Saitic

Saitic, also called Saite, is an adjective used in Egyptology to designate things relating to Sais, a major ancient city in the western Nile Delta, or to the Saite period of Egyptian history, roughly 664–525 BCE. The Saite period, named after Sais, is the final great era of the First Millennium BCE known as the Late Period. It began after the end of Libyan influence and continued until the Persian conquest of Egypt under Cambyses II.

As a political era, the Saite dynasty (the 26th Dynasty) reestablished centralized authority, revived traditional temple building and art, and fostered economic and commercial activity, with Sais remaining a prominent cultural center. The period is also noted for a distinctive epigraphic and linguistic character in some inscriptions that are attributed to Sais, which scholars sometimes label as "Saitic." However, the term is mainly used as a toponymic or epigraphic descriptor rather than indicating a separate modern language. The language of this era is generally classified within Late Egyptian, with some texts showing regional spellings or characteristics associated with Sais.

Saitic is encountered in studies of inscriptions, royal titulary, and funerary texts from the Saite period. The term helps distinguish material tied to Sais or to the Saite kings from earlier Old or Middle Egyptian traditions and later Demotic and Coptic forms.

See also: Sais; Saite Dynasty; Late Egyptian; Demotic; Coptic.