An Elementary

Bohairic Grammar

Annette Imhausen
 Contents

0. Introduction

1. Alphabet

2. Pronouns

3. Nouns

4. The Article

5. The Genitive

6. The Adjective

7. Numerals

8. Non-verbal Sentences

9. The Verb

10. The Infinitives

11. The Passive

12. Prepositions

13. The Verbal Sentence

14. Questions

15. Conditional Sentences

16. Temporal Clauses

17. Causal Clauses

18. Final Clauses

19. Relative Clauses

20. Negatives

Appendix: Overview of prefixes

Bibliography: Coptic (Bohairic or including Bohairic) Grammars

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0. Introduction (Shisha-Halevy, p. 53-60)

Bohairic is a major dialect of Coptic, also called “Memphitic”, “the northern dialect”, or
“dialect of Lower Egypt” in earlier terminology. It was the first dialect that Western
scholarship became aquainted with, but has since been superseded by Sahidic as far as
research and tuition are concerned.
Originally the northern local dialect of the western Delta (Buhaira) and Wadi el-Natrun,
Bohairic spread dramatically (beginning after, and as an indirect result of the Arab
Conquest of Egypt) eastward and southward. In the eighth and ninth centuries it broke
the monopoly of Sahidic, and by the eleventh century had largely completed the process
of becoming virtually the sole dialect of Coptic.
Extant Bohairic sources include on the one hand of manuscripts later than the ninth
century with scriptural, homiletic, hermeneutic, hagiographical and liturgical texts, and,
on the other, a much smaller collection of fourth and fifth century fragments, all
biblical. The largest single document of this kind published to date is Papyrus Bodmer
III, containing the Gospel of John.

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1. Alphabet (Mallon, p. 9-10, Shisha-Halevy, p. 54)

letter name pronounciation

a alpha a
b beta b/v
g gamma g
d delta d
e epsilon e (short)
z zeta z
/ eta e (long/stressed)
y theta t + h (aspiration)
i iota i
k kappa k
l lambda l
m mi m
n ni n
x xi k+s
o omicron o (short)
p pi p
r ro r
c sima s
t tau t
u ypsilon u, w
v phi p + h (aspiration)
, chi k + h (aspiration)
' psi p+s
w omega o (long/stressed)
s shai sh
f fai f
q khai kh
h hori kh
j djandja dj
{ tschima tj
] ti ti

Origin of extra letters

s è
f ª
q ›

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 j
{ Ù

Aspiration
Probably the most striking feature of Bohairic is the consonant aspiration in words of
native Egyptian stock. The aspirated allophone1 (y, v, ,) occurs before and in contact
with a sonorant (any of /b/, /l/, /m/, /n/, /r/, /w/, and /j/) in initial clusters and elsewhere
(e.g. ,lom, crown; aymou, immortal; vmenrit, the beloved) or “spontaneously” as the
onset of a stressed syllable (”stress” similar to “sonority”).

Opposition of /x/ and /h/

The Bohairic phonemic inventory features the opposition /x/ : /h/, graphemically q : h
(e.g. qr/i, lower part vs. hr/i, upper part).

1
In phonetics, an allophone is one of several similar phones that belong to the same phoneme. A phone is
a sound that has a definite shape as a sound wave, while a phoneme is a basic group of sounds that can
distinguish words (i.e. changing one phoneme in a word can produce another word); speakers of a
particular language perceive a phoneme as a single distinctive sound in that language. Thus an allophone
is a phone considered as a member of one phoneme.

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2. Pronouns (Mallon, p.32-44)

Suffix Pronouns

singular plural
1 -i, -t 1 -n
2m -k 2 -ten
f Ø or -i

3m -f 3 -ou
f -c

Independent Pronouns

singular plural
1 anok 1 anon
2m nyok 2 nywten
f nyo
3m nyof 3 nywou
f nyoc

Pronouns of Emphasis or Contrast

1. hw= ‘(my)self, also, for (my) part’

singular plural
1 hw 1 hwn
2m hwk 2 hwten
f hwi
3m hwf 3 hwou
f
hwc

2. mmauat= ‘alone, only’

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 singular plural
1 mmauat 1 mmauaten
2m mmauatk 2 mmauaten-y/nou
f mmaua]
3m mmauatf 3 mmauatou
f mmauatc

3. nouat= ‘alone, only’

Consists of the preposition n- and a form of ouai ‘one’.

4. rw ‘even, self’

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Possessive Article ‘that/those belonging to’

singular plural
m va- na-
f ya-

Possessive Pronoun

singular plural
m f
1S vwi ywi noui
2Sm vwk ywk nouk
2Sf vw yw nou
3Sm vwf ywf nouf
3Sf vwc ywc nouc
1 Pl vwn ywn noun
2 Pl vwten ywten nouten
3 Pl vwou ywou nouou

Possessive Adjective

singular plural
m f
1S pa- ta- na-
2Sm pek- tek- nek-
2Sf pe- te- ne-
3Sm pef- tef- nef-
3Sf pec- tec- nec-
1 Pl pen- ten- nen-
2 Pl peten- teten- neten-
3 Pl pou- tou- nou-

Demonstrative Pronoun

1. ‘this, these’

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a) attached to a following noun

singular plural
m pai- nai-
f tai-

b)

singular plural
m vai nai
f yai

2. ‘that, those’

a)

singular plural
m v/ n/
f y/

b) To render ‘that/those day/s’ the following construction is used: The noun is prefixed
by the definite article and followed by the phrase ett/, etemmau, which is formed
by the relative et- and the adverb t/, mmau ‘there’.

3. Nouns (Mallon, p. 54-

There are masculine and feminine nouns. The –t ending of feminine nouns in earlier
times has disappeared. Feminine nouns often show the same ending as masculine nouns.

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Several nouns exist in two genders with a different sense in each form:
]-ave the head pi-ave the boss
]-b/t the side pi-b/t the palm
]-joi the wall pi-joi the boat

Several nouns depict male or female nouns depending on the article:

pi-alou the boy ]-alou the girl
pi-ehe the ox ]-ehe the cow

Similarly designations of fruits are masculine if they refer to the fruits themselves, and
feminine if the fruit tree is referred to:
pi-aloli the grape ]-aloli the vine
pi-kente the fig ]-ehe the fig tree

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Derivation of nouns
Several endings can be attached to a root to form a noun: -e, -i, -w, -f, -c
1. –e (masculine) and –/ (fem)
• form adjectives,
• an a or e usually appears after the first consonant
• examples: safe, fem. saf/ ‘deserted’ from swf ‘to devastate’;
neste “hard” from nsot ‘to be hard’
2. –i
• forms feminine nouns
• examples: ouobsi “whiteness” from ouobs “white”;
/pi “number” from wp “to count”;
hl/ji “mildness” from hloj “become mild”
3. –w
• forms feminine nouns
• example: hebcw “garment” from hwbc “to dress”
4. –f
• forms masculine nouns
• example: nahbef “yoke” from noheb “to yoke”
• the same f is used in suffix forms with verbs to employ them in an
abstract sense, without indication of a person, e.g. p-twnf “the action of
getting up”
5. –c
• forms feminine nouns
• examples: ywoutc “reunion” from ywou] “reunite”;
cormec “error” from cwrem “to err”

Plural Forms

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The majority of nouns have the same form in both singular and plural, the number being
indicated by the article. Nevertheless there is a number of nouns showing special plural
form. In earlier Egyptian, the endings of the plural were w for the masculine and wt for
the feminine. From the former, the Coptic masculine plural ending ou is derived, from
the latter the feminine plural in oui.

Compound Nouns
Many compound nouns can be formed by attaching prefixes to either nouns or verbs.
The prefix can be either a noun, verb or a particle.
a) compound nouns formed with nouns
This is restricted to nouns that exist in a short form which can be used as a prefix.
examples (more examples can be found in Mallon, p. 58-59):
• ma-n- “place of”:
manswpi “abode”, “dwelling”;
manvwt “refuge”;
mansai “orient”;
• rem- “ man from/of”:
remnhwb “worker”;
remnk/mi “Egyptian”;
rem]voinik/ “Phoenician”;
remrako] “man from Alexandria”;
• ham- / am- “worker of”:
hamse / amse “carpenter”
• can- to indicate a profession
cankap “ropemaker” from kap “rope”

b) compound nouns formed with verbs

The second part of these compounds is always a noun. The verbe takes the form of a
participle, characterized by an a after the first radical.
• mei “love”
mai-nou] “god-loving”
mai-hat “who loves money”
mai-rwmi “who loves men”, “philanthropist”
• fai “carry”

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 fai-sini “messenger”

c) compound nouns formed with particles

The most common particles used in this construction are:
• an- to indicate a collective
ansasf “week” from sasf “seven”
• at- “without”, frequently forms adjectives
atcm/ “mute”
• e- in combination with certain verbs to indicate professions
ekwt “architect”
• ha- to indicate the beginning of an action, or a higher point
hanro “lips” from ro “mouth”
• jin- “action of”
]jinsaji “the conversation”

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4. The Article (Mallon, p. 26-31)
The Definite Article
Singular Plural
weak strong
masc. p- / v- pi-
ni- nen-
fem. t- / y- ]-

The definite article singular has two forms in Bohairic, a weak form (p- / v- and t- /
y-) and a strong form (pi- and }-). Before b, l, m, n, and r, and sometimes before i
and ou the weak form appears as v- and y-.
There is a subtle difference in meaning between weak and strong form. The weak form
determines less precisely, it is often used before generic or abstract nouns. The strong
form indicates a specific individual.

Examples:
v-nou] God pi-nou] the god
v-r/ the sun pi-r/ nte ]-meym/i the sun of justice

The plural article nen- is often used before a compound noun, e.g. nen-s/ri mpicl
“the sons of Israel”. ni- can always be used.

The Indefinite Article

Masc. and fem. Sing. ou- (abbreviation for ouai “one”); pl. han- (construct state of the
noun hoeine “some”).

If ou- is preceded by the preposition e- (to), it contracts to eu.

For the use of the article see Mallon, pp. 28-31.

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5. The Genitive (Mallon, p. 69-71)
The genitive expression of two elements is formed with the two particles n- (m- before
b, m, p, v and ') and nte-. Contrary to Sahidic, n- is used in the undetermined
genitive expression, and nte- in its determined form.

n- is used
• if the preceding noun is undetermined, i.e. without article;
examples: ou,lom nnoub “a crown of gold”; ou,lol nhat “a necklace of
silver”;
• after the prepositional expressions m-v-r/] “like”, m-p-emyo “in the presence
of”, qa-t-h/“opposite of”, hi-t-h/ “before”;
examples: mpemyo mp{oic “in the presence of the Lord”; mvr/]
noucaray/ou “like a storm”
• after suffixed forms of certain nouns (see Mallon, §55);
example: qajwou nnikalamvo “in front of the hills”
• if the preceding noun is determined by the article nen-;
example: nenbal mp{oic “the eyes of the lord”

nte- is used
• between two names;
example: maria nte iakwboc “Mary, (mother) of Jacob”
• if the preceding noun is determined by the strong article pi, ], ni;
example: ]ho] nte p[oic “the fear of the Lord”
• if the preceding noun has the undetermined article ou- or han-, and the
following noun has a definite or indefinite article;
examples: ouss/n nte pwnq “the tree of life”; ou,lom nte hanhmot “a
crown of grace”; hanrompi nte pwnq “(some) years of life”;
• if the two elements of the genitive construction are separated;
example: niecwou etcwrem nte p/i mpicra/l “the stray sheep of the
house of Israel”

Notes:

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• If the preceding noun is determined by the weak article either n- or nte- can be
used;
• If the preceding noun is followed by several elements, the genitive particle is
used only once;
examples: mpemyo mp{oic nem nirwmi “before the Lord and men”;
hanahwr nnoub hi hat “treasures of gold and silver”

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6. The Adjective (Mallon, p. 71-76)
Apart from a few “real” adjectives, their function is mostly filled by the following
constructions:
• Linked by n- (attribute), sometimes the “adjective” precedes the noun in this
construction (nis](great), noj (great), kouji (small), houit (first), qae (last),
m/s (numerous) always precede the noun they modify).
Examples: ourwmi ncabe “ a wise man”, ]nis] mbaki “the great city”
• e= (undetermined antecedent) or et- (determined antecedent) fo1llowed by
the qualitative of a verb.
Examples: pipneuma eyouab “ the holy spirit”, oupneuma efouab “a holy
spirit”
Note that a word followed by niben is considered determined and will be
followed by et.

Comparative
The comparative is usually expressed by the following preposition e-, ero=. It can also
be expressed by:
• ehote- (before a noun)
• ehote e-, ehote nte- before a verb
• ehote ero=, ehotero= with the suffix pronoun
Examples: enaaf e iwann/c “taller than John”; eieoubas ehote ou,iwn “I will
become whiter than snow”; fjor ehoteroi “he is stronger than I”

If the object of a comparison is not expressed, n-houo is used: fcotp nhouo “more
selected”.

Superlative
The absolute superlative is expressed by emasw or mmasw “very”, e.g. ounis]
nrasi emasw “a very great joy”. The superlative in relation to something else is
expressed by qen- or ebol oute-, e.g. v/ etoi nkouji qen y/nou “ the one who
is the smallest among you”.

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7. Numbers (Mallon, p. 76-84; Till §23)
Numbers are written by letters with a single overbar (up to 999) or two overbars (from
1000 on).
m f
number
symbolic number word symbolic number word

1 a ouai oui

2 b cnau b] cnou]

3 g somt g] som]

4 d ftwou

5 e ]ou ]e

6 6 coou coou

7 z sasf z] sasfi

8 / sm/n /] sm/ni

9 y 'it y] 'i]

10 i m/t i] m/]

20 k jwt k] jw]

30 l mab

40 m hme

50 n taiou

60 x ce

70 o sfe

80 p qamne

90 f picteoui

100 r se

200 c s/i

1000 so

10,000 yba

Constructions including numbers:

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• The most common construction (as in Sahidic) is Numeral– n – Noun (singular),
examples: ]-m/t-cnau mmay/t/c “the twelve disciples”, ]-m/] mbaki
“the ten cities”, pi-ftouy/ou “the four winds”
• However, the numeral 2 normally follows the noun with no particle intervening,
examples: pi-tebt b “the two fish”; tai-entol/ b] “these two laws”
• The numeral agrees in gender with the noun, which is always treated as singular.
• Distributive/apportioning numbers are formed by double use of a cardinal
number, example: cnau cnau “two by two”
• Ordinal numbers are formed by prefixing mah- to the cardinal number. They
can be used before or after the noun, and are attached using n-.
• Fractions: ½ vasi from vws (Egyptian psS) to divide or joc, jec- (from
Egyptian gs). Fractions other than ½ are formed with the prefix re (Egyptian rA),
e.g. resomt 1/3, rem/t 1/10.

Dates
The year begins August 25, and consists of 12 month (abot) of 30 days. These are
followed by 5 additional days (6 in a leap year), which form the small months
(pikouji nabot).

Month names
1. Ax.t ywout Thoth 3. pr.t vamenwy Pharmenoth
2. Ax.t paopi Paophi 4. pr.t varmouyi Pharmuti
3. Ax.t aywr Hathyr 1. Smw pa,wn, pasonc Pachon
4. Ax.t,oiak Choiakh 2. Smw pawni Payni
1. pr.t twbi Tybi 3. Smw ep/p Epiphi
2. pr.t me,ir Mechir 4. Smw mecwr/ Mesore

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8. Non-verbal sentences (Till, §35-37; Mallon, p. 180-186, Chaine (1955), p. 11-
58)

Non-verbal sentences are sentences which do not contain a finite verb. The subject can
be a noun or pronoun, the predicate can be a noun, pronoun or adverb. Two types of
non-verbal sences can be distinguished according to their predicate:

A) Sentences with nominal predicate

B) Sentences with adverbial predicate

Non-verbal sentences are usually statements in present tense. However they can be
transformed into circumstantial clauses (using the converter e-) or into statements of the
past (using the converter ne-)

A Non Verbal Sentences with Nominal Predicate

The predicate can be a noun, pronoun or another element which serves as a noun.
Depending on the predicate, the construction of a nominal sentence varies.

a) with a pronominal subject

i) 1st and 2nd persons

Direct juxtaposition.

A noun is always used with the indefinite article, if on its own. If

followed by a complement it can be used with either the definite or
indefinite article.
examples: 'ncwten xannout “You are gods.”
'ncok pshri 'mv+ “You are the son of god.”

An adjective (used as a noun) always has the indefinite article. It is used

in the sense of “someone who is/something which is” of the quality
expressed by the adjective.
examples: anok ouxhki “I am (someone who is) poor.”
anon xansoj 'ncwten xansabeu “We are fools, you are wise.” (lit.
“We are (persons who are) fools, you are (persons who are) wise”)

The number adjective ouai (one) is used without article.

example: anon ouai “We are one.”

The relative form, taken as a noun (“the one who…”) can be used with
the definite article or without article, but never with the indefinite article.
examples: ncok petjw 'mmos “You are the one who says it.”
ncok etjw 'mvai “You are the one who says this.”
ncwten gar an netnasaji “Because you are not those who will
speak.”

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 nim (who?) and the indefinite article xli (nothing) can be used in non-
verbal sentences.
examples: ncok nim “Who are you?”
anok xli “I am nothing.”

The combination of the preposition ebol and another preposition or

adverb of place can be used as a predicate. The “place” expressed by this
construction resembles an adjective, and is taken as a noun. It usually
appears with the indefinite article.
examples: 'ncwten xanebol qen peteniwt pidiabolos “You are
children of your father, the devil.”
ncok ouebol qen nimachths “You are one of the disciples.”

The pronoun which serves as the subject may be repeated, either

immediately after the subject, or after the predicate.
examples: anok gar anok ouqello “For I myself, I am an old man.”
anok ouagacos anok “I, I am good.”

ii) 3rd person

Like the construction of a nominal sentence in 1st and 2nd person, the
predicate has either the definite or indefinite article.

Subject and predicate in this construction can be found either in their

logical sequence (subject-predicate) or the inverse (predicate-subject).

The auxiliary pe, te, ne is used.

example: 'ncos ouseri 'nte abraam te “She is a daughter of Abraham.”

b) with a nominal subject

The subject is always determined by the definite article, and the predicate
has either the definite or indefinite article.

Subject and predicate in this construction can be found either in their

logical sequence (subject-predicate) or the inverse (predicate-subject).

The auxiliary (copula) pe, te, ne is used. It is often placed after the
predicate.

If subject and predicate agree in number and gender, the copula will, too.
If they don’t agree, pe is used.

examples:
pisaji 'nte pistauros oumetsoj pe “The language of the cross is
foolishness” (S: pisaji (m), P: oumetsoj (f), copula: pe)

pimisi ebol qen tsarx ousarx pe “The child of the flesh is flesh”
(S: pimisi (m), P: ousarx (f), copula: pe)

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pwnx ne vouwini pe 'nnirwmi “The life was the light of (the) men.”
(S: pwnx (m), P: ouwini (m), copula: pe)

oubaki epesran pe nazarec “A town, the name of which is Nazareth”

(S: nazarec (f), P: pesran (m), copula: pe)

ourefernobi te “She is a sinner”

(S: te (f), P: ourefernobi (f))

xanshri 'nte 'v'+ ne “They are children of (the) God.”

(S: ne (pl), P: xanshri (pl))

vouws 'nte 'v'+ pe “It is the wish of (the) God.”

(S: pe (m), P: vouws (m))

pisvhr pe 'nte nitelwnhs “He is the companion of the tollkeeper.”

(S: pe (m), P: pisvhr (m))

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B Non Verbal Sentences with Adverbial Predicate

The predicate can be an adverb or an adverbial (prepositional) expression.

The subject can be nominal or pronominal. In either case the subject directly precedes
the adverbial predicate. For present meaning the prefixes of the 1st present, 2nd present
or circumstantial are used.
examples:
1st present:
'v'+ neman “God is with us.”
+qen paiwt “I am in my father.”

2nd present:
au'mvrh+ 'nniaggelos “They are like angels.”
paoujai nem pawou auqen panou+ “My salvation and my glory are in my God.”

If the subject has the indefinite article, it must be introduced by the auxiliary ouon
(positive) or 'mmon (negative).
example:
ouon oumhs 'mmonh qen phi 'mpaiwt “There is a multitude of places in the house of
my father.”

To achieve past meaning in a sentence with adverbial predicate, the prefixes of the
imperfect (imperfect converter na-) are used.
example:
nafnemwou 'nje comas “Thomas was with them.”

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9. The Verb (Mallon, p. 85-156)
There are two basic forms of the verb in Coptic:

A The Infinitive
B The Qualitative

A The Infinitive

The infinitive always indicates action. The action can effect another object (direct
object), or the subject itself. The infinitive of verbs expressing a quality indicates the
process of acquiring that quality.

The infinitive of transitive verbs (e.g. swnt ‘to create’) can appear in three forms:

a) the absolute form: swnt, which is used before ojects introduced by n-/mmo=.
example: afswnt mpirwmi “He created man.”
b) the construct form: sent-, used before a nominal object, which is directly
following.
example: afsent pirwmi “He created man.”
c) the pronominal form: sont=, used before a suffix pronoun.
example: afsontf “He created him.”

The use of the construct and pronominal form is restricted to specific tenses.

B The Qualitative

The qualitative describes a state or condition, which usually indicates the result of the
action described by the infinitive. Qualitatives of transitive verbs often have a passive
meaning.
Examples: bwl “to release” has the qualitative bhl “to be released”
qisi “to adore” has the qualitative qosi “to be adored”

The use of the qualitative is restricted to the following tenses: 1st and 2nd present,
imperfect and circumstantial.

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Verbal Classes

Mallon distinguishes between simple verbs, caustaive verbs and composed verbs.

According to their roots/radicals, simple verbs can be divided into 8 classes:

• 2 radical verbs
• verbs with 2nd geminating radical
• 3 radical verbs
• verbs with a 3rd weak radical
• 4 radical verbs
• 5 radical verbs
• verbs with a 3rd geminating radical
• verbs with 4th weak radical

For a detailed account of these and their vocalizsation see Mallon, p.90-102.

The Suffix conjugation

Most verbs in Coptic are conjugated by placing the subject, nominal or pronominal,
before the verbal stem. A few verbs employ a different method, by which the nominal
or pronominal subject follows the verbal stem. When the subject is a pronoun, the suffix
pronouns are used.

The most common of these verbs are:

• peje-, peja= “said”
only used with past meaning
always positive
examples: peje i'h's “Jesus said”, pejaf nwou “he said to them”

• nese-, nesw= “to be beautiful”

• nane-, nane= “to be good”

note the 1st person singular pronominal form nanhi “I am good”

• naa-, naa= “to be great”

• nase-, nasw= “to be numerous”

• exne-, exna= “to be willing”

note the 1st person singular pronominal form exnhi “I wish”

• ouon- there is and its negative mmon- “there is not”

These are usually employed with an undefined nominal subject. To obtain the
past tense ne- is prefixed. To obtain the circumstantial e- is prefixed.

• ouon nte- (and its negative mmon nte-)

is used to express possession. It can be followed by the adverb mmau (there).
The past tense is expressed by prefixing ne-, a circumstantial by prefixing e-.

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 In the same sense the rarer ouon mmo= (mmon mmo=) and ouon ero= (mmon
ero=) are used.

ouon nte- (and its negative mmon nte-) exist in a full form and an abbreviated
form:

full forms:
ouon nthi (mmon nthi), ouon ntak (mmon ntak) etc., before noun: ouon
nte- (mmon nte-)

In the full form the two n often contract:

ouonthi (mmonthi), ouontak (mmontak) etc., before noun: ouonte-
(mmonte-)

abbreviated forms:

Singular
1 ouon+ mmon+

2m ouontek mmontek

2f ouonte mmonte

3m ouontef mmontef

3f ouontes mmontes

Plural

1 (ouonten) mmonten

2 ouonteten mmonteten

3 ouontou mmontou

• sse (with dative) “it becomes”, “it suits” (for… to do…)

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The Prefix conjugation

The pattern normally adopted is verbal prefix – subject – verb. Exceptions to this rule
are the 1st Present and the 1st Future tenses. With the 1st Present the subject is attached
directly to the verb, while with the 1st Future, the pattern is subject – na – verb.

The Tenses

1st Present

Singular Plural

1 +- 1 ten-

2m k- / ,- 2 teten-

2f te-

3m f- 3 se-

3f s-

Nominal subject: subject – verb

Negative: n…an / …an

Imperfect

Singular Plural

1 nai- 1 nan-

2m nak- 2 nareten-

2f nare-

3m naf- 3 nau-

3f nas-

Nominal subject: nare-

Negative: …an
1st Perfect

positive

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 Singular Plural

1 ai- 1 an-

2m ak- 2 ateten-

2f are-

3m af- 3 au-

3f as-

Nominal subject: a-

negative

Singular Plural

1 8mpi- 1 8mpen-

2m 8mpek- 2 8mpeten-

2f 8mpe-

3m 8mpef- 3 8mpou-

3f 8mpes-

Nominal subject: 8mpe-

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Aorist / Habitude / Praesns Consuetudinis

positive

Singular Plural

1 sai- 1 san-

2m sak- 2 sareten-

2f sare-

3m saf- 3 sau-

3f sas-

Nominal subject: sare-

negative

Singular Plural

1 8mpai- 1 8mpan-

2m 8mpak- 2 8mpareten-

2f 8mpare-

3m 8mpaf- 3 8mpau-

3f 8mpas-

Nominal subject: 8mpare-

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First Future

Singular Plural

1 +na- 1 tenna-

2m ,na- 2 tetenna-

2f tera-

3m fna- 3 sena-

3f sna-

Nominal subject: subject – na– verb

Negative: n…an / …an

Future Imperfect / Imperfectum Futuri

Singular Plural

1 naina- 1 nanna-

2m na,na- 2 naretenna-

2f narena-

3m nafna- 3 nauna-

3f nasna-

Nominal subject: nare - Subject - na

Negative: …an

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Third Future

positive

Singular Plural

1 eie- 1 ene-

2m eke- 2 eretene-

2f ere-

3m efe- 3 eue-

3f ese-

Nominal subject: ere-

negative

Singular Plural

1 8nna- 1 8nnen-

2m 8nnek- 2 8nneten-

2f 8nne-

3m 8nnef- 3 8nnou-

3f 8nnes-

Nominal subject: 8nne-

This tense has a much stronger future sense than the 1st Future. It is also regularly
employed after je or jekas, normally to introduce a final clause.

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Optative / Jussive

positive

Singular Plural

1 mari- 1 maren-

2m (marek-) 2 (mareten-)

2f (mare-)

3m maref- 3 marou-

3f mares-

Nominal subject: mare-

negative

Singular Plural

1 8mpencri- 1 8mpencren-

2m (8mpencrek-) 2 (8mpencreten-)

2f (8mpencre-)

3m 8mpencref- 3 8mpencrou-

3f 8mpencres-

Nominal subject: 8mpencre-

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Until

Singular Plural

1 sa+- 1 saten-

2m satek- 2 sateten-

2f sate-

3m satef- 3 satou-

3f sates-

Nominal subject: sate-

Before / Not yet

Singular Plural

1 8mpa+- 1 8mpaten-

2m 8mpatek- 2 8mpateten-

2f 8mpate-

3m 8mpatef- 3 8mpatou-

3f 8mpates-

Nominal subject: 8mpate-

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Conjunctive

positive

Singular Plural

1 8nta- 1 8nten-

2m 8ntek- 2 8nteten-

2f 8nte-

3m 8ntef- 3 8nse- / 8ntou-

3f 8ntes-

Nominal subject: 8nte-

negative

Singular Plural

1 8ntastem- 1 8ntenstem-

2m 8ntekstem- 2 8ntetenstem-

2f 8ntestem-

3m 8ntefstem- 3 8ntoustem-

3f 8ntesstem-

Nominal subject: 8ntestem-

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Conditional

positive

Singular Plural

1 aisan- 1 ansan-

2m aksan- 2 aretensan-

2f aresan-

3m afsan- 3 ausan-

3f assan-

Nominal subject: aresan-

negative

Singular Plural

1 aistem- 1 anstem-

2m akstem- 2 aretenstem-

2f arestem-

3m afstem- 3 austem-

3f asstem-

Nominal subject: arestem-

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Second Tenses

Second Present

Many (but not all!) forms of the 2nd present look like those of the 1st perfect.

Singular Plural

1 ai- 1 an-

2m ak- 2 areten-

2f are-

3m af- 3 au-

3f as-

Nominal subject: are-

Negative: n…an

Second Future

Singular Plural

1 aina- 1 anna-

2m a,na- 2 aretenna-

2f arena-

3m afna- 3 auna-

3f asna-

Nominal subject: are- Subject - na

Negative: n…an

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Second Perfect

The forms of the 2nd perfect resemble those of the relative perfect.

Singular Plural

1 etai- 1 etan-

2m etak- 2 etareten-

2f etare-

3m etaf- 3 etau-

3f etas-

Nominal subject: eta-

Negative: n…an

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Circumstantial Tenses (“Umstandssatz”)

Circumstantial Future

Singular Plural

1 eina- 1 enna-

2m e,na- 2 eretenna-

2f erena-

3m efna- 3 euna-

3f esna-

Nominal subject: ere - Subject - na

Circumstantial Present

The circumstantial present is used in subordinate clauses which are set in the same time
as the main clause. It may also function as a relative clause.

Singular Plural

1 ei- 1 en-

2m ek- 2 ereten-

2f ere-

3m ef- 3 eu-

3f es-

Nominal subject: ere - Subject

Circumstantial Perfect

The circumstantial perfect is used in subordinate clauses which are set before the time
of the main clause.

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 Singular Plural

1 eai- 1 ean-

2m eak- 2 eateten-

2f eare-

3m eaf- 3 eau-

3f eas-

Nominal subject: ea - Subject

Converters (summary)

e- (Late Egyptian iw)

A subordinate, or circumstantial, clause in English is expressed in Coptic by the so-

called circumstantial tenses. These are formed by placing e- in front of the verbal prefix.
This construction is not possible with the Future Imperfect, the Optative and the
Conjunctive. It is also possible to transform non-verbal sentences into circumstantial
clauses by prefixing the e-.

ne- / na- (Egyptian wn)

The prefix ne- / na- is used to shift the tense “back”, i.e. convert present into past,
perfect into pluperfect.

Imperative

• For most verbs, the infinitive is used as imperative (singular and plural),
example: mosi 8nswi “follow me!”

• Some verbs form an imperative with a-

examples: anah “look!”,
aouwm “eat!”

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 ajw, aje-, ajo= “say!”

• All composit verbs with + form the imperative with ma-.

• Causatives formed with t also have an imperative in ma-.

example: toubo “to make pure”, imperative: matoubo
cebio “to humble”, imperative: macebio

• Imperatives of ini, iri and wli:

anioui, ani-, anit= “bring!”, “carry!”
arioui, ari-, arit= “do!”
alioui, ali-, alit= “take!”

• Other imperatives:
amou, fem. amh, pl. amwini “come!”
auis “give!”
moi, ma-, mhi= “give” is used as imperative of +.
mo, fem. me, pl. mwini “take!”

• The imperative is negated by 8mper- placed before the simple infinitive and by
placing 8mpen- before the causative infinitive.
examples: 8mpererxo+ “don’t be afraid”
8mpencre-xli emi “don’t let anybody know”

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10. The Infinitive (Mallon, p. 125-131, Till, p. 67-69)

The Infinitive has two forms:

a) The Simple Infinitive

b) The Causative Infinitive

The Simple Infinitive

The simple infinitive indicates the action without explicit reference to the subject. It can
be used in several functions:

• as a noun, preceded by the definite article, demonstrative pronoun or possessive

pronoun
example: vmenre-peksvhr “the loving of your companion”
• in the expression qen + ou + Infinitive to form an adverbial expression
example: afrimi qen ourimi “he cried miserably”
• after the preposition e- to express aim or purpose
example: asi ejwkem “she came to bathe”
• after other prepositions
example: eukw+ 'nsa saji “they strive to talk”

The Causative Infinitive

If the subject needs to be expressed, i.e. in case of a change of the subject, the causative
infinitive is used. The causative prefixes are as follows:

Singular Plural

1 cri- 1 cren-

2m crek- 2 creten-

2f cre-

3m cref- 3 crou-

3f cres-

Nominal subject: cre-

Uses:
• The causative infinitive can be used in the same ways as the simple infinitive.

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 • After the preposition e- (and similar constructions) it is used (not with causative
meaning) to indicate a change of subject.

Both forms of the infinitive are negated by stem.

Bohairic has another form to nominalize the infinitive using jin with eithe simple or
causative infinitive.
example: epjinkost “to my funeral”

To express “to be able to”, the verb s- is placed before the simple or causative
infinitive.
example: sbwl “to be able to explain”, screbwl “to be able to cause to explain”

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11. The Passive (Mallon, p. 137, Till, p. 64)

Several constructions can express the passive voice:

• The passive is expressed by the 3rd person plural.

Example: euemou+ erok je keva “You will be called Cephas”
• Some infinitives are used in active or passive meaning.
Example: tako (transitive) “to destroy, to lose”, but also (intransitive)“to perish,
be lost”
• Some verbs form a passive by prefixing [i “to take”
Examples: [ismou “be blessed”, [iwms “be baptized”

The logic subject is introduced by ebol xiten.

Example: ou rwmi e auouorpf ebol xiten v+ “a man who was sent by God”

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12. Prepositions (Mallon, p. 157-165, Till, p. 33-36)
Bohairic has simple and compound prepositions. They are used before nouns (or
independent pronouns) in their ‘nominal state’ or before suffix pronouns in their
‘pronominal state’. A detailed discussion of the prepositions listed below can be found
in Mallon.

Simple prepositions

nominal state pronominal state meaning

at[ne- at[nou_ without
e- ero_ to
8n- n_ to
nem- nem_ with
oube- oubh_ against
oute- outw_ between
sa- in
sa- saro_ until, up to
qa- qaro_ under
qen- nqht_ in
xa- xaro_ to, toward
xi- xiwt_ on

Compound prepositions

Most compound prepositions are formed by a simple preposition and the name of parts
of the body: jw= “head”, xr= “face”, tot= “hand”, rat= “foot”, couw= “chest”.

nominal state pronominal state meaning

ejen- ejw_ on, upon
qajen- qajw_ before
xijen- xijw_ on
exren- exr_ to, against
8nten- 8ntot_ from, by
qarat_ under
Greek prepositions

The main Greek prepositions found in Bohairic texts are

• kata “according to”

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• para “next to”
• ,wris “without”

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13. The Verbal Sentence (Mallon, p. 174-180, Till, p. 73)

Word order

The normal word order is

VERBAL PREFIX – SUBJECT (nominal/pronominal) – VERB – DIRECT OBJECT

(nominal/pronominal) – DATIVE – ADVERB

However, note the following:

• As in earlier Egyptian, a pronominal dative object precedes a nominal direct

object.
• The word order can be changed to accommodate a particular element in the
sentence:
A nominal subject can be placed at the beginning of the sentence (prolepsis), the
subject then needs to be reiterated in form of a pronoun before the verb.
Example: paiwt de afmosi eqoun “But my father entered.”
A pronominal subject is stressed by placing an independent pronoun at the
beginning of the sentence.
Example: 8ncof gar aftwnf ebol qen nirefmwouit “For he has risen from
the dead.”
Likewise, the object can be placed at the beginning of the sentence.
Example: ou2u,h 8ncmhi nne p'['s qocbes “The Lord does not kill a just soul.”

A nominal subject can also be placed after the verb (which then has the respective
pronoun after the verbal prefix) introduced by 8nje.
Example: afwrk 8nje p[ois “The Lord has assured.”

Speech
Both direct and indirect speech are introduced by the particle je.

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14. Questions (Mallon, p. 47-49, 189-192; Till, p. 78-81)

Questions can be expressed using interrogative pronouns, adverbs or particles:

Interrogative pronouns

• as “which” (ME ix): persons and things

• nim “who”, “what” : persons

• ou “what” : things

• ouhr “how many” : persons and things

• aqo= “why”

Singular Plural

1 aqoi 1 aqon

2m aqok 2 aqwten

2f aqo

3m aqof 3 aqwou

3f aqos

Interrogative adverbs and particles

• cwn “where”

• an indication of question (Sahidic en, Egyptian in-iw)

• mh used in negative questions, expecting an affirmative answer and in positive

questions expecting a negative answer.

• Greek interrogative particle ara (placed at the beginning of a question)

Nuances of meaning can be obtained by combining interrogative pronouns and adverbs

in combination with prepositions.

The double question is expressed using san to introduce the second alternative.

15. Conditional Sentences (Mallon, p. 198-202)

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Conditional sentences consist of two parts, the protasis (if clause) and the apodosis
(main clause). The protasis may be introduced by a conditional element (san, eswp,
isje). Sometimes the circumstantial present and the 3rd future can express the condition
(protasis).
Example: ncok de eknatwbx mase nak eqoun epektamion “But you, if you want to
pray, go into your room.

They can broadly be assigned into two groups

A) Real conditional sentences

B) Artificial conditional sentences

A) Real conditional sentences

The main clause is thought to be happening if the (realistic) condition is fulfilled.

• eswp is often used with the circumstantial present, the 3rd future and the
subjunctive.
Example: eswp ekna8ini 8noudwron eqoun “if you bring a gift”

• san- is used with the auxiliary of the 2nd present (are-) to indicate a future
condition.
Example: aretensan+xo eroi anok de 8nnaswtem erwten “If you beg me, I
will not listen to you”

In a negative condition, san- is replaced by stem-.

Example: arestem v+ swpi nemaf “If God is not with you”

• Often eswp and san are used together:

Example: eswp aksaniri mpaisaji “if you do this”

B) Artificial conditional sentences

The condition is hypothetical and cannot possibly be fulfilled.

The protasis is often formed by e- and the imperfective nare- or the auxiliary ne-. The
main clause often uses the imperfectum futuri.
Examples:
• enak,h 8mpaima nare pason namou an pe. “If you had been here, my brother
would not be dead.”

• ene ouonsjom “if it were possible”

16. Temporal Clauses (Mallon, p. 136, 202-205)

a) contemporaneous temporal clauses can be expressed by

• the circumstantial present

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 Example: asswpi eu,h qen tkoi aftwnf “It happened as they were in the
field, he arose.”

• qen pjinte
Example: swtem v+ e taproseu,h qen pjintatwbx “Listen, God, to my
request as I am praying.”

• Greek conjunctions: xws, xoson, xote

b) past temporal clauses can be expressed by

• verbal prefixes that are identical to those of the 2nd perfect/relatice perfect:

Singular Plural

1 etai- 1 etan-

2m etak- 2 etareten-

2f etare-

3m etaf- 3 etau-

3f etas-

• the circumstantial of the 1st perfect

• qen pjincre
Often used in narratives at the beginning of a sentence. Can also be
contemporaneous (rare).
Example: qen pjincre pison swtem enai afrasi emate “When the brother
had heard these things, he rejoiced very much.”

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17. Causal Clauses
Causal clauses can be introduced by je, ecbe- or ebol je followed by any tense or
non-verbal clause.

Examples:

18. Final Clauses

Final clauses can be introduced by
• je oder je,as, sometimes followed by the 3rd future (rarer 2nd future)
Example: je,as ereouon niben naemi “so that everybody shall know”

• the Greek conjunctions xwste, mhpote, mhpws followed by the conjunctive

• Simple or causative infinitives after the preposition e-

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19. Relative Clauses (Mallon, p. 193-198)
Relative clauses hold an important place within Coptic grammar. Note that they can
only be used after a determined antecedent (otherwise a circumstantial clause is used).

Relative clauses can be divided into two groups:

A Antecedent = subject of the relative clause
Example: The man, who was walking down the street.

B Antecedent = the direct or indirect object of the relative clause (i.e. ≠ subject of
the relative clause)
Example: The man, whom I saw walking down the street.

All relative clauses are introduced by a relative converter (et- or ete-) or the respective
relative prefix of the prefixconjugation (i.e. relative 1st present and relative 1st perfect).

et is used:
• before adverbial sentences
• before the 3rd future (rare)
• before adjective-verbs (i.e. naa= “to be great”, nane= “to be good”, nasw= “to
be numerous”, and nesw= “to be beautiful”) with a pronominal subject
• before exn(a)= “to wish”

ete is used
• before nouns
• before independent pronouns
• before negatives
• before adjective verbs with nominal subject
• before ouon “there is” and ouonte- “to have”

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20. Negatives
There are various possibilities to express a negative statement:

• Using specific negative verbal prefixes, e.g. 8mpe…negative 1st perfect,

8mpa…negative aorist, 8nne…negative optative, a...stem…negative conditional,
8mpat…”not yet”, 8mpencre…negative jussive/optative

• using stem, e.g. simple and causative infinitive, conjunctive

• using n…an, e.g. 1st and 2nd present, 1st and 2nd future, 2nd perfect or simple an,
e.g. imperfect, imerfectum future, 1st future

• using 8mper- or 8mpen- to negate imperatives (8mper- is placed before the simple
infinitive, 8mpen- before the causative infinitive)

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 Overview verbal prefixes

1st present circumstantial present 2nd present

+- ten- ei- en- ai- an-
k-/,- teten- ek- ereten- ak- areten-
te- ere- are-
f- se- ef- eu- af- au-
s- es- as-
nominal: Ø nominal: ere- nominal: are-
1st perfect circumstantial perfect 2nd perfect
ai- an- eai- ean- etai- etan-
ak- ateten- eak- etateten- etak- etareten-
are- eare- etare-
af- au- eaf- eau- etaf- etau-
as- eas- etas-
nominal: a- nominal: ea- nominal: eta-
negative 1st perfect Imperfekt Imperfectum futuri
8mpi- 8mpen- nai- nan- naina- nanna-
8mpek- 8mpeten- nak- nareten- na,na- naretenna-
8mpe- nare- narena-
8mpef- 8mpou- naf- nau- nafna- nauna-
8mpes- nas- nasna-
nominal: 8mpe- nominal: nare- nominal: nare-subject-na
1st future circumstantial future 2nd future
+na- tenna- eina- enna- aina- anna-
,na- tetenna- e,na- eretenna- a,na- aretenna-
tera- erena- arena-
fna- sena- efna- euna- afna- auna-
sna- esna- asna-
nominal: subject-na- nominal: ere- subject-na- nominal: are-subject-na-
3rd future negative 3rd future before/not yet
eie- ene- 8nna- 8nnen- 8mpa+- 8mpaten-
eke- eretene- 8nnek- 8nneten- 8mpatek- 8mpateten-
ere- 8nne- 8mpate-
efe- eue- 8nnef- 8nnou- 8mpatef- 8mpatou-
ese- 8nnes- 8mpates-
nominal: ere- nominal: 8nne- nominal: 8mpate-
Aorist/Habitual negative Aorist until
sai- san- 8mpai- 8mpan- sa+- saten-
sak- sareten- 8mpak- 8mpareten- satek- sateten-
sare- sate-
8mpare-
saf- sau- 8mpaf- 8mpau- satef- satou-
sas- sates-
8mpas-
nominal: sare- nominal: 8mpare- nominal: sate-

conjunctive negative conjunctive temporal

8nta- 8nten- 8ntastem- 8ntenstem- etai- etan-
8ntek- 8nteten- 8ntekstem- 8ntetenstem- etak- etareten-
8nte- 8ntestem- etare-
8ntef- 8nse- / 8ntou- 8ntefstem- 8ntoustem- etaf- etau-
8ntes- 8ntesstem- etas-
nominal: 8nte- nominal: 8ntestem- nominal: eta-
 conditional negative conditional causative infinitive

nominal: nominal: nominal:

optative/jussive negative optative

nominal: nominal:

(mostly) identical forms:

2nd present = 1st perfect (except 2nd pers. pl., nominal subject)
2nd perfect = relative perfect = temporal
2nd person sg fem and nominal prefix circumstantial present = 3rd future

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Bibliography: Coptic (Bohairic or including Bohairic) Grammars

Ernst Andersson, Ausgewählte Bemerkungen über den bohairischen Dialect im Pentateuch

Koptisch. Upsala: Almqvist & Wiksell’s Buchdruckerei 1904

Marius Chaîne, Éléments de grammaire dialectale copte: bohairique, sahidique, achmimique,

fayoumique. Paris: Paul Geuthner 1933

Marius Chaîne, La proposition nominale dans les dialectes Coptes. Paris: Librairie d’Amérique et
d’Orient 1955

Ignatius Guidi, Elementa Linguae Copticae. Brevi Chrestomathia et indice vocabulorum. Neapoli:
R. Ricciardi 1924

Alexis Mallon, Grammaire Copte: Bibliographie, Chrestomathie, Vocabulaire. Beyrouth:

Dar el-Machreq, 5th edition 2001

Nabil Mattar, A Study in Bohairic Coptic. Pasadena: Hope Publishing House 1990

Ariel Shisha-Halevy, s.v. Bohairic, in: Aziz S. Atiya (ed.), The Coptic Encyclopedia, Vol. 8: 53-
60, New York: Macmillan

G.P. Sobhy, Kitab kawa’id al-lughat al-misriyah. Cairo 1925

L. Stern, Koptische Grammatik, Leipzig 1880

Walter Till, Koptische Dialektgrammatik. Mit Lesestücken und Wörterbuch. München: C.H.
Beck’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung 1931

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