Maryan Coptic

Maryan Coptic
ϯⲙⲩⲧⲭⲏⲙⲉ timutkʰēme
Pronunciation	[/tɪˌmutˈkʰeːmə/]
Created by	Castillerian
Language family	Afroasiatic Egyptian Demotic Coptic Maryan Coptic
Dialects	Standard Nahlic Cholevic
Language codes
ISO 639-3	mcp

Maryan Coptic (ϯⲙⲩⲧⲭⲏⲙⲉ, tr. timutkʰēme) is an a posteriori language created by conlanger Castillerian. The initial intent of this language is to envision a modernized variant of Classical Coptic while preserving most of its grammar, vocabulary, and estimated phonology.

The first drafts of what would become the Maryan Coptic language were created in March 2018, initially called 'New Coptc' and 'Neo-Egyptian'. Early drafts detailed a modified Latin alphabet as the language's primary writing system, and its phonology more atone with modern-day Greco-Bohairic Coptic. Discontent with the language's current state, the creator redrafted all its core phonology and grammar in May 2019, along with its entire lexicon.

Phonology

Maryan Coptic's phonology bears immense resemblance to Bohairic Coptic, aside from the theory of Bohairic Coptic not retaining long vowels.

Orthography

Coptic alphabet

Maryan Coptic is chiefly written in a modified Coptic alphabet, which in return is a modified Greek alphabet augmented by Demotic-based glyphs. The script contains 32 pairs of glyphs (each pair containing one majuscule and one minuscule form) and 3 individual minuscule glyphs, adding up to 67 total glyphs. 48 of these glyphs originate from the Greek alphabet, while the remaining 19 originate as augmentations from the Demotic script.

In the earliest drafts dating back to March 2018, Maryan Coptic initially used a modified Latin alphabet, until a secondary script utilizing Coptic glyphs was introduced a month later in April. By July of the same year, the Latin script ceased all future and current usage, as all remaining texts which still used the Latin script were replaced with the more polished Coptic script.

Coptic alphabet

Letter	Numeric value	Name	Transliteration	Standard Pronunciation
Ⲁ ⲁ	1	alpha, ⲁⲗⲫⲁ	a	[ä] ~ [äʔ]
Ⲃ ⲃ	2	beta, ⲃⲏⲧⲁ	b	[β] ~ [ɸ] ~ [b]
Ⲅ ⲅ	3	gamma, ⲅⲁⲙⲙⲁ	g	[k]
Ⲇ ⲇ	4	delta, ⲇⲉⲗⲧⲁ	d	[t]
Ⲉ ⲉ	5	ei, ⲉⲓ	e	[ɛ] ~ [ɛʔ] ~ [ə]
ⲋ	6	sou, ⲥⲟⲩ
Ⳣ ⳣ		wau, ⳣⲁⲩ	w	[w]
Ⲍ ⲍ	7	zeta, ⲍⲏⲧⲁ	z	[s]
Ⲏ ⲏ	8	eta, ⲏⲧⲁ	ē	[eː] ~ [e]
Ⲑ ⲑ	9	theta, ⲑⲏⲧⲁ	tʰ	[tʰ]
Ⲓ ⲓ	10	iota, ⲓⲟⲧⲁ	i	[iː] ~ [i] ~ [ɪ] ~ [j]
Ⲕ ⲕ	20	kappa, ⲕⲁⲡⲡⲁ	k	[k]
Ⲗ ⲗ	30	laula, ⲗⲁⲩⲗⲁ	l	[l]
Ⲙ ⲙ	40	me, ⲙⲉ	m	[m]
Ⲛ ⲛ	50	ne, ⲛⲉ	n	[n] ~ [ŋ] ~ [m]
Ⲝ ⲝ	60	ksi, ⲝⲓ	x	[ks]
Ⲟ ⲟ	70	o, ⲟ	o	[ɔ] ~ [ɔʔ]
Ⲡ ⲡ	80	pi, ⲡⲓ	p	[p]
Ⲣ ⲣ	100	ro, ⲣⲱ	r	[ɾ] ~ [r]
Ⲥ ⲥ	200	sima, ⲥⲓⲙⲁ	s	[s]
Ⲧ ⲧ	300	tau, ⲧⲁⲩ	t	[t]
Ⲩ ⲩ	400	u, ⲩ	u	[uː] ~ [u]
Ⲫ ⲫ	500	phi, ⲫⲓ	pʰ	[pʰ]
Ⲭ ⲭ	600	khi, ⲭⲓ	kʰ	[kʰ]
Ⲯ ⲯ	700	psi, ⲯⲓ	ps	[ps]
Ⲱ ⲱ	800	ou, ⲱⲩ	ō	[oː] ~ [o]
Ϣ ϣ		shai, ϣⲁⲓ	š	[ʃ]
Ϥ ϥ	90	fai, ϥⲁⲓ	f	[f]
Ϧ ϧ		xai, ϧⲁⲓ	ḫ	[x]
Ϩ ϩ		hore, ϩⲱⲣⲉ	h	[h] ~ [ɦ] ~ [ç]
Ϫ ϫ		canga, ϫⲁⲅⲅⲁ	c	[t͡ʃ]
Ϭ ϭ		chima, ϭⲓⲙⲁ	cʰ	[t͡ʃʰ]
Ϯ ϯ		ti, ϯ	ti	[tiː] ~ [ti] ~ [tɪ]
ⳕ		hat, ϩⲁⲧ	'	∅ ~ [ʔ]
ⳁ	900	sampi, ⲥⲁⲙⲡⲓ

Sou (ⲋ) and sampi (ⳁ) are used strictly for their numeric values and do not carry any phonemic values.

One of the main functions of hat (ⳕ) is to modify and move the stress of a given word, usually placed after ei (ⲉ).

• ⲁⲙⲣⲉⳕ (baker) - /amˈɾɛʔ/
• ⲙⲉⳕⲣⲉ (noon) - /ˈmɛrrə/
• ϧⲉⳕⲧⲉⲃ (kill [construct]) - /ˌxətəβ/
• ⲥⲁⲓⲉⳕ (beautiful) - /saˈjɛʔ/

The letter can also stand in as a historical consonant left unpronounced in modern speech. In more dated vernaculars, instances of hat would sustain the following letter, whereas in modern vernaculars the pronunciation of the word is left unmodified. Instances of hat placed before ro (ⲣ) create an alveolar trill [r].

• ⲓⲟⳕⲣ (canal): /jɔr/
• ⲙⲁⳕⲃ (thirty): modern /maβ/, dated /maββ/)
• ⲓⲁⳕⲧ (eyes): modern /jat/, dated /jatt/)
• ⲁⳕϥ (fly): modern /af/, dated /aff/)

Chat script

Maryan Coptic utilizes an alternative script for efficient online communication known as picinsxai thyt (the united script). The script uses only base Latin glyphs and digraphs to represent the phonemes of Maryan Coptic, as the Coptic script remains semi-incompatible for most modern devices.

Latin chat alphabet

Letter	Name	Coptic equivalent
A a	alpha	ⲁ
B b	byta	ⲃ
C c	cagga	ϫ
Ch ch	chima	ϭ
D d	delta	ⲇ
E e	ei	ⲉ
F f	fai	ϥ
G g	gamma	ⲅ
H h	hwre	ϩ
I i	iota	ⲓ
K k	kappa	ⲕ
Kh kh	khi	ⲭ
Ks ks		ⲝ
L l	laula	ⲗ
M m	me	ⲙ
N n	ne	ⲛ
O o	o	ⲟ
P p	pi	ⲡ
Ph ph	phi	ⲫ
Ps ps		ⲯ
R r	rw	ⲣ
S s	sima	ⲥ
Sh sh	shai	ϣ
T t	tau	ⲧ
Th th	thyta	ⲑ
Ti ti		ϯ
U u	u	ⲩ
W w	wau wu	ⳣ ⲱ
X x	xai	ϧ
Y y	yta	ⲏ
Z z	zyta	ⲍ

An apostrophe (') can stand in as hat (ⳕ), but it can also be used to separate and prevent two glyphs from forming the aspirated digraphs (i.e. ϣⲉⲡϩⲙⲟⲧ (to thank) = shep'hmot, ⲛⲁϫϩⲉ (tooth) = nac'he, ⲧⲉⲕϩⲁⲗⲁⲕ (your ring) = tek'halak, ⲉⲧϩⲓϫⲉⲛ (one who is on) = et'hicen).

Consonants

Maryan Coptic's consonants remain the same among most Coptic dialects, even retaining the velar fricative /x/.

Consonants

		Bilabial	Labio- dental	Alveolar	Post- alveolar	Palatal	Labio- velar	Velar	Glottal
Nasal		m		n
Plosive	modal	p		t				k	ʔ
	aspirated	pʰ		tʰ				kʰ
Fricative		β	f	s	ʃ			x	h
Affricate	modal				t͡ʃ
	aspirated				t͡ʃʰ
Approximant				l		j	w
Flap				ɾ

Vowels

The exact qualities of Bohairic Coptic's vowels remain unknown. Maryan Coptic's vowels were created largely from personal preference and some basis in Koine Greek spoken in the 1st Centiry CE.

Vowels

	Front	Near-front	Central	Back
Close	i iː			u uː
Near-close		ɪ
Close-mid	e eː			o oː
Mid			ə
Open-mid	ɛ			ɔ
Open			ä

Diphthongs

IPA	/aɪ/	/aʊ/	/ɛɪ/	/ɛʊ/	/eːɪ/	/eːw/	/əɪ/	/iːw/	/ɔɪ/	/ɔw/	/oːɪ/	/oːw/
Coptic script	ⲁⲓ	ⲁⲩ	ⲉⲓ	ⲉⲩ	ⲏⲓ	ⲏⲩ	ⲓ	ⲓⲩ	ⲟⲓ	ⲟⲩ	ⲱⲓ	ⲱⲩ
Chat script	ai	au	ei	eu	yi	yu	i	iu	oi	ou	w'i	wu

Prosody

Stress

Maryan Coptic uses a lexical stress system. The primary stress is always found either on the penult or the ultima, depending on the vowels present, and the secondary stress is always found at least two syllables before the primary stress, usually in conjugated verbs and compound nouns. However, borrowed loanwords tend to break this pattern, as Maryan Coptic attempts to preserve the stress from the loanword's source language. Fortunately, inherited loanwords are constructed specifically to fit Maryan Coptic's native stress system, making their stress patterns more predictable than direct borrowings.

Every vowel, aside from ei (ⲉ), are called 'strong vowels' and can indicate the primary stress of a word. alpha (ⲁ) and o (ⲟ) are classified as 'short strong' vowels, and eta (ⲏ), iota (ⲓ), u (ⲩ), and ou (ⲱ) are classified as 'long strong' vowels. Ei (ⲉ), and sometimes iota (ⲓ), are called 'weak vowels' and are primarily unstressed if a strong vowel is present. In verb forms, the verb root is always given the primary stress.

• Ⲭⲏⲙⲉ (Egypt): /ˈkʰeːmə/
• ⲃⲉⲣⲓ (new): /βəˈɾiː/
• Ⲉⲥⲛⲟϥⲣⲉ (Esnofre [female-given name]): /əsˈnɔfɾə/

If multiple strong vowels are found in a word, usually from agglutination, then the final strong vowel or root word gets the primary stress, and any remaining long vowels are shortened. The main exception is if the final vowel is a strong u (ⲩ) and the penult vowel is either alpha (ⲁ) or o (ⲟ). Other exceptions may occur in more formal registers of speech, leaving long vowels in unstressed positions.

• ϯⲙⲁ (to allow): /tiˈmaʔ/
• ⲁⲙⲁⲓⲩ (seas): /aˈmajju/
• ϫⲱⲣⲁⲥⲡⲉ (linguistics): colloquial /t͡ʃoˈɾaspə/, formal /t͡ʃoːˈɾaspə/
• ⲧⲏϩⲓⲙⲉ (that woman): colloquial /teˈhiːmə/, formal /teːˈhiːmə/

If a short strong vowel is found on the penult and the ultima contains one onset consonant, then that consonant is duplicated and acts as the coda for the stressed syllable.

• ⲥⲁϫⲉ (to speak): /ˈsat̚t͡ʃə/
• ⳣⲟⲓⲉ (farmer): /ˈwɔjjə/
• ⲃⲟⲛⲉ (bad [feminine]): /ˈβɔnnə/
• ϣⲁⲣⲉ (to hit): /ˈʃarrə/

Morphology

Most native Maryan Coptic words follow a syllable structure of (C)(C)V(C)(C), while foreign loanwords, mainly of Greek origin, can have a structure of (C)(C)(C)V(C)(C)(C). Less educated speakers may use a short schwa for ease of pronunciation.

• ⲥⲧⲣⲁⲧⲏⲅⲏⲥ (general [military]): standard /stɾateˈkes/, compared to /ə̆stɾateˈkes/
• ⲁⲣⲝ (bear): standard /aɾks/, compared to /ˈaɾkə̆s/

Nouns

Most nouns have one of two grammatical genders: masculine and feminine. Some nouns, compounded with certain agent particles, can take either gender. All adjectives, most pronouns, and most verb forms indicate the gender of the noun they reference of modify.

Distinguishing the gender of most root nouns is very challenging and requires prior context, but in general, most nouns that end in ei (ⲉ) or a long vowel are feminine, and most nouns that end in a consonant are masculine; however, there are countless exceptions. Verbal nouns are always masculine.

• Masculine:
  • ⲥⲟⲛ (brother), ⲣⲱⲙⲉ (human, person), ⲱⲓⲕ (bread), ⳣⲱⲙ (food)
• Feminine:
  • ⲥⲱⲛⲉ (sister), ϩⲓⲙⲉ (woman), ⲙⲁⲩ (mother), ϩⲉⲭⲱ (story)

Nominal particles always carry a fixed gender.

• ϫⲓⲛ- (gerund marker) - masculine
  • ϫⲓⲛⲙⲓⲥⲉ (birth), ϫⲓⲛⲕⲁⲧⲉ (understanding)
• ⲙⲉⲧ- (abstract nominalizer) - feminine
  • ⲙⲉⲧⲣⲱⲙⲉ (humanity), ⲙⲉⲧⲙⲏϣ (republic)
• ⲙⲁⲛ- (place of) - masculine
  • ⲙⲁⲛϣⲱ (beach, lit. "place of sand"), ⲙⲁⲛⲁⲗⲟⲗⲉ (vineyard, lit. "place of grapes")
• ⲥⲁⲛ- (profession marker) - masculine/feminine
  • ⲥⲁⲛⲑⲱⳣⲉ (shoemaker, lit. "shoe seller"), ⲥⲁⲛⲧⲉⲃⲧ (fisherman, lit "fish seller")
• ⲣⲉϥ- (grammatical agent) - masculine/feminine
  • ⲣⲉϥϣⲁⲛϣ (nurse, lit. "one who nourishes"), ⲣⲉϥⲥⲁϫⲉ (speaker, lit. "one who speaks")

Adjectives

All adjectives are placed after the noun they modify and agree to nouns in terms of gender (masculine/feminine). Most feminine forms of adjectives end in either ei (ⲉ) or a long vowel.

Adjectives ending in a consonant conjugate to their feminine form by adding an ei (ⲉ) suffix.

• ⳣⲏⲛ (open) > ⳣⲏⲛⲉ
• ϩⲟⲗϫ (sweet) > ϩⲟⲗϫⲉ
• ⲃⲱⲛ (bad) > ⲃⲟⲛⲉ

Adjectives with a long vowel and ending in ei (ⲉ) are prone to replacing their long vowel with a short equivalent and a consonant, usually ro (ⲣ) and sometimes tau (ⲧ). The exact consonant is largely unpredictable without historical context.

• ⲙⲏⲧⲉ (central) > ⲙⲁⲧⲣⲉ (from Egyptian mtr.t */ˈmutɾat/)
• ϩⲏⲕⲉ (hungry) > ϩⲁⲕⲣⲉ (from Egyptian ḥqr.t */ˈħuqʼɾat/)
• ⲣⲱⲙⲉ (human) > ⲣⲟⲙⲧⲉ (from Egyptian rmṯ.t */ˈɾamcit/)
• ⲧⲱϣⲉ (dark red) > ⲧⲁϣⲣⲉ (from Egyptian dšr.t */ˈtʼaʃɾit/)