DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.1167#0033
2.3 Dialects
When variation within a language is encountered, there are several possibilities of
interpreting it, e.g. as diachronic variation (different historical stages of one language),
diastratic variation (variation due to different social milieus), or diatopic variation
(variation across different geographical regions). The latter type is what is usually
understood by 'dialectal' variation. If variation is found in texts of an extinct language, it
is not always immediately clear which interpretation should be preferred.
Diachronic and diastratic variation of Pre-Coptic Egyptian is well known (DS* § 2.1). The
diachronic aspect is particularly easy to verify since many Egyptian texts can be as-
signed to an exact date. By contrast, it has been almost impossible to find clear linguis-
tic characteristics typical for a specific geographical region, i.e. for dialects proper.^
The only example of a distinct Pre-Coptic dialect the texts of which originate from a
restricted area is Napatan Egyptian. This variety is attested by royal inscrip-
tions of the Napatan empire, which covered the northern half of modern Sudan, dating
from the 5th to the 3rd century bc. These texts show marked deviations from contempora-
neous texts written in Egypt especially with regards to syntax and morphology. It is,
however, not clear whether the Napatan idiom was ever used as a spoken language or was
only used as a medium of writing by speakers of other languages for which no writing
system had been established. On Napatan Egyptian see Peust (1999).
The situation is quite different with Coptic. Coptic is attested in several varieties which
cannot be projected on a diacronic line. These varieties, conventionally called
"dialects", may reflect actual regional linguistic variations, or merely distinct methods
15 A few rather limited peculiarities of certain texts were explained as dialectal
features by Roquet (1979, Old Egyptian), Groll (1984 and 1987, Late Egyptian),
Lexa (1934 and 1949: I, §182-191, Demotic), and Johnson (1976, Demotic).
Some scholars have posited different Egyptian dialects in order to explain certain
phonetic developments which are supposedly inexplicable by regular sound laws
(e.g. Fecht i960: 246, Loprieno 1995: 3i, Vycichl 1990: lllf.).
Several scholars have suggested that the attested diachronic stages are additionally
or essentially diatopic in nature, assuming that the standard variety of the language
was rooted in different parts of Egypt through the times. The following localizations
of the standard variety for specific periods have been proposed: Old and Late
Egyptian in Lower Egypt, Middle Egyptian in Upper Egypt (Edgerton 1951: lif.);
Old and Middle Egyptian in Lower Egypt, Late Egyptian in Upper Egypt (Grapow
1944: 209, 211L; Fecht i960: 161L, 206-208); earliest Egyptian and Late Egyptian
in Upper Egypt, [later] Old Egyptian and Middle Egyptian in Lower Egypt (Edel
^SS/^A' h §2if-; Greenberg 1986: 284; Schenkel 1993: 148); Old Egyptian and
Demotic in Middle Egypt, Middle Egyptian in Lower Egypt, Late Egyptian in Upper
Egypt (Davis 1978: 202); Old and Middle Egyptian in Middle Egypt, Earliest
Egyptian and Late Egyptian in (an)other area(s) of unknown localization (Satzinger
1994a: 202-204).
33
When variation within a language is encountered, there are several possibilities of
interpreting it, e.g. as diachronic variation (different historical stages of one language),
diastratic variation (variation due to different social milieus), or diatopic variation
(variation across different geographical regions). The latter type is what is usually
understood by 'dialectal' variation. If variation is found in texts of an extinct language, it
is not always immediately clear which interpretation should be preferred.
Diachronic and diastratic variation of Pre-Coptic Egyptian is well known (DS* § 2.1). The
diachronic aspect is particularly easy to verify since many Egyptian texts can be as-
signed to an exact date. By contrast, it has been almost impossible to find clear linguis-
tic characteristics typical for a specific geographical region, i.e. for dialects proper.^
The only example of a distinct Pre-Coptic dialect the texts of which originate from a
restricted area is Napatan Egyptian. This variety is attested by royal inscrip-
tions of the Napatan empire, which covered the northern half of modern Sudan, dating
from the 5th to the 3rd century bc. These texts show marked deviations from contempora-
neous texts written in Egypt especially with regards to syntax and morphology. It is,
however, not clear whether the Napatan idiom was ever used as a spoken language or was
only used as a medium of writing by speakers of other languages for which no writing
system had been established. On Napatan Egyptian see Peust (1999).
The situation is quite different with Coptic. Coptic is attested in several varieties which
cannot be projected on a diacronic line. These varieties, conventionally called
"dialects", may reflect actual regional linguistic variations, or merely distinct methods
15 A few rather limited peculiarities of certain texts were explained as dialectal
features by Roquet (1979, Old Egyptian), Groll (1984 and 1987, Late Egyptian),
Lexa (1934 and 1949: I, §182-191, Demotic), and Johnson (1976, Demotic).
Some scholars have posited different Egyptian dialects in order to explain certain
phonetic developments which are supposedly inexplicable by regular sound laws
(e.g. Fecht i960: 246, Loprieno 1995: 3i, Vycichl 1990: lllf.).
Several scholars have suggested that the attested diachronic stages are additionally
or essentially diatopic in nature, assuming that the standard variety of the language
was rooted in different parts of Egypt through the times. The following localizations
of the standard variety for specific periods have been proposed: Old and Late
Egyptian in Lower Egypt, Middle Egyptian in Upper Egypt (Edgerton 1951: lif.);
Old and Middle Egyptian in Lower Egypt, Late Egyptian in Upper Egypt (Grapow
1944: 209, 211L; Fecht i960: 161L, 206-208); earliest Egyptian and Late Egyptian
in Upper Egypt, [later] Old Egyptian and Middle Egyptian in Lower Egypt (Edel
^SS/^A' h §2if-; Greenberg 1986: 284; Schenkel 1993: 148); Old Egyptian and
Demotic in Middle Egypt, Middle Egyptian in Lower Egypt, Late Egyptian in Upper
Egypt (Davis 1978: 202); Old and Middle Egyptian in Middle Egypt, Earliest
Egyptian and Late Egyptian in (an)other area(s) of unknown localization (Satzinger
1994a: 202-204).
33