The Hermopolitan Ogdoad
Eight gods who are the deep waters, the endless, the dark, and the hidden — the world before the world.
Also: Ogdoad · Khemenu · Khmun · Hermopolis · eight gods · Nun and Naunet · Heh and Hauhet · Kek and Kauket · Amun and Amaunet · Nia and Niat
At Hermopolis in Middle Egypt, Egyptians spoke of eight primeval gods — the Ogdoad — arranged in four male–female pairs that embodied the qualities of the world before creation: Nun and Naunet, the primeval waters; Heh and Hauhet, infinity and endlessness; Kek and Kauket, darkness; and Amun and Amaunet, hiddenness. From their interaction the first land and the sun emerged. The males were associated with frogs, the females with serpents. The city's Egyptian name, Khmun, means 'Eight-Town.'
In short
The creation tradition of Hermopolis (Khmun), in which eight primeval deities in four male–female pairs personify aspects of the precreation chaos out of which the world emerged.
Where it’s found
Hermopolitan cosmological texts; references from the New Kingdom and later
How the idea developed across Egypt
The Ogdoad is attested by name especially from the New Kingdom and later, though the underlying ideas are older. The four standard pairs are Nun/Naunet (primeval waters), Heh/Hauhet (infinity/endlessness), Kek/Kauket (darkness), and Amun/Amaunet (hiddenness). Darkness (Kek/Kauket) is one of the secure pairs; the only real variability is in the fourth pair, where some reckonings give Nia/Niat ('void/absence') in place of Amun/Amaunet.
The four pairs are Nun/Naunet, Heh/Hauhet, Kek/Kauket, and Amun/Amaunet (males frog-associated, females serpent-associated). The darkness pair (Kek/Kauket) is secure; only the fourth pair varies, sometimes given as Nia/Niat ('void/absence'). Verified against standard reconstructions.