Studies in Coptic Culture

by Mariam Ayad

Author	: Mariam Ayad
Publisher	: American University in Cairo Press
Total Pages	: 199
Release	: 2016-05-02
Genre	: Social Science
ISBN	: 1617977659

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Coptic contributions to the formative theological debates of Christianity have long been recognized. Less well known are other, equally valuable, Coptic contributions to the transmission and preservation of technical and scientific knowledge, and a full understanding of how Egypt's Copts survived and interacted with the country's majority population over the centuries. Studies in Coptic Culture attempts to examine these issues from divergent perspectives. Through the careful examination of select case studies that range in date from the earliest phases of Coptic culture to the present day, twelve international scholars address issues of cultural transmission, cross-cultural perception, representation, and inter-faith interaction. Their approaches are as varied as their individual disciplines, covering literary criticism, textual studies, and comparative literature as well as art historical, archaeo-botanical, and historical research methods. The divergent perspectives and methods presented in this volume will provide a fuller picture of what it meant to be Coptic in centuries past and prompt further research and scholarship into these subjects.

Studies in Coptic Culture

by Mariam F. Ayad

Author	: Mariam F. Ayad
Publisher	: Oxford University Press
Total Pages	: 233
Release	: 2016
Genre	: History
ISBN	: 9774167503

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Egypt; religious life and customs; Copts; history; 332 B.C.-640 A.D.

Coptic Culture

by Mariam F. Ayad

Author	: Mariam F. Ayad
Publisher	: Coptic Orthodox Church Centre at Shephalbury Manor
Total Pages	: 0
Release	: 2012
Genre	: Art
ISBN	: 9781935488279

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In May 2008, the Coptic Orthodox Centre in Stevenage, UK organised a conference on Coptic Culture: Past, Present, and Future. The conference aimed to highlight the contributions and achievements of one of the most obscure periods of Egyptian history: the Coptic Period. The importance of this period lies in its valuable contributions to some of the most formative theological debates of Christianity. Strictly defined as a Late Antique culture, spanning only the third to the seventh centuries AD, the heritage of the Coptic Period still survives today in the artistic expression, liturgical services, and heritage of millions of Egyptian Christians who live in Egypt and abroad. This period's lasting contributions, however, remain underappreciated and many of its aspects remain unclear or unknown to the general public. For the first time, the conference at the Coptic Centre brought together specialists working on all aspects of Coptic culture, from its earliest phases to the present day. One of the aims of the conference was to highlight new research on Coptic art, writings, and archaeology. By bringing together specialists, academics and Coptic clergy, the conference fostered an active discussion of what defined Coptic identity in centuries past and what it means to be Coptic in contemporary culture, both in Egypt and abroad. It is important that we draw on, understand, and appreciate the rich cultural heritage of this period as we look to our past to inform our present and define our future. The conference drew scholars from Australia, Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the USA. Their papers were organised along 5 general thematic blocks that dealt with (1) The Egyptian roots of Coptic culture; (2) How do we know what we know: Archaeological Sites and Museum Collections; (3) Aspects of Early and Medieval Coptic Culture: Case Studies; (4) Current Trends in Coptic Studies; and (5) Coptic Culture Today and where it's heading. This volume contains their contributions.

Studies on Greek and Coptic Majuscule Scripts and Books

by Pasquale Orsini

Author	: Pasquale Orsini
Publisher	: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Total Pages	: 276
Release	: 2018-11-19
Genre	: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN	: 3110575442

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The volume contains a critical review of data, results and open problems concerning the principal Greek and Coptic majuscule bookhands, based on previous research of the author, revised and updated to offer an overview of the different graphic phenomena. Although the various chapters address the history of different types of scripts (i.e. biblical majuscule, sloping poitend majuscule, liturgical majuscule, epigraphic and monumental scripts), their juxtaposition allows us to identify common issues of the comparative method of palaeography. From an overall critical assessment of these aspects the impossibility of applying a unique historical paradigm to interpret the formal expressions and the history of the different bookhands comes up, due to the fact that each script follows different paths. Particular attention is also devoted to the use of Greek majuscules in the writing of ancient Christian books. A modern and critical awareness of palaeographic method may help to place the individual witnesses in the context of the main graphic trends, in the social and cultural environments in which they developed, and in a more accurate chronological framework.

Copts and the Security State

by Laure Guirguis

Author	: Laure Guirguis
Publisher	: Stanford University Press
Total Pages	: 256
Release	: 2016-11-30
Genre	: History
ISBN	: 1503600807

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Copts and the Security State combines political, anthropological, and social history to analyze the practices of the Egyptian state and the political acts of the Egyptian Coptic minority. Laure Guirguis considers how the state, through its subjugation of Coptic citizens, reproduces a political order based on religious identity and difference. The leadership of the Coptic Church, in turn, has taken more political stances, thus foreclosing opportunities for secularization or common ground. In each instance, the underlying logics of authoritarianism and sectarianism articulate a fear of the Other, and, as Guirguis argues, are ultimately put to use to justify the expanding Egyptian security state. In outlining the development of the security state, Guirguis focuses on state discourses and practices, with particular emphasis on the period of Hosni Mubarak's rule, and shows the transformation of the Orthodox Coptic Church under the leadership of Pope Chenouda III. She also considers what could be done to counter the growing tensions and violence in Egypt. The 2011 Egyptian uprising constitutes the most radical recent attempt to subvert the predominant order. Still, the revolutionary discourses and practices have not yet brought forward a new system to counter the sectarian rhetoric, and the ongoing counter-revolution continues to repress political dissent.

Contemporary Coptic Nuns

by Pieternella van Doorn-Harder

Author	: Pieternella van Doorn-Harder
Publisher	: Univ of South Carolina Press
Total Pages	: 288
Release	: 1995
Genre	: Religion
ISBN	: 9781570030345

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A rare and engaging encounter with Egyptian cloistresses Contemporary Coptic Nuns reveals a world rarely seen by outsiders--the world of nuns who worship and serve as part of the largest community of indigenous Christians in the Middle East. One of the few people unaffiliated with the Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Church to observe these women, Pieternella van Doorn-Harder offers a compelling portrait of the nuns who devote their lives to this conservative faith. Van Doorn-Harder traces the current vitality of the Coptic monastic tradition to a church-wide renaissance of the mid twentieth-century. She credits Coptic mother superiors with harnessing the revival's energy to usher in an era of expanded opportunity for Egyptian Christian women. At that time they transformed convents into centers of Coptic faith and culture and began providing pastoral, educational, and medicinal services to the community. In depicting the nuns' daily lives, van Doorn-Harder describes their work, their role in the Coptic resurgence, their influence on the Coptic laity, and their position in the larger Islamic society. In presenting their spiritual lives, she attests to the vigor of their prayer, fasting, and devotions as well as to their spiritual gifts, which include clairvoyance, intercession, and healing.

Egyptian-Coptic Linguistics in Typological Perspective

by Eitan Grossman

Author	: Eitan Grossman
Publisher	: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Total Pages	: 521
Release	: 2014-12-17
Genre	: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN	: 3110394596

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This volume presents the Egyptian-Coptic language in cross-linguistic (‘typological’) perspective. It is aimed at linguists of all stripes, especially typologists, historical linguists, and specialists in Egyptian-Coptic, Afroasiatic languages, or African languages. Uniquely, the contributions are written by both typologists and experts of Egyptian-Coptic and typologists. The former provide case studies dealing with particular aspects of the various phases of the Egyptian-Coptic language (e.g., COLLIER on conditional constructions), while the latter situate Egyptian-Coptic data in cross-linguistic perspective (e.g., those by GUELDEMANN and GENSLER). The volume also includes an introductory section that includes an overview of the Egyptian-Coptic language (HASPELMATH), a sketch of its sociohistorical setting (GROSSMAN & RICHTER), its relationship with language typology (RICHTER), and the way in which Egyptian-Coptic data should be presented to nonspecialists, focusing on transliteration and glossing (GROSSMAN & HASPELMATH). This is the first book to bring together language typology and the Egyptian-Coptic language in an explicit fashion.

Coptic Culture and Community

by Mariam F. Ayad

Author	: Mariam F. Ayad
Publisher	: American University in Cairo Press
Total Pages	: 347
Release	: 2024-01-16
Genre	: History
ISBN	: 164903329X

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A wide-ranging exploration of the daily lives of ordinary Coptic Christians, from late Antiquity until today This volume brings together leading experts from a range of disciplines to examine aspects of the daily lived experiences of Egypt’s Coptic Christian minority from late Antiquity to the present. In doing so, it serves as a supplement and a corrective to institutional or theological narratives, which are generally rooted in studying the wielders of historical power and control. Coptic Culture and Community reveals the humanity of the Coptic tradition, giving granular depth to how Copts have lived their lives through and because of their faith for two thousand years. The first three sections consider in turn the breadth of the daily life approach, perspectives on poverty and power in a variety of different contexts, and matters of identity and persecution. The final section reflects on the global Coptic diaspora, bringing themes studied for the early Coptic Church into dialog with Coptic experiences today. These broad categories help to link fundamental questions of socio-religious history with unique aspects of Coptic culture and its vibrant communities of individuals. Contributors: - Nicola Aravecchia, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA - Mariam F. Ayad, The American University in Cairo, Cairo, Egypt - Renate Dekker, Leiden, the Netherlands - Lois M. Farag, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA - Ihab Khalil, Coptic Museum of Canada, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada - A.D. MacDonald, Sydney, Australia - Ash Melika, California Baptist University, Riverside, California, USA - Samuel Moawad, Institute of Egyptology and Coptology, Münster, Germany - Helene Moussa, Coptic Museum of Canada, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada - Alanna Nobbs, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia - Carolyn Ramzy, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - Christina Thérèse Rooijakkers, Leiden University, Oegstgeest, the Netherlands - Youhanna Nessim Youssef, Sankt Ignatios College, University College Stockholm, Sweden

Coptic Christology in Practice : Incarnation and Divine Participation in Late Antique and Medieval Egypt

by Stephen J. Davis

Author	: Stephen J. Davis
Publisher	: OUP Oxford
Total Pages	: 392
Release	: 2008-02-28
Genre	: Religion
ISBN	: 0191531715

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Coptic Christology in Practice forges a new path in the study of ancient and medieval Christology. Employing a range of interdisciplinary methods derived from the fields of social history, discourse theory, ritual studies, and the visual arts, Stephen J. Davis demonstrates how Christian identity in Egypt was shaped by a set of replicable 'christological practices'. He thus enables readers to trace the fascinating lines of the Coptic church's theological and cultural transition from late antiquity to Dar al-Islam.