Extension:WikiHiero/Syntax

Hieroglyphs
There are two ways of encoding hieroglyphs:
 * using Gardiner's sign list code (e.g. A12)
 * with the more frequent phonemes (e.g. xA)

Gardiner's sign list
A hieroglyph is encoded by: NB until the appropriate software is enabled, the encoding will be displayed instead of the hieroglyph.
 * a letter that represents the category
 * a number that represents rank within the category

A. Man and his Occupations
Expected quantity: 55

B. Woman and her Occupations
Expected quantity: 7

C. Anthropomorphic Deities
Expected quantity: 9

D. Parts of the Human Body
Expected quantity: 63

E. Mammals
Expected quantity: 34

F. Parts of Mammals
Expected quantity: 52

G. Birds
Expected quantity: 54

H. Parts of Birds
Expected quantity: 8

I. Amphibious Animals, Reptiles, etc.
Expected quantity: 15

J. None
There is no J category, perhaps to avoid confusion with I.

K. Fish and Parts of Fish
Expected quantity: 7

L. Invertebrates and Lesser Animals
Expected quantity: 7

M. Trees and Plants
Expected quantity: 44

N. Sky, Earth, Water
Expected quantity: 42

O. Buildings, Parts of Buildings, etc.
Expected quantity: 51

P. Ships and Parts of Ships
Expected quantity: 11

Q. Domestics and Funerary Furniture
Expected quantity: 7

R. Temple Furniture and Sacred Emblems
Expected quantity: 25

S. Crowns, Dress, Staves, etc.
Expected quantity: 45

T. Warfare, Hunting, Butchery
Expected quantity: 35

U. Agriculture, Crafts, and Professions
Expected quantity:

V. Rope, Fiber, Baskets, Bags, etc.
Expected quantity: 38

W. Vessels of Stone and Earthenware
Expected quantity: 25

X. Loaves and Cakes
Expected quantity: 8

Y. Writings, Games, Music
Expected quantity: 8

Z. Strokes, Signs derived from Hieratic, Geometrical Figures
Expected quantity: 11

Aa. Unclassified
Expected quantity: 31

Phonemes
See separate article.

Codes
Codes are characters that:
 * Separate hieroglyphs
 * Indicate the organization of the hieroglyphs in space (that is, the position of hieroglyphs in a block)

Separator
The official hieroglyph separator is the hyphen character ("-", also called block separator) but you are also allowed to use a space because it is a widespread practice.

Superposition
To superpose hieroglyphs, use the colon character (":") instead of the hyphen.

Juxtaposition
To juxtapose hieroglyphs, use the asterisk character ("*"). Juxtaposing hieroglyphs is only relevant when they are part of a block which is superposed.

End of line
To make a new line of text, use the exclamation character ("!"). Normally, the "end-of-line" must be surrounded by separators (as -!-), but space or nothing are also allowed.