Modern Egyptians are the descendants of the ancient Egyptians, carrying on their heritage without a doubt. Despite falling under various empires, and except for the purpose of protecting its borders, Egypt has always been a national land, not an empire. Although Lower and Upper Egypt had been separated a couple of times, Egypt was not a tribal country and maintained a demographic unity that allowed it to fully develop into a central country.

Ancient texts often emphasize homeland protection, such as the Prophecies of Neferti from the Middle Kingdom, which calls for a strong ruler to defend against chaos and threats:

“There is a king who will come from the south Ameny true of voice is his name. He is the son of a woman of the Land of the Bow, he is a child of the Heartland of Nekhen. He will take up the White Crown, he will raise up the Red Crown, he will unite the Two Mighty Goddesses, he will appease the Two Lord Gods, with what they desire. The field circuit is in his grasp, the oar in the jump.”

The Arabs invaded Egypt in 639 AD but did not immediately introduce their language. Arabic, a middle language influenced by Egyptian, became the official language three centuries later due to the need for a unified language in the Islamic empire. Arabic was also the language of Coran and prayers. Islamic prayers cannot be performed in any language other than Arabic even if the person doesn’t speak it.

Now, where did the ancient people go? They didn’t go anywhere. They remained in their homeland. They did their utmost to make the best of many bad situations including wars, famines and savagery. The modern Egyptians are the children of the ancient ones. They carried the scars of old battles and learned the lessons that came with experience.

Modern Egyptians, like the Gauls of France and the Latins of Spain, have evolved through various languages, beliefs, and political systems but retained their ancestral genetics and spirit. They contributed significantly to the Arabic language. They also kept thousands of words from their ancient language, lent hundreds of word roots to the Arabic language and used grammar rules borrowed from their ancient language such as the use of demonstratives, the negation and the present continuous tense.

The modern Egyptians maintained a unique Egyptian identity, demonstrating resilience and continuity through history. However, the essence of their ancient heritage remains vibrant and significant—but that’s a blog post for another day.