sign family | N · Sky, earth and water |
| Common function | One-consonant phonogram |
| Conventional value | n |
Recognising the sign: shape and variants
N35 is a single undulating horizontal line. It may be arranged differently in vertical compositions and digital rendering, and the official Unicode record includes a variation of its orientation. The related N35A sign, which contains additional ripples, has a distinct Unicode identity and is classified differently. A printed illustration of a wave therefore needs a code and contextual comparison rather than a guess from shape alone.
How the sign works in Egyptian writing
N35 can represent the consonant n as part of a name, noun, grammatical particle or longer written sequence. The preposition n often translates in English as ‘for’, ‘to’ or a possessive relationship depending on usage. Those translations belong to an interpreted linguistic construction, not to the water ripple’s picture. The sign can also form part of spellings where more than one sign contributes to a word; determinatives may follow without adding a pronounced consonant.
A reading exercise, with its limits
Reading exercise: when a single N35 is functioning as a phonogram, transcribe n. If you see the related three-ripple N35A, do not simply copy its Unicode codepoint as N35 or treat both as identical spellings of the word ‘water’. Unicode distinguishes them, and UCL’s explanation of sound signs versus classifiers shows why that distinction can affect interpretation. This is an instructional comparison rather than a citation of a specific tomb inscription.
Compare it with other genuine signs
Compare N35 with the mouth D21 (r) and owl G17 (m). Their pictures are different but all three can operate as one-consonant phonograms. Then compare N35 with N35A: there the subject is similar, yet the encoded identity and common lexical role differ. Separating these two comparisons helps learners avoid both image-only translation and careless codepoint substitution.
What this sign cannot tell us
It is incorrect to translate every N35 as the English word ‘water’. Unicode lists N35A, not N35, as a logogram for water (mw). The display shape of a hieroglyph can also vary by font and layout; the encoded codepoint identifies a character, not a particular ancient carver’s hand.
A common question about N35
Is the Egyptian water ripple N35 the word for water?
N35 commonly writes the consonant n. The distinct sign N35A is listed as a logogram for water (mw). Their similar imagery should not erase the linguistic distinction.
Verified references and further reading
This dossier uses the official Unicode sign identification and academic explanations of Egyptian writing. It is an educational sign-level reference, not a claim to decipher a specific unexamined monument or recover a lost pronunciation.
- Unicode Consortium, Egyptian Hieroglyphs character names and standard values (including N35)
- UCL Digital Egypt, The System of Egyptian Hieroglyphic Writing
- UCL Digital Egypt, a worked introduction to phonograms and meaning signs
- UCL Digital Egypt, Egyptian sound-sign reference
Browse the original 136-sign Hieroglyphic Explorer or read the source-based study of Egyptian scribes and scripts for wider historical context. The explorer is an index; individual profiles provide dedicated research guidance for the six reviewed signs.
Evidence review: 3 November 2026. Unicode identity and proposed standard sign value checked; actual inscriptions can have contextual or orthographic variation.