Pharaoh

Pharaoh is the name for the official of kingship, and religious/political leader in the New Kingdom of ancient Egypt. Meaning "Great House", it originally referred to the king's palace, but the meaning loosened over the course of Egyptian history until it became interchangeable with the Egyptian word for king. Although the rulers of Egypt were generally male, the pharaoh was used on the rare occasions when a female ruled. Such rulers were believed to be the incarnation of Horus. The term pharaoh ultimately derives from a compound word represented as pr-`3, used only in larger phrases like smr pr-`3 'Courtier of the High House', with specific reference to the buildings of the court or palace itself. From the Twelfth Dynasty onward the word appears in a wish formula 'Great House, may it live, prosper, and be in health', but again only with reference to the buildings and not the person. The earliest instance where pr-`3 is used specifically to address the king is in a letter to... full article at wikipedia