Hermopolis

Hermopolis is the Greek toponym for two ancient Egyptian towns along the Nile. The name derives from the Greeks’ identification of the city’s chief deity, Thoth, with Hermes, and the site became known as Hermopolis, or City of Hermes, in Greco-Roman times.

Hermopolis Magna, identified with the Egyptian city Khmunu (Khemenu) and modern el-Ashmunein in Upper Egypt, was a major religious center in ancient times. Thoth, god of writing and wisdom, was its principal cult figure, and the city developed into an important center of learning and administration during the Graeco-Roman period. Its remains include temple precincts, inscriptions, and tombs dating from earlier periods and continuing into late antiquity; the site also figures in the cosmological tradition associated with the Hermopolitan Ogdoad.

Hermopolis Parva, or Little Hermopolis, is the second city referred to by the Greeks as Hermopolis. Its exact location is uncertain, and scholars have proposed several candidates in Middle Egypt and the Fayum region. In classical and later sources, Parva is consistently described as a smaller and less prominent urban center than Magna, but it contributed to the broader cultural and religious network surrounding Thoth and the Hermopolitan tradition.

Today, the name Hermopolis reflects the historical significance of Thoth, Hermopolitan cosmology, and Greco-Egyptian cultural exchange in ancient Egypt, as evidenced by inscriptions and architectural remains that span several centuries.