Misplaced Pages

#710289

81-467: Copto-Arabic literature began in the 10th century, had its golden age in the 13th and declined in the late medieval and early modern period before experiencing a revival in the 19th century. Arabic was introduced to Egypt after the Arab conquest in 641 . Coptic was used alongside Arabic in the administration of the country and some bilingual documents were produced in the 7th century. In 705, however, Arabic became

162-508: A ditch had been dug, and a large force was positioned in the area between the ditch and the city walls. The Muslims besieged the fort, a massive structure 18 m (59 ft) high with walls more than 2 metres (6.6 feet) thick and studded with numerous towers and bastions and a force of some 4,000 men. Early Muslim sources place the strength of the Byzantine force in Babylon at about six times

243-663: A convert from Islam, wrote in Arabic a critique of his old faith, the Kitāb al-wāḍiḥ bi-l-ḥaqq , that was later translated into Latin and had a major influence in the West. By the late 11th century, Arabic was beginning to supersede Coptic and there was a clear decline in the knowledge of Coptic among Egyptian Christians. The Confession of the Fathers was compiled around 1078 in Arabic from Coptic sources. A Copto-Arabic translation movement flourished in

324-658: A decade by the Sasanian Empire in 618–629, before being recovered by the Byzantine emperor Heraclius . The Caliphate took advantage of Byzantines' exhaustion to invade Egypt. During the mid-630s, the Romans had already lost the Levant and its Ghassanid allies in Arabia to the Caliphate. The loss of the prosperous province of Egypt and the defeat of the Byzantine armies severely weakened

405-460: A detailed report to Umar recommending ratification. He desired that as soon as the reactions of Heraclius were known, he should be informed so that further necessary instructions could be issued promptly. Upon hearing about this, Heraclius was furious and sent Cyrus a letter full of insults, calling him an abject coward and a heathen and asking whether 100,000 Romans were a match for 12,000 barbarians. The Byzantine commanders, knowing full well that

486-590: A distinct Copto-Arabic version of the Jesus Prayer : "My Lord Jesus, have mercy on me. My Lord Jesus, help me. My Lord Jesus, I praise and worship you." Two similarly titled works followed, one in eight questions by Marqus ibn al-Qunbar and one in twenty-two chapters by the future Cyril III. The first Coptic grammars were written in Arabic in the 13th century. There was no prior history of grammatical writing in Coptic or in earlier Egyptian. Copto-Arabic grammatical writing

567-402: A few days to evacuate so they might celebrate Easter. Many Copts who were imprisoned in Babylon, either for refusing to accept Chalcedon or on suspicion of treachery, were released from prison by the Romans, but Eudocianus, the brother of Domentianus, had them scourged and their hands cut off. The Siege of Babylon had lasted seven months. On 22 December, Cyrus of Alexandria entered a treaty with

648-552: A general to seize such an asset, may have been a later embellishment in light of Amr's subsequent reputation as a stubbornly independent governor. According to Arab sources, In December 639, 'Amr ibn al-'As left for Egypt with a force of 4,000 troops. Most of the soldiers belonged to the Arab tribe of 'Ak, but Al-Kindi mentioned that one third of the soldiers belonged to the Arab tribe of Ghafik. The Arab soldiers were also joined by some Roman and Persian converts to Islam. However, ' Umar ,

729-463: A part of Khalid ibn al-Walid 's elite mobile guard , was appointed the supreme commander of the army. 'Umar had also offered Zubayr the chief command and governorship of Egypt, but Zubayr had declined. The column commanders included Miqdad ibn al-Aswad , 'Ubaidah ibn as-Samit and Kharijah ibn Hudhaifah . The reinforcements arrived at Babylon sometime in September 640, bringing the total strength of

810-466: Is a sequence of catechetical texts in Arabic from the 10th or 11th century through the 13th. The first is the Kitāb al-īḍāḥ , written in a straightforward style. Its preface notes how Islamic terminology was becoming better known in Christian circles than traditional Christians terminology. Next in sequence is the anonymous Kitāb al-muʿallim wa-l-tilmīdh , which is divided into ten questions. It contains

891-582: Is known from as early as the 13th century. The early 20th century saw a surge in production, but there are no Coptic poets in Arabic comparable to the best Egyptian Muslim poets. Copto-Arabic theology prior to the 13th century was primarily didactic, pastoral and apologetico-polemic (directed at either other Christian denominations or Islam). In the 13th century there was a turn towards a more systematic, even encyclopaedic, approach based in logic and philosophy and heavily influenced by Islamic kalām . Theologians of this period produced works very similar in style to

SECTION 10

#1732858063711

972-526: Is little evidence of Copto-Arabic writing prior to the 10th century. The first Copto-Arabic authors are the Melkite patriarch Eutychius (d. 940) and the Coptic Orthodox bishop Sāwīrus ibn al-Muqaffaʿ (d. 987). Eutychius wrote a universal history down to the caliphate of al-Rāḍī (934–940). This work was later continued by Yaḥyā ibn Saʿīd al-Anṭākī . Eutychius also wrote an apologetic treatise defending

1053-528: The Apocalypse of Pseudo-Athanasius , Apocalypse of Samuel of Kalamoun , Letter of Pseudo-Pisentius and Visions of Shenute . There were also apocalyptic texts composed in Arabic. Copto-Arabic apocalyptic was usually pseudonymous served to allow criticism of Islamic authorities from the safety of (feigned) temporal distance. It incorporated the legend of the Last Roman Emperor , but always portrayed

1134-536: The summae being produced at the same time in the Latin West . The most prominent theologians of the Copto-Arabic renaissance were al-Ṣafī ibn al-ʿAssāl, al-Muʾtaman ibn al-ʿAssāl , Ibn al-Rāhib , Ibn Kabar , al-Makīn Jirjis ibn al-ʿAmīd and Yūḥannā ibn Sabbāʿ . William Worrell argues that Coptic went through three stages in its contact with Arabic. First, it borrowed the odd Arabic word. Second, while Coptic

1215-786: The Ethiopian Church , as well as "prevent the sympathies for the Catholic missionaries and their teaching from increasing further." While he was in Ethiopia, the Patriarch died. The former Ichege Gebre Mariam, who was in Cairo to press for the Ethiopian rights to the convent in Jerusalem, used this opportunity to exert pressure for his cause. As a result, the majority choice for Patriarch Peter's successor, Du'ad,

1296-514: The jizya , or fight. They requested three days to reflect and then, according to Al-Tabari , requested two extra days. At the end of the five days, the two monks and the general decided to reject Islam and the jizya and fight the Muslims, thus disobeying Cyrus, who wanted to surrender and pay jizya. Cyrus left for the Babylon Fortress . The battle resulted in a Muslim victory during which Aretion

1377-632: The 11th and 12th centuries under the Fatimids . Under the Ayyubids in the early 13th century, Copto-Arabic experienced a renaissance. This was spearheaded by four prominent brothers, the Awlād al-ʿAssāl . One of the products of this period was a new translation of the New Testament into Arabic based on the original Greek, Coptic translations and Syriac translations . The brothers al-ʿAssāl also wrote in defence of

1458-682: The Arab armies of the Rashidun Caliphate began expanding toward both Sasanian Persia and the Byzantine Empire . Neither of the two former powers was prepared for the aggressive expansion of the Arabs, as both largely underestimated Islam and its growing support; this is best depicted by the ambivalent views held by the Byzantines and the painstakingly slow reaction of the Sasanians. After defeating

1539-643: The Blues in Alexandria to his side, to which Menas responded by enlisting the Greens. There also came to Alexandria Philiades, prefect of the province of Faiyum and brother of Patriarch George I of Alexandria . Philiades was Menas' friend, but unlike Menas he was corrupt and unpopular, so much so that he was nearly lynched . Pope Cyril IV of Alexandria Pope Cyril IV of Alexandria (Abba Kyrillos IV) , Coptic: Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ Ⲁⲃⲃⲁ Ⲕⲩⲣⲓⲗⲗⲟⲩ ⲇ̅ 110th Pope of Alexandria & Patriarch of

1620-546: The Byzantines at Yarmuk (636) and the Persians at Qadisiyah (637), the gaze of the Arab generals turned towards the riches of Byzantine Africa . After the Siege of Jerusalem , it was Amr ibn al-As who suggested an invasion of Egypt to the Caliph, being familiar with the country's prosperity both from visiting it as a merchant and from leading the expedition to Gaza in 637. Appealing to

1701-420: The Caliph, he said "the conquest of Egypt will give great power to the Muslims and will be a great aid to them, for it is the wealthiest land and the weakest in fighting and war power." After being convinced by Amr to proceed with the invasion, the caliph Umar is said to have had "an eleventh-hour change of heart", but too late to stop it. This element of the story, which conveys the caliph's wariness at allowing

SECTION 20

#1732858063711

1782-450: The Coptic and Arabic versions are lost; only an Ethiopic version survives. Much more influential was the Taʾrīkh baṭārikat al-Iskandariyya l-Qibṭ , a series of biographies of the Coptic Orthodox patriarchs . The Arabic translation was undertaken in the late 11th century by Mawhūb ibn Manṣūr ibn Mufarrij . It was subsequently continued with original, short biographical notices in Arabic. In

1863-524: The Coptic church was triumphant over the Chalcedonian . Ibn al-Rāhib and Pope Cyril III (d. 1243) both wrote works on canon law. In addition, at least six Coptic nomocanons were written in Arabic. Only five these are preserved today, one by Pope Gabriel II (d. 1145) being lost. The 13th-century nomocanon of al-Ṣafī ibn al-ʿAssāl forms the basis of the Ethiopian Fetha Nagast . There

1944-541: The Emperor would send reinforcements to Egypt. Constantine had been preparing a fleet to send to Egypt, but died on May 25 after a reign of just 100 days. With Heraclonas as sole emperor, Martina gained complete control over the government. She had Heraclonas give Cyrus express permission to make peace at any price with the Arabs, but also gave him reinforcements and a new general named Constantine to replace John. After Theodore and Cyrus' left for Egypt with reinforcements, Martina

2025-448: The French in Coptic script. Many early Coptic saints' lives were translated into Arabic. Many new Arabic lives were also written. The Copto-Arabic Synaxarion is a collection of short biographies of saints, especially martyrs, perhaps first collected in the early 13th century, but attaining a final form only in the 14th. It is a synaxarion , the biographies intended to be read as part of

2106-497: The Melkite faith against both Coptic Orthodoxy and Islam, entitled Kitāb al-jadal bayn al-mukhālif wa-l-Naṣrānī . Sāwīrus wrote a refutation of Eutychius treaty from an Orthodox perspective. He wrote at least 38 identifiable works in Arabic, mostly on Christian matters but also on psychology, medicine and Arabic proverbs. He is the most important early figure in Copto-Arabic literature. Sāwīrus's friend and contemporary, Būluṣ ibn Rajāʾ ,

2187-464: The Muslim caliph , reconsidered his orders to Amr and considered it unwise to expect to conquer such a large country as Egypt with a mere 4,000 soldiers. Accordingly, he wrote a letter to 'Amr ordering him to "return with all haste to the court of the Caliph, so that his soldiers might join additional campaigns being planned elsewhere", however there was a provision in the letter stating that 'Amr's first duty

2268-510: The Muslim advance to Alexandria was blocked by a Byzantine force about 20,000 strong. The resulting action remained indecisive for ten days. However, on the tenth day, the Muslims launched a vigorous assault, forcing the defeated Byzantines to retreat to Alexandria. With the way to Alexandria clear, the Muslims reached the capital's outskirts in March. Heraclius died in February 641, two months before

2349-464: The Muslim army reached Pelusium. The siege of the town dragged on for two months. In February 640, an assault group, led by the prominent Huzaifah ibn Wala, successfully captured the fort and city. The losses incurred by the Muslim army were ameliorated by the number of Sinai Bedouins , who, taking the initiative, had joined them in conquering Egypt. The Bedouins belonged to the tribes of Rashidah and Lakhm. The ease with which Pelusium fell to

2430-466: The Muslim force to 12,000 (and likely far less, given losses incurred), still quite modest. It is said that a Coptic soldier, seeing the size of the Muslim force, expressed amazement that such a small force could stand against the Emperor's army, whereto another soldier replied that Arabs could not yield, and had to either emerge victorious or die to the last man. In another anecdote, some Roman soldiers refused to fight, saying 'We have small chance against

2511-457: The Muslims and the lack of Roman reinforcements during the month-long siege is often attributed to the treachery of Cyrus, who was also the Greek Patriarch of Alexandria (not the one recognised by most of the population, who was Pope Benjamin I ). After the fall of Pelusium, the Muslims marched to Belbeis , 65 km (40 mi) from Memphis via desert roads, and besieged it. Belbeis

Copto-Arabic literature - Misplaced Pages Continue

2592-425: The Muslims' next target was Alexandria, set out to repel the Muslims through continued sallies from the fort or, at least, to exhaust them and erode their morale in a campaign of attrition. In February 641, 'Amr set off for Alexandria from Babylon with his army, encountering defending regiments all along the route. On the third day of their march the Muslims' advance guard encountered a Byzantine detachment at Tarnut on

2673-453: The Muslims' victory at Heliopolis reached Fayoum, its governor, Domentianus, and his troops fled without informing the people of Fayoum and Abuit that they were abandoning their cities to the enemy. When news reached 'Amr, he sent troops across the Nile to invade Fayoum and Abuit, capturing the entire province of Fayoum with practically no resistance. Fayoum's population was enslaved , and the city

2754-495: The Muslims, recognizing Muslim sovereignty over the whole of Egypt and effectively over Thebaid , and agreeing to pay Jizya at the rate of 2 diners per male adult. The treaty was subject to the approval of the emperor Heraclius, but Cyrus stipulated that even if the emperor repudiated the treaty, he and the Egyptians , would honour its terms. Cyrus asked Heraclius to ratify the treaty and offered an argument in support. 'Amr submitted

2835-540: The Muslims, but Theodore fought 'Amr there and defeated him, inflicting many casualties on the Muslims. Unable to damage any cities in the Nile Delta , they retreated back to Babylon. However, Theodore was unable to follow up this victory by recapturing Babylon. The final assault of the Muslims was on Good Friday , April 6 641, and by Easter Monday the Roman troops had evacuated and began marching to Nikiû . The Romans were given

2916-512: The Patriarch expressed an interest in reviewing the Emperor's army, Tewodros II suspected him of being a spy, and confined him with Abouna Salama to their house; only after the Ethiopian clergy intervened, were both men released. During a flare-up of tempers between the Abouna and Emperor in November of the following year, which led to the Abouna excommunicating Emperor Tewodros II, Patriarch Cyril lifted

2997-594: The See of St. Mark . He was born David (Daoud) in 1816. Despite his relatively short papacy, he is regarded as the "Father of Reform" of the Coptic Orthodox Church in modern times. He is credited for establishing a great printing house and printing many Church books. While abbot of the Monastery of Saint Anthony , he was sent to Ethiopia at the request of Peter VII to mediate between Abouna Salama and his opponents in

3078-505: The Sun Temple of the Pharaohs and grandiose monuments and learning institutions. There was the danger that forces from Heliopolis could attack the Muslims from the flank while they were engaged with the Roman army at Babylon. There was a cavalry clash near the current neighbourhood of Abbaseya . The engagement was not decisive, but it resulted in the occupation of the fortress located between

3159-517: The army of 'Amr ibn al-'As , took place between 639 and 642 AD and was overseen by the Rashidun Caliphate . It ended the seven-century-long Roman period in Egypt that had begun in 30 BC and, more broadly, the Greco-Roman period that had lasted about a millennium. Shortly before the conquest, Byzantine (Eastern Roman ) rule in the country had been shaken, as Egypt had been conquered and occupied for

3240-459: The body of John, which had been thrown in the Nile, to be found. It was retrieved with a net, embalmed with honour and sent back to Heraclius . As Theodore was commander-in-chief, Heraclius blamed him for John's death. Feeling that he was blamed due to negative reports from Theodosius and Anastasius, Theodore formed an enmity with them. In July, 'Amr wrote to 'Umar requesting reinforcements, but before

3321-499: The caliph's letter from him when the army had halted after the day's journey. 'Uqbah, unaware of the contents of the letter, agreed and marched along with the army. The army halted for the night at Shajratein, a little valley near the city of El Arish , which 'Amr knew to be beyond the Egyptian border. 'Amr then received and read 'Umar's letter and went on to consult his companions as to the course of action to be adopted. The unanimous view

Copto-Arabic literature - Misplaced Pages Continue

3402-517: The captain of the ship claimed the wind was contrary to him, and Theodore was stuck with Cyrus. They returned to Alexandria on September 14, 641, the Feast of the Cross . Meanwhile in Egypt, Anastasius had been appointed temporary prefect of Egypt , and during his time the Muslims captured both Babylon and Nikiu . Domentianus and his soldiers were guarding Nikiu. When he saw the enemy approaching cravenly fled

3483-475: The citizens offered allegiance on the usual terms. According to tradition, Cyrus of Alexandria had a beautiful daughter named Armenousa, who he desired to marry to Heraclius Constantine . Constantine accepted the marriage proposal, so in late 639 Armenousa left Babylon in a grand marriage procession which included two thousand horsemen, along with slaves and a long caravan laden with treasures that served both as dowry and tribute. On her way to Constantine, who

3564-400: The city in a small boat, leaving his soldiers to their fate. They attempted to follow him, but in the panic the boatmen fled to their home provinces, leaving many of the soldiers stranded. When the Arabs arrived, the soldiers threw their weapons into the water before their enemies, hoping to be spared, but instead they were all massacred. According to John of Nikiu, the only man who lived to tell

3645-482: The city was captured. According to John of Nikiû , "they compelled the city to open its gates, and they put to the sword all that surrendered, and they spared none, whether old men, babe, or woman." The Arabs then noticed that John, with a small group of 50 men, had been following them. John and his men ran retreated to their base at Abûît , but their hiding place was betrayed by a Bedouin chief and they were all killed. When news of John's death reached Theodore , who

3726-519: The current neighborhoods of Abdyn and Azbakeya . The defeated Byzantine soldiers retreated to either the Babylon Fortress or the fortress of Nikiû. Zubayr and some of his handpicked soldiers scaled the Heliopolis city wall at an unguarded point and, after overpowering the guards, opened the gates for the army to enter the city. After the capture of Heliopolis, 'Amr returned to Babylon. When news of

3807-451: The empire, resulting in further territorial losses in the centuries to come. In 640, Heraclius was the Byzantine emperor , Cyrus of Alexandria was both the governor of Egypt ( praefectus Aegypti ) and the government-appointed Patriarch of Alexandria , and Theodore was the commander-in-chief of the Byzantine army in the province. Following the death of Muhammad in 632 AD,

3888-468: The fall of the Babylon Fortress , and was succeeded by his two sons Constantine III and Heraclonas as co-emperors. Heraclonas' mother, Martina , ruled through Heraclonas because of his young age and consistently opposed Constantine. Constantine, following his father's wishes, summoned Cyrus and Theodore to Constantinople to discuss the invasion. Cyrus was in favour of surrendering to the Muslims, whereas Theodore wanted to continue fighting them and hoped

3969-435: The family of Theodorus there, killed all of them. Now 30 km (19 miles) from Tarnut, the Byzantine detachment that had withdrawn from Tarnut the day before joined another that was already at Shareek, and both attacked and routed the Muslim cavalry. The next day, before the Byzantines could annihilate the Muslim advance guard completely, the main Muslim army arrived, prompting the Byzantines to withdraw. The following day,

4050-516: The following morning with tactics similar to those that had been used by Khalid ibn Walid at Damascus. However, Theodore and his army managed to slip away to the island of Rauda during the night, whence they continued to fight the Muslims. During this time, Theodore assembled an army in the Nile Delta and put two generals in charge of defending Samannud . Hearing of this, 'Amr went north to destroy this army. The two generals in Samannud refused to fight

4131-410: The golden age" was reached in the writings of Ibn Kabar , who died in 1324. The first Arabic translations of hymns and other liturgical texts from Coptic probably took place in the 13th or 14th century. These were necessitated by the decline in the use of Coptic among the people. Coptic texts, however, remained the norm in the monasteries. The encyclopaedic work of Ibn Sibāʿ ( c.  1300 ) on

SECTION 50

#1732858063711

4212-576: The governor of Faiyum was Domentianus, while Anastasius was the prefect of its province, Arcadia Aegypti , and Theodosius was the prefect of Alexandria . The defence of Arcadia Aegypti was entrusted to a certain John, who Hermann Zotenberg identifies with the John, Duke of Barca or Barcaina mentioned by Nicephorus . He had brought the Ecthesis and a portion of the True Cross from Patriarch Sergius to Cyrus, and

4293-672: The late 12th century, Abū al-Makārim began a guidebook on the churches and monasteries of Egypt. It was expanded in the early 13th century with the addition of numerous historical notices into the History of the Churches and Monasteries of Egypt . Also from the 13th century is a lost universal history ending in 1217–1218 by a certain Bishop Abrīm. This might be the same work as the Tārīkh li-baʿḍ al-Ṣaʿīdiyyīn mentioned by Ibn al-Rāhib. Copto-Arabic poetry

4374-507: The letter reached him, the caliph had already dispatched 4,000 men, mostly veterans of the Syrian campaigns , to bolster Amr's strength. Even with the reinforcements, 'Amr was unsuccessful and so, by August, 'Umar had assembled another 4,000-strong force, consisting of four columns, each of 1,000 elite men. Zubayr ibn al-Awwam , a renowned warrior and commander, veteran of the Battle of Yarmouk and once

4455-453: The literary merit of the New Testament and produced a bilingual Coptic–Arabic dictionary and a Coptic grammar in Arabic. They developed their own "Asʿadī" style of handwriting. Copto-Arabic historiography also experienced a rebirth under the late Ayyubids. The major work was begun by al-Makīn Jirjis ibn al-ʿAmīd and continued in the Mamluk period by al-Mufaḍḍal ibn Abi ʾl-Faḍāʾil . The "peak of

4536-620: The men who have conquered Chosroes and Caesar in Syria.' When Zubayr arrived, he pointed out to ‘Amr that the Roman-garrisoned city of Heliopolis was a short distance away, and that troops from there could relieve the Siege of Babylon. To remove this threat, ‘Amr went with about half of his men there. The Muslim army reached Heliopolis, 15 km (10 mi) from Babylon, in July 640. The city boasted

4617-603: The military commander of the garrison and exiled him from the city, replacing him with Menas, who was a non-Chalcedonian Copt and popular with the army. Menas held a grudge against Domentianus' brother Eudocianus for Eudocianus' torture of the Coptic prisoners in Babylon . Theodore was angry with Domentianus for his cowardly flight from Nikiu and took Menas' side in their quarrel. Despite being brothers-in-law, Domentianus also disrespected Cyrus and showed him unreasonable hatred. He enlisted

4698-461: The offices and traditions of the Coptic church marks the start of a decline of Copto-Arabic writing. The nadir of Copto-Arabic corresponds to that of Egyptian Islamic culture under the Ottoman Empire from 1518 to 1798. It was Pope Cyril IV (d. 1861) who reformed Copto-Arabic writing by establishing schools. In the early 20th century, there were two Coptic newspapers, al-Waṭan and Miṣr . There

4779-445: The outposts of Pelusium and Belbeis, the Muslims had met stiff resistance, with sieges of two and one months, respectively. As Babylon, near what is now Cairo, was a larger and more important city, resistance on a larger scale was expected. The Muslims arrived at Babylon some time in May 640. Babylon was a fortified city, and Theodore had indeed prepared it for a siege. Outside the city,

4860-400: The panic the boatmen fled to their home provinces, leaving many of the soldiers stranded. When the Arabs arrived, the soldiers threw their weapons into the water before their enemies, hoping to be spared, but instead they were all massacred. According to John of Nikiu , the only man who lived to tell the tale was a “gallant warrior” named Zacharias. The Muslims then passed by Sais and, finding

4941-422: The service of any given day. The annals of Eutychius are the first work of Arabic Egyptian historiography. The continuation of Yaḥyā may have been started in Egypt, but was finished in 10334 in Syria. Yaḥyā also composed a work of computus , known through quotation by Ibn al-Rāhib. Two early works of Coptic-language historiography were translated into Arabic. John of Nikiu 's chronicle had little influence. Both

SECTION 60

#1732858063711

5022-447: The sole official language for administrative purposes. It gradually replaced Coptic as both the spoken and literary language of the Copts in a process that took several centuries. This process was much slower in Egypt than in Syria and Palestine, where the populace spoke Aramaic , a language much closer to Arabic. Palestinian Christian writing in Arabic precedes Egyptian by two centuries. There

5103-418: The strength of the Muslim force. For the next two months, fighting remained inconclusive, with the Byzantines repulsing every Muslim assault. Realising that Babylon was too strong to take, 'Amr sent a detachment to raid the city of Faiyum . The Byzantines had anticipated that and so had strongly guarded the roads that led to the city and had fortified their garrison in the nearby town of Lahun . At this time,

5184-573: The tale was a "gallant warrior" named Zacharias. The Muslims then passed by Sais and, finding relatives of Theodore there, killed them. John of Nikiu also says that "Egypt also had become enslaved to Satan. A great strife had broken out between the inhabitants of Lower Egypt , and these were divided into two parties. Of these, one sided with Theodore, but the other wished to join the Moslem." The Muslims had also begun their Siege of Alexandria . When Theodore returned to Alexandria, he dismissed Domentianus as

5265-723: The vernacular pronunciation of Arabic in Egypt at that time. The same practice in the case of Syriac script is known as Garshuni . The Copto-Arabic Sayings was probably created by one who spoke Arabic but was either educated in and more comfortable writing in Coptic or else saw Coptic script as the prestige written form for a religious work. Medieval Arabic blockprinting produced some examples of amulets with Coptic lettering of Arabic text. Muslim conquest of Egypt The Levant Egypt North Africa Anatolia & Constantinople Border conflicts Sicily and Southern Italy Naval warfare Byzantine reconquest The Arab conquest of Egypt , led by

5346-450: The west bank of the Nile . The Byzantines failed to inflict heavy losses but were able to delay the advance by a full day. The Muslim commanders decided to halt the main army at Tarnut and send an advance guard of cavalry forward to clear the path. The Muslims came to Kebrias of Abadja, where Domentianus and his soldiers were. He cravenly fled the city in a small boat, leaving his soldiers to their fate. They attempted to follow him, but in

5427-434: The whole army marched forward without an advance guard. The Muslims reached Sulteis, where they encountered another Byzantine detachment. Hard fighting followed, but the Byzantine resistance soon broke down and they withdrew to Alexandria. The Muslims halted at Sulteis for a day, still two days' march from Alexandria. After another day's march, the Muslim forces arrived at Kirayun, 20 km (12 miles) from Alexandria. There,

5508-443: Was "obese in person, quite without energy and unacquainted with warlike affairs". When he arrived, he found Theodore and his troops there already making sorties every day against the Arab base at Bahnasa. Judging that Amr would soon be defeated, Leontius left only half of his men there, going back to Babylon with the other half. The Arabs eventually gave up on attempting to take Faiyum and returned northwards. Theodore gave orders for

5589-643: Was a flowering of modern Coptic literature in Arabic following the assassination of the Prime Minister Boutros Ghali in 1910 and the Congress of Asyūṭ in 1911. This was a period which saw unity of purpose between Coptic and Muslim Egyptians against the British regime , culminating in the Egyptian Revolution of 1919 . Several Coptic-language apocalypses were later translated into Arabic. These include

5670-440: Was commanding the garrison at Babylon , 'his lamentations were more grievous than the lamentations of David over Saul when he said: "How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished!"' as John of Nikiu puts it. Theodore hurried his troops up the Nile while Anastasius and Theodosius rushed from Nikiû to Babylon to strengthen it, while a further force was sent from Babylon to Abûît to strengthen it under Leontius, who

5751-417: Was deposed by Valentine , who sent envoys to Rhodes with a message to Cyrus' troops, telling them to return to Constantinople and not to side with Cyrus. He also sent a letter to Alexandria telling the defenders not to obey Martina, and to keep fighting. Theodore was pleased to hear this, and without telling Cyrus or anyone but the captain, he secretly attempted to sail from Rhodes to Pentapolis . However,

5832-516: Was in Caesarea , she heard of the Arab army approaching Egypt and dispatched a regiment of her guards to defend Pelusium , a garrison city considered to be the eastern gateway to Egypt at the time, while she herself remained in Belbeis with more of her guards and sent warnings to her father Cyrus. However, Alfred J. Butler dismisses Armenousa's story as a myth. In December of 639 or early January 640,

5913-410: Was inspired entirely by the existing Arabic linguistic tradition practised among Muslims. Coptic lexicography in Arabic originates around the same time as grammar, but it has antecedents in Coptic and Greek going back to late antiquity . One 13th-century Copto-Arabic lexicographical treatise, al-Sullam al-ḥāwī ("The Comprehensive Ladder"), contains as an appendix an Arabic–Old French glossary with

5994-498: Was kept from taking his seat for two years. As Patriarch, Cyril returned to Ethiopia at the request of viceroy Sa'id of Egypt , the first recorded visit by the head of the Coptic church to that country. Emperor Tewodros II , whom Trimingham described as "unable to conceive how a Christian prelate could consent to act as the envoy of a Muslim prince", received Pope Cyril unfavorably in December 1856. Sven Rubenson records that when

6075-473: Was killed and Armenousa was captured, but sent back to Cyrus. 'Amr ibn al-'As subsequently attempted to convince the native Egyptians to aid the Arabs and surrender the city, based on the kinship between Egyptians and Arabs via Hajar . When the Egyptians refused, the siege resumed until the city fell around the end of March 640. Amr had assumed that Egypt would be a pushover but was quickly proven wrong. Even at

6156-504: Was likely on a direct commission from Emperor Heraclius . When the Muslims realised that Faiyum was also too strong for them to take, they headed towards the Western Desert , where they looted as many cattle and animals as they could. They subsequently headed to a town in the Faiyum district named Bahnasa (not to be confused with Oxyrhynchus 50 miles further south), which was defeated and

6237-407: Was looted (the traditional fate of cities that had resisted). Emissaries were exchanged between Theodore and 'Amr, leading to 'Amr meeting Theodore in person. Then, with negotiations stalled, during the night of 20 December, a company of handpicked warriors, led by Zubayr, managed to scale the wall, kill the guards, and open the gates for the Muslim army to enter. The city was captured by the Muslims

6318-580: Was still a living language, some texts were written in Arabic but in Coptic script (a practice known as allography ). Finally, after having been completely supplanted as the spoken language by Arabic, Coptic was rendered as needed in Arabic script . There is a fragmentary 13th-century manuscript in Arabic in Coptic script containing some of the Sayings of the Desert Fathers . It provides valuable information about

6399-411: Was that as they had received the letter on Egyptian soil, they had permission to proceed. When 'Umar received the reply, he decided to watch further developments and to start concentrating fresh forces at Madinah that could be dispatched to Egypt as reinforcements. On Eid al-Adha , the Muslim army marched from Shajratein to El Arish , a small town lacking a garrison. The town put up no resistance, and

6480-403: Was the first place in Egypt that the Byzantines showed some measure of resistance towards the Arabs. Two Christian monks, accompanied by Cyrus of Alexandria and the famous Roman general Aretion, came out to negotiate with 'Amr ibn al-'As. Aretion had been the Byzantine governor of Jerusalem and had fled to Egypt when the city fell to the Muslims. 'Amr gave them three options: convert to Islam, pay

6561-474: Was the protection of his troops, and if he found himself on Egyptian soil by the time he received the letter, the Caliph would leave overall strategic command of movement to him, so as to not unduly burden troops already in the field. The messenger, 'Uqbah ibn 'Amr, caught up with Amr at Rafah , a little short of the Egyptian frontier. Guessing what might be in the letter, 'Amr ordered the army to quicken its pace. Turning to 'Uqbah, 'Amr said that he would receive

#710289