Egyptian Language Development
The Egyptian language is divided into six major chronological divisions:
Archaic Egyptian (before 2600 BC)
This language was represented in inscriptions from the late Pre dynastic and Early Dynastic period.
Old Egyptian (2600 BC – 2000 BC)
It was represented in the Pyramid texts which are considered to be the greatest body of literature written in this phase of the language.
Middle Egyptian (2000 BC – 1300 BC)
It was represented in a variety of textual evidence in hieroglyphic and hieratic scripts.
Late Egyptian (1300 BC – 700 BC)
It was represented in a rich collection of religious and secular literature.
Demotic (17th century BC – 5th century AD)
It refers to the ancient Egyptian script derived from northern forms of hieratic, in addition to, the Egyptian language stage following Late Egyptian and preceding Coptic.
Coptic (4th-14th century AD)
Coptic was the last phase of the ancient Egyptian language. It is the direct descendant of the ancient language written in Egyptian hieroglyphics, hieratic, and demotic scripts. Coptic still exists as it is considered a liturgical language of the Coptic Orthodox Church.
What is the Egyptian language today?
Egyptian Colloquial Arabic
Egyptian Arabic or Egyptian colloquial Arabic is the most widely spoken language in Egypt and it is also the common national language in the country. 68% of people in Egypt use Egyptian Arabic. Moreover, it is the main language used in media forms such as advertising, films and programs; it is also sometimes used in literature such as plays and novels. Cairo is the most prominent form of Egyptian Arabic.
Standard Arabic
Modern Standard Arabic or MSA is the official language of 22 Arab countries, many in the Middle East, the Horn of Africa and Northern Africa. It is one of the most common languages spoken in the world. Besides, it is one of the United Nations official languages. It is spoken by only 1.6% of the population in Egypt. However, it is still used in some forms of media such as newscasts, some programs, films, cartoons, plays, poems and novels. MSA is mainly represented in Islamic texts as the language of the Quran is Arabic.
To conclude, the Egyptian language nowadays is totally different from the Egyptian language in ancient times. It was spoken in ancient Egypt and was a branch of the Afro-Asiatic languages. The ancient Egyptian language was one of the most popular languages that continued for centuries. The history of the language is divided into six periods. The Coptic language is the last phase of the ancient Egyptian language and it still exists till now in the Coptic Orthodox Church. Today, Egyptian Arabic is the common national language in Egypt; it can be divided into colloquial Arabic which is the main language used among people and the modern standard Arabic which is less used.
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