Tamil Brahmi Inscriptions in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings Confirm Extensive Ancient Maritime Reach

A recent archaeological documentation effort has uncovered nearly thirty inscriptions in Tamil Brahmi, alongside Prakrit and Sanskrit, deep within the tombs of Egypt's Valley of the Kings, situated within the Theban Necropolis. These markings, dated to the period spanning the 1st through the 3rd Centuries C.E., were meticulously recorded during fieldwork conducted in 2024 and 2025 by Professor Charlotte Schmid of the French School of Asian Studies (EFEO) and Professor Ingo Strauch of the University of Lausanne. The discovery offers rare epigraphic confirmation of an Indian presence far inland in Egypt during the early centuries of the Common Era, shifting focus beyond evidence previously confined to coastal trade hubs such as Berenike.

One significant inscription features the name ‘சிகை கொற்ன்’ (Cikai Koṟraṉ), which researchers suggest identifies a specific Tamil trader who left his mark eight separate times across five distinct tombs within the necropolis. Professor Strauch noted that the construction of one inscription, ‘Cikai Koṟṟaṉ - vara kanta’ (Cikai Koṟṟaṉ came and saw), appears to deliberately mirror the formulaic structure of contemporary Greek inscriptions found in the same locale, implying a degree of literacy in local Mediterranean languages among the Indian visitors. The term ‘Koṟṟaṉ’ itself, meaning leader or king, resonates with the name of the Chera king Piṭtāṅkoṟṟaṉ referenced in the classical Sangam literature text, Purananuru.

Of the total thirty inscriptions cataloged, twenty were rendered in the Tamil Brahmi script, strongly indicating that the individuals responsible hailed predominantly from the southern regions of the Indian subcontinent, ancient Tamilagam. Other identified Tamil Brahmi names include ‘கோபான் வரத கண்டன்’ (Kopāṉ varata kantan) and ‘சாத்தன்’ (Cāttaṉ), names familiar from early Tamil-Brahmi epigraphy within South India. The presence of Sanskrit and Prakrit texts, including one mentioning an envoy of a Kshaharata king from Western India, further illustrates the broad regional representation from the Indian subcontinent at this ancient crossroads.

This inland penetration into the Nile river valley confirms a level of cultural interaction and sustained presence that extends significantly beyond the transactional nature of mere commerce previously evidenced at port cities. Scholars suggest that the presence of these inscriptions, carved as brief graffiti alongside over 2,000 known Greek markings cataloged by Jules Baillet in 1926, demonstrates that these Indian travelers were not merely transient sailors docking at the Red Sea ports. Professor Strauch observed that the evidence implies these individuals remained in the region for extended durations, possessing the curiosity to journey inland to historic sites like Thebes, far removed from the maritime trade routes. These findings augment the corpus of known Tamil-Brahmi texts and reshape the understanding of ancient India's global mobility, confirming that Tamil cultural and linguistic imprints reached deep into the Egyptian interior, practicing an early form of transcontinental engagement.