English word origin

Etymology of ka

Borrowed from Egyptian kꜣ.

2 source sectionsBrief source recordWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

noun

The aspect of a person’s soul or being that sustains their existence, roughly the life-force, sometimes pictured as a double of the person.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Borrowed from Egyptian kꜣ.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der-lite/lang",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "egy",
        "3": "borrowed",
        "sort": "",
        "allow family": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Egyptian"
    },
    {
      "name": "str left",
      "args": {
        "1": "kꜣ",
        "2": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "k"
    },
    {
      "name": "str left",
      "args": {
        "1": "kꜣ",
        "2": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "k"
    },
    {
      "name": "m-lite",
      "args": {
        "1": "egy",
        "2": "kꜣ",
        "3": "",
        "4": "",
        "tr": "",
        "ts": "",
        "pos": "",
        "lit": "",
        "g": "",
        "g2": "",
        "g3": "",
        "sc": "Latn",
        "id": ""
      },
      "expansion": "kꜣ"
    },
    {
      "name": "bor-lite",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "egy",
        "3": "kꜣ",
        "sc": "Latn"
      },
      "expansion": "Egyptian kꜣ"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "kꜣ",
      "kꜣ#Egyptian"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "The aspect of a person’s soul or being that sustains their existence, roughly the life-force, sometimes pictured as a double of the person."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Egyptian"
      ],
      "recordId": "2ea7d5a51ee7d31a933b3797024cc8b62d210975968edff8b28322d924eec1c1",
      "rawRecordSha256": "1a798bee61fb13fcd854814414496deea3cc450fc86b4353e775c539f534f8d3",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 303056
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

verb

To serve or help; used only in the phrase "Ka me, ka thee" or variants thereof.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Origin uncertain.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "unc",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "uncertain"
    }
  ],
  "links": [],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To serve or help; used only in the phrase \"Ka me, ka thee\" or variants thereof."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "obsolete",
        "transitive"
      ],
      "recordId": "b94758c89cb1defc3e0e579bef9f355ab8f68732d6fcc22cb2176c16fff363eb",
      "rawRecordSha256": "19783566ff7bbfb571a6724b1b6c3d137985349bbbf56aba4cbe6012626be2fa",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 303057
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
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    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
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  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for ka →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-a2E