Editing Coptic language (section)

== Vocabulary ==
The core [[lexicon]] of Coptic is [[Egyptian language|Egyptian]], most closely related to the preceding [[Demotic (Egyptian)|Demotic]] phase of the language. Up to 40% of the vocabulary of literary Coptic is drawn from [[Greek language|Greek]], but borrowings are not always fully adapted to the Coptic phonological system and may have [[Semantics|semantic]] differences as well. There are instances of Coptic texts having passages that are almost entirely composed from Greek lexical roots. However, that is likely because the majority of Coptic religious texts are direct translations of Greek works.

{{blockquote|What invariably attracts the attention of the reader of a Coptic text, especially if it is written in the Sa'idic dialect, is the very liberal use which is made of Greek loan words, of which so few, indeed, are to be found in the Ancient Egyptian language. There Greek loan words occur everywhere in Coptic literature, be it Biblical, liturgical, theological, or non-literary, i.e. legal documents and personal letters. Though nouns and verbs predominate, the Greek loan words may come from any other part of speech except pronouns'<ref>Girgis, WA (1963–64). Greek loan words in Coptic. ''Bulletin de la Société d'archéologie copte'' 17:63–73.</ref>}}

The Greek loanwords in Coptic retain their original male or female gender, but Greek neuter nouns are treated as masculine in Coptic. The Greek nouns are usually inflected in the singular and in the nominative case though occasionally.{{sfn|Lambdin|1983|p=9}}

Words or concepts for which no adequate Egyptian translation existed were taken directly from Greek to avoid altering the meaning of the religious message. In addition, other Egyptian words that would have adequately translated the Greek equivalents were not used as they were perceived as having overt pagan associations. Old Coptic texts use many such words, phrases and [[epithet]]s; for example, the word {{Coptic|ⲧⲃⲁⲓⲧⲱⲩ}} '(Who is) in (His) Mountain', is an epithet of [[Anubis]].{{sfn|Gignac|1991|p=174}} There are also traces of some archaic grammatical features, such as residues of the Demotic [[relative clause]], lack of an indefinite article and possessive use of suffixes.

Thus, the transition from the old traditions to the new Christian religion also contributed to the adoption of Greek words into the Coptic religious lexicon. It is safe to assume that the everyday speech of the native population retained, to a greater extent, its indigenous Egyptian character, which is sometimes reflected in Coptic nonecclesiastical documents such as letters and contracts.