Raneb - Identity

Identity

King Nebra is commonly identified with the Ramesside-era cartouche-name Kakau, which can be translated as "The bull of Apis". This links to the anecdote written by Manetho, who said that under king Kêchoós (the Greek version of the name Kakau) the deities Apies, the goat of Mendes and Menevus were "introduced and worshipped as gods". This view is questioned by modern Egyptologists, as there was already a cult of Apis established during the 1st dynasty, if not earlier. The name "Kakau" itself is problematic for this early pharaoh, as there was no name source from Nebra's time that could have been used to form the word.

The birth name of Nebra also remains unclear. A theory by Egyptologist Jochem Kahl says that Nebra was the same person as the mysterious king Weneg-Nebti. He points to a vessel fragment made of volcanic ash, which was found in the tomb of king Peribsen (a later ruler during the 2nd dynasty) at Abydos. On the pot sherd he believes there are traces of the weneg-flower beneath the incised name of king Ninetjer. To the right of Ninetjer's name the depiction of the Ka-house of king Nebra is partially preserved. This arrangement led Kahl to conclude that the weneg-flower and Nebra's name were connected to each other and king Ninetjer replaced the inscription. Kahl also points out that king Ninetjer wrote his name mirrored, so that his name deliberately runs in the opposite direction to Nebra's name. Kahl's theory is the subject of continuing discussion since the vessel inscription is damaged thus leaving plenty of room for varying interpretations.

Egyptologists such as Jürgen von Beckerath and Battiscombe Gunn identify Nebra with another mysterious early pharaoh: Nubnefer. This link is questioned by other scholars, since the rulers of 2nd Dynasty often wrote their birth and Horus names in same way (for example: Hor-Nebra → Nisut-Bity-Nebty-Nebra). Thus the name "Nubnefer" may be the birth name of a different king.