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Copts

Copts
ⲛⲓⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ
Coptic diaspora
Total population
4–20 million[1][2] (estimates vary)
Regions with significant populations
Traditional areas of Coptic settlement:4–20 million
Egypt4–20 million (estimates vary)[4]
Sudan<400,000 (2008)[5]
Libya60,000[6]
Diaspora:1–2 million (estimates vary)
United Statesc. 200,000 – 1 million[7][8][9][10][11]
Canadac. 200,000[1][12]
Australiac. 75,000 (2003)[13]
Francec. 45,000 (2017)[14]
Italyc. 30,000[15]
United Kingdom25,000–30,000 (2006)[16]
United Arab Emiratesc. 10,000[17]
Netherlandsc. 10,000[18]
Jordan>8,000 (2005)[19]
Kenya>8,000[20][21]
Lebanon3,000–4,000 (2012)[22]
Germany3,000[citation needed]
Austria2,000 (2001)[23]
Switzerland1,000 (2004)[24]
Israel1,000 (2014)[25]
Languages
Coptic (liturgical and ancestral)
Religion
Coptic Orthodox Church
Coptic Catholic Church
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Copts (Coptic: ⲛⲓⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ, romanized: niremənkhēmi; Arabic: الْقِبْط, romanized: al-qibṭ) are a Christian ethnoreligious group indigenous to North Africa[26] who have primarily inhabited the area of modern Egypt since antiquity. They are the largest Christian denomination in Egypt and the Middle East,[27] as well as in Sudan[5] and Libya.[28] Copts in Egypt account for roughly 5–15 percent of the Egyptian population;[29][30] Copts in Sudan account for 1 percent of the Sudanese population, while Copts in Libya similarly account for 1 percent of the Libyan population.[6]

Originally referring to all Egyptians,[31] the term Copt became synonymous with native Christians in light of Egypt's Islamization and Arabization after the Muslim conquest of Egypt in the 7th century.[32] Copts have historically spoken the Coptic language, a direct descendant of the Demotic Egyptian that was spoken in late antiquity.

Following the Muslim conquest of Egypt in 639–646 AD, the treatment of the Coptic Christians who refused to convert ranged from relative tolerance to open persecution.[33][34][35][36] Historically, the Copts suffered from "waves of persecution giving way to relative tolerance in cycles that varied according to the local ruler and other political and economic circumstances".[32] Persecution is significantly involved in the Copts' ethnic identity due to historic and current conflicts.[37] Most Copts adhere to the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, an Oriental Orthodox Church.[38][39][40] The smaller Coptic Catholic Church is an Eastern Catholic Church, in communion with the Holy See of Rome; others belong to the Evangelical Church of Egypt. The Copts played a central role in the Arab Renaissance as well as the modernization of Egypt and the Arab world as a whole;[32] they also contributed to the "social and political life and key debates such as pan-Arabism, good governance, educational reform, and democracy",[32] and they have historically flourished in business affairs.[41]

While Coptic Christians speak the same dialects and are culturally similar to other Egyptians, they strongly oppose Arab identity and associate it with Islam and Islamism.[42][43] In Egypt, Copts have a relatively higher educational attainment, a relatively higher wealth index, and a stronger representation in white-collar job types, but limited representation in military and security agencies. The majority of demographic, socio-economic, and health indicators are similar among Christians and Muslims.[44]

  1. ^ a b "Coptic Orthodox Christmas to be low-key – Tight security: On alert after bombing in Egypt". Montreal Gazette. 4 January 2011. Archived from the original on 23 February 2011. Retrieved 5 January 2011.
  2. ^ "Copts". 19 June 2015.
  3. ^ "Egyptian Coptic protesters freed". BBC. 22 December 2004.
  4. ^ Official population counts put the number of Copts at around 10-15% percent of the population, while some Coptic voices claim figures as high as 23 percent. Some scholars defend the soundness of the official population census (cf. E.J. Chitham, The Coptic Community in Egypt. Spatial and Social Change, Durham 1986), while other scholars and international observers assume that the Christian share of Egypt's population is higher than stated by the Egyptian government. Most independent estimates fall within range between 10 percent and 20 percent,[3] for example the CIA World Factbook estimated 10% are Christian "Egypt". The World Factbook. CIA. Retrieved 27 August 2010., Khairi Abaza; Mark Nakhla (25 October 2005). "The Copts and Their Political Implications in Egypt". The Washington Institute. Retrieved 27 August 2010., Encyclopædia Britannica (1985), or Macropædia (15th ed., Chicago). For a projected 83,000,000+ Egyptians in 2009, this assumption yields the above figures.
    In 2008, Pope Shenouda III and Bishop Morkos, bishop of Shubra, declared that the number of Copts in Egypt is more than 12 million. In the same year, father Morkos Aziz the prominent priest in Cairo declared that the number of Copts (inside Egypt) exceeds 16 million. "?". United Copts of Great Britain. 29 October 2008. Retrieved 27 August 2010. and "?". العربية.نت. Archived from the original on 3 June 2010. Retrieved 27 August 2010. Furthermore, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy Khairi Abaza; Mark Nakhla (25 October 2005). "The Copts and Their Political Implications in Egypt". Retrieved 27 August 2010. Encyclopædia Britannica (1985), and Macropædia (15th ed., Chicago) estimate the percentage of Christians in Egypt to be up to 20 percent of the Egyptian population.
  5. ^ a b Minority Rights Group International, World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples – Sudan : Copts, 2008, available at: http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/49749ca6c.html [accessed 21 December 2010]
  6. ^ a b Kjeilen, Tore. "Coptic Church". LookLex Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 January 2016.
  7. ^ 2009 American Community Survey, U.S. Census Bureau "All Egyptians including Copts 197,160"
  8. ^ According to published accounts and several Coptic/US sources (including the US-Coptic Association), the Coptic Orthodox Church has between 700,000 and one million members in the United States (c. 2005–2007). "Why CCU?". Coptic Credit Union. Retrieved June 21, 2009.
  9. ^ "Coptics flock to welcome 'Baba' at Pittsburgh airport". Pittsburgh Tribune (2007). Archived from the original on March 19, 2009. Retrieved June 21, 2009.
  10. ^ "State's first Coptic Orthodox church is a vessel of faith". JS Online (2005). Archived from the original on August 21, 2011. Retrieved June 21, 2009.
  11. ^ "Coptic Diaspora". US-Copts Association (2007). Archived from the original on 2007-02-20. Retrieved June 21, 2009.
  12. ^ Limited, Elaph Publishing. "إجراءات أمنية إستثنائية تسبق إحتفالات "اقباط العالم" بعيد الميلاد". @Elaph. Archived from the original on January 7, 2011.
  13. ^ In the year 2003, there was an estimated 70,000 Copts in New South Wales alone: "Coptic Orthodox Church (NSW) Property Trust Act 1990". New South Wales Consolidated Acts.
  14. ^ In the year 2017, there was an estimated 45,000 Copts in France: "Qui sont les coptes en France ?". La Croix. 16 March 2017.
  15. ^ "La Chiesa copta". March 10, 2014.
  16. ^ Copts number at least 20,000 in Britain "Middle Killeavy Parish Web Site". Archived from the original on 2009-01-21. Retrieved 2008-08-16. plus another 5,000 – 10,000 Copts who are directly under the British Orthodox Church (1999 figures)
  17. ^ Teller, Matthew (12 July 2015). "Free to pray – but don't try to convert anyone". BBC. Retrieved 12 July 2015. Ten-thousand or more live in the UAE, and young, bearded priest Father Markos, 12 years in Dubai, told me his flock are "more than happy – they enjoy their life, they are free."
  18. ^ "'De Koptische kerk telt in Nederland ongeveer tienduizend leden, die grotendeels afkomstig zijn uit Egypte.'". 12 July 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
  19. ^ "King commends Coptic Church's role in promoting coexistence". Jordanembassyus.org. June 3, 2005. Archived from the original on September 26, 2011. Retrieved November 18, 2011.
  20. ^ Cite error: The named reference Come Across And Help Us Book 2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  21. ^ Cite error: The named reference CopticMission was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  22. ^ "Lebanon: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor – 2012 Report on International Religious Freedom". U.S. Department of State. 20 May 2013. Retrieved 6 December 2015.
  23. ^ Austria 2004 Archived 2007-06-14 at the Wayback Machine Religious Freedom news
  24. ^ "Orthodox Copts open church in Switzerland". Swissinfo.org. July 17, 2004. Archived from the original on January 21, 2009. Retrieved November 18, 2011.
  25. ^ "The ethnic origin of Christians in Israel". parshan.co.il (in Hebrew).
  26. ^ Minahan 2002, p. 467
  27. ^ "Who are Egypt's Coptic Christians?". CNN. 10 April 2017. The largest Christian community in the Middle East, Coptic Christians make up the majority of Egypt's roughly 9 million Christians. About 1 million more Coptic Christians are spread across Africa, Europe, the United Kingdom and the United States, according to the World Council of Churches.
  28. ^ Coptic Orthodox Church Listings for Libya, p. 136 Archived July 19, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  29. ^ "Egypt's Sisi meets world Evangelical churches delegation in Cairo – Politics – Egypt". Ahram Online. Retrieved 2019-10-30.
  30. ^ Hackett, Conrad (2011-02-16). "How many Christians are there in Egypt?". Pew Research Center. Retrieved 2023-11-14.
  31. ^ Doorn-Harder, Nelly van (3 October 2017). Copts in Context: Negotiating Identity, Tradition, and Modernity. Univ of South Carolina Press. ISBN 9781611177855.
  32. ^ a b c d Raheb, Mitri; Lamport, Mark A. (2020-12-15). The Rowman & Littlefield Handbook of Christianity in the Middle East. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-5381-2418-5.
  33. ^ Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Refworld | World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples – Egypt : Copts of Egypt". Refworld. Retrieved 2020-06-15.
  34. ^ Etheredge, Laura S. (2011). Middle East, Region in Transition: Egypt. Britannica Educational Publishing. p. 161. ISBN 9789774160936.
  35. ^ Lyster, William (2013). The Cave Church of Paul the Hermit at the Monastery of St. Pau. Yale University Press. ISBN 9789774160936. Al Hakim Bi-Amr Allah (r. 996—1021), however, who became the greatest persecutor of Copts.... within the church that also appears to coincide with a period of forced rapid conversion to Islam
  36. ^ N. Swanson, Mark (2010). The Coptic Papacy in Islamic Egypt (641-1517). American Univ in Cairo Press. p. 54. ISBN 9789774160936.
  37. ^ Deighton, H. S. "The Arab Middle East and the Modern World", International Affairs, vol. xxii, no. 4 (October 1946)
  38. ^ Cite error: The named reference U.S.Dept of State/Egypt was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  39. ^ Cite error: The named reference FCO/Egypt/ was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  40. ^ Bailey, Betty Jane; Bailey, J. Martin (2003). Who Are the Christians in the Middle East?. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. p. 145. ISBN 978-0-8028-1020-5.
  41. ^ Todros, ch 3–4.
  42. ^ "Britannica: Egyptian Christians - Copt", britannica.com, retrieved 30 July 2023
  43. ^ Dobon, Begoña; Hassan, Hisham Y.; Laayouni, Hafid; Luisi, Pierre; Ricaño-Ponce, Isis; Zhernakova, Alexandra; Wijmenga, Cisca; Tahir, Hanan; Comas, David; Netea, Mihai G.; Bertranpetit, Jaume (2015). "The genetics of East African populations: A Nilo-Saharan component in the African genetic landscape". Scientific Reports. 5: 9996. Bibcode:2015NatSR...5E9996D. doi:10.1038/srep09996. PMC 4446898. PMID 26017457.
  44. ^ Mohamoud YA, Cuadros DF, Abu-Raddad LJ. Characterizing the Copts in Egypt: Demographic, socioeconomic and health indicators, QScience Connect 2013:22 doi:10.5339/connect.2013.22

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