The English word Copt is from New Latin Coptus, which is derived from Arabic qubṭi (pl: qubṭ and aqbāṭ), an Arabisation of the Coptic word kubti (Bohairic) and/or kuptaion (Sahidic). This word is in turn derived from the Greek word Αἰγύπτιος, aiguptios: "Egyptian", from Αἴγυπτος, aiguptos: "Egypt"

The etymological meaning of the word therefore pertains to all people of Egyptian origins, not only those who profess Coptic Orthodoxy. Medieval writers before the Mamluk period often used the words Copts (Arabic: ) and Egyptians (Arabic: ) interchangeably to describe all the people of Egypt whether Christian or Muslim

After the bulk of the Egyptian population converted to Islam, the word Copt came to be associated with Egyptians who retained their Christianity

In the 20th century, some Egyptian nationalists and intellectuals began using the term Copts in the historical sense. For example, Markos Pasha Semeika, founder of the Coptic Museum, addressed a group of Egyptian students in these words: "All of you are Copts. Some of you are Muslim Copts, others are Christian Copts, but all of you are descended from the Ancient Egyptians"