SSCN Voumes 1-10, 1994-2004

St. Shenouda Coptic Newsletter

devoted himself to its study more continuously and lovingly than he did throughout his whole life. In about 1943, he wrote a letter to his Egyptian friend Dr. Georgy Sobhy, with much stress, of the danger to the Coptic language in its being neglected in the Church’s services by the priests. He mentioned, in his letter: “Please…do whatever you can, and use whatever force in your power to stop the neglect of the oldest language in the world in the Church and its inevitable loss at the end.” In 1914, Georgy Sobhy (1884-1964), traveled to England for studying. Crum heard that Sobhy is a Coptic student; he traveled hours by train to see the post-graduate Coptic student. That shows his extreme modesty and indulgence towards that young student. He had a great and lovable personality. He was an ardent musician who always retained his love of music, though he ceased to play his once beloved violin. Also he was an omnivorous reader and read always with a critical and alert attention. Not only that but he was always ready to assist a colleague and to extend a helping hand to a younger or less experienced scholar. The University of Berlin conferred upon him n honorary Ph.D. Even more, the degree of Doctor of Literature conferred on him “Honoris Causa” by Oxford University. He was a Fellow of the British Academy, and only a few days before his death he learned with pleasure that he had been elected a Foreign Member of the American Philosophical Society. His publications are too numerous to be even enumerated in this short article. His three monumental works will stand for generations to come as a sign of the profound learning and prodigious energy that he possessed. The first and foremost, is A Coptic Dictionary , one of the most complete records of any language in existence. It took him 30 years to publish. It was published in 6 parts: Part I, 1929; Part II, 1930; Part III, 1932;

Part IV, 1934; Part V, 1937; and Part VI, the conclusion, 1939. His other two great works are the Catalogue of the Coptic Manuscripts in the British Museum (1905), and the Catalogue of the Coptic Monuments of the Egyptian Museum (1902). Crum Tells The Story Of The Coptic Dictionary: At the start of his Preface to A Coptic Dictionary , he wrote: “Preparations for systematic work with a view to Coptic dictionary were begun by me some thirty years ago, but intervening undertaking delayed effective progress for some time. Meanwhile it was ascertained that the Clarendon Press would be not unwilling to consider, when the time came, a project of publication. But early in 1914 a definite proposal to publish, at their xpense and with provision of funds for collaboration, photography, came from the Berlin Academy. This generous offer I owed to Professor Erman, who saw the need of a Coptic dictionary on a scale worthy of that of the hieroglyphic Wörterbuch and who issued a statement on the subject. A scheme was drawn up and work begun and if the outbreak of war [WWI] had not put an end to all hopes of carrying through such projects, the book would have been completed long before now. Yet it was found possible, to retain the help of German collaborators, as well as of those in the allied countries, and a few years after the end of the war a collection of material had been amassed large enough to justify a renewal of negotiations with the Clarendon Press. These resulted in the arrangement whereby the dictionary is now published.” Crum’s Publications: Among his other notable publications are the following: · Bibliographies of Coptic Studies (1892-1899), and Christian Egypt (1900-1909), Egypt Exploration Fund. London. · The Coptic Papyri IN W.M. Flinders Petrie’s Medum (1892). · Coptic Manuscripts brought from the Fayyum by W.M. Flinders Petrie (1893).

St. Shenouda Coptic Newsletter

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