Isis - Forms of the Name Isis in Other Cultures

The name "Isis" that we use today derives from the Greek "Isis" which we pronounce as "eye-sis", though the Greeks would have said it more like "ees-ees". "Esis", "Isia", "Isi" and "Esia" are other Greek variations. In Latin Her Name became "Isid" and "Iside".

Both the Greek and Latin forms are derived, in turn, from the ancient Egyptian variations, "Aset" also written as "Auset" and "Ast". The final 't' is a traditional feminine suffix in ancient Egyptian. In later periods it was sometimes dropped in pronunciation. "Eset" and "Iset" are forms of the name Isis used by modern day Egyptologists and pronounced as "ee-see" or "ee-set". In Coptic Her Name has been written "Ēse" or "Ēsi" with no final 't' as a feminine suffix.

As the veneration of Isis spread throughout the world, people of other cultures took Isis to their hearts creating their own forms of Her Name. A brief list is included below.

Abd-isi

Saudi Arabia (Nabataean)

A form of the name of Isis of Egypt used in this region.

Negev, Avraham, Nabataean Archeology Today, New York University Press, New York, 1986

Amat-isi

Saudi Arabia (Nabataean)

A form of the name of Isis of Egypt used in this region.

Negev 1986, same as above

Ament

Saudi Arabia (Nabataean)

A name of Isis of Egypt used in this region.

Negev 1986, same as above

Asdoulos

Saudi Arabia (Nabataean)

Name for Isis of Egypt used in this region.

Negev 1986, same as above

Eyonanueve Yokpovo Dam

Benin Republic

A name given to Isis by the people of Benin Republic. As Eyonanueve Yokpovo Dam, Isis gives care to motherless babies.

Dr. Paul C. Onyeani, ArchPriest of the Fellowship of Isis, Benin Republic

Iahu

Mesopotamian Region, Akkadia, Sumeria

A form of the name of Isis of Egypt used in this region.

Durdin-Robertson, Lawrence, The Goddesses of Chaldaea, Syria and Egypt, Cesara Publications, Carlow, Ireland 1975

Isa

Finno-Ugric, Lapland, Saami

A goddess of this region who is viewed by some scholars as a form of Isis.

Jobes, Gertrude, Dictionary of Mythology, Folklore and Symbols, Scarecrow Publishers, New York, 1962

Isidoulos

Saudi Arabia (Nabataean)

A Name of Isis of Egypt used in this region.

Negev 1986, same as above (see entry for Abd-isi)

Tamesis (Thamesis)

Latin or pre-Roman Celtic

Ancient form of the modern day name for the Thames River in the United Kingdom. A portion of it, near Oxford is called "The Isis". There is a Celtic goddess named Tamesis. Some scholars believe Tamesis may have evolved from a very early introduction of Isis into Great Britain and Gaul before Roman occupation.

Brewer, Rev. Ebenezer Cobham, A Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, Cassell, Petter and Galpin, London, 1873. A standard work, reprinted many times by Cassell, also Harper and Row, Harper Collins, Wordsworth Editions and others.

Camden, William, Britannia (1607), George Olms Publishing, Hildesheim, Germany, and New York, USA, 1970

Sykes, Egerton, editor, Everyman's Dictionary of Non-classical Mythology, Dutton Publishing, New York, 1968

Ziza

Northern Europe, Germany

A goddess of northern Europe, thought to equate to Isis, possibly ‘Ziza’ being a form of the name ‘Isis.’

Jobes, Gertrude, Dictionary of Mythology, Folklore and Symbols, Scarecrow Publishers, New York, 1962

Redfield, Bessie G., Gods: A Dictionary of the Deities of All Lands, Including Supernatural Beings, Mythical Heroes and Kings, Sacred Books of Principal Religions, P. Putnam’s Sons, New York, 1931

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