Aziz Suryal Atiya | |
|---|---|
| عزيز سوريال عطية Ⲁⲍⲓⲍ Ⲥⲟⲩⲣⲓⲁⲗ Ⲁϯⲁ | |
 University of Michigan faculty portrait of Atiya | |
| Born | ( 1898-07-04)July 4, 1898 |
| Died | September 24, 1988 (1988-09-25) (aged 90) Salt Lake City,Utah, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Liverpool (BA) University of London (PhD) |
| Awards | University of Liverpool (DLitt, 1938) Brigham Young University (LLD, 1967) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Coptology |
| Institutions | Cairo University Alexandria University Institute of Coptic Studies Princeton University University of Utah |
Aziz Suryal Atiya (Arabic:عزيز سوريال عطية,Coptic:Ⲁⲍⲓⲍ Ⲥⲟⲩⲣⲓⲁⲗ Ⲁϯⲁ; July 5, 1898 – September 24, 1988)[1] was an EgyptianCoptologist who was aCoptic historian and scholar and an expert in Islamic andCrusades studies.
Atiya was the founder of theInstitute of Coptic Studies in Cairo in the 1950s, and was also the founder of theMiddle East Center,University of Utah.[2]
His library, the Aziz Atiya Library for Middle East Studies atUniversity of Utah, is considered the fifth largest of such collection in North America.[3]
While at the University of Utah, Professor Atiya rediscovered tenlost papyri fragments related to the Mormon scripture,Book of Abraham, in the archives of the New YorkMetropolitan Museum of Art.[4][5]
Atiya was born in Egypt on July 4, 1898, and was aCoptic Christian. He matriculated at theUniversity of Liverpool, where he earned abachelor's degree with first-class honors in medieval and modern history, and obtained a PhD in Arabic and Islamic studies from theUniversity of London. He was also Egypt's firstFulbright scholar.[6]
Atiya published a large study entitledThe Crusades in the Later Middle Ages in 1938, and was also the first author ofThe Coptic Encyclopedia, published in 1991.[7]
The chapters on the Copts in his bookThe History of Eastern Christianity (1968, 1980) have become landmarks, not only for specialists but also for the general public.[2]
It was Atiya who had the wordsCoptology andCoptologist introduced into the English language.[8]
He could speak English, Arabic, French, German, Italian, Latin, and to a lesser extent, Spanish, Greek, Coptic, Turkish, Welsh, and Dutch.[citation needed]
