The use of Lacustris ancient dialect
The use of the old Bohairic accent spread
in the church’s prayers in all the Egyptian towns. There was for the people inUpper Egypt, their churches, books of Masses…
etc., written in the Bohairic accent). And it was used when the Saidic accent was a living language to communicate in daily life. When it became weak it is substituted by the church books imported from the Monasteries of Wadi el Natrun due to the boom of monasticism and the great number of scribes there.
As the accent that was used in Monasteries
of Wadi el Natrun was the Bohairic, so the scribes were copying about their church’s books which were written in the Bohairic accent, and these churche’s Bohairic manuscripts reach to all the churches of the Egyptian country from the north to the far south because their abundance and accuracy also due to their cheap price.
Also what helps that is that Abu Makar Monastey was considered for long generations Patriarch’s office from which graduaded many of the Patriarchs and they were spending long periods in it both for praying and residence. Most of the bishops
were choosen from Wadi Al Natrun.
All these factors combined together helped the spread of the use the Bohairic accent in the prayers of the church gradually to include all the parts of the country of Egypt from Alexandria up to Aswan.
For this the old Bohairic accent became the assumptive one for us by tradition, spoken by it in the church’s prayers in all parts of the Saint Mark Evangelism. for it is present and it is used in Upper Egypt exactly as it is present and is used in the lower Egypt. The
modern pronunciation appeared. reach to all the churches of the Egyptian country from the far North to the far south because if their accuracy, also due to their cheap price.
The Authur:
Fr.Shenouda Maher Ishak ( previously Deacon Dr. Emil Maher Eshak)
Translated by Dr. Mariam Michael