Tales of Papyrus Westcar

Author: Yousef Taybeh

In this work, we present the tales of Papyrus Westcar for the first time to the Arab reader, translated directly from ancient Egyptian texts in an accessible and engaging manner. Despite their antiquity, the Westcar tales still offer a unique and entertaining experience worthy of sharing and contemplation. Moreover, the details of the stories may resonate with the local reader due to cultural continuity. The papyrus was first translated by the German Egyptologist Adolf Erman at the end of the 19th century, and subsequently, translations by Egyptologists spread to various European languages in the early 20th century. Additionally, the Egyptian scholar "Selim Hassan" discussed the papyrus in the 1940s as part of his introduction to ancient Egyptian literature in his encyclopedic work: Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt. In this context, this work in the 21st century builds on the efforts of predecessors and benefits from the wealth of archaeological discoveries and advancements in Egyptology to offer the latest and perhaps most accurate version of this papyrus's translation. The direct translation of the papyrus into Arabic holds special significance, as Arabic and ancient Egyptian share a geographical scope and belong to the same major linguistic family (Afro-Asiatic languages). Based on this historical kinship, and the cognitive influence of ancient Egyptian civilization in the region throughout the ages, Arabic might be one of the most effective mediums for conveying ancient Egyptian thought and clarifying its specific expressions.