Aziz Suryal Atiya (Arabic: عزيز سوريال عطية, Coptic: Ⲁⲍⲓⲍ Ⲥⲟⲩⲣⲓⲁⲗ Ⲁϯⲁ; July 5, 1898 – September 24, 1988)[1] was an Egyptian Coptologist who was a Coptic historian and scholar and an expert in Islamic and Crusades studies.

[3] While at the University of Utah, Professor Atiya rediscovered ten lost papyri fragments related to the Mormon scripture, Book of Abraham, in the archives of the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art.

He matriculated at the University of Liverpool, where he earned a bachelor's degree with first-class honors in medieval and modern history, and obtained a PhD in Arabic and Islamic studies from the University of London.

[7] The chapters on the Copts in his book The History of Eastern Christianity (1968, 1980) have become landmarks, not only for specialists but also for the general public.

[8] He could speak English, Arabic, French, German, Italian, Latin, and to a lesser extent, Spanish, Greek, Coptic, Turkish, Welsh, and Dutch.