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Arabic and Its Role in Egyptology and Egyptian Archaeology
by Nicole B. Hansen

I wish to address two issues: the way in which the lack of Arabic skills among non-Egyptian Egyptologists limits their ability to gain insights into Egyptian culture and how the predominance of European languages in the field limits the contributions that Egyptian Egyptologists are able to make to the field.

Egyptology and Egyptian archaeology have been historically dominated by the use of three languages: English, French and German. Any scholar who wishes to make a serious career in the field must develop at least a reading knowledge of these three languages, in addition to learning the five stages of the ancient language. It does not hurt to be able to read some Dutch and Italian as well. Alas, Arabic, the language of modern Egypt, has never been a requirement, even though most field archaeologists pick up at least a rudimentary ability to speak colloquial Arabic with their Egyptian colleagues and workers.

Any Egyptian Egyptologist who wishes to be taken seriously must learn to read these three languages as well, and to speak at least one of them. To publish articles that will be read by his or her colleagues, he or she must be able to write fluently in one of these languages too, or rely on the skills of a foreign editor or even in some cases, a ghost-writer.

As an ancient historian, there was a time when I felt that the more I learned about ancient Egypt, the less I actually knew, as I came to realize that the sources available were but a fraction of what once existed and thereby the topics of potential research were limited to what had been preserved. However, by using Arabic sources, I have been able to increase the sources exponentially and make profound insights that would have otherwise been impossible.

My own research has drawn heavily on anthropological and historical sources in Arabic, which in any case are much more abundant than strictly Egyptological publications penned in Arabic. Foreign archaeologists’ total lack of Arabic reading skills and even an awareness of the multitude of anthropological and historical publications about Egypt in Arabic and foreign languages (many of the latter are actually written by Egyptians) has meant that archaeologists in Egypt have been hampered in making meaningful ethno-archaeological comparisons.

As a result, contemporary Egyptologists still turn to ethnographic literature from distant places like India to illustrate their points. If one only read Egyptological literature, one would get the impression that the study of Egyptian anthropology started with Edward Lane and ended with Winifred Blackman, with little in between and nothing in the past 80 years (Lane n.d.; Blackman 2000). Those looking for anthropological material to shed light on ancient Egypt need not look to other countries and continents for sources; the sources are available closer to home. Scholars have also barely scratched the surface on Arabic historical sources about ancient Egypt (one exception is El Daly 2005).

Egyptian archaeology has come a long ways since the days of Petrie when Egyptian participants in excavations were kept in line with firearms. But the language barrier for Egyptians has also led to some of the most experienced and talented members of archaeological expeditions getting little or no credit for their work and hampered the results of Egyptian excavations from being published.

Many of the people who do the actual excavation work on foreign-led projects are Egyptians, with sometimes decades of experience working on a wide range of excavations in Egypt. Their talents are much appreciated by some foreign Egyptologists who have worked in Egypt for years. They realize that these workmen are often more talented at spotting a change in soil color or some other archaeological feature than the foreign graduate student who had only 2 months of field school training in Arizona that might be supervising the work. But it is the foreign graduate student who is taking the notes (in a language other than Arabic), and therefore it is the foreign graduate student who gets all the credit. Most publications and excavation Web sites never mention the local workers who worked on the project, and at best may publish a group photo of them and perhaps mention them by their first names only. Sadly, some foreign Egyptologists, especially ones who lack the ability to communicate even in spoken Arabic, do not recognize the skills of their Egyptian colleagues, look down on them and even in some cases are abusive toward them.

One reason it is so difficult for archaeologists to communicate in Arabic is the lack of specialized Arabic vocabulary to describe concepts that are basic in Western archaeology. For example, it was pointed out by one participant during a seminar held in Cairo by the Supreme Council of Antiquities’ Egyptian Antiquities Information Service that there was no way to express in Arabic the concept of salvage archaeology. It is not surprising to find that the practice of salvage archaeology is in its infancy in Egypt compared to other countries, even though the rapid development of the country means there is a great need for such work.

Under the direction of Zahi Hawass, the Supreme Council of Antiquities has taken steps to remedy, and even reverse, this situation. The new foreign mission regulations issued in 2002 require every expedition to submit their final reports in English, accompanied by an Arabic translation. The SCA has also started the publication of a new journal"with editorial and layout standards that surpass most Western journals"the difference being that all the articles are in Arabic (the journal is entitled حوليات المجلس الاعلى للاثار). Some of the articles are the final reports submitted by expeditions, with an ironic twist: their appearance in this journal means that in some cases the results of the work of foreign Egyptologists is first being made accessible only to Egyptologists who can read Arabic. The SCA has also been encouraging foreign archaeological expeditions to run field schools for SCA employees. In the case of the field school run by the Giza Plateau Mapping Project, its field manual, originally composed in English, was translated into Arabic for the benefit of the participants in the program.

In conclusion, it would be beneficial for non-Egyptian archaeologists working in Egypt to learn Arabic and for a working vocabulary of archaeological Arabic to be developed, for Egyptians, the foreigners and the field itself. The foreign Egyptologists would have a wider range of anthropological (and historical sources) available to them to use in their research. Egyptian archaeologists could publish their work in the language they are most comfortable, "Arabic," and be assured that their work would be understood and cited by their foreign colleagues. Rather than spend large sums flying, housing, feeding and hand-holding less experienced foreign workers, expeditions could rely more heavily on local expertise and thereby achieve more in the field than is currently possible.

References Cited
Blackman, W. 2000. The Fellahin of Upper Egypt. Cairo, American University in Cairo Press.

El Daly, O. 2005. Egyptology: The Missing Millennium�"Ancient Egypt in Medieval Arabic Writings. London, UCL Press.

Lane, E.W. n.d. The Manners and Customs of the Modern Egyptians, 3rd edn. J. M. Dent, London.