Coptic name

The oldest layer of the Egyptian naming tradition is native Egyptian names. These can be either traced back to pre-Coptic stage of the language, attested in Hieroglyphic, Hieratic or Demotic texts (i.e. ⲁⲙⲟⲩⲛ, ⲛⲁⲃⲉⲣϩⲟ, ϩⲉⲣⲟⲩⲱϫ, ⲧⲁⲏⲥⲓ) or be first attested in Coptic texts and derived from purely Coptic lemmas (i.e. ⲡⲁⲛⲓⲣⲁⲛ, ⲡⲁⲙⲃⲱ, ⲗⲟⲩⲗⲉ, ⲧⲁⲗⲟⲩϣⲏⲙ).

The conquest of Egypt by Alexander the Great and subsequent rule of the Ptolemaic dynasty led to Hellenisation of Egypt, which led to adoption of a great number of Greek names by the Copts (i.e. ⲅⲉⲱⲣⲅⲓⲟⲥ, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ, ⲑⲉⲟⲇⲱⲣⲟⲥ, ⲑⲉⲕⲗⲁ, ⲕⲗⲉⲟⲡⲁⲧⲣⲁ), which was advanced even further by the Christianization and influx of Hellenised Hebrew and Aramaic names (i.e. ⲓⲱϩⲁⲛⲛⲏⲥ, ⲓⲱⲥⲏⲫ, ⲁⲃⲣⲁϩⲁⲙ, ⲉⲗⲓⲥⲁⲃⲉⲧ). The Roman conquest of Egypt added Latin names to Egyptian naming tradition (ⲃⲓⲕⲧⲱⲣ, ⲥⲉⲩⲏⲣⲟⲥ). Over time, many of these foreign names were gradually Egyptianized, while some Egyptian names underwent Hellenization, resulting in the development of a distinctive syncretic Graeco-Egyptian naming tradition.

After the Arab conquests of the Middle East, the Arabs implemented a policy of strict segregation to subjugate the native inhabitants of the occupied lands, including the Copts in Egypt. This policy aimed to easily identify and exploit them financially. The second Caliph, Umar I, established a code known as "The Pact of Umar" that governed the relationship between ruling Muslims and the non-Muslim "People of the Book" (including Christians). The code restricted non-Muslims from using certain names, nicknames, and kunyas. The Sunni jurist Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya emphasized that Muslim names were reserved exclusively for Muslims, while non-Muslims were allowed to use their own names or shared names. However, non-Muslims were prohibited from using names that implied honor or virtue, e.g. Rashid (Arabic: رشيد, lit. 'rightly guided') or Salih (Arabic: صالح, lit. 'good').

Despite these strict restrictions, changes began to emerge over time. During the Fatimid Dynasty, which ruled Egypt from 969 to 1171 and followed the Ismaili branch of Shia Islam, there was a relative period of tolerance towards the Copts. The Fatimids sought the support of the educated Coptic population and relaxed some of the Sunni restrictions. As a result, Copts started assimilating into Arab and Muslim culture to escape social segregation and promote social mobility. This included adopting Arab and Muslim names for their children, as well as using nicknames and kunyas that were previously exclusive to Arabs and Muslims.[1]

The concept of second name and a surname wasn't developed in Classical Coptic, although epithets and nicknames were used to distinguish people, such as:

ⲁⲙⲉ "herd, pastor", ⲙⲁⲣⲏⲥ "Southener", ⲡⲉⲃⲱ "dumb", ⲡⲕⲱϩⲧ "fire", ⲡⲟⲩⲱⲛϣ "the wolf", ⲡⲓⲭⲁⲙⲉ "the black", ⲡⲓϧⲉⲙⲥ "ear of corn", ⲡⲉϭⲱϣ "Ethiopian, black", ⲡϭⲏϫⲉ "purple", ⲱ "great", ϣⲏⲙ "small", ⲗⲁⲙⲡⲟⲩⲥ (Gr.) "bright, shining", ⲧⲭⲉϩⲗⲓ (Ar.) "of the elders", ⲡⲓⲥⲧⲁⲩⲣⲟⲥ (Arabic: بسطاوروس, romanized: Bastawrus) "the cross".

• Trismegistos, an online database of Coptic names attested in Egypt

• Heuser, Gustav (1929). Die koptischen Personennamen ägyptischen Ursprungs (in German). Dietrich.
• Stefan, Timm (1988). Das christlich-koptische Agypten in arabischer Zeit.
• W.E., Crum (1909) Catalogue of the Coptic manuscripts in the collection of the John Rylands library, Manchester. Manchester: University press.
• Ishak, Emile Maher (1975). The Phonetics and Phonology of the Boḥairic Dialect of Coptic and the Survival of Coptic Words in the Colloquial and Classical Arabic of Egypt and of Coptic Grammatical Constructions in Colloquial Egyptian Arabic. University of Oxford.