Tradition: Egyptian Mythology
Alternative Names: Kekui, Kekuy, Kekuit
Category: Frog, Deity
The Myth
Kek is the ancient Egyptian deification of primordial darkness, one of the fundamental forces that existed before the creation of the world. He belongs to the Ogdoad of Hermopolis, a group of eight primordial deities arranged in four male-female pairs. Together, these divine beings represented the original conditions of existence from which creation emerged. Kek’s female counterpart is Kauket, who shares his association with darkness and the primordial world.
Kek is traditionally depicted as a man with the head of a frog, while Kauket appears as a woman with the head of a serpent. In some representations, Kek’s frog head is surmounted by a beetle, while Kauket’s serpent head bears a disk. These animal features distinguish the pair among the primordial gods and connect them with the mysterious forces that existed before the ordered world.
Kek and Kauket are also associated with night and day. Their complementary roles express the movement between darkness and the arrival of light, with Kek connected to the rising of the day and Kauket to the coming of night in certain traditions. As members of the Ogdoad, they embody the primordial darkness from which the ordered universe would eventually emerge.
Sources
“Kek (mythology).” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Accessed October 14, 2026. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kek_%28mythology%29