Copts are a Christian ethnoreligious group indigenous to North Africa who have primarily inhabited the area of modern Egypt and Sudan since antiquity.
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20 Facts About Copts
2.
Copts have historically spoken the Coptic language, a direct descendant of the Demotic Egyptian that was spoken in late antiquity.
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3.
Historically, the Copts suffered from "waves of persecution giving way to relative tolerance in cycles that varied according to the local ruler and other political and economic circumstances".
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4.
The Copts played a central role in the Arab Renaissance as well as the modernization of Egypt and the Arab world as a whole; they contributed to the "social and political life and key debates such as Arabism, good governance, educational reform, and democracy", and they have historically flourished in business affairs.
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5.
Copts maintain a distinct ethnic identity and generally reject an Arab identity.
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6.
In Egypt, Copts have a relatively higher educational attainment, a relatively higher wealth index, and a stronger representation in white-collar job types, but limited representation in military and security agencies.
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9.
Copts appointed them judges to Egyptian courts and awarded them political rights and representation in government.
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10.
Some Copts participated in the Egyptian national movement for independence and occupied many influential positions.
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11.
The Copts were severely affected by Nasser's nationalization policies, though they represented about 10 to 20 percent of the population.
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12.
In Egypt, Copts have relatively higher educational attainment, relatively higher wealth index, and a stronger representation in white collar job types, but limited representation in security agencies.
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13.
Copts's name was selected from a glass bowl containing the three shortlisted candidates by a blindfolded boy at a ceremony in Cairo's St Mark's Cathedral.
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14.
Hundreds of Copts were dismissed from the civil service and judiciary.
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15.
The numbers of the Censuses in the United States, Canada, and Australia are not fully correct since many Copts listed themselves in the 2011 Census mistakenly as either Egyptians, Sudanese, Libyans, Americans, Canadians or Australians and by this way reducing the Coptic population in the 2011 Census in the United States, Canada, and Australia respectively.
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16.
Copts have faced increasing marginalization after the 1952 coup d'etat led by Gamal Abdel Nasser.
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17.
The police coerced the Copts to accept "reconciliation" with their attackers to avoid prosecuting them, with no Muslims convicted for any of the attacks.
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18.
Previously, only two Copts were in Egypt's governmental cabinet: Finance Minister Youssef Boutros Ghali and Environment Minister Magued George during former president Mubarak's rule.
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19.
However, many Copts continue to complain of being minimally represented in higher positions in law enforcement, state security and public office, and of being discriminated against in the workforce on the basis of their religion.
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20.
The next most common haplogroups borne by Copts are the European-linked R1b clade, as well as the archaic African B lineage.
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