Page "Ancient Egyptian concept of the soul" Paragraph 6

As a part of the soul, a person's ren ( rn ' name ') was given to them at birth and the Egyptians believed that it would live for as long as that name was spoken, which explains why efforts were made to protect it and the practice of placing it in numerous writings.

For example, part of the Book of Breathings, a derivative of the Book of the Dead, was a means to ensure the survival of the name.

A cartouche ( magical rope ) often was used to surround the name and protect it.

Conversely, the names of deceased enemies of the state, such as Akhenaten, were hacked out of monuments in a form of damnatio memoriae.

Sometimes, however, they were removed in order to make room for the economical insertion of the name of a successor, without having to build another monument.

The greater the number of places a name was used, the greater the possibility it would survive to be read and spoken.