Studies On The Ethnic Relationship In Egypt ——Taking The Copts For Example

The Copts are the original inhabitants of Egypt who lived in Egypt earlier than Muslim.After the Arabs entered,most of the Copts converted to Islam,and Muslims became the majority and the Copts became the minority.Since the 1970s.the Coptic Question has become more and more serious,which became the foucs of the Egyptian authority and Western society.Particularly,the Coptic Question is a typical example of the frequent ethnic conflicts in the Middle East since the outbreak of the Arab spring in 2011.Nowadays,China has high speaking rights in international community and the Chinese governmenl has initiatived "The Belt and Road" in 2013.Hence,as the "touchstone of great powers",the Middle East plays an important role in China's foreign strategy.For a long time,the frequent ethnic conflicts of the Middle East have hindered regional development and international cooperation.So,analyzing the ethnic problems in the Middle East and clarifying the causes of ethnic conflicts has the positive significance for our government to grasp the situation of the Middle East and make foreign plans.This dissertation chooses the ethnic relationship as the starting point,set the Copts as the typical example,carding the relationship between the Copts and Muslim by hislorical researching appoarch,analyzing the root cause ethnic conflicts by resource competition theory,and giving the regularity analysis of the Middle East ethnic question.At the present stage,the domestic studies of the Copts are still in the macro and general step.Based on the existing research,this dissertation tries to make a more in-depth and specific discussion on the Copts by using historical researching appoarch and field investigation which contants of interviews,questionnaires and in-depth field observation.In terms of the structure of this dissertation,based on clarifying the history and characteristics of the Copts,this dissertation focuses on the relationship between the copts and Muslim,summarizes various typical periods of the relationship and analyzes its internal reasons.Through research and analysis,the main points of this dissertation are as follows:Firstly,the Copts is an Egyptian minority with a unique Christian faith,good cultural level,and set the Egypt's national identity in first place.In terms of the internal of the Copts.the coptic orthodox church and the coptic secular elite have been competing for the leadership of the Copts,which not only causes the internal contradictions of the Copts,but also stimulates the progress of the Copts.Secondly,since entered Egypt,the Copts has experienced an all-round decline in the size and status of the ethnic group,and its culture has also been assimilated.The scale,status and culture of ethnic groups will change in the process of ethnic group interaction.Thirdly,the relationship between the Copts and Muslims is characterized by friendship and hostility,which cater to the needs of cooperation and competition namely.In times of friendship,because of the needs of cooperation,the majority ethnic groups will expand the inclusiveness of minorities.In contrast,in the hostile period,in order to win the competition for resources,the majority ethnic groups would highlight ethnic heterogeneity to clarify ethnic boundaries.The cause of the conflict between the Copts and Muslims is not the difference of religious belief,but the competition for the country's political,economic and cultural resources.Ethnic heterogeneity is not the cause of ethnic conflict,but the result of ethnic conflict.Fourthly,the competition between the Copts and Muslims has always existed,so the coptic question in Egyptian society is difficult to solve.Due to geographicl and historical factors,the ethnic issues of the middle east are complex and diverse.At present,there are great difficulties and challenges in solving ethnic problems in the Middle East.