By the time that the Mamluks seized power in Egypt, the country had already become thoroughly "Arabized". As for the causes of the Arabization of the territory of Egypt, the simple answer is that it was a mix of an active Islamization agenda and an indirect result of the shifting socio-political dynamics within Egypt.

To further look into what caused these changes, it is important to know the difference between Arabization and Islamization. Arabization is characterized by a group taking Arabic as their primary language and Islamization is the process of a group converting to Islam. It is important to note that many groups underwent Arabization, but did not undergo Islamization, such as Copts and Syriac Christians. However, Arabization was a necessary part of Islamization in which the knowledge of Arabic was vital.

The process of Arabization took place in different regions of Egypt at varying times, but when it began the process was very rapid. This is evident from the lack of Coptic loanwords in Egyptian Arabic. The only known Coptic loanwords are Nouns which are the earliest type of words to become loanwords when two languages coexist. Arabization largely began in the urban centers and among the socio-political elite who lived in the Delta region of Egypt. This was largely due to knowledge of Arabic becoming the quickest path to social mobility because of its importance in administration and commerce in the Arab controlled urban centers. As Arabization took hold in the major population centers, the language shift naturally filtered into the countryside and Upper Egypt. Teshlot was one of the last Egyptian villages to undergo the shift to Arabic, as there is evidence that Coptic speakers still lived there in the early 11th century.

Active Arabization and Islamization was pushed by the Mārwanid caliphs who instituted reforms such as making Arabic the official language of the administration, standardizing the coinage by instituting new Islamic coins, and a widespread building program that promoted Islamization. The majority of Arabization occurred under the Abbasids who lifted the jizya tax on recently converted Muslims but retained it for those who had not converted. This led to increased conversions of people who would no longer have to pay the jizya tax. Christians, like the Meletians, who did not belong to the dominant Coptic faith, quickly converted during 9th century. This was primarily due to them being considered outsiders by both Arabs and Copts.

Finally, it is worth noting that many societies change their traditions and faith to match that of the socio-political elite. Egypt was no different, the majority of converts during the Islamic period was the elite and the lower class, the latter to increase their lot in life and the former to maintain their positions and prestige.

​

From Christian Egypt to Islamic Egypt by Maged S.A. Mikhail

Apocalypse of Samuel