the double crown worn by ancient Egyptian kings, symbolic of dominion over Upper and Lower Egypt, which had previously been separate kingdoms
Word origin
[1805–15; ‹ Gk pschént ‹ Egyptian p'-sh̬mty, equiv. to p'- deictic + sh̬m powerful + ty fem. dual marker]This word is first recorded in the period 1805–15. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: alpaca, backlash, diminishing returns, polarization, soufflé