XXᵉ siècle
Cairo, Egypt
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
The Cairo Symposium on the Peopling of Ancient Egypt was held from 28 January to 3 February 1974. Its first stage addressed the peopling of ancient Egypt and its second examined the deciphering of the Meroitic script. The reported proceedings discussed population classification, Egypt’s African cultural character, and comparative approaches to Egyptian and African languages, while recommending further study and acknowledging an imbalance in the contributions presented.
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Le récit
The symposium took place in Cairo over six days, from 28 January to 3 February 1974. Its work was divided into two stages: the first, from 28 to 31 January, concerned the peopling of ancient Egypt; the second, from 1 to 3 February, concerned the deciphering of the Meroitic script. Participants came from Egypt, Sudan, France, Malta, Finland, the United States, the Republic of the Congo, Sweden, Canada, Germany, and the Soviet Union, with some invited scholars unable to attend.
The reported debate addressed the classification of Egypt’s ancient population. Professor Vercoutter is said to have agreed that no percentages should be assigned to blacks, whites, and half-castes because reliable statistical data could not establish them. The same report records his view that Egypt was African in its writing, culture, and way of thinking, while Professor Leclant recognized an African character in Egyptian temperament and thought.
Linguistic questions produced what the report calls a large measure of agreement. It describes the contributions of Cheikh Anta Diop and Théophile Obenga as constructive, rejects the idea that Pharaonic Egyptian was a Semitic language, and presents Egyptian as inseparable from its African context. The report further records Sauneron’s interest in using present-day African languages to attempt a reconstruction of a palaeo-African language.
XXᵉ siècle
Cairo, Egypt
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
The Cairo Symposium on the Peopling of Ancient Egypt was held from 28 January to 3 February 1974. Its first stage addressed the peopling of ancient Egypt and its second examined the deciphering of the Meroitic script. The reported proceedings discussed population classification, Egypt’s African cultural character, and comparative approaches to Egyptian and African languages, while recommending further study and acknowledging an imbalance in the contributions presented.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
The symposium took place in Cairo over six days, from 28 January to 3 February 1974. Its work was divided into two stages: the first, from 28 to 31 January, concerned the peopling of ancient Egypt; the second, from 1 to 3 February, concerned the deciphering of the Meroitic script. Participants came from Egypt, Sudan, France, Malta, Finland, the United States, the Republic of the Congo, Sweden, Canada, Germany, and the Soviet Union, with some invited scholars unable to attend.
The reported debate addressed the classification of Egypt’s ancient population. Professor Vercoutter is said to have agreed that no percentages should be assigned to blacks, whites, and half-castes because reliable statistical data could not establish them. The same report records his view that Egypt was African in its writing, culture, and way of thinking, while Professor Leclant recognized an African character in Egyptian temperament and thought.
Linguistic questions produced what the report calls a large measure of agreement. It describes the contributions of Cheikh Anta Diop and Théophile Obenga as constructive, rejects the idea that Pharaonic Egyptian was a Semitic language, and presents Egyptian as inseparable from its African context. The report further records Sauneron’s interest in using present-day African languages to attempt a reconstruction of a palaeo-African language.