Talk:Wp/cop/Ⲥϧⲁⲓ ⲛ̀ϣⲏ
Add topicGiven that we found the genuine Coptic word for "hieroglyphs" (Talk:Wp/cop/ⲥϧⲁⲓ_`ⲛⲥⲁϧⲫⲣⲁⲛϣ), maybe we should change the word for "demotic" too? Obviously, ⲙⲉⲧϣⲗⲟⲗ is just a translation of the Greek demotic. In demotic/hieroglyphic times, sš šʿ.t "document/letter script/writing" was used. While sš is clear, as it shows up in other contexts too and would be ⲥⲁϧ-, šʿ.t "document" does not survive independently in Coptic (at least I think so). But we could reconstruct the vowel in the word. I have found these correspondences:
- šʿ.t = ϣⲏ (noun, but with a different meaning than our word for "document")
- pʿ.t = ⲡⲏ (noun)
- pʿr = ⲡⲏⲣⲓ (noun)
- rʿ = ⲣⲏ (noun)
- wʿb = ⲟⲩⲏⲃ (noun)
- wʿ = ⲟⲩⲁⲓ (numeral)
- wʿ.ṱ = ⲟⲩⲁⲧ (verb)
- ḫʿ = ϣⲁ (verb)
- ḫʿr = ϣⲁⲣⲓ (verb)
It seems like ʿ stands for ⲏ in genuine Egyptian nouns. (ʿ is commonly used to represent Greek a/e in foreign words, but we should exclude them here) I'm not arguing for introducing a word ϣⲏ "document" as an independent noun, but I wondered if it would be worth it to coin ⲥⲁϧϣⲏ "demotic script", in the phrase ⲥϧⲁⲓ `ⲛⲥⲁϧϣⲏ. This would then be the exact continuation of sš šʿ.t, without doubt in use from pre-Ptolemaic times to well into the first couple centuries AD, when Coptic was already written. ⲁϩⲙⲉⲧ (talk) 14:01, 3 July 2020 (UTC)
- So, I found the vocalization of šʿ.t in Vergote 1973 (second vol), page 98. /šīʿa/ for the time of the New Kingdom, which is indeed ϣⲏ. So can we use ⲥⲁϧϣⲏ? Then we would use for both hieroglyphs and demotic script words which were in actual use in the first centuries AD! ⲁϩⲙⲉⲧ (talk) 14:18, 12 July 2020 (UTC)
- I think ⲥϧⲁⲓ ⲛ̀ⲥⲁϧϣⲏ looks good. --ⲫⲁϯⲟⲩⲉⲣϣⲓ (talk) 18:22, 12 July 2020 (UTC)
- Nice, I shall change it. ⲁϩⲙⲉⲧ (talk) 16:53, 13 July 2020 (UTC)