The total of them all (in names at least) was over 2.000, but many of them had similar mannerisms and features and appeared all over the country by different names. This huge divergence is due to the fact that before Egypt was united, the Nile Valley was divided into about forty self governing areas (later to be provinces - so called nomes) where each governing tribe had its own deities. Almost all gods had one thing in common - they "lived" themselves on earth as animals. Hundreds of creatures such as birds, crocodiles, frogs, turtles, cows and cats etc. were considered to be the living manifestation of a particular god, and so a natural and imperishable part of the environment in which people lived.

Every aspect of daily life was covered by at least one of these hundreds of deities, and like people on earth they were members of families, were married and had children.