Arabic text of SPP VIII 1198 and its significance for studying Arabisation of the Egyptian administration

The paper offers a reading of remnants of the Arabic text of SPP VIII 1198. The Greek part of this bilingual document has been known for a long time, but it could not be dated precisely with the indiction date preserved in the text. The dating formula that can be deciphered in the Arabic part allows the reconstruction of the exact dates for this and another tax receipt, PERF 573 = SBXVIII 13771, issued most probably by the same official. Different tax quotas indicated in the document are discussed as well. Moreover, an effort is made in the article to understand the identity of the issuing official and the document’s place of origin. Although it is almost certain that the tax receipt comes from the Egyptian province, it can be hypothesized that it was written originally in the capital city Al-Fusṭāṭ. Finally, some general conclusions about the process of the Arabisation of the Egyptian administration are drawn.