Coptic translation by Randy Komforty

Hi there, friend. It’s me again, Setu, the scribe. I decided to be present during this… interesting reunion to explain a couple of things about the language you’re about to hear and read. You know, on account of it being lost to most. The language we used during my time (i.e., the time when Nefiri wrote her memoir) is what the people of your time refer to as Late Egyptian. The original scrolls Nefiri wrote are safe outside your realm, though some translations have survived. Of course, each translator added their own interpretation to the previous text. Still, despite these deviations, the spirit of the original scrolls lives on in every iteration of the text.

Now, the Egyptian language has evolved quite a bit since my time. Late Egyptian evolved into Demotic, and even that evolved into Coptic. The translation you are about to read is written in Coptic, more specifically in the Bohairic dialect. This, I’m afraid, is the closest you’re going to get to the original text. But thanks to the incredible work of my fellow scribe, Randy Komforty, you can both listen to and read Nefiri’s introduction in the Egyptian language and help keep the tongue of the people of Egypt alive. For that, we are all thankful!

You might also be wondering how I’m still here, thousands of years later. Well, that’s a long story for another day. But to give you a hint, read the epigraph I added to the beginning of Nefiri’s memoir. You might recognize my alias.

Intro of Treasures of Egypt in Coptic (by Randy Komforty)
Randy Komforty

Read by Randy Komforty

Hi,

It's me, Amr Saleh, the author of Treasures of Egypt: The Spear & the Scythe. You might be here because you bought my book and wanted to check out the bonus content, or maybe you just stumbled upon this page while browsing the bottomless pit that is the internet. Don’t worry, I’m not judging you—been there, done that.

I just wanted to take a moment to thank Randy Komforty for translating the introduction of my book. I wrote Treasures of Egypt in an attempt to create the Egyptian fantasy story I wish I could’ve read growing up. I also wanted to include at least a part of the story in native Egyptian. Unfortunately, I only speak Egyptian-Arabic, and I almost gave up on the idea. That’s when Randy Komforty generously offered not only to translate the introduction but also to record himself reading it aloud. For that, he has my deepest gratitude.

If you do decide to use this text for personal or educational purposes, I ask you to give credit to Randy Komforty for his translation and to mention Treasures of Egypt: The Spear & the Scythe as the source of the original English text.

I hope that by making this original text available to everyone online, we can help keep the Egyptian language alive a little longer. Remember to keep speaking the names of the people mentioned on this page (Randy, Ramesses, Nefertari, Tuya, and Paser) so that they may live for a million years.

Thank you.