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https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.1167#0135
morpheme. This tendency is greatly expanded by the Coptic restriction to combine n with
T, the latter being the primary successor of no less than four Egyptian stops (<t>, <d>, <t>,
<d»).
For rare cases of a development p > b outside this condition see Osing (1976a: note 461
on p. 573) and Ward (1975).
3.12./
<b> in Egyptian
In mutual Egypto-Semitic transcriptions, Egyptian <b> corresponds well to Semitic /b/ (cf.
Hoch 1994: 40if., 431, 435). In Coptic, its principle representative is 6 which seems to
render [p], more rarely [b] (Pg* below). However, <b> regularly develops into 11 /p/ in all
Coptic dialects if it is the last consonant in a word and does not form part of a cluster in
the Paleo-Coptic reconstruction:
• Mb (h[V]'5abV) "feast" > ^on /'hap/
• w'b (w[V]'cabV) "to be pure" (infinitive) > sOTOn /"wop/
but:
• hib ('ha?bV) "to send" > s%06 /'hop/
• w'b.w (wa'VbwV) "to be pure" (stative) > "OTdAB /'wa:p7, 'W&B
This is probably a case of word-final desonorization. We can assume that at a time subse-
quent to the Paleo-Coptic stage the final vowels postulated for Paleo-Coptic disappeared
after single consonants but were retained after consonant clusters. Any /b/ which
happened to be word-final at that stage lost its sonority. When more word-final vowels
were dropped later, the desonorization rule was no longer at work:
Paleo-Coptic
subsequent stage
desonorization
Coptic
(hrVTSabV)
(hrvTfeb)
(hfVl'Sap)
/w
(WbV)
(WbV)
(WbV)
/'hop/
Traces of the sound shift /b/ > /pi can be found in writing from the New Kingdom on (cf.
Ward 1975: 64^). Apart from these regular cases, there are a few additional examples of
a shift <b> > n for which it is difficult to give rules.154
The fact that <b> could develop into /p/ is a good indication that <b> indeed originally
noted a stop rather than a fricative as Coptic B is.
Exceptionally, <b> can develop into /w/:
• sbt "star" > s.bCI(W /'siw/
• sbkw (divine name) > oou^oc; in Greek transcription (Vycichl 1983: 86)
154 See Crum (1939: 27), Fecht (1985: note 8 on p.
6i3f. and note 677 on p. 653), Ward (1975).
i35
), Osing (1976a: note 614 on p.
T, the latter being the primary successor of no less than four Egyptian stops (<t>, <d>, <t>,
<d»).
For rare cases of a development p > b outside this condition see Osing (1976a: note 461
on p. 573) and Ward (1975).
3.12./
<b> in Egyptian
In mutual Egypto-Semitic transcriptions, Egyptian <b> corresponds well to Semitic /b/ (cf.
Hoch 1994: 40if., 431, 435). In Coptic, its principle representative is 6 which seems to
render [p], more rarely [b] (Pg* below). However, <b> regularly develops into 11 /p/ in all
Coptic dialects if it is the last consonant in a word and does not form part of a cluster in
the Paleo-Coptic reconstruction:
• Mb (h[V]'5abV) "feast" > ^on /'hap/
• w'b (w[V]'cabV) "to be pure" (infinitive) > sOTOn /"wop/
but:
• hib ('ha?bV) "to send" > s%06 /'hop/
• w'b.w (wa'VbwV) "to be pure" (stative) > "OTdAB /'wa:p7, 'W&B
This is probably a case of word-final desonorization. We can assume that at a time subse-
quent to the Paleo-Coptic stage the final vowels postulated for Paleo-Coptic disappeared
after single consonants but were retained after consonant clusters. Any /b/ which
happened to be word-final at that stage lost its sonority. When more word-final vowels
were dropped later, the desonorization rule was no longer at work:
Paleo-Coptic
subsequent stage
desonorization
Coptic
(hrVTSabV)
(hrvTfeb)
(hfVl'Sap)
/w
(WbV)
(WbV)
(WbV)
/'hop/
Traces of the sound shift /b/ > /pi can be found in writing from the New Kingdom on (cf.
Ward 1975: 64^). Apart from these regular cases, there are a few additional examples of
a shift <b> > n for which it is difficult to give rules.154
The fact that <b> could develop into /p/ is a good indication that <b> indeed originally
noted a stop rather than a fricative as Coptic B is.
Exceptionally, <b> can develop into /w/:
• sbt "star" > s.bCI(W /'siw/
• sbkw (divine name) > oou^oc; in Greek transcription (Vycichl 1983: 86)
154 See Crum (1939: 27), Fecht (1985: note 8 on p.
6i3f. and note 677 on p. 653), Ward (1975).
i35
), Osing (1976a: note 614 on p.