Tefnut is the Heliopolitan goddess of moisture, generated by Atum alongside her twin and consort Shu as the first divine pair, personifying humidity and rain against Shu's dry air. She is depicted as a woman, sometimes lioness headed, and with Shu is the mother of Geb, god of the earth, and Nut, goddess of the sky.
Facts
Function
Domain / Function Attributions
Mythic AssociationTefnut and her twin Shu were generated together from Atum's own body on the first mound of creation, the first divine pair of the Ennead. Their union produced Geb, the earth, and Nut, the sky, who were said to lie together until Shu parted them, forcing air between earth and sky. 2 Attestation
Era of Attestation Veneration TodayHistorically attested; no continuous cult 1 HistoricityNot a historical person: a divine or other-than-human being 2 Practice
LineageWith Shu she is the mother of Geb, god of the earth, and Nut, goddess of the sky, the second generation of the Heliopolitan Ennead. 1 Belief
TheologyPolytheistic: many gods 2 Origins
Origin of the NameEgyptian name possibly connected to a root meaning to spit or moisten, reflecting the myth that Atum created her, along with her twin Shu, by spitting or sneezing her into being. 2 Cult
Attributes and IconographyShown as a woman with a lioness head, sometimes crowned with a solar disc and uraeus, paired iconographically with her brother husband Shu. 2 Correspondences & Relations
Connections
Child Of
Atum, Deities Atum generated Tefnut, alongside Shu, from his own body on the first mound of creation.
Source The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient EgyptRichard H. Wilkinson
Children
Geb, Deities Geb is the son of Shu and Tefnut, and with his sister-consort Nut the father of Osiris, Isis, Set and Nephthys.
Source The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient EgyptRichard H. Wilkinson
Nut, Deities Nut is the daughter of Shu and Tefnut, and with her brother-consort Geb the mother of Osiris, Isis, Set and Nephthys.
Source The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient EgyptRichard H. Wilkinson
Depicted In
Source The Weighing of the Heart, Papyrus of Ani (Egypt Museum)
Sibling Of
Shu, Deities Shu and Tefnut were generated together as the first divine pair, twin siblings and consorts.
Source The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient EgyptRichard H. Wilkinson
Worshipped In
Source Encyclopedia of ReligionMircea Eliade (ed.); Lindsay Jones (ed., 2nd ed.)
Sources
1. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt
Donald B. Redford (ed.), Oxford University Press, 2001Tefnut, Pyramid TextsView the Source 2. The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt
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