# Coptic alphabet Source: https://coptic-lore-forge.lovable.app/wiki/coptic-alphabet — Coptic Orthodox Wiki (updated 2026-10-02) The Coptic alphabet combines predominantly Greek letters with signs derived from demotic Egyptian. Its several varieties reflect the writing traditions of different Coptic dialects.[^1][^2] ## Overview The Coptic alphabet is the writing system of Coptic, the final stage of the Egyptian language. Its letters are predominantly Greek, supplemented by signs of demotic Egyptian origin.[^1] Strictly speaking, there is not one uniform Coptic alphabet but several varieties associated with different dialects and subdialects. Fourteen varieties are distinguished, and the alphabetic group associated with Sahidic is estimated to account for almost 92 percent of the surviving textual material, while the Bohairic group accounts for almost 7 percent.[^2][^8] ## Origins and development The predominance of Greek letters reflects Egypt’s long exposure to Greek language and culture following Alexander the Great’s conquest in 332 BC.[^1] Old Coptic texts represent varied, often experimental attempts to write Egyptian between the first and fourth centuries AD; their alphabets generally contain more demotic-derived signs than those of literary Coptic.[^3] The supplied accounts frame the chronology differently. The article on spoken Coptic places the beginning of Egyptian adoption of Greek letters approximately in the third century BC, whereas the specialized alphabet article tentatively dates the creation of the first varieties of the Coptic alphabet to the third century AD. These statements concern different stages of adoption and development and do not establish a single uncontested date for the alphabet’s origin.[^4][^1] The inventor of the Coptic alphabet is unknown. Its development enabled Egyptians to read biblical and Gnostic writings in their own language.[^5] ## Composition and dialectal variation The conventional alphabetical order places letters of Greek origin first and letters of demotic origin afterward.[^6] The Sahidic alphabet has thirty letters, including six classified as demotic-derived; in the context of Bohairic hymns, the Coptic alphabet is described as having thirty-one letters, or thirty-two when the symbol for the numeral six is included.[^7][^8][^12] The alphabets differ not only in the number of letters they contain but potentially in the sound values assigned to particular letters. Consequently, an orthographic difference does not automatically establish a corresponding difference in pronunciation.[^9] The origin of the letter traditionally called *ti* receives a qualified treatment: it is generally derived from a demotic sign, but significant graphic influence from a Latin abbreviation for the sound combination /ti/ has also been proposed.[^13] ## Manuscripts and other uses Coptic book hands and formal documents employed styles also found in Greek writing, notably biblical majuscule and Alexandrian majuscule. Mixed styles combining features of these two traditions also occur.[^10] Letters additionally served as numerals through the adoption of the Greek alphabetic numerical system. In regular Coptic script, a horizontal stroke above the letters marked numerical use; such numerals were extensively used in Bohairic but were rare in Sahidic, where numbers were normally written out as words.[^11] Alphabetical order also structured hymns. Later Bohairic *Psali* are alphabetic acrostics, most based on the twenty-four Greek letters and a minority on the fuller Coptic alphabet.[^12] At Bani Hasan, a Coptic alphabet appears on the north wall of the tomb of Nuternekht, numbered 23. Its presence has prompted the suggestion—not a certainty—that the tomb may have served as a school.[^14] ## Sources [^1]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 8, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 30) [^2]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 8, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 37) [^3]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 8, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 57) [^4]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 2, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 708) [^5]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 2, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 732) [^6]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 8, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 148) [^7]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 8, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 34) [^8]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 8, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 44) [^9]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 8, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 38) [^10]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 8, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 393) [^11]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 6, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 295) [^12]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 6, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 724) [^13]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 8, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 64) [^14]: The Coptic Encyclopedia, Volume 2, Aziz S. Atiya (Editor in Chief) (p. 39)