Coptic Small Letter Kapa

Use a Coptic Unicode keyboard layout.

A Greek layout may enter κ, the Greek kappa. Older Coptic text made with a special font may look right while storing different characters; convert it to Unicode before reuse.

Where did Coptic kapa come from?

It grew from efforts to write Egyptian with Greek letters.

Attempts to write Egyptian with Greek letters are traced to the late fourth century BCE; the first surviving notes spelling Egyptian words with Greek letters date to the first and second centuries CE. Coptic used Greek letters plus Demotic signs, from an older Egyptian script, to write sounds Greek letters could not represent.

Standard Coptic emerged from regional experiments in the third century CE and spread through Christian writing.

Does ⲕ always represent /k/?

Not in every Coptic variety.

Sahidic and Dialect P are varieties of Coptic. A documented Dialect P spelling uses ⲥ for /k/ where Sahidic uses ⲕ. Read the letter within its dialect and word.